With Rent Stabilization Commission interviews commencing this week we have looked at those who applied. Now we turn our attention to the numbers: specifically the proportion of applicants who stepped up for the tenant, landlord and ‘at-large” categories relative to the number of potential applicants in each category. Which group was most motivated to apply for a commission seat? Landlords!
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Beverly Hills created the Rent Stabilization Commission earlier this year to advise City Council about future amendments to the rent stabilization ordinance. It underscored our Council’s commitment to rent stabilization in general and to the rent stabilization ordinance in particular. Now comes the hard work of standing up the new commission! With interviews proceeding this week, who is in the running?
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City Council created a new Rent Stabilization Commission in April and applications are now being accepted. There are nine seats total and one third of them are designated for tenants including two voting members and an alternate member. The application window closes May 24th. Let’s look at some problems with application for the Rent Stabilization Commission application as posted on the website.
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City Council created the Rent Stabilization Commission but left open the question of what the commission will do. Originally it would adjudicate ‘disruptive’ tenant terminations and mediate habitability disputes (and more). But last month City Council decided that commissioners should first discuss changes to the rent stabilization ordinance. A straw poll among councilmembers provided some focus for that discussion.
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City Council on April 2nd formally created a new Rent Stabilization Commission. Comprised of tenants and landlords and tasked with recommending changes to the city’s rent stabilization ordinance, it is a bold move to give tenants and landlords a real voice on issues that affect us. And it is the most tangible sign to date of the city’s commitment to the rent stabilization ordinance.
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After this third City Council rent stabilization study session we can see more clearly what’s ahead for the rent stabilization ordinance. We have gained important protections since early 2017. And just last month Council eliminated no-just-cause eviction. Also landlords must now register their rental units. But on the menu is an exemption for some properties and a new ‘probationary’ tenancy proposal.
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Have you visited the city’s rent stabilization website but didn’t find much about the ongoing, two-year reform of the rent stabilization ordinance? We feel your pain! That’s why we’ve posted this page. And that’s why we’ve created Renters Alliance: to keep residents who rent in Beverly Hills informed about the policy process. Here we suggest some steps that may lay ahead on the road to a better rent stabilization ordinance.
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Tenants and landlords looking forward to a final rent stabilization policy for Beverly Hills will have to wait a while longer. On November 21st City Council handed over to a national consulting firm, HR&A Advisors, the task of rent stabilization analysis. The consultant will undertake data collection, analysis, and even convene additional facilitated dialogues, culminating in a process that may unfold over the next 18-22 weeks. That extends the timeline for the rent stabilization discussion to nearly two years.
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While we wait for the city’s new consultant to get on the job, we have a lot of questions about the next steps in the rent stabilization policy process, the possible tenant-landlord committee, and in general about the administration of the new Rent Stabilization Program. Community Development Director Susan Healy Keene oversees the new program and generously took her time to answer our questions this morning.
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