ORD-36 Correspondence – Kristie Pabst
From: Kristie Pabst <[email protected]>
Sent: Tuesday, December 07, 2021 11:51 AM
To: Council District 3 <[email protected]>; Council District 5 <[email protected]>; Council District 4 <[email protected]>; Council District 1 <[email protected]>; Council District 6 <[email protected]>; Council District 7 <[email protected]>; Council District 2 <[email protected]>; Council District 8 <[email protected]>; Council District 9 <[email protected]>; Mayor <[email protected]>; Patrick Ure <[email protected]>
Subject: Substantial Remodel Agenda Item
Importance: High
-EXTERNAL-
Dear Long Beach City Council Members and Patrick Ure,
I am a property owner in the city of Long Beach and I am also the owner of a property management company, Pabst, Kinney & Associates that has been renting apartments for 40 years in the City. If the residents and local government want to see future housing investment of existing housing stock in our city then property owners need to be able to remodel, improve and upgrade their buildings. We are on the frontline of renting apartments and we can say that evictions due to substantial remodels are not taking place. Over 80% of our housing stock is 30 years and older, and many of these buildings are in need of substantial upgrades. Upgrading electrical and plumbing systems in an apartment complex cannot be done with tenants living in the unit. If you want to maintain good housing for our residents you need the private sector to invest in our City. If Long Beach puts all these restrictions and new regulations on property owners to remodel their own buildings, property owners will NOT invest in upgrading their buildings, and new investors will choose to invest in cities that have less government bureaucracy. Our City does not need another housing department at the cost of 2 million to implement more regulations on property owners.
Enough is Enough! Please discontinue the moratorium on substantial remodels and stop the consideration of this new housing department. Many of our owners and investors have already decided not to continue to invest further in Long Beach because of the cumbersome red tape and the anti-sentiment towards property owners. These are very good owners/investors that you want to invest in our City because they live here.
Respectfully submitted,
Kristie Pabst
President
Broker
BRE # 00804122
Pabst, Kinney & Associates, Inc.
248 Redondo Avenue
Long Beach, CA 90803
Bus: (562) 987-3244
Cell: (562) 547-2668
Fax: (562) 439-8339
Honorable Mayor Robert Garcia
Members of the Long Beach City Council
City of Long Beach
411 W. Ocean Blvd., 3rd Fl.
Long Beach, CA 90802
Cc: Mr. Patrick Ure Manager, Housing and Neighborhood Services Bureau
Subject: Item 36 (21-1276) Substantial Remodel Evictions
Dear Honorable Mayor Garcia, Members of the Long Beach City Council and Mr. Ure;
On behalf of a coalition comprised of the region’s businesses, property owners, investors, managers and suppliers of rental homes, and REALTORS®, we are writing today regarding item #36 (21-1276) that will be heard at the Tuesday, December 7, 2021 Long Beach City Council meeting.
On August 20, 2021, this coalition submitted a written request to LBDS for further information on the “scope and impact of the eviction problem related to renovations”, which the Council has been attempting review since July of 2021. We were looking for the number of complaints LBDS has received on this issue over the past two years; how many complaints are currently or were made on properties that have (or have not) obtained permits for substantial modification work; the general nature of such complaints; and how many of the complaints were generated by individuals living at the property in question.
LBDS’ (Mr. Ure’s) response was: “The Housing and Neighborhood Services Bureau has not received any complaints from any individuals regarding substantial remodels.”
Due to a lack of evidence supporting this problem existing at all, our coalition opposes all three options laid out by staff to address the tenant displacement for substantial remodels.
Option one lays out the framework for a new department that would be costly to the City of Long Beach and ultimately costly to tenants themselves as the property owners who would be charged with paying for this department would pass along the costs to tenants. In cities such as Los Angeles and West Hollywood, who have implemented this approach, this work is rarely done,
addressed in piecemeal increments and rehabilitating property is deterred. In fact, in 2016, the City of West Hollywood conducted an in-depth study to “[seek] innovative ways to encourage owners…. to re-invest in necessary capital improvements and rehabilitation to maintain and upgrade essential building systems”. Hollywood Apartment Rehabilitation Study. 2016).
