Written Comments — Santa Monica City Council, June 9, 2026

1 David Yakobson
From: Kamran Khosrovani <[email protected]>
Sent: Saturday, June 6, 2026 7:12 PM
To: Jesse Zwick; Dan Hall; Barry Snell; Caroline Torosis; Natalya Zernitskaya; Lana Negrete; Ellis Raskin
Cc: councilmtgitems; Oliver Chi; Susan Cline; Peter James Subject: Please Pull Agenda Item 10A — Hotel Wage Ordinance — June 9 Council Meeting

This item was added with less than four days' notice, with no meaningful outreach to hotel operators, workers, small businesses, or residents. There has been no independent economic impact analysis specific to Santa Monica's market conditions. And it is being rushed through as an "emergency" ordinance, bypassing the normal 30- day public review period, when no genuine emergency exists.

We do not have to guess at the consequences. An independent study of Los Angeles hotels found that within just six months of implementing this same ordinance: 6% of hotel jobs were eliminated or at risk; 14 hotel restaurants closed or are expected to close; 58% of LA hotels expect to be unprofitable by end of 2026; and not a single hotel investment transaction occurred in Los Angeles in all of 2025. Santa Monica is already feeling these same pressures. This ordinance will make things significantly worse.

Santa Monica's tourism economy generates $916.6 million in local economic activity and funds critical city services through Transient Occupancy Tax revenue. With visitor levels still nearly 50% below pre-pandemic levels, our hotels cannot absorb these additional costs without cutting jobs, reducing services, or closing entirely.

I am also deeply concerned about the conflict of interest this vote presents. Unite Here Local 11, the union that directly benefits from this ordinance, provided substantial campaign support to a majority of this council. Any council member who has received significant financial support from Unite Here, or who has had ex parte communications with union representatives about this ordinance, has an ethical obligation to fully disclose that relationship and to seriously consider recusing themselves from Tuesday's vote.

I urge you to:

1. Immediately pull Agenda Item 10A from the June 9 agenda 2. Conduct genuine outreach to all affected stakeholders before any vote 3. Commission an independent economic impact analysis specific to Santa Monica 4.

Require full disclosure of all Unite Here involvement in developing this proposal 5. Require any union-funded council member to recuse themselves from the vote
Santa Monica deserves a transparent process that puts our community first.

Thank you for your time and your service to our city.

Sincerely,
Kamran Khosrovani
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
2 David Yakobson
From: Wendy Dembo <[email protected]>
Sent: Saturday, June 6, 2026 11:37 PM
To: Jesse Zwick; Dan Hall; Barry Snell; Caroline Torosis; Natalya Zernitskaya; Lana Negrete; Ellis Raskin
Cc: councilmtgitems; Oliver Chi; Susan Cline; Peter James Subject: Please Pull Agenda Item 10A — Hotel Wage Ordinance — June 9 Council Meeting

EXTERNAL
Dear Mayor and Members of the Santa Monica City Council, My friend works at the Shore Hotel. They are barely keeping afloat. There are so many challenges to running a hotel, especially in Santa Monica.

Although, short term rentals are not allowed in Santa Monica, there are four units that do two or three day rentals on my block. Why stay at a hotel and pay all the taxes when you can stay at a much cheaper Airbnb?
I am writing to urge you to immediately remove Agenda Item 10A, the proposed emergency hotel wage ordinance, from Tuesday's June 9 agenda.

This item was added with less than four days' notice, with no meaningful outreach to hotel operators, workers, small businesses, or residents. There has been no independent economic impact analysis specific to Santa Monica's market conditions. And it is being rushed through as an "emergency" ordinance, bypassing the normal 30-day public review period, when no genuine emergency exists. We do not have to guess at the consequences.

An independent study of Los Angeles hotels found that within just six months of implementing this same ordinance: 6% of hotel jobs were eliminated or at risk; 14 hotel restaurants closed or are expected to close; 58% of LA hotels expect to be unprofitable by end of 2026; and not a single hotel investment transaction occurred in Los Angeles in all of 2025. Santa Monica is already feeling these same pressures.

Any council member who has received significant financial support from Unite Here, or who has had ex parte communications with union representatives about this ordinance, has an ethical obligation to fully disclose that relationship and to seriously consider recusing themselves from Tuesday's vote.

Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
3 I urge you to:

1. Immediately pull Agenda Item 10A from the June 9 agenda

2. Conduct genuine outreach to all affected stakeholders before any vote

3. Commission an independent economic impact analysis specific to Santa Monica

4. Require full disclosure of all Unite Here involvement in developing this proposal

5. Require any union-funded council member to recuse themselves from the vote Santa Monica deserves a transparent process that puts our community first.

Thank you for your time and your service to our city.

Sincerely,
Wendy Dembo
Santa Monica Resident
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
4 David Yakobson
From: [email protected]
Sent: Sunday, June 7, 2026 6:22 AM
To: Jesse Zwick; Dan Hall; Barry Snell; Caroline Torosis; Natalya Zernitskaya; Lana Negrete; Ellis Raskin
Cc: councilmtgitems; Oliver Chi; Susan Cline; Peter James Subject: Please Pull Agenda Item 10A — Hotel Wage Ordinance — June 9 Council Meeting

EXTERNAL
Dear Mayor and Members of the Santa Monica City Council,

I am writing to urge you to immediately remove Agenda Item 10A, the proposed emergency hotel wage ordinance, from Tuesday's June 9 agenda. This item was added with less than four days' notice, with no meaningful outreach to hotel operators, workers, small businesses, or residents. There has been no independent economic impact analysis specific to Santa Monica's market conditions. And it is being rushed through as an "emergency" ordinance, bypassing the normal 30-day public review period, when no genuine emergency exists. We do not have to guess at the consequences. An independent study of Los Angeles hotels found that within just six months of implementing this same ordinance: 6% of hotel jobs were eliminated or at risk; 14 hotel restaurants closed or are expected to close; 58% of LA hotels expect to be unprofitable by end of 2026; and not a single hotel investment transaction occurred in Los Angeles in all of 2025. Santa Monica is already feeling these same pressures.

This ordinance will make things significantly worse. Santa Monica's tourism economy generates $916.6 million in local economic activity and funds critical city services through Transient Occupancy Tax revenue. With visitor levels still nearly 50% below pre-pandemic levels, our hotels cannot absorb these additional costs without cutting jobs, reducing services, or closing entirely. I am also deeply concerned about the conflict of interest this vote presents. Unite Here Local 11, the union that directly benefits from this ordinance, provided substantial campaign support to a majority of this council. Any council member who has received significant financial support from Unite Here, or who has had ex parte communications with union representatives about this ordinance, has an ethical obligation to fully disclose that relationship and to seriously consider recusing themselves from Tuesday's vote.

I urge you to: 1. Immediately pull Agenda Item 10A from the June 9 agenda 2. Conduct genuine outreach to all affected stakeholders before any vote 3. Commission an independent economic impact analysis specific to Santa Monica 4. Require full disclosure of all Unite Here involvement in developing this proposal 5. Require any union-funded council member to recuse themselves from the vote Santa Monica deserves a transparent process that puts our community first. Thank you for your time and your service to our city.

Sincerely,
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
6 David Yakobson
From: Lesley Bracker <[email protected]>
Sent: Sunday, June 7, 2026 8:57 AM
To: Jesse Zwick; Dan Hall; Barry Snell; Caroline Torosis; Natalya Zernitskaya; Lana Negrete; Ellis Raskin
Cc: councilmtgitems; Oliver Chi; Susan Cline; Peter James Subject: Please Pull Agenda Item 10A — Hotel Wage Ordinance — June 9 Council Meeting

I urge you to:

Thank you for your time and your service to our city.
*** By the way — I’m really tired of what this city council is doing to our city. It is unrecognizable, and an embarrassment when I look at Santa Monica through a tourist’s eyes. The Promenade is a disgrace, a ghost town.

What was once thriving is now dead and ugly. And now you want to make hotels an empty shell? Disgraceful. **** Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
8 David Yakobson
From: Anne Dudek <[email protected]>
Sent: Sunday, June 7, 2026 9:27 AM
To: Jesse Zwick; Dan Hall; Barry Snell; Caroline Torosis; Natalya Zernitskaya; Lana Negrete; Ellis Raskin; councilmtgitems; Oliver Chi; Susan Cline; Peter James Subject: Please Pull Agenda Item 10A — Hotel Wage Ordinance — June 9 Council Meeting

I urge you to:

Thank you for your time and your service to our city.

