Document text
Our View: MURA had a reason for being, once Thursday Sep 1, 2016 at 12:01 AM The Medford City Council finds itself in the enviable position of deciding what to do with an extra $1.3 million a year once the Medford Urban Renewal Agency is disbanded. That money could finance some needed projects without asking city residents to pay more in taxes. It could also be used to support on of MURA's original causes: addressing blight in the city. Created in 1988, MURA is nearing the end of its life, having done many good things for Medford: Downtown is markedly more attractive, with new sidewalks and light fixtures and restored business facades. The Commons is becoming the gathering place envisioned when it was designed. Hawthorne Park is revitalized, drawing families with children to its new playground. What MURA never really did do was address the low-income Beatty-Manzanita neighborhood that provided legal justification for creating the district. A small park was finally completed on the southern end of the neighborhood, but that was it. Several council members say they want to see MURA take on blight if it stays in operation. In Beatty-Manzanita, that likely would involve new sidewalks and better lighting, but it needn't stop there. MURA could create a low- or no-interest loan fund for homeowners to improve their properties, with upgraded heating systems, insulation or even solar panels. Developing the now-empty car lots lining Central and Riverside avenues is more complicated, because they are owned by an out-of-state firm that leases properties to car dealerships. There is little beyond dressing up the perimeters around those properties that the city can do unless the current or future owner chooses to take on improvements. If MURA were disbanded, the city budget would see an infusion of the $1.3 million now going to MURA each year, which could pay off a $24 million bond over 30 years, allowing the city to fund a major project such as a new swimming pool or part of a convention center. Or it could choose to take on those or other projects by extending the life of the urban renewal district. A big civic project, however, would not address the blight that already exists in Beatty-Manzanita, downtown's next-door neighbor. The council will continue discussing this over the next few months. If councilors decide to extend MURA or create a new renewal district, it needs to address blight specifically, rather than allowing it to simply provide cover for other civic projects.