ACTION Apartment Association

Local 11 Drowns Out Community Voices In 'Plaza' Debate

07/31/2020 8:27 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

By Charlyce Bozzello

Unite Here Local 11 has long supported the controversial “Plaza at Santa Monica” development, thanks to a neutrality agreement signed by the developer that guarantees new dues dollars for the union.

Now, with the help of its friends on the City Council, it looks like the union is finally getting its wish.

On Tuesday night, the City Council voted 6-1 to move ahead with negotiations on the mixed-use development ("Santa Monica Council Votes to Continue Negotiations on 'The Plaza' Project Downtown," July 29, 2020).

Negotiations for proposed Plaza at Santa Monica set to continue

07/30/2020 8:23 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

Negotiations concerning a proposed project at 4th and Arizona, known as The Plaza at Santa Monica, are set to resume after a vote by City Council Tuesday night.

The future of the controversial downtown development project was up in the air in recent months after Interim City Manager Lane Dilg recommended temporarily halting negotiations between staff and Clarett West Development, LLC and DLJ Real Estate Capital Partners, LLC, back in February while the city attempted to discover if the development would be in violation of any state laws.

At its meeting on Tuesday, Council directed staff to adjust priorities in the negotiations of the 2.57-acre property to better reflect the input that’s been received from the public throughout the process, as well as impacts of COVID-19 on the economy, city revenues, and community needs.

HOMELESS TSUNAMI IS COMING

07/29/2020 12:22 PM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

For the tenants who are thinking that they can avoid paying their rent during this forbearance period, they have a rude awakening coming. While the eviction process is on hold in Santa Monica (we have a moratorium until Sept. 30, on evictions) this is not a period of “Free Rent” or “Cancelled Rent.” The protesters who want to “Cancel Rent” are living in a dream world of some Utopian fantasy that completely ignores any semblance of reality and basic social economies. It may look and sound like a happy little way to make life okay for those tenants to just “cancel rent” but someone else is left holding the debt that monthly rents pay.

Council Approves Negotiations With Developers of "The Plaza" Project

07/29/2020 12:02 PM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

At its July 28, 2020 meeting, the Santa Monica City Council voted to continue negotiations with Clarett West Development, LLC, and DLJ Real Estate Capital Partners, LLC to develop a 2.57-acre City-owned property bounded by 4th Street, 5th Street, and Arizona Avenue. The proposed project, The Plaza at Santa Monica, is the product of a competitive process initiated by the City in 2013. 

Council’s action last night does not constitute final approval of the proposed project, but it allows staff to continue negotiations.  

Santa Monica Extends Coronavirus Emergency

07/29/2020 12:00 PM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

Citing the continued spread of the coronavirus, the City of Santa Monica on Tuesday extended its local health emergency and most associated orders through August 31.

The one-month extension comes as "key metrics continue to show community spread of COVID-19," City officials said in a statement.

AND: https://www.santamonica.gov/press/2020/07/28/santa-monica-extends-local-emergency-to-august-31

Vote planned to end California’s eviction ban

07/29/2020 11:50 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

A statewide moratorium on evicting tenants during the coronavirus pandemic could end in the next 2 ½ weeks, triggering what some fear could be “a wave of evictions” unless lawmakers reinstate the ban.

THE “PLAZA” – A VERY BAD DEAL

07/28/2020 9:14 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

Now, we have another potential developer profit-making deal in the works – this time involving the biggest parcel of land in our downtown – on OUR public land; our 2.5 acres at 4th/5th and Arizona.

The developers are two real estate investment firms skilled in finding undervalued properties, getting approvals to develop them, and then selling their interests, profiting and moving on.

County Extends Eviction Moratorium

07/27/2020 9:06 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

The County Board of Supervisors has voted unanimously to extend its eviction moratorium until September 30, 2020. The motion does not preclude the Supervisors extending the moratorium beyond September 30. Studies released over the last several months indicate that hundreds of thousands of County households could face eviction because of inability to pay rent caused by lost or reduced income during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Supervisors Vote To Develop Ballot Measure

07/27/2020 9:05 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

The Board of Supervisors voted to direct County Counsel to draft an ordinance that would guarantee a baseline minimum threshold of 10% of locally generated (“general fund”) revenue to better address the needs of low-income residents in under-resourced communities. The ordinance is not a tax, and if approved by the Supervisors at forthcoming meetings, would appear on the November 3, 2020 ballot.

L.A. County CARES Act Spending Plan

07/27/2020 9:04 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

The Board of Supervisors has approved a $1.22 billion spending package to fund a broad range of essential services and relief measures to assist people and businesses affected by the COVID-19 crisis.

The plan covers spending in four main areas:

$656 million for public health measures including testing and contact tracing

$200 million for financial support for residents in the form of assistance for rent relief, food and child care

$160 million in grants to support small businesses

$150 million to support the County workforce’s response to the emergency, including disaster services workers and personal protective equipment for employees