By Dustin Gardiner | The Arizona Republic
A Maricopa County jury has awarded nearly $3 million in damages to the owner of a downtown Phoenix parking lot because light rail construction cut off access from the lot to an arterial street.
The verdict is the outcome of a near decade-long legal battle between Phoenix and John Garretson, who owns the parking lot at Jefferson and First streets. In 2006, the city began light rail construction and cut off two driveways that connected the property to Jefferson Street.
Garretson complained the move decreased the value of his property, which is on a high-profile corner across from Talking Stick Resort Arena, and he demanded compensation.
