La Puente : Redevelopment Project OKd

The City Council on Tuesday granted final approval to a controversial 92.7-acre city redevelopment project.

A citizens group, fearful that the project will mean widespread evictions, responded by announcing that it has begun collecting signatures in an attempt to place the project on an upcoming ballot.

Council members, who tentatively approved the measure last month, said residents and business owners will be evicted only as a last resort.

The citizens group, which calls itself “Referendum Against Governmental Eviction,” was formed by Bernard Acton, president of the Project Area Committee, a state-mandated watchdog group appointed to protect the interests of residents and businesses located within the redevelopment area.

Acton said the referendum petition must by signed by 10% of La Puente’s registered voters in the next 30 days to qualify the issue for the ballot.