ACTION Apartment Association

Santa Monica Landlords Show Little Interest in Housing Voucher Bonuses

05/31/2017 8:41 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

May 31, 2017 -- Faced with daunting disinterest among Santa Monica landlords, the City is intensifying a campaign that offers them $5,000 signing bonuses and other financial assistance to accept renters with housing vouchers.

Now entering its third year, the City program rolled out again last month, offering to award the bonuses to the first 45 landlords who apply, as in the past.

But there hasn’t been a rush to cash in so far.

Applications Add Up for Residents Panel on Pay and Benefits at Santa Monica City Hall

05/31/2017 8:36 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

May 31, 2017 -- A newly approved committee inspired by resident anger over high pay and benefits at Santa Monica City Hall is getting plenty of applicants, including a former City Manager from the 1970s and a former City analyst involved in labor negotiations.

As of Tuesday, the half dozen applicants for the Compensation Study Advisory Committee included former Santa Monica City manager James D. Williams and former City administrative analyst Homa Mojtabai.

Others who have submitted their applications are Janine T. Bush, Dominic A. Gomez, Sophia T. Le and Laurence E. Eubank.

Safety of Santa Monica Streets Could Emerge as New Worry in Plan for Development Downtown

05/31/2017 8:33 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

May 31, 2017 -- A string of pedestrian fatalities on Santa Monica’s busy streets has prompted new worries about a City plan to allow 3.2 million square feet of new development in an already built-out downtown.

The last draft of the Downtown Community Plan (DCP) goes before the City Planning Commission for a final time tonight. The meeting is in City Council chambers and starts at 6 p.m.

Although the commission is primarily advisory, its members are selected by the City Council and big disagreements between the two are unusual.

Federal Judge Dismisses Suit Against Santa Monica Short-Term Rental Ban

05/30/2017 8:30 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

May 30, 2017 -- A California Federal Court last week dismissed a claim against the City of Santa Monica that argued that the California Coastal Act overrode the City's ban on short-term vacation rentals listed on such sites as Airbnb.

In his ruling Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Otis D. Wright II found that Federal court was the wrong venue to argue that claim and noted that he already had dismissed all other federal claims in the class action suit filed by a retired school teacher last June.

SMa.r.t.-Housing Über Alles

05/26/2017 11:35 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

When that long approval process started, the downtown area was supposed to absorb the half of the City’s 5000 new unit housing needs until 2030. Housing was supposed to be maximized through a tier system whereby developers could get extra height and density if they paid additional fees and added more affordable units than was required for simply conforming projects. But suddenly the rules of the “housing game” changed in three significant ways:

Rent Control Fact Sheet

05/26/2017 8:23 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

NMHC/NAA VIEWPOINT Rather than improving the availability of affordable housing, rent control laws exacerbate shortages, cause existing buildings to deteriorate and disproportionately benefit higher-income households. NMHC/NAA urge lawmakers to reject price controls and pursue alternatives such as voucher-based rental assistance to better address critical affordable housing shortages.

“The Wolf is Here,” Santa Monica City Manager Warns as Budget Woes Mount

05/25/2017 11:47 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

May 25, 2017 -- With shortages in revenue set to double, Santa Monica City Manager Rick Cole on Tuesday warned “the wolf is here” as the City Council took its first dive into a record $1.57 billion biennial budget for the 2017-2019 fiscal year.

Total spending for the first of the budget’s two years is $773.7 million, or 26 percent higher than this year’s budget.

But it also includes a nearly $148 million gap in revenue. Cole proposes filling the hole with a $77 million bond this summer to pay for constructing a new City Services Building -- the single biggest piece of the leap in total spending.

CCSM promises sustainable, affordable housing

05/25/2017 8:25 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

The city’s largest affordable housing provider believes its next project will break ground in sustainability in California. Community Corp of Santa Monica plans to retrofit some ocean view apartments it purchased from the City in 2016 to be zero-net energy.

Along with plans to open up some walls, seismically retrofit and make 1616 Ocean Avenue ADA compliant, plans for the refurbishment include installing solar panels on the roof that will power the residences and common areas. The project has a $200,000 funding gap that just received a big boost from the City Council. On Tuesday, the Councilmembers voted unanimously to contribute $50,000 in discretionary funds for the energy upgrade.

Read More on page 1: http://backissues.smdp.com/052517.pdf

Santa Monica City Officials Set to Add, Update Fees

05/24/2017 1:55 PM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

May 24, 2107 -- As the Santa Monica City Council wades into its proposed $1.57 billion biennial budget for 2017-2019, it is considering adding 40 new user fees for everything from vendor carts at special events to seismic retrofits of buildings.

Seven of the new fees -- which range from $35 to $257 -- are the result of the City’s new mandatory seismic retrofit program.

The most expensive of the new fees is aimed at developers/property owners. It is for “manifold service” for multi-family or multi-unit commercial water accounts, allowing for a one-time fee of $6,817 instead of individual fees per meter.

In City of Santa Monica, Big Plans -- and Big Pension Costs -- Lead to Shaky Times

05/23/2017 1:23 PM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

May 23, 2017 -- With pension costs poised to drive it into the red and ambitious capital projects requiring huge chunks of money, the City of Santa Monica is facing a reality seemingly far-fetched for such a popular and prosperous seaside enclave: It is starting to run short of revenue.

The City’s proposed 2017-2019 biennial budget unveiled last week totals a record $1.57 billion, or 25 percent more than its predecessor.

But total revenue in the budget increases at only half that amount, leaving the City with a $134.8 million gap it proposes to fill with an almost $77 million bond and tapping the fund balance and reserves.

The record budget goes to the City Council for study sessions tonight as part of its regular Tuesday meeting, and again on Wednesday.