(a) It is hereby found and declared:

(1) That there exist in communities of the state slum, blighted and deteriorated areas which constitute a serious and growing menace, injurious to the public health, safety, morals and welfare of the residents of the state, and the findings and declarations heretofore made in Section 24-2-1 with respect to blighted areas are hereby affirmed and restated;

(2) That certain slum, blighted or deteriorated areas, or portions thereof, may require acquisition and clearance, since the prevailing condition of decay may make impracticable the reclamation of the area by conservation or rehabilitation, but other areas, or portions thereof, may, through the means provided in this chapter, be susceptible of conservation or rehabilitation in such a manner that the conditions and evils hereinbefore enumerated may be eliminated, remedied or prevented, and, to the extent feasible, salvable slum and blighted areas should be conserved and rehabilitated through voluntary action and the regulatory process; and

(3) That all powers conferred by this chapter are for public uses and purposes for which public money may be expended and such other powers exercised, and the necessity in the public interest for the provisions of this chapter is hereby declared as a matter of legislative determination.

(b) A city or town, hereinafter called 'municipality,' to the greatest extent it determines to be feasible in carrying out the provisions of this chapter, shall afford maximum opportunity, consistent with the sound needs of the municipality as a whole, to the rehabilitation or redevelopment of areas by private enterprise.

(a) In addition to its authority under this title, any housing authority created under this title is hereby authorized to plan and undertake urban renewal projects.

(b) The governing body of any incorporated city or town is likewise hereby authorized to plan and undertake urban renewal projects and shall have and possess the same powers and authority granted to or conferred on any housing authority.

(c) As used in this chapter, an urban renewal project may include undertakings and activities for the elimination (and for the prevention of the development or spread) of slums or blighted, deteriorated or deteriorating areas and may involve any work or undertaking for such purpose constituting a redevelopment project authorized by Chapter 2 of this title, or any rehabilitation or conservation work or any combination of such undertaking or work. For this purpose, 'rehabilitation or conservation work' may include:

(1) Carrying out plans for a program of voluntary or compulsory repair and rehabilitation of buildings or other improvements;

(2) Acquisition of real property and demolition, removal or rehabilitation of buildings and improvements thereon, where necessary to eliminate unhealthful, unsanitary or unsafe conditions, lessen density, reduce traffic hazards, eliminate obsolete or other uses detrimental to the public welfare, or to otherwise remove or prevent the spread of blight or deterioration or to provide land for needed public facilities;

(3) Installation, construction or reconstruction of streets, utilities, parks, playgrounds and other improvements necessary for carrying out the objectives of the urban renewal project; and

(4) The disposition, for uses in accordance with the objectives of the urban renewal project, of any property or part thereof acquired in the area of such projects; provided that such disposition shall be in the manner prescribed in Chapter 2 of this title for the disposition of property in a redevelopment project area.

Any urban renewal project undertaken pursuant to Section 24-3-2 shall be undertaken in accordance with an urban renewal plan for the area of the project. As used in this chapter, an 'urban renewal plan' means a plan, as it exists from time to time, for an urban renewal project, which plan shall conform to the general plan for the municipality as a whole and shall be sufficiently complete to indicate such land acquisition, demolition and removal of structures, redevelopment, improvements and rehabilitation as may be proposed to be carried out in the area of the urban renewal project, zoning and planning changes, if any, land uses, maximum densities, building requirements and the plan's relationship to definite local objectives respecting appropriate land uses, improved traffic, public transportation, public utilities, recreational and community facilities and other public improvements. An urban renewal plan shall be prepared and approved pursuant to the same procedure as provided in Chapter 2 of this title, with respect to a redevelopment plan.

