Capitol Mall Is Blighted
The following is what redevelopment funds were intended for:
From the California Redevelopment Association website
"What is blight?
Redevelopment can only be used in areas that suffer from adverse physical and economic conditions, defined in the law as “blight.”
The following types of adverse physical and economic conditions have been observed in redevelopment areas to be examples of blight.
Adverse Physical Conditions
• Unsafe building conditions;
• Aging, deteriorating, and poorly-maintained buildings, sometimes interspersed with well-maintained buildings;
• Incompatible adjacent or nearby uses of land parcels that hinder economic activity;
• Adverse physical factors, such as susceptibility to flooding and earthquakes, that demand significant improvements to buildings in order that they be safe for occupancy;
• Small and irregularly shaped lots under multiple ownership that are vacant or underutilized;
• Outdated and inefficient building configuration and design that does not meet current business needs;
• Unsafe access into buildings or parking lots; and
• Inadequate and obsolete infrastructure, (i.e. utilities, storm drainage, sewers, street lighting, and confusing and inefficient street systems).
Adverse Economic Conditions
• High business vacancies, low commercial leases and high turnover rates;
• Vacant and underutilized land or buildings;
• Depreciated or stagnant property values and other evidence of disinvestment;
• Hazardous waste and other negative environmental conditions;
• High incidences of criminal activity, sometimes equated with an over-concentration of bars, liquor stores or adult stores;
• Lack of neighborhood businesses to serve residents, such as banks, pharmacies or grocery stores; and
• Residential overcrowding. "
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