What’s at stake:
The pressure is on at City Hall to hold onto Southwest Fresno residents’ elimination of industrial zoning in 2017.
A $100 million claim for damages was filed against the City of Fresno on Tuesday afternoon. The claim came from owners of 60 acres of industrial land in southwest Fresno that the Fresno City Council is set to vote on this Thursday.
The landowners are seeking to overturn a land use designation dating back to the 2017 Southwest Fresno plan, which zoned their industrial buildings to Neighborhood Mixed Use from Industrial. Existing tenants in their building can continue in perpetuity, but the plan prevents future industrial expansion, city officials have said.
The claim filed Tuesday with the city attorney’s office alleges “$100 million in diminution of property values [and] lost profits.”
Tuesday’s filing is the third letter since last Friday pressuring the city on the rezone request. A claim for damages is generally a precursor to a lawsuit.
The parcels in question are assessed by the county at roughly $50 million. One owner, Buzz Oates, runs a $3 billion real estate empire and has a stake in the Sacramento Kings basketball team.
The landowners are also seeking $64,000 to be given back to them, which they paid to the city to conduct an environmental assessment that would handle the reduced housing capacity resulting from their industrial rezone request.
City planning staff have recommended denial of the rezone.
Related