We recommend a recent article by Stve Greenhut, California’s Secret Government, appearing in the Spring 2011 (Vol. 21, No. 2) issue of CITY JOURNAL. A good read, that. Go to http://www.city-journal.org/2011/21_2_california-redevelopment-agencies.html
Our favorite quote that says it all:
“In theory, RDAs spearhead blight removal. In fact, they divert billions of dollars from traditional services, such as schools, parks, and firefighting; use eminent domain to seize property for favored developers; and run up California’s debt to pay those developers to construct projects of dubious public value, such as stadiums and big-box stores. Most Californians have long been unaware that these agencies exist. As the activist group Municipal Officials for Redevelopment Reform puts it, RDAs constitute an “unknown government” that “consumes 12 percent of all property taxes statewide,” is “supported by a powerful Sacramento lobby,” and is “backed by an army of lawyers, consultants, bond brokers and land developers.”
Well said.