Option two will require further clarifying regulations as it is currently ambiguous when it comes to making renovations to income properties in Long Beach. State law AB 1482 clearly defines what is a substantial remodel. Seeking to define this further, “means this issue will keep coming back to Council for further refinement. Increasing the regulatory hoops to conduct this work will complicate a straightforward process and increase the cost to conduct this necessary work.
Additionally, increasing the notification period is not within the legal purview of the City of Long Beach, rather that authority is state-mandated. In Tri County Apartment Assn. v. City of Mountain View (1987) 196 Cal.App.3d 1283, the court found that “the extensive scheduling provided by the Legislature reveals that the timing of landlord-tenant transactions is a matter of statewide concern not amenable to local variations.”
Option three is onerous on property owners in Long Beach who are trying to make upgrades to their property. The cost of renovations is at an all-time high right now due to labor shortages and material shortages. Adding an additional displacement fee effectively disincentivizes property owners from making any property improvements, which leaves Long Beach’s housing stock, 70% of which is over 30 years old, in health and safety peril.
We encourage you to reconsider all three options laid out by staff and respond to the lack of a problem by not changing the current policy in Long Beach regarding substantial remodel.
Ordinance No. ORD-20-0007, adopted in March 2020, enacts “more protective” measures than state law affecting substantial remodel of residential real property and the issuance of termination of tenancy notices.
Beginning in August 2020, state laws (AB 3088, SB 91 and AB 832) extended just-cause evictions to all properties and prevented termination of tenancy based on the intent to demolish or to substantially remodel the residential real property unless to comply with California Health and Safety Code. Through spring 2022, property owners are required to take steps in compliance with state law to demonstrate that they have made a good faith effort to seek rental assistance for a tenant or that they worked with a tenant who is seeking relief before seeking the termination of residential tenancy. Additionally, this work is currently suspended in LA County due to emergency COVID-19 measures.
Before the City considers new bureaucracy and unwieldy programs, LBDS staff should first look to disburse the LB-ERAP funding to those tenants attesting that they could not pay rent due to COVID and subsequently explore how ORD-20-0007 might be effectively implemented moving forward.
Respectfully,
Elaine Hutchison, Interim President
Apartment Association Southern Cities (AACSC)
Fred Sutton, Senior Vice President of Government Affairs California Apartment Association (CAA)
Jeremy Harris, President and CEO
Long Beach Area Chamber of Commerce (The Chamber)
Phil Hawkins, Chief Executive Officer
Pacific West Association of REALTORS® (PWR)
Keith Kennedy, President
Small Property Owners Alliance (SPOA)
R-36 Correspondence – Laura Hamilton
From: Laura Hamilton [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: Monday, December 6, 2021 10:40 AM
To: Council District 1 <[email protected]>; Council District 2 <[email protected]>; Council District 3 <[email protected]>; Council District 4 <[email protected]>; Council District 5 <[email protected]>; Council District 6 <[email protected]>; Council District 7 <[email protected]>; Council District 8 <[email protected]>; Council District 9 <[email protected]>; Mayor <[email protected]>; CityClerk <[email protected]> Subject: Opposed to creation of a new department: Tenant Habitability / Agenda Item #36
-EXTERNAL-
Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council,
As a resident and residential rental property owner in the City of Long Beach, I implore you not to move forward with the proposals in Agenda Item #36.
It seems that agenda item #36 provides costly and onerous solutions to a fake problem. It is yet another attack on property owners. It is important that our housing stock be maintained and that renovations are allowed without undue burden, delay, cost, etc.
In view of the recent appellate court ruling regarding Measure M, a new department (per Option 1) is the last thing our city needs or can afford. Option 1 is flawed: it is too vague and onerous and will likely lead to degradation of the city's housing.
