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HomeMy Public PortalAbout01-143 - Approving Payment by the Agency of all or Part of the Cost of the Installation and Construction RESOLUTION NO. 01-143 A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF CARSON, CALIFORNIA, APPROVING PAYMENT BY THE AGENCY OF ALL OR PART OF THE COST OF THE INSTALLATION AND CONSTRUCTION OF IMPROVEMENTS TO THE VETERANS SPORTS COMPLEX The City Council of the City of Carson, California, hereby finds, determines, resolves and orders as follows: Section 1. Pursuant to provisions of the Community Redevelopment Law (California Health and Safety Code Section 33000, et seq.), and in particular Section 33445 thereof, the Carson Redevelopment Agency proposes to pay for all or a part of the cost of improvements ("Improvements") to the Veterans Sports Complex including the installation and construction of a lobby, concrete walkways, security lighting and fencing, stairways to dugouts, parking lot striping, storage rooms, gymnasium lighting, turf, a reclaimed water irrigation system, a public announcement system, a Veterans Memorial Wall and a remote restroom. The roof and all water-damaged areas including wood floors, walls and ceiling will be removed and replaced. In addition, several meeting room activity rooms and restrooms will be remodeled or upgraded to meet American's with Disabilities Act requirements (Improvements). The Veterans Sports Complex is located at 22400 Moneta Avenue, Carson, California, 90745 in Redevelopment Project Area No. 2 which is a component project area of the Merged and Amended Redevelopment Project Area of the Carson Redevelopment Agency. The 25,000 square foot Veterans Sports Complex seated within the 12-acre park is an architecturally distinctive building that provides an ideal youth oriented learning and recreational environment. The facilities include meeting rooms, a fitness center and gymnasium, as well as volleyball, racquetball, and basketball courts. The Veterans Sports Complex and Veterans Park offer comprehensive recreational programs for youths and adults as well as special interest classes. The Kids Club after school program is one of many youth programs. Of all the city's parks and recreational facilities, the Veterans Park Sports Complex is the most heavily used. In November each year, it is the site of the Veterans Day program. The Improvements will eliminate existing deficiencies at Veterans Park and the Veterans Sports Complex. The Sports Complex roof and various walls, floors and ceilings have water damage. The improvements will replace all water-damaged construction including the roof. The Sports Complex does not have a public announcement system or adequate gymnasium lighting. The Improvements will provide a pubic announcement system as well as gymnasium lighting. Several meeting rooms, activity rooms and restrooms do not meet current American's with Disabilities Act requirements. The meeting rooms, activity rooms and restrooms will be remodeled or upgraded to meet current requirements. The playing fields are deficient and the dugouts are below grade. The Improvements will eliminate the flooding problem, replace the irrigation system and turf, and provide stairs to the dugouts. The Veterans Park Sports Complex serves the residents, employees and taxpayers of the City and primarily Redevelopment Project Area No. 1 and the Merged and Amended Redevelopment Project Area (collectively, the "Project Areas"), which Project Areas consist of approximately 3,065 acres and include a variety of industrial, commercial, public and residential uses. In particular, the Veterans Park Sports Complex is located in Project Area No. 2 which is a component project area of the Merged and Amended Project Area and which includes approximately 730 acres. The City Council of the City of Carson previously determined that each Project Area is an area in which the combination of conditions of blight is so prevalent and so substantial that it causes a reduction of, or lack of, proper utilization of the area to such an =_ extent that it constitutes a serious physical, social and economic burden on the community which cannot reasonably be expected to be reversed or alleviated by private enterprise or governmental action, or both, without redevelopment. Most of the land "in the City of Carson developed during the 1940's, 50's and 60's with minimal zoning control while under the jurisdiction of the County of Los Angeles. As a result, land use patterns were inconsistent, resulting in adverse physical and economic conditions. For example, refineries and junkyards were located next to single-family homes with little or no buffering. Since the adoption of the Redevelopment Plan for Redevelopment Project Area No. 1 in 1971, the Agency has acted as a catalyst to accomplish redevelopment of the Project Areas, including assisting with the development of the Veterans Park Sports Complex in June 1990. However, as described in the Carson Redevelopment Agency Implementation Plan (1995-1999) and the Carson Redevelopment Agency Implementation Plan (2000- 2004), prepared pursuant to Health and Safety Code Section 33490, conditions of blight still exist throughout the Project Areas. Such conditions of blight include the existence of dilapidated and unsafe buildings and structures; properties which suffer from economic maladjustment, dislocation, and disuse; buildings suffering from defective design and substandard design; the presence of mixed, shifting and incompatible uses; properties suffering from depreciated or stagnant property values; vacant and underutilized properties; the presence of subdivided lots of irregular form, shape and inadequate size for proper usefulness; and the presence of environmentally contaminated properties and closed landfill sites. In addition, the Project Areas are characterized by the existence of inadequate open spaces, public improvements and public facilities, including inadequate community facilities, which cannot be remedied by private or governmental action without redevelopment. The installation and construction of the proposed Improvements to the Veterans Sports Complex and Veterans Park will allow the City to continue to, and enhance the City's ability to, provide much needed public educational, recreational, and social programs as well as useable open space area which is available to the residents, taxpayers and employees of the Project Areas and the City. Thus, the installation and construction of the proposed Improvements to the Community Center will serve the City's need for modern facilities to accommodate educational, recreational, social and other programs to promote physical and mental health, thereby remedying conditions which are conducive to crime and juvenile delinquency in the Project Areas. The lack of adequate public improvements serving the Project Areas is a factor, which prevents or substantially hinders the economically viable use or capacity of buildings or lots in the Project Areas. The installation and construction of the proposed Improvements to