Bob and His Weapon of Mass Development in Baldwin Park

It didn't take long for one great comment to arrive for Odds and Ends 50.

Thank you very much to "THEMOMMA" who, apparently, has left her first comment on this blog.

I did exactly what the comment suggested we all do. I went to Google.com entered "Bob Bisno Baldwin Park" and presto! Looky what I found in the first few seconds.

This is the site that looks like Bob has created for a 125-acre development in downtown Baldwin Park.

See the neat photo of the railway station? That might have gotten me to think that Bob is finally going to come up with a development that doesn't harm or displace local residents.

Wrongo Bucko!

Take a look at: http://www.baldwinparkfuture.com/index.php

Then, before you get all warm and fuzzy for Bob, take a look at the Blog: http://www.theorangejuice.com/2008/01/bisno-to-take-500-homes-and-businesses.html

Now if you are beginning to get a little hot under the collar, how about taking a look at these next two items:

Property Owners protest Eminent Domain -

To Burn City Eviction Notices
by CARA Wednesday, Jan. 09, 2008 at 11:59 AM.

Property Owners protest Eminent Domain - To Burn City Eviction Notices Baldwin Park, CA –

While city council members publicly claimed for weeks that there were no immediate plans to seize over 500 homes and businesses by eminent domain to benefit the wealthy and politically connected Bisno Development Company, over the Christmas Holiday over 100 of the 500 threatened property owners received notices from the city informing them that they stand to lose their homes and jobs by eminent domain. The city has also been criticized for sending English only letters to Spanish speaking property owners.

And here is more:

Home and Business Owners to March on City Hall

According to campaign finance reports posted on the city's website, the Bisno Development Company and other development interests contributed thousands of dollars to city council candidates in the 2007 election, all of which support displacing hundreds of local residents.

WHO: Community Alliance for Redevelopment Accountability (CARA), a group of concerned homeowners and small business owners have organized to stop the City of Baldwin Park from using eminent domain to seize their homes and small businesses to benefit the politically connected Bisno Development Company and their investors.

WHAT: Property owners to march on city council meeting and burn eminent domain letters sent to over 100 of 500 property owners.

WHEN: Wednesday, January 9, 2008 WHERE: March will commence at 6:00 p.m. on the corner of Clark Avenue and Maine Blvd. Council Meeting will commence at 7:00p.m., Baldwin Park City Hall, 14403 E. Pacific Avenue, Baldwin Park, CA 91706

BACKGROUND: Baldwin Park home and business owners have united as CARA to fight the proposed demolition of homes and businesses to make way for a project the size of about 125 football fields by Century City-based Bisno Development. Local property owners are concerned that the city is working to expedite eminent domain proceedings in order to acquire over 500 homes and businesses prior to the June Election. A 1/5/2007 letter from the developer to the city reveals that the developer's investors are concerned that their project, that requires the use of eminent domain, is threatened by the "California Property Owners and Farmland Protection Act," an eminent domain reform ballot measure slated for the June ballot that protects all private property from eminent domain abuse. ______________________________________________

I guess after Berkeley, Santa Monica, San Pedro, Baldwin Park, Santa Ana, and elsewhere, we are going to need to watch Bob even more closely than we have been, in the pastl