California Supreme Court Rules to Eliminate Redevelopment Agencies

The Los Angeles Times reports on the potential ramifications of the state Supreme Court's ruling to uphold the Legislature's vote to eliminate the state's more than 400 redevelopment agencies and to strike down an accompanying compromise measure that would have permitted some agencies to continue as long as they shared their revenue. The decision is being described by Los Angeles officials and others as "the worst possible outcome' for cities and one that could be a 'watershed' decision for local economic development."

Also from the Los Angeles Times: "The court ruled unanimously in favor of a state law passed last summer that abolished redevelopment agencies and voted 6 to 1 to strike down a companion measure that would have allowed the agencies to continue if they shared their revenues.

More than 400 redevelopment agencies will cease to exist after Feb. 1. Authorized by law since 1945, the agencies have been responsible for such success stories as Old Pasadena and San Diego's Gaslamp Quarter but also plagued by projects that some argued had little public benefit."

Thanks to Jonathan Nettler