Option 2 is also vague and burdensome and will cause confusion and will require further amendments down the line.
Option 3, again, is vague and is punitive. No owner would ever renovate a unit under its onerous financial burden.
All of the options are flawed: they are vague, address non-existent problems, will contribute directly to the degradation of housing stock, will cost jobs for contractors, will reduce sales tax collections (from building materials, appliances, fixtures, etc.). There are plenty of renter protections in state and local law; this proposal is unnecessary.
Please vote no on item 36.
Also, property owners have struggled throughout the pandemic and have been called upon to forego rent for many months and in some cases are still waiting for rent relief or may never receive it. Please do not continue the eviction moratorium; the job market is very strong; the protections are no longer needed.
Thank you,
Best regards,
Laura Hamilton
R-36 Correspondence – George Karahalios
-----Original Message-----
From: George [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: Monday, December 6, 2021 9:05 PM
To: Council District 1 <[email protected]>; Council District 8 <[email protected]>; Council District 9 <[email protected]>; Council District 2 <[email protected]>; Council District 3 <[email protected]>; Council District 4 <[email protected]>; Council District 5 <[email protected]>; Council District 6 <[email protected]>; Council District 7 <[email protected]>; CityClerk <[email protected]>; Mayor <[email protected]> Subject: Stop Over-Regulating Rental House
-EXTERNAL-
Dear City Official,
Please reject the proposed ordinance that alter AB1482 regarding renovations in the city of Ling Beach.
I was born and raised in Long Beach. My wife and I are Millikan High School and Poly High School graduates. We are dismayed that the City Council would allow themselves to be manipulated by a few well organized advocates who are proposing changes that would prevent our housing stock from ever being upgraded. AB1482 allowed for substancial renovations for a reason—because much of the state’s housing stock is in rapid decay.
The simple truth is that our city needs more—not fewer—renovations. Please allow the market to adjust itself by permitting necessary renovations without adding a cumbersome bureaucracy that will only work to bring progress to a halt. The city nor its taxpayers can afford (nor do we need) another expensive government oversight board. After all, the city is in deep trouble for illegally borrowing money from the utility fund and it cannot afford another financial burden.
Please use common sense and stop this unnecessary amendment to current law, a law which was well thought out by our governor and the assembly.
Sincerely,
George and Angie Karahalios
R-36 Correspondence – Danielle Peretz
From: Danielle Peretz [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: Friday, December 3, 2021 12:24 PM
To: Mayor <[email protected]>; Council District 1 <[email protected]>; Council District 2 <[email protected]>; Council District 3 <[email protected]>; Council District 4 <[email protected]>; Council District 5 <[email protected]>; Council District 6 <[email protected]>; Council District 8 <[email protected]>; Council District 9 <[email protected]>; CityClerk <[email protected]> Cc: Diana Tang <[email protected]>; Ray Morquecho <[email protected]>; Connor Lock <[email protected]>; Rahul Sen <[email protected]>; Jack Cunningham <[email protected]>; Chork Nim <[email protected]>; Celina Luna <[email protected]>; Matthew Hamlett <[email protected]>; Daniel Yukelson <[email protected]>; Von Thompson <[email protected]>; Kyle Henneberque <[email protected]>
Subject: December 7th Long Beach City Council Meeting - Agenda Item 36
-EXTERNAL-
Good Afternoon Hon. Mayor Garcia and Long Beach City Council Members:
Attached for your review is a letter submitted by the Apartment Association of Greater Los Angeles (AAGLA) in opposition to agenda item 36, scheduled for the Council’s consideration at the December 7th City Council meeting.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
Danielle Leidner-Peretz
Director, Government Affairs & External Relations
Apartment Association of Greater Los Angeles
621 South Westmoreland Avenue
Los Angeles, California 90005
t: 213/384-4131, ext 309 | f: 888/384-4131 | [email protected] www.AAGLA.org
Twitter
Facebook
The Voice of Multifamily Housing Since 1917 ©
APARTMENT ASSOCIATION OF GREATER LOS ANGELES
AAGLA
“Great Apartments Start Here!”