Sincerely,
Anne Baxter
Sent from my iPhone
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
9 David Yakobson
From: Betsy Katz <[email protected]>
Sent: Sunday, June 7, 2026 10:25 AM
To: Jesse Zwick; Dan Hall; Barry Snell; Caroline Torosis; Natalya Zernitskaya; Lana Negrete; Ellis Raskin
Cc: councilmtgitems; Oliver Chi; Susan Cline; Peter James Subject: Please Pull Agenda Item 10A — Hotel Wage Ordinance — June 9 Council Meeting

I urge you to:

Thank you for your time and your service to our city.

Sincerely,
Betsy Katz
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
10 David Yakobson
From: Jason Moore <[email protected]>
Sent: Sunday, June 7, 2026 11:41 AM
To: Jesse Zwick; Dan Hall; Barry Snell; Caroline Torosis; Natalya Zernitskaya; Lana Negrete; Ellis Raskin
Cc: councilmtgitems; Oliver Chi; Susan Cline; Peter James Subject: Please Pull Agenda Item 10A — Hotel Wage Ordinance — June 9 Council Meeting

I urge you to:

Thank you for your time and your service to our city.

Sincerely,
Jason Moore
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
11 David Yakobson
From: John Alle <[email protected]>
Sent: Sunday, June 7, 2026 4:21 PM
To: John Alle
Subject: EMERGENCY: STOP CITY HALL'S RUSHED HOTEL ORDINANCE BEFORE IT RUINS SANTA MONICA!n my

EXTERNAL
Hi,
I just signed the petition “EMERGENCY: STOP CITY HALL'S RUSHED HOTEL ORDINANCE BEFORE IT RUINS SANTA MONICA!” and wanted to see if you could help by adding your name.

Our goasl is to reach 35.000 signatures and we need more support. You can read more and sign the petition here:
https://c.org/cZDqxBXRM4
Thanks!
John
John E. Alle

JOHN ALLE COMPANY

THE SANTA MONICA COALITION / SAFE CITIES
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
12 David Yakobson
From: Jon Farzam <[email protected]>
Sent: Sunday, June 7, 2026 9:29 PM
To: Jesse Zwick; Dan Hall; Barry Snell; Caroline Torosis; Natalya Zernitskaya; Lana Negrete; Ellis Raskin
Cc: councilmtgitems; Oliver Chi
Subject: Please Pull Agenda Item 10A - Hotel Wage Ordinance - June 9 Council Meeting Attachments: Written Statement for Council v3.docx

EXTERNAL
Dear Mayor Torosis, Mayor Pro Tem Zwick, and Councilmembers:

My name is Jon Farzam and I am the CEO of Shore Hotel, Ocean View Hotel, and Santa Monica Hotel, businesses my family has independently owned and operated in Santa Monica for decades. We are deeply invested in this community – not as a corporate entity managing assets from a distant headquarters, but as people who grew up here, pay taxes here, and care deeply about the long-term health of this city.

I am submitting this statement to express my strong opposition to the “emergency” adoption of Agenda Item 10A and to urge the Council to remove this item from Tuesday’s agenda.

Our businesses are already operating under significant financial pressure. Like every hotel in Santa Monica, our visitor levels, remain dramatically below pre-pandemic levels. Our costs - insurance, utilities, financing, supplies – have risen sharply. Our ability to raise room rates is constrained by a market that is already at or beyond what guests will bear, particularly given that Santa Monica charges one of the highest Transient Occupancy Tax rates in the state.

Against that backdrop, the proposed ordinance would immediately impose a base wage of $25 per hour plus a mandatory health benefit contribution of $4.25 per hour for any worker not enrolled in a qualifying plan ($29.25 per hour total), with no distinction between full-time and part-time employees, and no consideration of employees who have already declined benefits because they are covered under a spouse's plan. By 2030, the total mandated compensation and health benefit will reach $38.35 per hour or more depending on CPI, with costs escalating further every year.

We do not have to speculate about what this means. An independent study of Los Angeles hotels where this same ordinance took effect in September 2025 found that within six months, 6% of hotel jobs were already eliminated or at risk, 14 hotel restaurants had closed or were expected to close, and 58% of hotels expected to be unprofitable by end of 2026.

Santa Monica's hotels are in a more fragile position than Los Angeles hotels were when that ordinance took effect.

