LOS ALAMITOS : Council Lays Plans for Redevelopment
Realizing that the city’s economic future is bleak unless action is taken to attract new businesses, the City Council voted this week to lay the groundwork for a Redevelopment Agency.
In giving the go-ahead for such an agency, the council conceded that the city must change and become more aggressive in pursuing businesses, which will in turn bring in more money to the city through sales tax revenue.
Most cities have a redevelopment agency, City Manager Robert C. Dunek said, placing Los Alamitos at “a distinct disadvantage in pursuing new businesses.â€
He cited Hawaiian Gardens in Los Angeles County as one of the cities that had recently tried to lure a Los Alamitos lumber company.
Nearly $600,000 of the city’s $6.1-million budget last year came from reserve funds because of a steep decline in sales taxes collected by the city, Dunek said.
“The decreasing retail sales tax had quite a ripple effect,†Dunek said. “The city has to learn to better manage our economic base . . . (and) to play a more significant role in the local economy.â€
Redevelopment within the city was discussed in general terms, with no mention of any “target†areas or any time frame.
Council members stressed that forming a redevelopment agency was not to be seen as the answer to all of the city’s economic problems, nor a quick-fix solution.
“It is not a panacea,†Mayor Robert P. Wahlstrom said. “This is not a way of creating a superfund for us to spend more money. It is a significant part of a long-term plan.â€
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