ACTION Apartment Association

Special Committee on City of Santa Monica Employee Pay and Benefits Approved

05/11/2017 5:19 PM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

May 11, 2017 -- Creation of an ad hoc committee of residents to help guide an internal review of rapidly rising salaries and benefits for City of Santa Monica employees was approved Tuesday by the City Council.

Without comment, the council gave the nod to the temporary panel of five members of the public, an idea that rose out of increasing calls by a collection of critics to rein in total compensation for the City workforce of 3,088 full and part-time employees ("Santa Monica City Pay and Benefits Climb at Double the Inflation Rate, New Data Shows," May 2, 2017).

LA will allow landlords to rent out unpermitted apartments—if they also provide affordable housing

05/11/2017 7:12 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

The Los Angeles City Council unanimously approved new rules on Wednesday that will allow landlords to rent out unpermitted apartments.

The new ordinance is key to “protecting low- and moderate-income Angelenos doing their best to get by, living in unapproved units [through] no fault of their own,” said Councilmember Jose Huizar.

Every year, Huizar said, city inspectors remove from the rental market 400 to 500 units never approved for occupancy (think, for example, of converted rec rooms or haphazardly partitioned micro apartments).

The new rules comes with strings attached. Landlords will be able to apply for permits for such units only if they agree to rent an equal number of units in the building at affordable prices for the next 55 years. Unpermitted units would also have to be brought into compliance with city safety codes.

L.A. takes step toward legalizing bootlegged apartments

05/11/2017 7:10 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

Los Angeles lawmakers took a step Wednesday toward legalizing some “bootlegged” apartments, arguing that the city must spare them as it grapples with an affordable housing crisis.

A City Council committee backed a new ordinance that would smooth the way to legalization for apartments that are deemed safe and habitable but never got city approval.

Santa Monica Homelessness Rate Has Risen 26 Percent Over Last Year

05/10/2017 7:36 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

Homelessness in Santa Monica rose by 193 to 921 in the most recent count, a 26 percent increase over last year, city officials announced Tuesday.

There was a 39 percent increase in the number of individuals living on the street (416 to 581); a 26 percent increase in the number of individuals sleeping in vehicles or encampments (73 to 92); and a 9 percent increase in the number of people in shelters (312 to 340).

Also see: http://www.smobserved.com/story/2017/05/10/news/santa-monica-homeless-count-shows-26-increase-in-homelessness/2889.html

Also see: http://smdp.com/city-grapples-with-sudden-spike-in-homelessness/160887

Santa Monica looks to go Water Neutral

05/08/2017 7:06 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

The City hopes a new ordinance will turn off the faucet when it comes to water usage inside Santa Monica’s eight square miles. Even as future developments could bring thousands of new residents to downtown, the rules seek to maintain water neutrality – meaning thousands of new showers and toilets would not increase Santa Monica’s overall demand on water resources.

The City Council will consider an ordinance Tuesday that will require all new developments to be water neutral: meaning the new structures must stay within the same water usage as previous use of the property or pay a fee. Requirements for 100 percent affordable housing projects would be less stringent than for market-rate.

Rent control goes before Santa Rosa voters next week

05/07/2017 10:37 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

Santa Rosans begin voting next week to determine whether the city should

implement rent control in a special election that is shaping up to be the most

divisive and expensive in the city’s history.

A sharply split City Council passed the controversial policy last fall, seeking to

address soaring rents and a spike in evictions. In response, local landlords and the

statewide organizations that support them funded a petition drive that suspended the law and

forced a referendum on the issue.

Now voters will decide the fate of Measure C in a citywide special election that is

shattering all spending records and putting Santa Rosa on the front lines of a

statewide debate over how cities can best address the housing crisis.

If approved, rent increases would be capped at 3 percent annually for about 11,100

apartments built in Santa Rosa before Feb. 1, 1995. Measure C would also require

landlords to give a reason for evicting tenants, and in some cases require them to

pay relocation expenses.

Voting by mail begins Monday, and residents go to the polls on June 6.

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Santa Monica Legislator’s Affordable Housing Bill Passes Assembly

05/05/2017 2:44 PM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

May 5, 2017 -- A bill co-authored by Santa Monica Democratic Assemblyman Richard Bloom that would allow local governments to require developments include affordable units was approved by the State Assembly on Thursday.

The new bill will have no impact on Santa Monica, which has a requirement approved by voters in 1990 that no less than 30 pecent of new multifamily housing constructed every year be affordable.

Population of Santa Monica Rises as State Total Nears 40 Million

05/05/2017 2:43 PM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

May 5, 2017 -- The estimated population of Santa Monica increased from 93,282 to 93,834 from January 2016 to January 2017 for a change of .59 percent, according to information released this week by the California Department of Finance.

Total housing units was also included in the information released this week. There are 52,410 residential units in Santa Monica, up from 52,082 in 2016.

The breakdown of the residential units is 9,735 houses (increase of 15 from 2016), 40,645 multi-family units (increase of 312), 1,826 single units attached to houses (increase of one) and 204 mobile homes (unchanged from 2016).

Santa Monica Landlord Harassment Case Highlights Strong Tenant Protections

05/05/2017 8:42 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

May 4, 2107 -- The case of Nina Edwards, a tenant who successfully held on to the rent-controlled condominium on Ocean Avenue she has occupied for more than three decades, serves as a cautionary tale for those buying condo units in Santa Monica, according to local rent control experts.

Edwards -- who rented the condo unit in the upscale oceanfront neighborhood near Montana Avenue for $850 month -- will stay in the unit after the City Attorney's office won a $30,000 settlement from the condo's new owner, Sean Gharib.

Large projects move forward on Lincoln Boulevard

05/05/2017 8:41 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

Plans for two new apartment complexes on Lincoln Boulevard between Colorado Avenue and Interstate 10 are moving forward, bringing an additional 166 units to the stretch of road. Combined with four neighboring projects currently underway, a total of 623 units are slated for development along the stretch of busy roadway.

A five-story, 66-unit building with 5,324 square feet of retail will replace the Aaron Brothers Art and Framing store at 1641 Lincoln Boulevard. The Architectural Review Board signed off on the plans Monday.