The damage here will be worse. Unlike a large city with thousands of hotel rooms, Santa Monica cannot afford to lose its hospitality industry. Our entire economic identity depends on it.

If this ordinance passes, you will be making a decision that pushes independent Santa Monica hotels, including mine, toward insolvency. That is not hyperbole. That is the math.

I would also like to be very direct about something that is being deliberately obscured in this process.

Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
13 As you know (but most community members don’t), this ordinance applies exclusively to non-union hotels. Every hotel in Santa Monica whose workers are covered by a Unite Here Local 11 collective bargaining agreement is completely exempt. Not partially exempt. Completely. They face none of these wage mandates. None of these benefit requirements. They compete with us for the same guests, the same conventions, the same tourism dollars, but they do not carry any of this burden.

If this ordinance were genuinely about protecting hotel workers, it would protect all hotel workers equally. Every worker in every hotel, union or not, would be covered by the same standard. The fact that it is carefully and deliberately structured to fall entirely on non-union properties reveals the true motive.

This is not worker protection. This is a coordinated effort to use the force of city law to financially strangle independent, non-union hotels into submission and to make non-union operation so economically painful that we have no choice but to unionize or close. Unite Here Local 11 is using this Council as its proxy. And this Council, six of whose seven members received substantial Unite Here campaign funding, appears ready to oblige.

Many of the workers this ordinance pretends to protect will lose their jobs because of it. Their hours will be cut.

The hotels that employ them will become unviable. That is what the data from Los Angeles already shows, and this Council is about to repeat that mistake with a smaller, more fragile economy with far less room for error.

I urge you to:

1. Pull this item from the agenda. It was placed here improperly, without due process, without community engagement, and without economic justification.

2. If and when a hotel wage ordinance comes back before this Council, require that it apply equally to every Santa Monica hotel, union and non-union alike. If you are unwilling to apply this ordinance to unionized hotels, then you are admitting that this was never about worker protections. It was always about politics.

3. Every council member who received significant financial support from Unite Here Local 11 the organization behind this ordinance and stands to benefit directly from it, should disclose that relationship publicly and recuse themselves from the vote.

This Council routinely tells Santa Monica residents, business owners, and investors that it is committed to economic recovery, that it wants to attract new businesses, support existing ones, and restore the vitality that has drained from our city. These words mean nothing when your actions say the opposite. You cannot claim to support businesses while simultaneously making it impossible for them to survive.

Santa Monica hotels support this city financially and we invest in it personally. We deserve to be treated as partners in Santa Monica's future, not as targets.

I respectfully ask this Council to do the right thing on Tuesday night.

Jon Farzam
Chief Executive Officer
Shore Hotel | Santa Monica Hotel | Ocean View Hotel
D 310.656.4530
E [email protected]
A 1515 Ocean Ave. Santa Monica, CA 90401
To help protect your privacy, Microsoft Office prevented automatic download of this picture from the Internet.

Shore Hotel Logo
To help protect your privacy, Microsoft Office prevented automatic download of this picture from the Internet.

Santa Monica Hotel Logo
To help protect your privacy, Microsoft Office prevented automatic download of this picture from the Internet.

Ocean View Hotel Logo
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
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June 9, 2026
14 PURSUANT TO 18 UNITED STATES CODE SECTIONS 2510-2521 ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATIONS PRIVACY ACT THIS TRANSMISSION CONTAINS INFORMATION THAT IS PRIVILEGED, CONFIDENTIAL AND EXEMPT FROM DISCLOSURE UNDER APPLICABLE LAW. IF YOU ARE NOT THE INTENDED

RECIPIENT, YOU ARE HEREBY NOTIFIED THAT ANY DISCLOSURE, PHOTOCOPYING OR DISTRIBUTION OF THESE CONTENTS IS UNAUTHORIZED AND PROHIBITED BY LAW. IF YOU HAVE RECEIVED THIS IN ERROR, NOTIFY THE SENDER IMMEDIATELY AND DESTROY ALL COPIES THEREIN! Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
Item 10-A
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Dear Mayor Torosis, Mayor Pro Tem Zwick, and Councilmembers:

My name is Jon Farzam and I am the CEO of Shore Hotel, Ocean View Hotel, and Santa Monica Hotel, businesses my family has independently owned and operated in Santa Monica for decades.

