Bellflower : Court Gives City Go-Ahead for Redevelopment Agency

Nearly five years after voters approved city-sponsored redevelopment, Bellflower officials finally have received approval to form a Redevelopment Agency.

Voters passed a hotly contested redevelopment plan in 1988 and, after legal wrangling with other government entities hoping for a larger slice of the tax pie, the City Council approved redevelopment in a 1991 ordinance. But because Los Angeles County would receive less tax revenue from Bellflower commercial areas, the county sued the city in an attempt to rescind the ordinance.

In a decision dated Sept. 2, San Bernardino Superior Court Judge Carl Davis ruled for the city. In the 10-page ruling, Davis denied all of the county’s contentions, saying that Bellflower had enough blight to warrant redevelopment and that the city’s environmental impact report was sufficient.

Redevelopment Agency projects increase the value of affected property, and the agency uses the taxes generated by the more valuable property to make additional improvements.