New Area for Redevelopment Is Proposed

Ventura should consider establishing a new redevelopment area just east of downtown that would allow the city to condemn stores and other privately owned property in an effort to eliminate blight, City Council members proposed Monday.

The council, acting as the city’s Redevelopment Agency, said at a special meeting that the new zone could be established in an area adjacent to the city’s existing downtown revitalization zone.

“We’re at a critical point now in downtown,” Councilman Steve Bennett said. “It’s all either going to hang (together) or it’s not.”

The proposal comes at a time when the city’s original downtown revitalization area is running out of money. That area is bounded roughly by Palm Street on the east, the Ventura River on the west, the Southern Pacific railroad tracks on the south and Poli Street on the north.

The city hopes to transform that area’s vacant lots, thrift stores and parking lots into a neighborhood combining condominiums and townhouses with more upscale retail stores.

The new zone, as sketched hastily by city staff in a presentation to the agency, could run from Palm on the west to Ash Street on the east, and from Poli on the north to the railroad tracks on the south.

However, the city could face opposition to another redevelopment zone. The ongoing efforts to revitalize western downtown have created considerable controversy among some merchants and others in the community as the city has considered forcing out businesses that have operated in the area for years.

Redevelopment agencies are created by cities to improve neighborhoods deemed to be blighted. As property values increase, all of the extra property taxes go to the redevelopment agency--not to schools, the county or special districts.

The agency can use property tax money to spur private investment, while the City Council can only direct that revenue toward such public improvements as streets or lighting.

The city’s Redevelopment Agency has only $5.5 million in cash and assets to spend on spiffing up the first downtown redevelopment area.

At least six developers, however, are asking for loans and subsidies on five different projects in the zone. City staff say there is probably not enough money to go around.

Instead, council members say they will consider continuing their efforts downtown by creating the new zone adjacent to the existing one.

This would allow the agency to collect even more tax increment dollars from the downtown area, and increase the number of parcels it can acquire by eminent domain. Once a redevelopment agency condemns and subsequently acquires a property, it usually tries to sell the land for what its members deem appropriate development.

On Monday, however, council members merely asked city staff to prepare a preliminary study examining the feasibility of creating a new redevelopment zone. Such a study could cost $10,000 to $15,000, said Everett Millais, city director of community services.

Councilman Gregory L. Carson, who serves as the Redevelopment Agency’s director, said the new zone presents “an opportunity to really make a difference in our downtown.”

“If we can somehow get some more money into the downtown area, we could make a real impact.”