BREA : Council Approves Relocation Plan

The City Council has unanimously approved a court-ordered relocation plan for a 50-acre downtown redevelopment project.

The council, acting as the Redevelopment Agency, also set up regulations for relocation assistance, the filing of grievances and acquiring property.

In deliberations marked by protests from opponents of the project, the council Tuesday night approved the plan--in compliance with state laws and an order by a Superior Court judge--to address relocation needs for residents and businesses likely to be displaced by the redevelopment project.

Mayor Ronald E. Isles, who said he had a prior commitment, left before the vote was taken, while Councilman Carrey J. Nelson, citing a possible conflict of interest, abstained. Councilmen Burnie Dunlap, Glenn G. Parker and Wayne D. Wedin voted to adopt the plan.

Although some opponents of the multimillion-dollar residential-commercial project walked out at one point during the council deliberations, most reserved comment until after a meeting between the city and the Brea Small Business Coalition, which was set for late Wednesday.

However, Bill Vega, one of the coalition leaders, said he was appalled that the city did not consider policy differences with the state Department of Housing and Community Development before approving the final draft of the plans.

“The city has tried to bypass the state,” Vega said. “I feel it’s inappropriate for the city to defy the sincere desire of the HCD to protect the interests of those who will be displaced.”

City Atty. James L. Markman said the Department of Housing and Community Development has made draft comments and will issue a formal comment on the plan later. He said the city’s plan was in substantial compliance with state guidelines and whatever differences were a “matter of interpretation.”

Mike Leifer, an attorney for the business coalition, said the Department of Housing and Community Development had the power of review and could go to court to enforce compliance.

The relocation plan was won in court by the business coalition when Superior Court Judge Robert C. Todd ruled in June that activity of any kind in the project area should stop until a relocation plan was completed.

Seven businesses and 14 households will be affected by future property acquisition plans by the Redevelopment Agency, according to a study conducted by a city-hired consultant, Pacific Relocation Consultants of Long Beach.