EXAS 

Hon. Ogden Bass Opinion NO. u-36 

Criminal District Attorney 

Brazoria County Courthouse Re: Eligibility of certain propAngleton, Texas 77515 erty in the City of Freeport 

for an urban renewal project 

Dear Mr. Bass: under Article 126gL-3, V.C.S. 

You request our opinion'as to whether a certain project is an 

eligible project under the Texas Urban Renewal Law, Article 126gb3, 

Vernon's Civil Statutes. You advise that the City of Freeport has 

properly and legally adopted the provisions of said law, and that: 

"1 f The land involved is a part of the Velasco townsite, 

which was platted around 1900 and is now a part of the 

City of Freeport, Texas; 

"2. The land involved is largely open; 

“3. The platted area is in blocks measuring 304 feet 

by 270 feet, with interior lots of 25 feet ana 27 foot 

exterior lots, and is platted in a grid system of streets 

ranging from 60 to 70 feet in width, which streets exist 

every 304 feet, intersectioning at every 270 feet; 

“4. The ownership is widespread, with people owning the 

same residing all over the United States; 

“5. The titles to the extent of at least 5G$ are 

defective because of void tax sales; 

“6. The area is usually 60$ to 7O$ delinquent in 

payment of county ad valorem taxes; 

“7 . It is impossible to develop the land because of 

the diversion of ownership of the separate 25 foot lots; 

"8. The area has some open shell streets; 

"9. The area is occupied, in part, by large electric 

transmission towers; 

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Hon. Ogden Bass, page 2 (~36) 

"10. The area is grown up in weeds and brush; 

"11. The area is laced with open ditch drainage, 

and such ditches contain stagnant water infested 

by mosquitoes; 

"12. The area hinders the development of the City of 

Freeport by reason of the foregoing conditions and Is 

the last storm protected area available for development 

of the City; 

"13. Because of a combination of the foregoing factors, 

the cost of collecting taxes for the county on the lots 

exceeds the amount recovered." 

We will quote only those portions of the statute which appear 

pertinent to your Inquiry. 

Section 2 recites, in part, that: 

. a .the prevention and eliminatlon of slum 

and blighted areas Is a matter of State policy 

and State concern in order that the State and 

its cities shall not continue to be endangered 

by areas which. a .while contributing little to 

the tax income of the State and Its cities, consume an excessive portion of its revenues. O .; 

that by such prevention and elimination property 

values, freed from the depressing influence of 

blight, will be stabilized, and tax burdens will 

be distributed more equitably, and the financial 

and capital resources of the State, required for 

the prosperity of, and provision of necessary 

governmental services to, its people, will be 

strengthened;. O -" 

Section 4 defines various terms. 

Sub-section (I) defines "Blighted Area', In part, as an area: 

.which. o .by rea~son of the predominance 

therein of defective or inadequate streets, e O, 

or by reason of the existence therein of lnsanitary, unhealthful or other hazardous conditions which endanger the public health, safety, 

morals or welfare of the inhabitants thereof and 

of the city,. s .or by reason of the existence 

therein of conditions which endanger. e *property 

by fire or from other causes, or by reason of the 

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. . 

Hon. Ogden Bass, page 3 (M-36) 

existence therein of any combination of the 

hereinabove stated causes, factors or conditions, results in a condition in that area 

which substantially retards or arrests the 

provisions of a sound and healthful housing 

environment, or which thereby results in and 

constitutes an economic or social liability 

to the city, and is thus a menace, in Its 

present condition and use, to the public health, 

safety, morals or public welfare of the city,. . ." 

Sub-section (k) states, In part, that the term 'Urban Renewal 

Actlvlties" shall: 

11 . . .whenever used In this act, include. . . 

'rehabilitation or conservation' which shall be 

limited to clearance or rehabilitation measures 

or any combination thereof which might be required to prevent further deterioration of an area 

which is tending to become either a blighted or 

a slum area and shall specifically include:. . . 

(1) afquisltion of. . .(ii) land which Is predominately (sic) open and which because of 

obsolete platting, diversity of ownership, deterioration of structures or of site improvements 

or otherwise, substantially impairs or arrests the 

sound growth of the community;,. . ." 

We do not find the term "Urban Renewal Activities" used in exactly 

such sequence anywhere else in the act. Hence, to attribute meaning 

to the language, as we must under standard rules of statutory construtlon, we must assume that the Legislature was speaking generally of 

activities connected with the urban renewal program. 

Sub-section (j), In this connection defines "Urban Renewal 

Project", a term used often in the Act, as including: 

11 

. . .activities of a city. . .in an urban renewal 

area for the ellmination and, for the prevention of 

the devel.opment or spread of slums and blight,. . ." 

Sub-section (t) defines "Conservation", a term used in Subsection (k), supra, to mean the: 

,I 

. . .preservlng, protecting and keeping of an 

area which is susceptible to blight. from succumbing to blight." 

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. , 

Hon. Ogden Bass, page 4 (M-36) 

We take notice of the fact that the actj when read from its 

four corners, appears to include within the term "Blighted Area" 

not only land that is presently blighted but also land which, because of the existence of certain adverse conditions, Is In danger 

of "succumbing to blight". 

Section 5 requires the City Council, with approval of the 

electorate, to adopt a resolution finding that a slum or blighted 

area exists and that: 

11 0 e .the rehabilitation, conservation, or slum 

clearance and redevelopment, or a combination 

thereof, of such area or areas is necessary in the 

interest of public health, safety, morals or welfare of the residents of such city. . ." 

Section 9 gives the city: 

11 

* . .a11 the powers necessary or convenient to 

carry out and effectuate the purp~oses and provisions of this act, including the following 

powers. 

renewal pr$?tE 

o UndErtake ,and carry out urban 

0 . . 

Sub-section (j) of Section 9 gives the city authority: 

11 0 0 .to close, vacate, plan or replan streets, 

roads, sidewalks, ways or other places; to plan 

or replan, zone or rezone any part of the city. . .'I 

Section 10a allows the city to relocate electric transmission 

lines at city expense. 

Under the facts outlined in your request, the area in question 

constitutes in our opinion a "Blighted Area" as defined in Subsection (I) of Section 4 of the Urban Renewal Law (Article 126921-3, 

Vernon's Civil Statutes). Therefore , you are advised that the proposed Urban Renewal Project is an eligible project under the facts 

submitted In your request since such facts would constitute reasonable support by substantial evidence of the city's fact determination that conditions exist that are detrimental to the public health, 

safety, morals or welfare of the city. Davis v. City of Lubbock, 

160 Tex. 38, 326 s.w.2d 699 (1959). 
Hon. Ogden Bass, page 5 (~-36) 

SUMMARY 

Under the stated facts, the proposed project of the City 

of Freeport is an eligible project under the Texas Urban 

Renewal Law. 

Prepared by J. Arthur Sandlin 

Assistant Attorney General 

JAS:bp 

APPROVED: 

OPINION COMMITTEE 

Hawthorne Phillips, Chairman 

W. V. Geppert, Co-chairman 

Houghton Brownlee 

John Reeves 

Dyer Moore 

Pat Bailey 

STAFF LEGAL ASSISTANT 

A. J. Carubbl, Jr. 

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