17 Oct Unholy Alliances in the Vacuum of Redevelopment Agencies
Vallejo’s problems are far more insidious than simply bringing in more wealthy individuals, and using economic blight in a regressive sales tax as a mechanism. Prior to 2010 California cities had a mechanism for dealing with economic blight and they were called “Redevelopment agencies”. Many California Cities like Pleasant Hill California, Pittsburg, Concord, and others used “eminent domain” to acquire blighted properties in their old down towns.
Since the late 1980’s until today Vallejo’s down town is owned by just a few individuals that are influential and donated heavily to Council Elections. They also have great influence in the Chamber of Commerce. This is why acquiring their blighted down town properties from a redevelopment agency and build new business and living infrastructure was never accomplished.
In 2007 The City of Vallejo hired Joe Tanner as the new CM, who was the architect of the Pleasant Hill down town redevelopment plan, and got us through bankruptcy. His skills were not wanted or appreciated and he was forced out leaving our downtown to the special interests that own them.
In 2010 because of the great recession, redevelopment agencies were eliminated and Vallejo had missed a golden opportunity to develop its down town. Now fast forward to today and we have the Mare Island Company wanting to develop Mare Island yet we have no mechanism to let them do it for basically free so our Council gave them 157 acres for free, and hopes to pass a sales tax to support more freebees to developers.
Our Chamber of Commerce supporting such a regressive sales tax is clearly against small business and small retail, and many of its average Vallejoans in favor of big developers and big box chains as they just gave COSTCO $7 million to help them relocate to a new parcel. In the end call it what you wish, gentrification, corporatization, anti small business, but the result is the same and it is an ongoing failure of a model that plays itself out again and again in Vallejo since the demise of redevelopment agencies.
A sales tax cannot and has not ever in Vallejo performed economic redevelopment better than eminent domain, and bonds to revitalize business infrastructure. In 2011 this very scenario was played in a one percent sales tax hike that we have been paying for ten years, and now they want another sales tax to pay for the same things. As an unholy alliance of convenience we have an alliance between public safety unions and the chamber of commerce to continue to fund 3/4 of the general fund in their salaries and benefits, and the little that is left to promote giving away land and other freebees to big box businesses and developers.
Currently, we have four Council members and the Vice Mayor that are complicit with the special interests and came out in support of Measure P. We must do better if we are to accomplish measurable improvements and change in Vallejo. Vice Mayor Aliga, Councilwoman Meissner, Councilwoman Dew, Councilman Brown, and Councilwoman Diaz must be held accountable and not trusted to hold office beyond their terms in Vallejo. Please consider not voting for candidates endorsed by any of the above as well as Jumpstart and VALPAC (Chamber of Commerce). Change starts with us, please vote No on Measure P and NO against any candidate with toxic endorsements or Support Measure P.