CRA Chief Quits in Wake of Budget Impasse, Clash Over Staff Cuts

Battered in a dispute with the Community Redevelopment Agency board over the department’s future, agency administrator John Molloy said Tuesday that he is taking a retirement buyout package effective today.

Molloy, 52, issued a terse statement saying that he is proud of his four years at the helm of the CRA and thanking the agency staff for its work.

“Now that we have established a truly aggressive project agenda over the next five years, it is time for me to take on other challenges,” Molloy said.

The statement made scant mention of the agency’s budget problems and Molloy’s dispute with the board, which had recently refused to approve his proposed budget for the fiscal year that begins Thursday.

Molloy clashed with the board over its proposal to reorganize the agency and make deep staff cuts. Last week, appearing before the City Council, Molloy warned that proposals to cut the staff below the 200-person level would jeopardize the agency’s ability to fulfill its mission.

He noted that the agency staff had already been cut from 350 to 210 in the last five years while increasing the number of redevelopment project areas to 31. The budget he proposed for the new fiscal year would have trimmed an additional 10 positions.

Molloy told his allies on the City Council on Tuesday that he is frustrated with the agency board over its desire to make deeper staff cuts than he feels prudent.

One CRA board member confirmed that Molloy had been told by individuals on the board that his contract might not be renewed when it expires Sept. 30 and that it might be wise for him to take the buyout.