Delay Backed in Submitting CRA’s Budget

The financially troubled Community Redevelopment Agency, weighed down by budget and management problems, approved an extension Thursday to allow its new interim manager more time to come up with a budget.

The extension was requested by Jerry Scharlin, the consultant hired in July to take over the CRA on a temporary basis.

Scharlin had been operating under a City Council-approved 60-day extension that called for a budget from the CRA by mid-August. He asked CRA commissioners for an extension allowing him to hand the budget in by Sept. 30.

“We’re currently in the process of reviewing the budget,” he said, adding that getting the financial projections in order by the Aug. 18 deadline was possible but that he preferred to have a cushion in case the budget was not done by then.

The extension would ensure that CRA operations--such as payroll, contractual obligations and development projects--will be funded as the budget is prepared.

The commissioners voted 4 to 0 to approve Scharlin’s request. City Council approval is also required.

The extension is an “absolute necessity,” commission Chairwoman Peggy Moore said. “We just brought him on board and we need to give him a bit of time.”

The CRA, which uses property tax assessments to fund development projects and attack urban blight, recently reported that it is $630 million in debt. It has slashed the number of employees nearly in half to about 200.

Meanwhile, the number of projects it controls is up from 17 to 31 and there is concern at City Hall that its projects are not proving as effective as they should in helping troubled areas improve.

Scharlin was hired last month on a six-month contract to help bring order to the CRA budget by prioritizing its 31 development areas.

His hiring was somewhat controversial at City Hall because he lacks redevelopment experience. The Encino resident has 13 years of experience as a corporate turnaround expert and in asset management.