Walker

Plaintiffs have appealed from a judgment which denied them any relief on their petition for writ of mandate in which they sought a peremptory writ compelling the city clerk to examine and certify a referendum petition, and the city council to either rescind the ordinance, the subject of the petition, or submit it to a vote of the electors of the city. The ordinance in question is entitled “An Ordinance of the City of Salinas, State of California, Approving and Adopting the Revitalization Plan for the Central City Project Area.” The ordinance on its face indicates that it was adopted under the provisions of the Community Redevelopment Law (Health & Saf. Code, §§ 33000-33738), specifically those sections governing the procedure for adoption of. redevelopment plans by the legislative body. (Id., §§ 33360-33376, particularly §§ 33365-33368.) The ordinance was adopted on July 8, 1974, and three days later by emergency legislation section 4051a was added to the Elections Code prescribing the requirements for affidavits attached to referendum petitions.

The issues framed by the parties on this appeal are whether the ordinance in question was subject to referendum proceedings,…