Santa Monica Watchdog Group Warns New Plan Primes Downtown for “Runaway” Building and Traffic

04/19/2017 3:24 PM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

April 19, 2017 -- After years of alterations, the final City plan designed to guide new building in the heart of Santa Monica has left downtown primed for "runaway” development and traffic, a local watchdog group is warning.

The Downtown Community Plan (DCP) is still weighted too heavily in favor of developers and leaves residents with little -- if any -- voice in the downtown’s future, said the nine-page critique by the Santa Monica Coalition for a Livable City (SMCLC).

Cautious Hope for Proposed Citizen Committee on Santa Monica City Employee Costs

04/19/2017 3:15 PM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

April 19, 2017 -- Just a day after being recommended, a novel new City proposal for a citizen committee to help delve into high compensation for City of Santa Monica employees was already getting early reviews -- and an applicant -- on Tuesday.

“It’s not optimal,” said Dominick Gomez, a member of Northeast Neighbors, a neighborhood association that, with others, has been sharply critical of City employee compensation -- among the highest for California municipalities ("Santa Monica Ranks Third in County for City Employee Compensation Costs, Survey Finds," June 23, 2016).

“It’s a start,” Gomez said.

Code Compliance officers charged with increased responsibility for tenant harassment cases

04/18/2017 7:20 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

The City is hoping the Code Enforcement Team can add some additional teeth to tenant harassment rules.

Next week, code enforcement officers will undergo training so they can begin pursuing tenant harassment violations May 1. Under the previous system, the City Attorney’s Office was solely responsible for reviewing and possibly prosecuting all allegations of landlord harassment. Harassment can be any action intended to upset the tenants and make them move out like taking away services provided in the lease, lying, threats or intentionally disturbing a tenant’s peace and quiet or privacy. The law stipulates the landlord must be acting in bad faith.

“Certainly, everyone knows this has been a priority for the City Council, so as of July 1, the fines will go from $75 – we anticipate – to $1,000 per day,” Sharon Guidry said.

Residents Committee Recommended to Examine High Cost of Santa Monica City Employee Compensation

04/18/2017 7:00 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

April 18, 2017 -- Faced with rising complaints about salaries and benefits for Santa Monica City employees -- among the highest for California municipalities -- staff is recommending a temporary panel of residents be created to examine the contentious issue.

The ad hoc committee would be comprised of five residents and assist “in critically reviewing and objectively considering” employee compensation, according to the report by Gigi Decavalles-Hughes, the City’s finance director, released on Monday.

Downtown Things’ll Be Great: ...

04/17/2017 7:15 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

Downtown Things’ll Be Great: Big Promises in the Community Plan Draft Sees Down-Zoning of Height Limits, Promises of Open Space, and a Cap on Development Post-Implementation

City Manager Rick Cole and City Planning Manager Jing Yeo, both reiterated that the DCP was primarily a housing plan – creating space and housing for people “who work and live here.”

Bloom pulls controversial Rent Control Bill

04/14/2017 8:43 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

Less than three weeks after the Rent Control Board voted unanimously to support an Assembly bill that would repeal the CostaHawkins Act, the bill itself is on life support. In fact, several sources familiar with talks in Sacramento say AB 1506 is dead. “No one is ready for it yet,” said the senior field representative for Assemblymember Richard Bloom (D-Santa Monica), Tim Harter. Bloom recently made the decision to pull the bill for now. AB 1506 could still come back before the Assembly next year, giving Bloom more time to sell the idea to its many detractors.

Read More on page 1: http://backissues.smdp.com/041417.pdf

City reveals downtown plan years in the making

04/14/2017 8:39 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

It’s a sensitive plan after a heated election. Longtime residents fuming over a changing city railed against “overdevelopment” and pushed Measure LV in November, an initiative that would have required a vote on nearly every new building in the City over two stories.

The measure failed but the dialogue over development shifted.

The final draft revealed Wednesday presented a scaled-back vision for downtown – with buildings limited to about four of five stories in the core areas near the Third Street Promenade. The City wants to encourage housing development, especially near the Expo Line, allowing mixed-use developments near the train to reach seven stories.

Santa Monica Downtown Plan Seeks to Strike a Compromise, Officials Say, But Some Remain Skeptical Heading

04/14/2017 8:33 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

April 13, 2017 -- How do you find common ground between developers proposing 20-plus-story high-rises and slow-growth activists who want most buildings in Santa Monica's downtown to be no more than two stories tall?

City officials hope that the long-awaited final draft of the Downtown Community Plan (DCP) released at a public meeting Wednesday evening will help bridge that often acrimonious gap.

To view the full plan: http://www.downtownsmplan.org/

Pasadena council ‘fixes’ city’s Tenant Protection Ordinance

04/14/2017 8:30 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

Pasadena landlords who evict tenants to demolish their property or use the property for personal use can no longer avoid paying relocation fees.

Rent Control discussion builds on Seismic ordinance

04/13/2017 7:11 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

Construction is the major theme of tonight’s Rent Control Board meeting, as the members discuss the City’s massive new seismic safety retrofit ordinance and tweak tenant protections. The Board will consider changes to an ordinance that allows rent control tenants to pay reduced rent while there is significant construction at their building that effects habitability or reduces services unless the construction is necessary and reasonable.

“These draconian decrease regulations will likely give birth to a new cottage industry that we can call ‘Decreases R Us,’” Building owner Wes Wellman said. “Activists will organize tenants on every retrofit to pursue rent decreases from an enabling and compliant rent control administration.”

Condon says the City is currently working on an analysis of construction and will likely discuss pass through costs this summer.

Read More on page 1: http://backissues.smdp.com/041317.pdf