We are deeply invested in this community – not as a corporate entity managing assets from a distant headquarters, but as people who grew up here, pay taxes here, and care deeply about the long-term health of this city.

I am submitting this statement to express my strong opposition to the “emergency” adoption of Agenda Item 10A and to urge the Council to remove this item from Tuesday’s agenda.

Santa Monica's hotels are in a more fragile position than Los Angeles hotels were when that ordinance took effect. The damage here will be worse. Unlike a large city with thousands of hotel rooms, Santa Monica cannot afford to lose its hospitality industry. Our entire economic identity depends on it.

If this ordinance passes, you will be making a decision that pushes independent Santa Monica hotels, including mine, toward insolvency. That is not hyperbole. That is the math.

I would also like to be very direct about something that is being deliberately obscured in this process.

As you know (but most community members don’t), this ordinance applies exclusively to nonunion hotels. Every hotel in Santa Monica whose workers are covered by a Unite Here Local 11 collective bargaining agreement is completely exempt. Not partially exempt. Completely. They face none of these wage mandates. None of these benefit requirements. They compete with us for the same guests, the same conventions, the same tourism dollars, but they do not carry any of this burden.

Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
If this ordinance were genuinely about protecting hotel workers, it would protect all hotel workers equally. Every worker in every hotel, union or not, would be covered by the same standard. The the fact that it is carefully and deliberately structured to fall entirely on non-union properties reveals the true motive.

Many of the workers this ordinance pretends to protect will lose their jobs because of it. Their hours will be cut. The hotels that employ them will become unviable. That is what the data from Los Angeles already shows, and this Council is about to repeat that mistake with a smaller, more fragile economy with far less room for error.

I urge you to:

1. Pull this item from the agenda. It was placed here improperly, without due process, without community engagement, and without economic justification.

Santa Monica hotels support this city financially and we invest in it personally. We deserve to be treated as partners in Santa Monica's future, not as targets.

I respectfully ask this Council to do the right thing on Tuesday night.

Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
15 David Yakobson
From: Angela D. Scott <[email protected]>
Sent: Sunday, June 7, 2026 10:14 PM
To: Caroline Torosis; Jesse Zwick; Dan Hall; Natalya Zernitskaya; Barry Snell; Lana Negrete; Ellis Raskin; Oliver Chi; councilmtgitems
Subject: RE: Hotel Worker Wages, Tourism Recovery, and Shared Prosperity

EXTERNAL
Dear Mayor Torosis, Mayor Pro-Tem Zwick, City Manager Chi, and Councilmembers, I am writing as a longtime Santa Monica resident, renter, veteran, community leader, and candidate for Santa Monica City Council to share my perspective regarding the proposed hotel worker wage increase and its potential impacts on our community.

Santa Monica's hospitality workers are essential to our local economy. Housekeepers, cooks, servers, maintenance workers, front desk staff, and countless others help create the visitor experience that drives tourism, supports local businesses, and generates critical Transient Occupancy Tax revenue that funds city services. Their labor is a cornerstone of our city's success.

At the same time, many of these workers face extraordinary economic pressures. Rising housing costs, transportation expenses, groceries, healthcare, and childcare continue to place significant strain on working families. For many, the cost of living in our region has far outpaced wage growth. A person working full-time should not be forced to choose between paying rent, purchasing groceries, or maintaining reliable transportation to work.

I support the principle that workers deserve wages that reflect the realities of our local economy.

However, I also recognize concerns raised by hospitality operators regarding tourism recovery, occupancy rates, operating costs, and the long-term competitiveness of Santa Monica's visitor-serving industry.

For that reason, I encourage the Council to approach this issue through a framework of shared prosperity rather than false choices. This conversation should not be framed as workers versus businesses. Santa Monica succeeds when both succeed.

Before making long-term policy decisions, I encourage the City to examine comprehensive data, including hotel profitability, occupancy trends, executive compensation, turnover costs, workforce retention, local spending impacts, and comparative labor standards in neighboring jurisdictions.

Decisions of this magnitude should be informed by a complete understanding of both worker needs and economic realities.

I also encourage exploration of implementation strategies that support workers while minimizing unintended consequences, including phased approaches, tourism recovery initiatives, workforce housing strategies, and continued investment in the visitor economy that sustains jobs and city revenues.