the Veterans Sports Complex and Veterans Park will allow the Agency to address this condition by providing a modern, efficient facility that promotes business development and retention. The conceptual design of the Veterans Sports Complex was designed to provide F' beautification and improve aesthetics, thereby enhancing the desirability of the { surroundings. This factor, together with the services and facilities offered by the Veterans Park Sports Complex that are attractive to businesses, such as meeting rooms, a fitness center, a gymnasium, and racquetball, basketball and volleyball courts, help retain businesses in the Project Areas and stimulate private investment in the Project Areas, thereby promoting the economic growth and development of the Project Areas, including the creation of more jobs in the Project Areas. Without the proposed Improvements, the Veterans Park Sports Complex ability to serve this function will be severely hampered. Based on the foregoing, the installation and construction of the Improvements to the Veterans Sports Complex and Veterans Park will assist in eliminating conditions of blight within the Project Areas and will serve a basic purpose of redevelopment, which includes t the provision of structures as may be appropriate or necessary in the interest of the general welfare, including recreational facilities. In addition, a fundamental purpose of redevelopment is to provide an environment for the social, economic and psychological growth and well being of all citizens. The proposed Improvements to the Veterans Sports Complex and Veterans Park will help ensure that the Veterans Sports Complex continues to be a modern and efficient facility which serves the residents, employees and taxpayers of the City, including the human need for recreation and social interaction which is necessary for the well-being of the community. Section 2. Following notice duly given, the City Council and Agency have held a duly noticed public hearing pursuant to California Health and Safety Code Section 33679, on the payment by the Agency for all or a part of the cost of the installation and construction of the Improvements to the Veterans Sports Complex and Veterans Park. Section 3. The budget constraints of the City prevent the City from financing the installation and construction of the Improvements to the Veterans Sports Complex and Veterans Park by any means. While the City currently has budget surpluses and significant reserves and an unreserved and non-designated general fund balance, the City Council has determined that such surplus, balance and reserves are not an appropriate source of funding at this time. The surplus, reserves and balance follow several years of City financial difficulty. Moreover, many economists predict that the already existing economic uncertainty together with the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon in Washington D. C. on September 11, 2001 and the United State's resulting war on terrorism will tip the United States into a recession. According to CNN, job cuts in the United States hit a ten-year high in the month of September, 2001; employers cut 199,000 jobs outside the farm sector B the largest number of job cuts since 259,000 jobs were cut in February 1991 when the United States was fighting the Gulf War and its economy was in a recession. The Labor Department indicated that the above figure probably does not reflect the full impact of the terrorist attacks that led several companies, especially those in the airline industry, to cut thousands of jobs. According to Merrill Lynch chief economist Bruce Steinberg, October job losses could easily be worse and the unemployment rate is headed for six percent. According to CNN, weekly claims for unemployment benefits recently hit their highest level in nine years. Economists have grave concerns regarding the effect of the attacks on consumer spending, which reportedly fuels two-thirds of the economy. In light of the further economic uncertainty generated by the terrorist attacks, the City must continue to maintain its reserves and build its general fund balance to provide protection against future City financial distress The City of Carson does not impose general developer or impact fees. The funding of other public improvements and health and safety improvements may have to rely on the City's general fund surpluses and reserves, as the safety and security of the residents and taxpayers of the City, and visitors to the City, is of paramount importance. Traditional methods of financing such as the issuance of general obligation bonds is unavailable as a practical matter because of the extraordinary majority voter approval requirements of two-thirds of the electorate. Assessment financing or special tax financing could overburden benefiting properties with assessments or special taxes, which would be added to existing taxes, and assessments, and, in addition, special taxes require a two-thirds vote and special assessments are subject to a majority protest, making these methods unavailable as a practical matter. Section 4. The City Council hereby finds and determines that based upon the foregoing and other information presented to it: (a) the installation and construction of the Improvements to the Veterans Sports Complex and Veterans Park are of benefit to the Project Areas and to the immediate neighborhoods in which the projects are located, (b) the payment of funds for all or a part of the cost of the installation and construction of the Improvements assists in the elimination of one or more blighting conditions inside the Project Areas, (c) the payment of funds for all or a part of the cost of the installation and construction of the Improvements is consistent with the Agency's implementation plans adopted pursuant to Health and Safety Code Section 33490 and is categorized as a high priority in the most recent implementation plan; and (d) no other reasonable means of financing the installation and construction of the Improvements are available to the City. Section 5. The City Council hereby approves payment by the Agency of all or a part of the cost of the installation and construction of the Improvements from any revenues of the Agency lawfully available therefor. i PASSED, APPROVED and ADOPTED this 7th day of November, 2001. ` MAYOR LAW I ATTEST: CITY CLERK APPROVED AS TO FORM: CITY ATTORNEY STATE OF CALIFORNIA ) COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES ) ss. CITY OF CARSON ) I, Helen S. Kawagoe, City Clerk of the City of Carson, California, do hereby certify that the whole number of members of the City Council is five; that the foregoing resolution, being Resolution No. 01-143 was duly and regularly adopted by said Council at an adjourned regular meeting duly and regularly held on the 7' day of November, 2001 and that the same was passed and adopted by the following vote: AYES: COUNCIL MEMBERS: Mayor Sweeney, Frank, Ontal, and Dear NOES: COUNCIL MEMBERS: None ABSTAIN: COUNCIL MEMBERS: Calas ABSENT: COUNCIL MEMBERS: None City Clerk, City of Carson, Cal forma _ r