Path finally cleared for Hollywood's redevelopment plan.

Path finally cleared for Hollywood's redevelopment plan

It took years of court battles, more than $1 million in legal costs and rounds of political finger pointing, but the controversial Hollywood Redevelopment Plan finally has been cleared to move forward.

Delivering what is probably a death knell to community attempts to block the 1,100-acre project, the state Supreme Court refused on Aug. 26 to hear an appeal of lower court rulings upholding the legality of the sprawling urban renewal plan. Five years after it was approved by the Los Angeles City Council, the Community Redevelopment Agency is now free to begin its $922 million, 30-year campaign to spruce up semi-blighted Tinseltown with a variety of new commercial and residential projects as well as fix-ups of existing facilities.

Councilman Michael Woo, who represents the movie capital, joined CRA Board Chairman Jim Wood last week in seeking $13 million in Hollywood redevelopment money held in a county escrow account during the lawsuit. CRA officials reportedly also will try to raise $30 million more through bonds so building facelifts, childcare centers and affordable housing can be funded.

The original lawsuit, filed by a community group calling itself Save Hollywood Our Town, or SHOT, alleged that the redevelopment plan was assembled fraudulently, without true community input and would ultimately benefit developers at the expense of small merchants and homeowners.

But, after their hard-fought victory last week, city officials and their lawyers were popping the champagne corks.

"After years of hyperbole about the perils of redevelopment you are freeing up a lot of dollars to address some of the social ills allowed to fester in Hollywood for a fairly long time," said Bruce Tepper, the lawyer who represented the CRA in the trial. Tepper added he was "certain" the Hollywood community at large supports the plan.

Chris Sutton, who represented SHOT in the trial which ended in 1989, disagreed. "If they think the redevelopment plan is popular, I dare the city to put it to a vote. It would be defeated."