Babcock v. Community Redevelopment Agency

306 P.2d 513, 148 Cal. App. 2d 38, 1957 Cal. App. LEXIS 2332
CourtCalifornia Court of Appeal
DecidedJanuary 28, 1957
DocketCiv. 21586
StatusPublished
Cited by14 cases

This text of 306 P.2d 513 (Babcock v. Community Redevelopment Agency) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering California Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Babcock v. Community Redevelopment Agency, 306 P.2d 513, 148 Cal. App. 2d 38, 1957 Cal. App. LEXIS 2332 (Cal. Ct. App. 1957).

Opinions

[39]*39WOOD (Parker), J.

Action for injunction and declaratory relief. Plaintiff sought an injunction restraining defendants from entering into any contract with the United States government or any agency thereof, or from otherwise expending public funds, for the redevelopment of the Bunker Hill area of the city of Los Angeles. In another cause of action, plaintiff sought a declaration that the jurisdictional prerequisites for the redevelopment of said area do not exist.

Defendants are Community Redevelopment Agency of the City of Los Angeles (referred to as the agency), the city of Los Angeles (referred to as the city), and the individual members of the Los Angeles City Council.

The agency and the city demurred to the amended complaint generally and specifically. The demurrers were sustained, and plaintiff was granted permission to amend within 10 days. Plaintiff declined to amend and the court dismissed the action as to the agency and the city. Plaintiff appeals from the orders and judgments dismissing the action.

The allegations of the cause of action for an injunction were in substance, as follows: Plaintiff is a citizen of California, a resident of the city of Los Angeles, the owner of real property in said city, and is subject to taxation and, within one year prior to the commencement of the action, has paid taxes to the city. The agency is a public corporation existing pursuant to the Community Redevelopment Law of California. The city is a charter city. The individual defendants are and at all times mentioned in the complaint were members of the council of the city and had and have powers and duties under the Community Redevelopment Law of California and the actions of said defendants thereinafter more particularly set forth, with the exception of the actions thereinafter alleged regarding the appropriation of funds on June 28, 1954 by the city council, are the actions of an agency of California pursuant to the provisions of said Community Redevelopment Law. Plaintiff is the owner of real property in the city, which property is particularly described in the complaint and referred to thereinafter as the Dome Apartment-Hotel. Said hotel building is of wood and stucco construction on concrete and brick foundations, and consists of four stories and a basement, and contains, among other things: 29 apartments with kitchen and bath; 33 one-room apartments with kitchen; nine bachelor rooms without bath; lobby; closets; public toilets; stairways; an automatic elevator; and five fire [40]*40escapes. Said building has been inspected from time to time by the Building and Safety Department and Health Department of the city “and the conditions and facilities therein found by said Departments to meet with the requirements of the applicable ordinances” of the city governing the maintenance and operation of the building as an apartment-hotel. Said Dome Apartment-Hotel is fit and safe' to occupy for the living purposes for which it was designed and for which it,is presently used. Said premises are not conducive to ill health, transmission of disease, infant mortality, juvenile delinquency, or crime. Said real property and building are within the area in the city referred to as Bunker Hill. Bunker Hill is an area bounded on the north by First Street, on the south in part by an irregular line running between Fourth and Fifth Streets, on the east by Hill Street, and on the west by Fremont Street. The area is more particularly shown on Exhibit A attached to the complaint.

It was alleged further that Bunker Hill was developed in the early days of the city. There are many buildings and structures in said area used and intended to be used for living, commercial, industrial and other purposes, and for a combination of said purposes. A predominant .number of said buildings are fit and safe to occupy for such purposes and ' are not conducive to ill health, transmission of disease, juvenile delinquency, infant mortality or crime. There is no disuse of land or buildings in the area. There is some vacant land, but plaintiff alleges on information and belief that where said vacant land exists each owner thereof has definite plans for its use and development within a reasonable period of time from the filing of the complaint. Some of the land is owned by public agencies, and plaintiff alleges on information and belief that said public agencies have definite plans for the use and occupancy of said land within a reasonable time from the filing of the complaint. Plaintiff alleges on information and belief that defendant city intends to acquire for public use by the exercise of eminent domain certain property in the Bunker Hill area, to wit, an area bounded by First, Hill, Second, and Olive Streets. Bunker Hill area was developed primarily for residential use and is presently so used, although over the years there has been a change from single-family to multi-family use with a corresponding increase in commercial uses to meet the needs of an expanding population. For a long time prior to the enactment of ordinance Number 90500 (March, 1946), and since such enactment, the area has [41]*41been zoned for multi-family use. There is no economic dislocation in the area, in that, the primary use contemplated for the area, by the present owners of property therein and by defendants, is residential with necessary commercial accessories, and the area has developed substantially in accordance with the plans of the appropriate city authorities. The lots within the area are predominately regular in size and shape and are predominately greater in size than 5,000 square feet, and such lots are of adequate size for proper usefulness and development. The lots are laid out with due regard for the contours and other physical characteristics of the ground and surrounding conditions. The streets are adequate and are keyed to the surrounding freeway development, “use of which might be substantially impaired by their relocation.” Utilities are in and are adequate and “expense” of large sums would be necessitated in case of relocation of said utilities. Property in the area owned by the city is available for parks and other open spaces. The present use of the land in the area is neither stagnant nor unproductive, but fills existing economic needs in the community. There have been a substantial number of transfers of property in the area within five years prior to the filing of the complaint. The values of real property in the city have at least doubled between 1940 and 1955, and the prices at which properties in the area have been transferred since January 1, 1950, have been at least twice the value of the properties in 1940. Due to the construction of the freeway network, which surrounds and cuts through the area, the value of property is increasing and within a reasonable time will be of such value as to make it economically and financially practicable for the present owners to develop and redevelop their properties. Plaintiff alleges on information and belief that said owners will develop and redevelop their properties within a reasonable time. Public intervention and assistance is not necessary for the development and redevelopment. There is practically no tax delinquency in the area, and the amount presently paid in taxes per capita is approximately equal to the amount paid by the city to cover the cost per capita of rendering public service. The population of the area has remained substantially the same for the last 25 years except as affected by the purchase of land by public bodies for public improvements.

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Babcock v. Community Redevelopment Agency
306 P.2d 513 (California Court of Appeal, 1957)

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Bluebook (online)
306 P.2d 513, 148 Cal. App. 2d 38, 1957 Cal. App. LEXIS 2332, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/babcock-v-community-redevelopment-agency-calctapp-1957.