THE RISE AND (UNINTENDED) FALL OF REDEVELOPMENT IN CALIFORNIA.

The rise and fall of redevelopment agencies in California has been extensively written about, including in this publication. The history of redevelopment will not be repeated here, other than to state that since the adoption of the Community Redevelopment Act (“CRA”) in 1951 redevelopment has been a driving force in remaking the urban landscape of many communities in California.

As most people now know, by 2010 Governor Brown had made it a priority to shift tax increment funds previously allocated to redevelopment agencies, and which would typically remain under local control, to state functions such as education. The state is constitutionally mandated to make sure children throughout California receive a basic level of funding for their education, and given the budget deficits of the last decade, available funds were scarce. Tax increment funds in the cof- fers of redevelopment agencies were an inviting target, and the state viewed those funds as a way to satisfy unfunded state mandates. The redevelopment agencies resisted, of course, and in 2010 sponsored a successful statewide proposition (Proposition 22) amending the California Constitution to preclude such a money grab.

Originally published in "Real Estate Newsletter, Volume 24, Number 6", in July 2014.