Legal Opinion Doubts Bill on Resort Housing Plan Is Constitutional

Legislation that would allow the desert resort community of Indian Wells to construct legally mandated homes for low income people outside its city limits is unconstitutional, the Legislature’s attorney declared in a formal opinion Wednesday.

The bill, which has passed the Legislature and is awaiting action by Gov. George Deukmejian, conflicts with the essential concept of redevelopment, which is to eliminate “blight,” said Legislative Counsel Bion M. Gregory.

Senator’s Request

In addition, he noted, construction of low income housing outside a city’s boundaries is not included among the expenditures allowed in the state Constitution for redevelopment funds.

The opinion, which is advisory and does not carry the weight of law, was prepared for Sen. William Campbell (R-Hacienda Heights), who asked whether the bill would violate a 1952 provision of the state Constitution which dealt with redevelopment. Campbell opposed the bill.

The bill, sponsored by developers of the $1-billion Sunterra resort complex in Indian Wells and opposed by the rival Marriott Corp., is not intended to eliminate blight but, instead, to resolve the issue of low and moderate income housing for resort workers, the opinion said.

Further, the opinion declared, the Legislature “has no power to extend the meaning” of the Constitution’s redevelopment provisions beyond what the voters approved in 1952.

In seeking to attract world-class resort developments, the city of Indian Wells, whose residents are the wealthiest per capita in California, declared itself a “blighted” area and spent redevelopment tax funds to construct, among other things, two championship golf courses.

However, redevelopment law requires that the city must spend 20% of its redevelopment tax receipts on housing for low and moderate income people. In this case, it would be mostly those workers who operated the resort complexes.

Result of Lawsuit

Indian Wells failed to provide all the required housing inside the city limits because it used up most available land for golf courses and other projects. Anti-poverty lawyers sued. To settle, Indian Wells agreed to provide 150 low income housing units within the city and to provide more beyond its city limits.

But the settlement required legislation to be implemented. In essence, the settlement was written into the bill carried by Sen. Robert B. Presley (D-Riverside).

The bill was passed overwhelmingly by the Assembly but the Senate sent it to Deukmejian last week with only a single vote to spare. The governor’s office said Deukmejian has taken no position on it.