Friday, March 16, 2012
On February 1, 2012, approximately 400 local Community Redevelopment Agencies ceased to exist in California, redirecting more than $1 billion to help close California's huge budget gap. These agencies, authorized in the 1940s to subsidize construction in blighted areas, have created affordable housing, revitalized downtown areas and generated resources to fund urban infill development and infrastructure throughout the County, including the Westside of Los Angeles, and the cities of Culver City, Santa Monica, and West Hollywood. However, while many of the Agencies have had positive impacts, some created frivolous projects, wasted Redevelopment funds, or let funds idle in Agencies' coffers, denying the community they were created to serve.
The Agencies' assets and liabilities will be transferred to successor agencies to wind down the agencies' affairs. Successor agencies are authorized to terminate existing agreements if adequate compensation is provided.
Future efforts to use redevelopment as a tool for local agencies to eliminate blight and improve their communities are now in the hands of the state. Long term implications of the closures on local economies are still being evaluated.
What are the long term implications of the closures on local economies? What new opportunities are created?
What are we going to do differently this time?
Join us at the Olympic Collection on March 16, 2012 and listen to our panel of experts on these issues, moderated by Renata Simril, managing director of the real estate services firm Jones Lang LaSalle. The Panel includes Honorable Zev Yaroslavsky, Madeline Janis co-founder and executive director of Los Angeles Alliance for a New Economy, and Sarah Letts, Executive Director of the Community Corporation of Santa Monica.
Moderator
Renata Simril- Managing Director, Jones Lang LaSalle
Panelists
Honorable Zev Yaroslavsky - Member, Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors
Madeline Janis- Co-Founder, LAANE
Sarah Letts- Executive Director, Community Corporation of Santa Monica
