Report to Mayor and City Council
Wednesday, March 06, 2024
Discussion
SUBJECT:
Title
CONSIDER INTRODUCTION AND FIRST READING, BY TITLE ONLY, OF ORDINANCE NO. 24-2404, AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF CARSON, CALIFORNIA, ADDING A NEW CHAPTER 3 (ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT) TO ARTICLE X OF THE CARSON MUNICIPAL CODE SPECIFICALLY AUTHORIZING CITY TO ENTER INTO AGREEMENTS FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITIES (CITY COUNCIL)
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I. SUMMARY
The City of Carson Charter, Section 206, authorizes a comprehensive set of economic development incentives and programs to promote development given the unique environmental constraints in the City of Carson, to create jobs and to preserve the sound fiscal basis of the City. Section 206 also provides that it is a significant goal of the Charter to allow the City to pursue economic development to the maximum degree permitted by the California Constitution, for purposes of eliminating blight, encouraging private investment, providing public infrastructure, and causing the development and redevelopment of property. The City’s Charter powers further include the authority for City to loan, grant, fund, or finance private projects which will provide public benefit and protect the public health, safety, and welfare of the community, in a manner to promote the economic development objectives set forth in Section 206 of the Charter.
Additionally, Government Code Section 53083 authorizes the City to provide financial incentives of $100,000 or more to businesses to promote economic activity within the City’s jurisdiction, including, but not limited to, bonds, grants, loans, loan guarantees, enterprise zone or empowerment zone incentives, fee waivers, land price subsidies, matching funds, tax abatements, tax exemptions, and tax credits, provided that certain procedures set out thereunder are satisfied.
Section 206 of the Charter states that the City may adopt a comprehensive ordinance with measures to carry out the above provisions. By adoption of Ordinance 24-2404 (Exhibit No. 1), the City Council specifically authorizes the City to pursue economic development activities by entering into agreements for provision of loans or grants to certain commercial property owners.
Staff is intending to use the authority granted under this Ordinance to schedule funding agreements for complete Façade Improvement Program projects on May 7th 2024 for City Council’s consideration. This Ordinance may also broadly cover other future City loan or grants program(s) for eligible commercial property owners.
II. RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
TAKE the following action:
1. WAIVE further reading and introduce for first reading Ordinance No. 24-2404 entitled “AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF CARSON, CALIFORNIA, ADDING A NEW CHAPTER 3 (ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT) TO ARTICLE X OF THE CARSON MUNICIPAL CODE SPECIFICALLY AUTHORIZING CITY TO ENTER INTO AGREEMENTS FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITIES“
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III. ALTERNATIVES
TAKE another action the City Council deems appropriate.
IV. BACKGROUND
Adoption of this Ordinance would generally permit the City to enter into agreements to provide loans or grants to commercial property owners for the purposes of increasing economic development pursuant to Section 206 of the City Charter, including funding agreements under the Façade Program established by the City Council. This would allow the approval of individual Façade Program funding agreements without the need to develop individual ordinances for each funding agreement, thereby streamlining the processing of all applications.
The Ordinance will take effect 30 days after second reading, with an anticipated effective date of April 19, 2024. Immediately after the effective date, staff will present complete Façade Program funding agreements at the May 7th City Council meeting for consideration. Staff is currently working with each applicant in finalizing project scopes, plans, cost estimates, and schedules needed for the funding agreements. The five applicants currently include:
• 302 E. Carson Street (Carson and Dolores) - A two-story office building at the southeast corner of Carson and Dolores planned to be converted to a dental office.
• 22200 S. Main Street (Main and Jay Street) - A neighborhood shopping center with Uni Supermarket as the anchor business.
• 18409 S. Avalon Blvd (Avalon Blvd between 184th and 186th Street) - The Victoria Park Plaza immediately cross the street from the entrance to the Dignity Health Sports Park.
• Manila Sunrise at 21828 S. Main Street - A local business with a long history in Carson.
• Tony Roma’s at 20720 S. Avalon Blvd - A long-time sit-down restaurant fronting Avalon by the South Bay Pavilion.
V. FISCAL IMPACT
There is no fiscal impact associated with the adoption of this Ordinance. The fiscal impacts of individual funding agreements under the Commercial Façade Improvement program will be separately addressed in the staff reports presented at a future Council meeting.
VI. EXHIBITS
1. Ordinance No. 24-2404 (pgs.4-8)
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Prepared by: James Nguyen, Special Projects Manager / Saied Naaseh, Director of Community Development