City Council Assumes Redevelopment Portfolio

The City Council voted Monday night to assume some of the duties formerly performed by its redevelopment agency.

The action is supposed to give San Leandro more control over some projects while complying with that abolish redevelopment entities.

The vote was 6-0 with Vice Mayor Michael Gregory absent.

What the end of redevelopment means remained vague Monday night. City staff and council members tried to grasp the effects of a change that is going to affect roughly $16 million in property tax revenues.

That's how much community development director Luke Sims estimated had flowed through the redevelopment agency in a year.

Sims said the vast majority of those funds went to cover bond payments and recurring costs for ongoing contracts for projects including the Senior Center, 9th Grade Gymnasium and the downtown garage.

One result of Monday night's action is that the city will continue to get property tax revenues to pay off debts for past projects such as these. But it will not be able to begin new developments.

The city will also get some funds to pay for this administrative task.

Councilwoman Diana Souza wanted to know how much it now costs the city to administer redevelopment, to know whether San Leandro would get enough to cover the expenses of its new role.

Sims said he was not prepared to answer that question Monday night.

Councilwoman Joyce Starosciak and Mayor Stephen Cassidy asked questions, the thrust of which were to make sure the city would not incur new liabilities to its general fund as a result of Monday night's action.

City Attorney Jayne Williams said, that in her professional opinion, the city would not assume new liabilities that would have to be paid out of its general fund.

The redevelopment agency has already transferred to the City Council a handful of large properties like the old Albertson's site on East 14th Street.

The city's has planned to sell that property to developer David Irmer who is hoping for approval to create a shopping and food court that he calls the . 

The transfer was supposed to facilitate that transaction and keep some properties under city control for possible future development.

Sims told Patch he was sure there would be "a viable, legal way" for San Leandro to complete the sale of the Albertson's site and enable Irmer to go ahead. But the situation is more complicated now that the redevelopment agency that began the project is going away.

The brief meeting ended with more questions than answers.

A workshop is being planned for January 23. At that time city staff will give a better accounting of administrative costs, obligations, revenues and property assets that are or were under the control of the revelopment agency.

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