Here are some snippets of a story running in tomorrow’s paper:
BALDWIN PARK — The City Council needs a pair of proposals to pass if it hopes to revitalize 125 acres of downtown real estate, officials said.
The proposals would extend Baldwin Park’s eminent domain authority for another 12 years in both the Central Business District and the Sierra Vista redevelopment project areas. One amendment would allow the city to extend its authority to residential property not previously included.
A proposal by the Bisno Development Co. seeking to redevelop 125 downtown acres includes property in portions of both zones.
Negotiations between the city and the developer remain ongoing. If the extensions do not pass, the project — in its entirety — would not be feasible, City Attorney Joseph Pannone said.
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Pannone said the proposed amendments will go before the project area committees for each redevelopment area and the Planning Commission next month for review.
While the City Council will have final say over whether the amendments are passed, if the project area committees vote against the recommendations, the amendments will required a 4/5 vote by the council for approval, Pannone said.
I’ll likely be following the downtown project and related issues next week, because in addition to the amendments, the city is also apparently seeking a resolution of necessity — something it needs to pass before Dec. 1 in order to continue with eminent domain proceedings despite Prop. 99.
