Confidence high for Elk Grove-Oak Rose lawsuit settlement - 'Watch the magic happen right before your very eyes'
https://www.elkgrovenews.net/2024/01/confidence-high-for-elk-grove-oak-rose.html
When the Elk Grove City Council convenes its two meetings scheduled on Wednesday night, it could put to rest the Oak Rose housing supportive housing controversy that has plagued them for months.
On Wednesday, Mayor Bobbie Singh-Allen and her four city councilmen will convene a closed session at 5 p.m. to discuss the two lawsuits the city is defending. Those lawsuits are from the developer of the proposed Oak Rose supportive housing project and, more significantly, the State of California for violations of fair housing laws.
When the city council met in closed session on January 9, Mayor Singh-Allen announced a "settlement in principle" was reached with the Oak Rose developer, Long Beach, Calif.-based Excelerate Housing. Singh-Allen did not reveal any of the details of the proposed settlement, and Excelerate Housing has yet to respond to a request seeking verification that a tentative settlement had been consummated.
Should the city council reconvene from the closed meeting and announce a formal settlement had been reached, as Ms. Singh-Allen stated on January 9, the hearing for the Oak Rose project scheduled for the open meeting on Wednesday night will be canceled. However, if there is no announcement out of the closed meeting affirming the January 9 'settlement in principle," the matter scheduled for the regular meeting will likely be presented.
According to the Oak Rose project staff report, prepared by city planning and housing personnel, there are three recommendations. Those recommendations continue to a future city council meeting or "drop the matter from the City Council's agenda if a settlement agreement is finalized before the City Council meeting on January 24, 2024."
A third recommendation was included in the staff report. That recommendation is to approve the Oak Rose supportive project in the Old Town Elk Grove location.
Given Singh-Allen's January 9 announcement, that alternative appears unlikely. Furthermore, Mr. Randy Bekker, who became a de facto spokesperson for the city, mayor, and city council and correctly declared the January 9 "settlement in principle" days before the public learned of it, made a similar proclamation this weekend.
In a January 19 Elk Grove News story, in the context of reader comments on the actions the mayor and city council will take to support the denial of the Old Town location and how much it will cost taxpayers, Mr. Bekker wrote, "So, Stay tune[d], and watch the magic happen right before your very eyes."
While the lawsuit settlement with the Oak Rose developers appears at hand, it is unclear if this will eliminate the State of California's lawsuit against Mayor Singh-Allen and her city council.
Photo by Nikolay Ivanov via Pexels.
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Dang, I can't even get Rod Brewer to return an email about problems on my street.
The picture headlined of this story should have the deck of cards be replaced with a stack of cash!
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