ACTION Apartment Association

Safeguard Against Rent Control Chaos

07/02/2018 9:04 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

Possible repeal of Costa-Hawkins Act could roll back rents to 1978 rates.

The 1995 Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act is a California law that limits cities’ ability to impose rent control. Santa Monica is one of 15 cities in the state with rent control policies that are curtailed by this act. A statewide initiative on the 2018 ballot, however, seeks to repeal the Costa-Hawkins Act. If voters approve this repeal, rents in Santa Monica will be rolled back to 1978 rates.

Three Bills by Santa Monica Lawmaker Pass Key Committees

07/02/2018 8:55 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

June 29, 2018 -- Three bills by Santa Monica Assemblymember Richard Bloom -- tackling fishing, toxic chemicals and affordable housing on the coast -- passed out of key committees this week, his office announced.

AB 2797 -- which passed the Senate Natural Resources Committee on Tuesday -- assures projects are not found to be inconsistent with the California Coastal Act merely because they receive a density increase under state law.

The bill addresses a recent court decision that undermined the application of density bonus law in the coastal zone, Bloom said.

The decision upheld the City of Los Angeles' denial of a project that contained two low-income units on the basis that the increased density made it visually incompatible with the surrounding neighborhood.

Council Approves Ballot Measure Requiring Super-Majority Vote on Development

06/29/2018 11:11 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

June 28, 2018 -- In an effort to quell Santa Monica's development wars, the City Council on Tuesday voted to place a measure on the November ballot that would require a super-majority vote to make changes to the City's zoning standards.

The proposed Charter Amendment -- which would sunset in 10 years -- would have no impact on proposed developments currently in the planning pipeline ("Super-Majority' Ballot Measure Would Have No Impact on Proposed Developments," June 21, 2018).

12 ballot measures to decide in November

06/29/2018 10:23 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

Here’s the final list of propositions that made the cut for the November election. On the list are proposals to slash the gas tax, split the state in three, re-introduce rent control, absolve major corporations of their legal debt, and borrow billions to fund houses, hospitals, and water canals. Take a look. You have four months to decide.

Joe Trippi, America's Top Democratic Strategist Joins California's 'Affordable Housing Act' Ballot Campaign

06/29/2018 10:19 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

Backers of the Affordable Housing Act, a ballot initiative to repeal the Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act of 1995, select Joe Trippi and Trippi Norton Rossmeissl Campaigns as lead strategist and media consultant on the California campaign for a November initiative to return control on rent regulation to local communities.

Anticipating a fierce, well-funded campaign by mega-corporate landlords and Wall Street real estate investors, backers secure a battle-tested, powerhouse strategist.

SM Council Votes to Explore Scaled-Down Rental Ballot Measure

06/28/2018 7:42 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

June 27, 2018 -- Scaling back a request to explore two far-reaching rental ballot measures, the Santa Monica City Council on Tuesday unanimously voted to draft a Charter Amendment setting a 2018 base rent if California voters repeal vacancy decontrol.

Council members were hesitant to explore the two measures proposed by Santa Monicans for Renters' Rights (SMRR) that would have expanded local rent control and set a tax to build affordable housing.

Elections lawsuit headed toward trial

06/28/2018 7:40 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

The City of Santa Monica is gearing up for a showdown next month, as Malibu lawyer Kevin Shenkman prepares to take them to trial July 30 over City Council elections. Santa Monica is the first California city to challenge Shenkman regarding the California Voting Rights Act since Palmdale was forced to change to district elections in 2015. The settlement in that case required the city to pay $4.5 million in attorney’s fees for the plaintiffs.

City opens investigation into Shekhter development

06/27/2018 11:40 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

Documents confirm Neil Shekhter, the owner of NMS Properties, is the owner of the 1238 and 1242 Tenth Street apartment complex. The complex has been the subject of a multitude of complaints and audits in multiple City departments since renovations began in early 2016.

Plans for the building changed significantly during construction, according to an August 2017 Rent Control Board Report that awarded the four long-term tenants a total of $100,000 in combined rent decreases after finding “the owner’s failure to adequately test for asbestos and to consistently use safe work practices put the tenants at risk of significant health conditions.”

Who’s benefiting from all this? by Charles Andrews

06/27/2018 11:36 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

IT’S ALMOST ALWAYS ALL ABOUT THE $$$

Why is the City allowing a four-story early childhood learning center on our civic center property? A pre-school, basically, on the edge of downtown, across from a parking garage, a Hilton hotel, the courthouse, our Civic Auditorium, a high school, maybe an athletic field for big kids, and oh yes the Rand Corporation? Doesn’t that seem odd? Would you pick that location, to gather toddlers? Wonder why that location was chosen? (“A done deal,” we’ve been told for at least a decade when we questioned it.) Why are we charging this Santa Monica College enterprise only $1 a year rent on the land instead of market rate, a $25,000,000 giveaway?

Council to Discuss Ballot Measures That Could Dictate Future of Santa Monica Rent Control

06/26/2018 1:58 PM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

June 26, 2018 -- The request by two Santa Monica City Council members was a short 46 words and it provided no details.

But by the time the item -- which could impact the future of rent control in Santa Monica -- is taken up Tuesday niight the battle lines will have been clearly drawn and the arguments laid out in detail.

Councilmembers McKeown and Himmelrich's request would "authorize staff to explore appropriate local responses to the possible statewide repeal of the 1994 Costa-Hawkins Act," which allows landlords to raise rents to market rates on most vacated units.

Shortly after the item was first placed on the ballot earlier this month, memo began circulating from Santa Monicans for Renters' Rights (SMRR) that spelled out proposals for two SMRR-sponsored measures for the November ballot.