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June 9, 2026
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16 My own journey—from periods of extreme economic hardship to achieving moderate middle-income stability—has taught me that economic security is often more fragile than it appears. That lived experience is why I believe Santa Monica must remain committed to creating pathways for working people to not only survive, but thrive.

We have an opportunity to demonstrate that economic growth, worker dignity, and fiscal responsibility are not competing values. They are mutually reinforcing goals that strengthen our entire community.

Thank you for your consideration and your service to the residents of Santa Monica.

Respectfully,
Angela
Angela D. Scott (she/her), MBA/V, Certified ScrumMaster® Santa Monica Resident
Veteran, U.S. Navy
Candidate, Doctor of Education, Ed.D.

Organizational Change and Leadership
"You don't make progress by standing on the sidelines, whimpering and complaining. You make progress by implementing ideas." - Shirley Chisholm
I acknowledge with respect and gratitude the Tongva, Kizh, and Chumash Peoples on whose traditional territory I live and work.

Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
17 David Yakobson
From: Colby Casoria <[email protected]>
Sent: Monday, June 8, 2026 9:51 AM
To: Jesse Zwick; Dan Hall; Barry Snell; Caroline Torosis; Natalya Zernitskaya; Lana Negrete; Ellis Raskin
Cc: councilmtgitems; Oliver Chi; Susan Cline; Peter James Subject: Please Pull Agenda Item 10A — Hotel Wage Ordinance — June 9 Council Meeting

This item was added with less than four days' notice, with no meaningful outreach to hotel operators, workers, small businesses, or residents. There has been no independent economic impact analysis specific to Santa Monica's market conditions. And it is being rushed through as an "emergency" ordinance, bypassing the normal 30-day public review period, when no genuine emergency exists.

Santa Monica's tourism economy generates $916.6 million in local economic activity and funds critical city services through Transient Occupancy Tax revenue. With visitor levels still nearly 50% below prepandemic levels, our hotels cannot absorb these additional costs without cutting jobs, reducing services, or closing entirely.

I urge you to:

1. Immediately pull Agenda Item 10A from the June 9 agenda

2. Conduct genuine outreach to all affected stakeholders before any vote

3. Commission an independent economic impact analysis specific to Santa Monica

4. Require full disclosure of all Unite Here involvement in developing this proposal

5. Require any union-funded council member to recuse themselves from the vote Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
18 Santa Monica deserves a transparent process that puts our community first.

Thank you for your time and your service to our city.

Sincerely,
Colby Casoria
--
Colby Casoria
Realtor® at eXp Realty | Serving Clients in Los Angeles, New York, & supporting Agents Worldwide 긒긓(914) 804-9959 | [email protected] | Connect on LinkedIn 踰踱踲踳 Client Services: EMC Homes Team
踰踱踲踳 Agent Services: CC Coaching | RSVP to EMC Weekly Masterminds | Watch YouTube About eXp | License #: CA 02289843 | NY 10401298319
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
19 David Yakobson
From: Gavin Scott <[email protected]>
Sent: Monday, June 8, 2026 9:55 AM
To: Jesse Zwick; Dan Hall; Barry Snell; Caroline Torosis; Natalya Zernitskaya; Lana Negrete; Ellis Raskin
Cc: councilmtgitems; Oliver Chi; Susan Cline; Peter James Subject: Please Pull Agenda Item 10A — Hotel Wage Ordinance — June 9 Council Meeting

Santa Monica is already feeling these same pressures. This ordinance will make things significantly worse. Santa Monica's tourism economy generates $916.6 million in local economic activity and funds critical city services through Transient Occupancy Tax revenue. With visitor levels still nearly 50% below pre-pandemic levels, our hotels cannot absorb these additional costs without cutting jobs, reducing services, or closing entirely. I am also deeply concerned about the conflict of interest this vote presents. Unite Here Local 11, the union that directly benefits from this ordinance, provided substantial campaign support to a majority of this council. Any council member who has received significant financial support from Unite Here, or who has had ex parte communications with union representatives about this ordinance, has an ethical obligation to fully disclose that relationship and to seriously consider recusing themselves from Tuesday's vote. I urge you to: 1. Immediately pull Agenda Item 10A from the June 9 agenda 2. Conduct genuine outreach to all affected stakeholders before any vote 3. Commission an independent economic impact analysis specific to Santa Monica 4. Require full disclosure of all Unite Here involvement in developing this proposal 5. Require any union-funded council member to recuse themselves from the vote Santa Monica deserves a transparent process that puts our community first. Thank you for your time and your service to our city.

