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City Preparing to Organize Rental Board Mandated By Passage of Pasadena Rent Control Measure

Published on Monday, December 5, 2022 | 5:32 am
 

With Measure H, the Pasadena Fair and Equitable Housing Charter Amendment, passing by 7.6 percent with 53.8 percent of the vote in the Nov. 8 general election, the City of Pasadena is now moving forward with organization of the Measure’s required Rental Housing Board that will be primarily responsible for implementation of the Measure.

The Pasadena Rental Housing Board will be assigned powers and duties necessary to “administer and enforce” the provisions of the new charter amendment.

According to the text of the charter amendment, the Board will oversee the various rent stabilization and eviction regulations, adopt rules and regulations, provide policy direction, and hear petitions for rent adjustments.

The Rental Housing Board will be comprised of 11 members, seven of whom must be tenants. The City Council will appoint one tenant member from each of the seven districts of Pasadena. The remaining four Board members will be appointed by the City Council and may reside in any district of Pasadena, may or may not be tenants, and may or may not have material interest in rental property, according to the Measure’s text.

Rental Board members shall serve four-year terms, unless they are appointed to fill unexpired terms or are designated to fill a two-year term on the initial Board.

An impartial analysis submitted by City Attorney Michele Beal Bagneris to the City Council prior to the election showed that the City will need to spend an initial $310,000 as startup costs, based on approximately 26 employees who will be hired to support the Board’s activities, and annual costs estimated to be $5,453,460.

The startup costs may need to be advanced by the City. In the following years, the Board would finance its ongoing expenses by charging landlords an annual rental housing fee, estimated to be $184 per unit in the first year.

Before the November ballot, the Pasadena Chamber of Commerce voted to oppose the measure, saying it was “riddled with problems” and “will not have any of the purported benefits,” according to a statement by Paul Little, Pasadena Chamber president.

The Chamber said people who will be hurt most by Measure H are those who have older buildings in Pasadena, and who are mostly local owners of one or two buildings who rely on the income from their units to pay their bills.

The Pasadena Foothills Association of REALTORS also opposed the measure, saying “rent control does not work.”

“Rent Control reduces the quantity of available housing, a statement by the group said. “In a rent-regulated market without the increased rents required to attract new investment, new housing construction is limited, and no long-term solution resolves the housing shortage.”

The Pasadena City Council is expected to vote on decide on formally organizing the Rental Housing Board by January 2023.

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