Likely for the first time in its history, the Fort Collins Urban Renewal Authority is using the eminent domain process to try to acquire a blighted property.
Inspections of the former El Palomino Motel, 1220 N. College Ave., revealed methamphetamine, asbestos and groundwater contamination, said URA Executive Director Josh Birks, and the URA is now asking a court to allow it to take the property via eminent domain and condemn it.
The URA was previously under contract with the seller to purchase the site for $2.6 million, he said…