Sincerely,
Gavin Scott
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
1 David Yakobson
From: [email protected]
Sent: Monday, June 8, 2026 12:11 PM
To: Jesse Zwick; Dan Hall; Barry Snell; Caroline Torosis; Natalya Zernitskaya; Lana Negrete; Ellis Raskin
Cc: councilmtgitems; Oliver Chi; Susan Cline; Peter James Subject: Please Pull Agenda Item 10A — Hotel Wage Ordinance — June 9 Council Meeting

I urge you to:

Thank you for your time and your service to our city.

Sincerely,
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
2 Amani Spielman
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
3 David Yakobson
From: [email protected]
Sent: Monday, June 8, 2026 12:14 PM
To: Jesse Zwick; Dan Hall; Barry Snell; Caroline Torosis; Natalya Zernitskaya; Lana Negrete; Ellis Raskin
Cc: councilmtgitems; Oliver Chi; Susan Cline; Peter James Subject: OPPOSE Agenda item 11-B, which would change the City Council “Rules of Order” to eliminate the current practice of allowing one Councilmember to place on the Agenda a "Councilmember Discussion Item" –

EXTERNAL
OPPOSE Agenda item 11-B, which would change the City Council “Rules of Order” to eliminate the current practice of allowing
one Councilmember to place on the Agenda a "Councilmember Discussion Item" – Amani Spielman
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
4 David Yakobson
From: Molly Hale <[email protected]>
Sent: Monday, June 8, 2026 12:32 PM
To: Jesse Zwick; Dan Hall; Barry Snell; Caroline Torosis; Natalya Zernitskaya; Lana Negrete; Ellis Raskin
Cc: councilmtgitems; Oliver Chi; Susan Cline; Peter James Subject: Please Pull Agenda Item 10A — Hotel Wage Ordinance — June 9 Council Meeting

I urge you to:

Thank you for your time and your service to our city.

Sincerely,
Molly Elkin
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
5 Sent from my iPhone
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
1 David Yakobson
From: Arthur Kummer <[email protected]>
Sent: Monday, June 8, 2026 3:09 PM
To: Jesse Zwick; Dan Hall; Barry Snell; Caroline Torosis; Natalya Zernitskaya; Lana Negrete; Ellis Raskin
Cc: councilmtgitems; Oliver Chi; Susan Cline; Peter James Subject: Please Pull Agenda Item 10A — Hotel Wage Ordinance — June 9 Council Meeting

This item was added with less than four days' notice, with no meaningful outreach to hotel operators, workers, small businesses, or residents. There has been no independent economic impact analysis specific to Santa Monica's market conditions. And it is being rushed through as an "emergency" ordinance, bypassing the normal 30-day public review period, when no genuine emergency exists.

Santa Monica is trying to attached businesses to the empty storefronts not drive them away. This sends the wrong message to all businesses. It says the City of Santa Monica is going dictate how private business should run. Unions have rights to organize workers and bargain for contract terms; like wages and benefits. Why in the world should the City of Santa Monica do the bargaining for the union.

I urge you to:

1. Immediately pull Agenda Item 10A from the June 9 agenda

2. Conduct genuine outreach to all affected stakeholders before any vote

3. Commission an independent economic impact analysis specific to Santa Monica

4. Require full disclosure of all Unite Here involvement in developing this proposal

5. Require any union-funded council member to recuse themselves from the vote Santa Monica deserves a transparent process that puts our community first.

Thank you for your time and your service to our city.

