Complex sentence: The focus on the east side also slowed down the development of the west side, the topography of which made it more expensive to improve the ring also took their usual percentage of padded contracts, as well as raking off money from property taxes.
Split into simpler sentences: The focus on the east side also slowed down the development of the west side, the topography of which made it more expensive to improve. The ring also took their usual percentage of padded contracts, as well as raking off money from property taxes.