An authority shall have all the powers necessary or convenient to undertake and carry out urban renewal plans and urban renewal projects, including the authority to acquire and dispose of property, to make payments to persons and businesses displaced by the acquisition and disposal of any property, to issue bonds and other obligations, to borrow and accept grants from the federal government or other source and to exercise the other powers which Chapter 2 of this title confers on an authority with respect to redevelopment projects. In connection with the planning and undertaking of any urban renewal plan or urban renewal project, the authority, the municipality and all public and private officers, agencies and bodies shall have all the rights, powers, privileges and immunities which they have with respect to a redevelopment plan or redevelopment project, in the same manner as though all of the provisions of Chapter 2 of this title applicable to a redevelopment plan or redevelopment project, were applicable to an urban renewal plan or urban renewal project; provided, that for such purpose the word 'redevelopment,' as used in Chapter 2 of this title, shall mean 'urban renewal,' and the word 'slum' and the word 'blighted,' as used in Chapter 2 of this title, shall mean 'blighted, deteriorated or deteriorating'; and provided further, that this section shall not change the corporate name of the authority or amend any section of Chapter 2 of this title. In addition to the surveys and plans which an authority is otherwise authorized to make, an authority is hereby specifically authorized to make plans for carrying out a program of voluntary repair and rehabilitation of buildings and improvements and plans for the enforcement of laws, codes and regulations relating to the use of land and the use and occupancy of buildings and improvements, and to the compulsory repair, rehabilitation, demolition or removal of buildings and improvements. The authority is authorized to develop, test and report methods and techniques and carry out demonstrations and other activities for the prevention and the elimination of slums and urban blight. This section shall in no way preclude any municipality or housing authority from acquiring planning funds from any agency of the federal government for the purpose of investigating and planning any urban renewal project to be submitted to the electors of the city or town or housing authority affected under this chapter, and the acquisition of said planning funds shall not require a vote of the duly qualified electors of the city or town or housing authority affected under this chapter.

Any municipality or other public body is hereby authorized, without limiting any provision in Section 24-3-4, to do any and all things necessary to aid and cooperate in the planning and undertaking of an urban renewal project in the area in which such municipality or public body is authorized to act, including the furnishing of such financial and other assistance as the municipality or public body is authorized by Chapter 2 of this title to furnish for or in connection with a redevelopment plan or redevelopment project. An authority is hereby authorized to delegate to a municipality or other public body any of the powers or functions of the authority with respect to the planning or undertaking of an urban renewal project in the area in which such municipality or public body is authorized to act, and such municipality or public body is hereby authorized to carry out or perform such powers or functions for the authority. Any public body, including the governing body of an incorporated city or town, is hereby authorized to enter into agreements which may extend over any period, notwithstanding any provision or rule of law to the contrary, with any other public body or bodies respecting action to be taken pursuant to any of the powers granted by this chapter, including the furnishing of funds or other assistance in connection with an urban renewal plan or urban renewal project.

The governing body of the municipality, or such public officer or public body as it may designate, is hereby authorized to prepare a workable program (which may include an official plan of action, as it exists from time to time, for effectively dealing with the problem of slums and blighted, deteriorated or deteriorating areas within the community and for the establishment and preservation of a well-planned community with well organized residential neighborhoods of decent homes and suitable living environment for adequate family life) for utilizing appropriate private and public resources to eliminate and prevent the development or spread of slums and blight and deterioration, to encourage needed rehabilitation, to provide for the redevelopment of blighted, deteriorated or slum areas or to undertake such of the aforesaid activities or other feasible activities as may be suitably employed to achieve the objectives of such a program.

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the acquisition, preparation for development or disposal of undeveloped vacant land shall constitute a redevelopment project, under this title or any other law, which may be undertaken in the same manner provided in this title, or any amendments or provisions supplemental thereto, by any housing authority now or hereafter established pursuant to this title or by any governing body of any incorporated city or town, if such acquisition of undeveloped vacant land is determined, as provided in this section, to be essential to the proper clearance, redevelopment, rehabilitation or conservation of a slum or blighted area of a community or to its general slum clearance or urban renewal program. Such determination shall be made by the housing authority of such community or the governing body of any incorporated city or town adopting a resolution to that effect, which shall include a finding that the conditions affecting the land to be acquired (by reason of the predominance of defective or inadequate street layout; faulty lot layout in relation to size or adequacy; lack of accessibility or usefulness; diversity of ownership, tax or special assessment delinquency; defective or unusual conditions of title, improper subdivisions or obsolete plattings; or any one or combination of such factors) substantially impair or arrest the sound growth of the community, retard the provision of needed housing accommodations and constitute an economic or social liability, and that the need for housing accommodations has been or will be increased as a result of the clearance, rehabilitation or conservation of slum or blighted areas in the community.

The powers conferred by this chapter shall be in addition and supplemental to the powers conferred by any other law, and nothing contained herein shall be construed as limiting any other powers of a housing authority.

The provisions of this chapter shall be cumulative and supplemental and shall be construed in pari materia with other laws relative to urban renewal plans and urban renewal projects. No law shall be deemed repealed by this chapter unless in specific conflict with this chapter.