621 S. WESTMORELAND AVE., LOS ANGELES, CA 90005 | 213.384.4131 | AAGLA.ORG
Danielle Leidner-Peretz
Director, Government Affairs &
External Relations
[email protected]
213.384.4131; Ext. 309
December 3, 2021
Via Electronic Mail
Hon. Mayor Robert Garcia and Members of the Long Beach City Council Civic Chambers
411 West Ocean Boulevard
Long Beach, California 90802
Re: 21-1276 Recommendation to request City Attorney to prepare an ordinance amending Chapter 8.99 of the Long Beach Municipal Code, Just Cause for Termination of Tenancies, to include the modifications in Option Two proposed herein (Agenda Item 36)
Dear Hon. Mayor Garcia and Long Beach City Council Members:
At the December 7 th City Council meeting, the Council will be presented with options to amend the City’s “just cause” ordinance as it relates to no-fault tenancy terminations for substantial remodel. The Apartment Association of Greater Los Angeles (AAGLA or Association) is opposed to the proposed amendments and urges the City Council to reject their advancement.
This matter was last discussed by the City Council in July when the Council adopted an ordinance prohibiting “no-fault” evictions for substantial remodel through December 31, 2021 and directed staff to explore options relative to this matter including establishment of a costly administrative bureaucracy: Renovation Administration Program. In July and in the time since, no data has been presented of a citywide issue warranting any chang es to the City’s “just cause” ordinance. Moreover, the City’s Staff report validates this assertion and specifically states that “City Staff have no solid data to determine that the substantial remodel just-cause for termination provision is being widely u sed to systematically displace tenants .” There is simply no basis to move forward with any of the proposed options which would only serve to complicate the process, result in additional housing costs, and hinder vital housing restoration.
Key data provided in the City’s Staff report illustrates the overwhelming prevalence of aging housing stock within the City and the urgency of upgrades. As indicated in the City’s Staff report “82 percent of the City’s housing unit s” were built prior to 1980 and “seventy-one percent of the City’s housing units are more than 50 -years old.” We recommend that the City Council institute policies that encourage essential rehabilitation and renovations which is beneficial to all the residents of the City of Long Beach, and necessary in order to preserve the City’s existing housing
APARTMENT ASSOCIATION OF GREATER LOS ANGELES
AAGLA
“Great Apartments Start Here!”
621 S. WESTMORELAND AVE., LOS ANGELES, CA 90005 | 213.384.4131 | AAGLA.ORG stock.
Thank you for your time and consideration of these matters. We appreciate the stakeholder engagement that has occurred to date and welcome the opportunity to continue discussions on these important housing issues. If you have any questions, please call me at (213) 384-4131; Ext. 309 or contact me via electronic mail at [email protected].
Very truly yours,
Danielle Leidner-Peretz
Danielle Leidner-Peretz
R-36 Correspondence – Chris Wilson
From: Chris Wilson [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: Friday, December 3, 2021 2:33 PM
To: CityClerk <[email protected]>; Chris Wilson <[email protected]> Subject: City of Long Beach - Agenda Item 36 - 12.7.2021
-EXTERNAL-
Good afternoon Mayor, Councilmembers and Staff,
Please see BizFed's attached communication and opposition to Item #36 on your
12.7.2021 City of Long Beach Council Agenda.
Please let me know if you have any questions.
Thank you,
Chris Wilson, Public Policy Manager
(562) 201-6034 - [email protected]
Los Angeles County Business Federation
A grassroots alliance of 215 diverse business groups mobilizing 410,000 employers - BizFed.org
#BusinessMakesLAWork
SAVE THE DATE: #PoliticalForecast returns in-person Wednesday, December 8th. Open to members & non-members. Tickets on sale now!
