Redevelopment Funds Bankroll "Boondoggle" Projects

January 10, 2012

Dear Editor,

Frank Gruber hits the nail on the head in his support for the elimination of redevelopment agencies. ("WHAT I SAY: Ironies of Redevelopment," January 9, 2012)

While the original idea behind a tax set-aside for urban renewal projects may have been well-intended, and some good projects did result from them, the agencies have too often become tools for developers and the politically well-connected.

The term "boondoggle" might well have been invented for a number of the projects. Gruber is right that the next legislation to adjust is Proposition 13. Let's de-couple commercial properties from the residential to set market values as the basis for taxation of commercial properties, and let's return to majority rule for all future taxation proposals.

Rodney Punt
Santa Monica