Redevelopment efforts in the city are getting a shot in the arm with the creation of a new position that will harness the efforts of several departments into one.

At the April 15, council meeting, the City Council approved the ratification of Scott Adams to the new position of chief urban redevelopment officer. Adams had previously served as the director of the Office of Business Development (OBD) since 2004.

The departments of Neighborhood Services, OBD and the Office of Cultural Affairs will report to Adams. Adams will also oversee other citywide initiatives including the parking enterprise, the economic disaster plan, Human Services review and more.

The idea behind creating this new position is that it integrates the three departments into a single group, allowing staff to collaborate on similar priorities, to work on other strategic initiatives and to spread funding and impacts of the Redevelopment Agency (RDA) among three departments.

Many projects have been created through the efforts of the RDA. Over the last five years the tax revenue generated by the RDA has tripled from roughly $8 million a year to $25 million per year. About 20 percent of these new tax revenues from the RDA go toward education and critical public services. This in turn provides additional funding for education and city services. Over that same time period the RDA has developed 115 projects totaling $3 billion in private investment, which created 7,660 permanent jobs and 10,917 construction jobs.