What Is Redevelopment?

What is Redevelopment?

Redevelopment is a process created by the State to assist city government in eliminating blight from a designated area, and to achieve desired development, reconstruction, and rehabilitation including (but not limited to): residential, commercial, industrial, and retail. The State allows a locality to capture much of the property tax from new development in redevelopment areas to accomplish these goals.

How does Redevelopment work?

Tax increment generated in a Redevelopment Area must be spent in that area to address blight, and to achieve desired development, reconstruction, and rehabilitation. The exception is that 20% of the tax increment must be spent on the development and conservation of affordable housing. These funds are placed into the “Low Income Housing Fund” (LIHF). In Vacaville, LIHF can be spent both inside and outside the Redevelopment Areas, as long as the property is located within the City limits. Fifteen percent of new housing developed within a Redevelopment Area must be affordable and have recorded affordability restrictions. Housing units assisted outside the area can be counted toward meeting this requirement; however, twice the number of units outside the Areas are needed to meet this requirement.

Under Redevelopment Law, there are two key mechanisms for Redevelopment. These are the ability of the Redevelopment Agency to undertake major projects by issuing bonds and the ability of Redevelopment Agencies to assemble and negotiate for the development/redevelopment of land. Most Redevelopment Agencies also have the power of eminent domain; however, in Vacaville, this power was specifically withheld from the Agency.

Redevelopment is one of the most effective ways to breathe new life into deteriorated areas plagued by social, physical, and environmental or economic conditions which act as a barrier to new investment by private enterprise. Through Redevelopment, a project area will receive focused attention and financial investment from the property tax revenue to reverse deteriorating trends, create jobs, revitalize the business climate, rehabilitate and add to the housing stock, and gain active participation and investment by citizens which would not otherwise occur.

What have been the benefits of Redevelopment in Vacaville?

Vacaville has two very different Redevelopment Areas. The Vacaville Community Redevelopment Area includes the historic Downtown area of Vacaville and the land west of Putah South Canal and I-80 north to Vaca Valley Parkway. At the time of its formation, the Downtown portion of this Area was a classic redevelopment area, characterized by older housing stock, a distressed Downtown area, vacant parcels, deteriorating trailer parks along what was once U.S. Highway 40 (now Monte Vista Avenue), and an underutilized vegetable dehydrating plant. The northern portion of the Area north of Monte Vista Avenue to Vaca Valley Parkway was largely undeveloped. The main focus of attention in this Area has been the commercial revitalization and preservation of the Historic Downtown, the redevelopment of the former Basic American Foods site, and revitalization of the East Monte Vista Avenue/Brown Street area.

The I-505/I-80 Redevelopment Area is located east of the Vacaville Community Redevelopment Area. It is to the east of Putah South Canal, west of Leisure Town Road, and south of Midway Road. It includes the property between I-505 and I-80. Almost all of this Area was largely vacant, underutilized land at the time its Redevelopment Plan was adopted. The main focus of this area has been the development of major retail and light industrial uses and the development of a Kaiser Permanente medical center and a college satellite campus. The retail development has included The Factory Stores, Vacaville Commons, the Auto Mall, and several restaurants along I-80. The light industrial users have included the bio-tech industry, Alza, Novartis (formerly Chiron), and Genentec.

The LIHF has been used to provide loans to non profit developers for acquisition and/or rehabilitation of 492 affordable housing units, 428 housing units of new construction, 140 loans to private owner investors and low income households, and 634 loans to the First Time Homebuyer Down Payment Program to develop and to conserve affordable housing units in Vacaville.