Council Critics Win Repeal of Redevelopment : Government: Fearing the city’s condemnation power, petitioners gathered more than enough signatures to force a vote. Instead, the council acted to restore ‘peace, harmony.’

The City Council this week voted to scrap an ambitious redevelopment plan that had drawn heated criticism from residents.

The council decided Monday to repeal an ordinance that would have expanded Pico Rivera’s redevelopment area to include about 30% of the city. Redevelopment supporters had contended that the expansion was vital to the city’s economic future, but critics said they feared the city would condemn homes and businesses in the new redevelopment zones.

Critics had collected enough signatures from registered voters to force a citywide vote on the issue.

Council member Alberto Natividad said he supported the repeal in order to restore “peace, harmony and relative tranquility in the community.”

But he was clearly displeased. “There has been gross ignorance,” he told a standing-room-only audience of about 120 residents. “People of Mexican descent who have not been in this country long distrust the government because they distrust the government from which they came. They think the government will run roughshod (over) their wishes. There’s a mistaken belief that their homes will be taken with no compensation.”

To address residents’ fears, council members previously had amended the plan to ensure that the city would not condemn single-family homes occupied by their owners in the expanded redevelopment zone. But members of a grass-roots citizens group said this action was not enough. They said the council could change its mind in the future, and that community businesses also needed protection from condemnation proceedings.

As soon as the council approved the redevelopment expansion in July, community organizers began gathering signatures to place the measure on the ballot. They ultimately gathered 3,012 signatures, well over the 2,207 required.

The City Council had the option of calling an election or repealing the expansion. Council members decided to cut their losses.

“I have a strong belief if matters would go to the voters on special election, that voters would resoundingly defeat the motion,” Natividad said. “I have attempted on many occasions to explain the redevelopment action and have not been successful in convincing people it’s in their best interest.”

It was a complete victory for residents and business owners, said attorney Christopher Sutton, who represented the citizens group. “Most city councils don’t think the citizens will be strong enough to fight,” he said. “We proved them wrong.”

The council action was greeted with cheers, but many residents said they would not forgive council members for expanding the redevelopment zones in the first place.

“You don’t have to go to Mexico not to trust politicians. We don’t trust politicians from here,” said Antonia Rios, an area resident since 1955. “We’re still afraid for our houses.”

Ofelia Rodriguez, a leading community organizer, said that the city had awakened its voters from years of apathy. “We’re not going to be asleep any more,” she said.

The death of the redevelopment expansion has left officials pondering their next move for this 8.5-square-mile city of about 59,000 residents.

City studies describe the area targeted for redevelopment as a patchwork of dilapidated properties, unused parcels and unfinished improvement projects, as well as thriving businesses and well-tended homes. The expanded zone had included the Pico Rivera municipal golf course, five city parks and an abandoned elementary school property. And it encompassed neighborhoods where businesses and houses have sprung up side by side, streets where residents have started to bar their windows to keep out crime, and blocks where some homeowners have failed to clear trash or derelict automobiles from yards.

In an interview prior to Monday’s meeting, attorney Sutton said Pico Rivera officials must work more closely with residents and business owners, and include them in discussions of the city’s improvement plans.

City officials said that the plan for expanded redevelopment areas would have produced developments that would have increased the city’s tax base. They said the plan could also have been used to improve city parks and streets as well as the city’s residential areas.

“Now we’ll have to go back to the drawing board and do what we can,” Mayor Garth Gardner said.