Sincerely,
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
2 Arthur Kummer
Sent from my iPhone
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
1 David Yakobson
From: Dannie Charney <[email protected]>
Sent: Monday, June 8, 2026 1:01 PM
To: Jesse Zwick; Dan Hall; Barry Snell; Caroline Torosis; Natalya Zernitskaya; Lana Negrete; Ellis Raskin
Cc: councilmtgitems; Oliver Chi; Susan Cline; Peter James Subject: Please Pull Agenda Item 10A — Hotel Wage Ordinance — June 9 Council Meeting

EXTERNAL
Dear Mayor and Members of the Santa Monica City Council, I am writing to urge you to immediately remove Agenda Item 10A, the proposed emergency hotel wage ordinance, from Tuesday's June 9 agenda. This item was added with less than four days' notice, with no meaningful outreach to hotel operators, workers, small businesses, or residents. There has been no independent economic impact analysis specific to Santa Monica's market conditions. And it is being rushed through as an "emergency" ordinance, bypassing the normal 30-day public review period, when no genuine emergency exists. We do not have to guess at the consequences. An independent study of Los Angeles hotels found that within just six months of implementing this same ordinance: 6% of hotel jobs were eliminated or at risk; 14 hotel restaurants closed or are expected to close; 58% of LA hotels expect to be unprofitable by end of 2026; and not a single hotel investment transaction occurred in Los Angeles in all of 2025. Santa Monica is already feeling these same pressures. This ordinance will make things significantly worse. Santa Monica's tourism economy generates $916.6 million in local economic activity and funds critical city services through Transient Occupancy Tax revenue. With visitor levels still nearly 50% below pre-pandemic levels, our hotels cannot absorb these additional costs without cutting jobs, reducing services, or closing entirely. I am also deeply concerned about the conflict of interest this vote presents. Unite Here Local 11, the union that directly benefits from this ordinance, provided substantial campaign support to a majority of this council. Any council member who has received significant financial support from Unite Here, or who has had ex parte communications with union representatives about this ordinance, has an ethical obligation to fully disclose that relationship and to seriously consider recusing themselves from Tuesday's vote. I urge you to: 1. Immediately pull Agenda Item 10A from the June 9 agenda

2. Conduct genuine outreach to all affected stakeholders before any vote 3. Commission an independent economic impact analysis specific to Santa Monica 4. Require full disclosure of all Unite Here involvement in developing this proposal 5. Require any union-funded council member to recuse themselves from the vote Santa Monica deserves a transparent process that puts our community first. Thank you for your time and your service to our city. Sincerely, danielle charney
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
1 David Yakobson
From: barbanell <[email protected]>
Sent: Monday, June 8, 2026 9:27 PM
To: Jesse Zwick; Dan Hall; Barry Snell; Caroline Torosis; Natalya Zernitskaya; Lana Negrete; Ellis Raskin
Cc: councilmtgitems; Oliver Chi; Susan Cline; Peter James Subject: Immediately Remove Agenda Item 10A, the proposed emergency hotel wage ordinance, from Tuesday's June 9 agenda.

EXTERNAL
Dear Mayor and Members of the Santa Monica City Council, We are writing to urge you to immediately remove Agenda Item 10A, the proposed emergency hotel wage ordinance, from Tuesday's June 9 agenda.

This item was added with less than four days' notice, with no meaningful outreach to hotel operators, workers, small businesses, or residents. There has been no independent economic impact analysis specific to Santa Monica's market conditions. And it is being rushed through as an "emergency" ordinance, bypassing the normal 30-day public review period, when no genuine emergency exists.

Santa Monica's tourism economy generates $916.6 million in local economic activity and funds critical city services through Transient Occupancy Tax revenue. With visitor levels still nearly 50% below prepandemic levels, our hotels cannot absorb these additional costs without cutting jobs, reducing services, or closing entirely.

We are also deeply concerned about the conflict of interest this vote presents. Unite Here Local 11, the union that directly benefits from this ordinance, provided substantial campaign support to a majority of this council. Any council member who has received significant financial support from Unite Here, or who has had ex parte communications with union representatives about this ordinance, has an ethical obligation to fully disclose that relationship and to seriously consider recusing themselves from Tuesday's vote.

We urge you to:

1. Immediately pull Agenda Item 10A from the June 9 agenda

2. Conduct genuine outreach to all affected stakeholders before any vote

3. Commission an independent economic impact analysis specific to Santa Monica Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
2 4. Require full disclosure of all Unite Here involvement in developing this proposal

5. Require any union-funded council member to recuse themselves from the vote Santa Monica deserves a transparent process that puts our community first.

Thank you for your time and your service to our city.

Sincerely,
Stephanie Barbanell & Jerry Bass
Santa Monica Residents since 1983
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026
Item 10-A
June 9, 2026

Santa Monica City CouncilJune 9, 2026

Santa Monica City Council
June 9, 2026