Westside overhaul put on hold

Deirdre Newman

“Where’s the blight?”

This question was asked repeatedly Monday night by Westside

industrial property owners and by Redevelopment Agency members during

a heated discussion of whether 434 acres should be added to the

city’s downtown redevelopment zone.

For the property owners, it was a question about physical

disrepair; for the agency, whether the economy on the Westside is

stagnant.

Because it is unclear whether the area’s economy is lagging, the

agency voted 4 to 0 to postpone a decision for six months.

The six-month delay will give independent consultants a chance to

begin an economic study of a commercial area that runs along 19th

Street east of Monrovia. It also will allow the Community

Redevelopment Action Committee the opportunity to present its vision

and goals for the Westside next month.

Industrial property owners, who have been the most vocal critics

of the redevelopment plans, showed their displeasure by booing and

hissing the consultants from Urban Futures during their presentation

Monday. Many owners charge that their property is not blighted

physically or economically, and they have lambasted city officials

for not having a clear strategy for the future of the Westside. They

also fear the prospect of the city buying their property through

eminent domain if it is labeled blighted.

The Planning Commission had given preliminary approval to the

boundaries, which run roughly along 15th Street, Whittier Avenue,

West 19th Street and Pomona Avenue, in January.

While the owners were heartened that the agency did not accept the

proposed boundaries Monday, many fear the redevelopment train will

keep chugging along, enticing agency members to jump on board farther

down the line.

“I think it’s better than having them decide to jut move ahead,

but I would have preferred to see them reject [the boundaries] or

send [them] back to the Planning Commission for downsizing,” said Dan

Gribble, owner of Boatswain’s Locker on West 18th Street. “The

problem is a lot of data provided by [the consultants] is either

dated or erroneous and I’m concerned they’re going to continue on

with that, and that the redevelopment agency may be swayed that way.”

Before the agency made its decision, 40 people spoke. Of those,

only three expressed support for redevelopment. One of them was Chris

Fewel, a resident of the Westside as well as a Costa Mesa business

owner.

Fewel tried to dispel what he considers some of misconceptions

about redevelopment.

“When it’s misunderstood, it can sound mean-spirited, onerous and

ugly,” Fewel said. “I challenge [the redevelopment agency] to educate

these people how you will use eminent domain judiciously and that

you’re not out to do anything but raise property values.”

The Westside is a mish-mash of industrial, residential and

commercial properties that evolved haphazardly and resulted in some

houses smacking up against industrial complexes. The Downtown

Redevelopment Project was established in 1973, and new territory has

been added three times -- the last time in 1980. It includes about

200 acres.

In October 2001, the city began a study on adding more land to the

area to spur economic development, on the recommendation of the

defunct Westside Specific Plan. The study provided sufficient

evidence that other parts of the city qualify for redevelopment.

The independent consultants did a preliminary study of blight to

eliminate properties that would not qualify and arrived at the

proposed boundaries by whittling the survey area from 900 acres to

600 to the current 434.

In the past few months, industrial property owners led by John

Hawley -- the owner of Railmakers -- have resisted inclusion in the

added territory and worked to clean up their properties. These owners

say their endeavors are making a noticeable change and should be

given more time to continue.

Other property owners railed against the prospect that the city

could take their property.

“I grew up very poor and brought myself up by working hard,” said

Brian Williams, who rents out the residential property he owns on the

Westside. “I believe in the American system. ...This property is

going up in value. I don’t believe in [eminent domain]. I don’t think

it’s American.”

Agency member Libby Cowan, who suggested the six-month

postponement, said she would like staff to meet with the diverse

group of property owners on the Westside and create guidelines of

what these owners need to do to maintain their property.

Cowan also recommended staff meet with developers who “are

currently salivating over redevelopment” to find out what would

attract them to the Westside without redevelopment.