Los Angeles County Business Federation / 6055 E. Washington Blvd. #1005, Commerce, California 90040 / T: 323.889.4348 / www.bizfed.org
December 6, 2021
Honorable Mayor and Councilmembers
City of Long Beach
411 West Ocean Blvd, 11th Floor
Long Beach, California 90802
RE: Item #36 (21-1276) Changes to the Tenant Protection Act
Dear Mayor Garcia and Councilmembers:
On behalf of the Los Angeles County Business Federation (BizFed), a grassroots alliance of 217 diverse business organizations mobilizing 410,000 employers in Los Angeles County, we respectfully request you oppose all items in Item #36 and reject changes to the Tenant Protection Act created through state law.
Upon review of the staff report, no evidence has been provided to believe additional regulations are necessary. In fact, “The Housing and Neighborhood Services Bureau has not received any complaints from any individuals regarding substantial remodels.” The legislative and regulatory process should be rooted in addressing existing problems. This appears to be a case of solutions in search of a problem. This is not due to the lack of ability to obtain complaint-based data, but simply there are no complaints from individuals who have experienced illegal tenancy terminations.
According to the Southern California Association of Governments, over 70% of the housing stock was built before 1970. This is among the oldest housing stock in the county. Buildings need to be rehabilitated and updated as operational systems wear out. Adding unnecessary hoops and regulations will increase costs to do this necessary work and will result in higher costs of housing and encourage deferred maintenance.
Given the proposals will guarantee counterproductive outcomes related to quality and affordability, we encourage council to review and ensure complaint-based systems are tracking and verifying future incoming complaints. We support robust education to residents and housing providers to ensure the community knows the law, their responsibilities, and any potential illegal activity is referred to the proper authorities.
For these reasons, we respectfully request you oppose item #36 as currently written. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact our BizFed Policy Manager, Chris Wilson, at (562) 201-6034 or [email protected].
Sincerely,
Donna Dupperon David Fleming Tracy Hernandez BizFed Chair BizFed Founding Chair BizFed Founding CEO Torrance Area Chamber IMPOWER, Inc.
Los Angeles County Business Federation / 6055 E. Washington Blvd. #1005, Commerce, California 90040 / T: 323.889.4348 / www.bizfed.org
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ORD-36 Correspondence – Melinda Teter
From: Melinda Teter Dodge [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: Tuesday, December 7, 2021 3:21 PM
To: CityClerk <[email protected]>
Subject: Public comments Dec 7 - City of Long Beach Council
-EXTERNAL-
I am the Rev. Melinda Teter Dodge. I am the pastor of Community & Connection among three United Methodist Churches in Long Beach. I am also a part of Clery & Laity United for Economic Justice (CLUE). I would like to share my support of Option 1 to address “substantial remodel” evictions.
I have heard testimonies of community members impacted by “substantial remodel” evictions.
There is an unequal power relationship between landlords and tenants that we need to name and acknowledge as we work to be community together in Long Beach. Substantial remodel as a just cause makes tenants vulnerable to eviction at any moment and be at the mercy of their landlords.
The power imbalance is a condition for abuse. To shift this power imbalance, I believe that option 1 is the best solution. We need to remove substantial remodeling as a just cause.
Landlords need accountability from the city to do the right thing - to make needed repairs and ensure affordable housing for their long-term tenants.
As a pastor, I am concerned about the tremendous impact of these unjust evictions on families and children. My Christian faith teaches me to “love my neighbor” at all times, and removing substantial remodeling as a just cause for eviction is a hands-on, real action of loving one’s neighbor.
Mayor & councilmembers, I urge persons to vote for Option 1 to help create a fair process for responsible repairs and protect tenants in the process.
Thank you.
Rev. Melinda Teter Dodge
Pastor of Community & Connection
Being the Church Movement, Long Beach
E: [email protected]
Insta: Being_the_Church_LB
C: 213/300-4789
"Christ has no body now, but yours. No hands, no feet on earth, but yours. Yours are the eyes through which Christ looks compassion into the world. Yours are the feet with which Christ walks to
do good. Yours are the hands with which Christ blesses the world." - Teresa of Avila