School districts sue Industry, say city owes more than $100 million
Rowland Unified and Hacienda La Puente Unified school districts filed the breach-of-contract lawsuit last month against the city and its redevelopment agency, citing an agreement forged in the 1970s that entitles each of the districts to annual payments from Industry.
The lawsuit does not specify how much money they are seeking, but in supporting documents, an attorney for the districts claims the city owes an amount "estimated to exceed" $100 million.
The agreement dates to 1971, when Industry began setting up redevelopment zones in territory it shares with the school districts, according to documents in the lawsuit. Believing that the city was misusing its redevelopment powers to funnel money away from them and into its own coffers, Rowland Unified School District, Hacienda La Puente Unified School District and Mt. San Antonio College filed a lawsuit later that year.
In the settlement that followed, Industry agreed to pay each district an annual amount that was to grow automatically each year, and as properties in the redevelopment zone increased in value - commonly known as a pass-through agreement, according to documents in the lawsuit.
District officials say a review of records shows that Industry hasn't made good on its promise for decades.
"At least since the early `80s, we have no