HomeMy WebLinkAbout04/14/1987City Council Minutes
Tuesday, April 14, 1987 - 7:00 p.m.
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Gary Label. Rent Review Board Member, read a prepared statement into the
record. He was supportive of the arbitration alternative.
Naoma Wright, Rent Review Board Member, stated she preferred the ordinance
to stay the way it is.
Dennis Wheeler, Rent Review Board Member, read a prepared statement into
the record. He felt that price controls don't work and the politics
should be taken out. He supported mediation and arbitration.
Steve Henderson, Assistant to the City Administrative Officer, reviewed
the agenda report at length section by section and allowed Council
comments and questions to staff and Board after each section. Staff
recommended Council accept the Rent Review Board's recommendations to
consider an arbitration -type ordinance and implement it within the
framework of the existing ordinance. If the Council did not substitute
binding arbitration, the Board recommended modifications to the existing
rent stabilization ordinance including: 1) a sliding scale consumer price
index; 2) safe harbor concept; 3) vacancy decontrol /change of occupancy:
4) recreation vehicles; 5) water /utility allowance; 6) tenant rent
stabilization based on economic need; 7) using maintenance of net
operating income (MNOI) as the formula to determine a fair and reasonable
rate of return; 8) leases; 9) mediation; and 10) other items of interest
(see agenda report dated 4- 14 -87).
8:35 p.m. Vice -Mayor Griffin declared a recess. 8:50 p.m. City Council
reconvened, Mayor Dunin absent.
Vice -Mayor Griffin stated for the record that in addition to reviewing the
extensive minutes and proceedings of the Rent Review Board, rent regula-
tions and lease terms of other communities, the Council had also received
1 numerous letters from associations and individuals and acknowledged
receipt as follows: (letters on file in the City Clerk's Office #428):
Leola Rubottom (2), Ward R. Spencer, Richard Clark, Charles B. Bowlen,
Richard D. Miller, John Grden, Naoma Wright, Ruth & Jack Michael, Agnes R.
Blackwell. Ed & Clarissa Rector, Sara Botill, B.L. Snodgrass, Paul
Beauvais, Joseph G. & Catherine R. Moody, Margaret Powers, Bettie Lou
Hines, Bernice D. Cardoza, Art Jack (2), George J. Moylan, Francis H.
Packard, David D. Brymer, and Edward D. and Maria E. Hughes.
Vice -Mayor Griffin asked for public comment from the audience on items not
listed on the agenda. None was forthcoming.
Vice -Mayor Griffin opened the public portion for comments.
Lee Willard, Chumash Village, read a prepared statement into the record.
He spoke against arbitration due to the high cost and attorney fees. He
felt space rents were too high in this community.
Patrick Perry, Attorney representing the homeowners of Creekside
Mobilehome Park, made some general comments and reviewed several issues he
felt would not be appropriate in the ordinance. He felt the rent review
procedures needed to be revised rather.than deleted just because its too
costly to administer. A "reasonable rate of return" should be clearly
defined and arbitration should not be implemented. He suggested the city
hire a professional hearing officer; a lower percentage of decontrol (15%
1 is too high) and that the issue of rent control be placed on the ballot.
Francis Packard, President of the Golden State Mobilehome Owner's League,
Inc., spoke in support of the ordinance.
Dennis Law, Attorney representing five mobilehome parks, urged that the
ordinance encourage park owners and tenants to work out their
differences. The proposed recommendations would not solve all the
problems but the parkowners were willing to live with them. The Board's
recommendations should stand as they are with a few compromises.
Dick Hart, President of Hacienda Del Pismo Mobilehome Park Association in
Pismo Beach, urged the Council to be responsible to the seniors in any
amendments to the ordinance.
City Council Minutes
Tuesday. April 14. 1987 - 7:00 P.M.
Page 3
Ward Spencer, mobilehome owner, urged the Council to keep the ordinance to
Protect the tenants.
Charleen Hall, mobilehome owner living outside of the city, felt the
leases were illegal, rents too high, and water bills excessive.
Mike Nolan, attorney, stated rent control is necessary. He offered some
recommendations on MNOI and stated the ordinance should be more objective
Dennis Law, attorney, restated his concerns regarding getting people
together.
Patrick Perry, attorney, stated that some tenants have been offered a
lease and are usually willing to negotiate anything except money.
Art Jack, resident of Laguna Lake Mobilehome Park, referred to his letter
of April 14, 1987, recommending against arbitration and supporting a
city -paid hearing officer. He also supported mediation and long -term
leases.
Ed Evans, owner of Creekside Mobilehome Park, felt the ordinance was
unfair and he's prepared to sit down with tenants, sign leases, and get
the City out of the rent regulation business.
Francis Packard made some additional comments for keeping the ordinance.
C.J. Sanderson, mobilehome park owner since 1969, felt there needed to be
some framework to introduce long -term leases.
John Grden, resident of San Luis Obispo and a Rent Review Board member,
read a prepared statement into the record (see letter dated March 30,
1987) supporting arbitration.
Pat Barlow, Mobilehome Rent Review Board Chairperson, encouraged the
Council to use someone from outside the City as a hearing officer to
provide independent and unbiased decisions.
Vice -Mayor Griffin closed the public portion.
Councilman Settle did not feel that binding arbitration would solve the
problem and suggested the ordinance be more specific. He urged the
tenants and park owners work out their differences with the City to 07et
out of direct control. He offered the following motion: 1) Direct the
City Administrative Officer to prepare a communication to an association
of arbitrators (i.e. the American Arbitration Association or other
competent agency in this field) to recruit a paid hearing officer to
handle the administration of the existing ordinance and participate in the
recommendations to the City Council. The correspondence that is issued
will be reviewed by the City Council prior to be being sent. The Council
shall specify its intent of ordinance amendments prior to or at the time
of the hearing officer's appointment. 2) Retain the Mobilehome Rent
Stabilization Ordinance as it currently exists using alternative *2 until
the Council reviews and makes changes by May 5 or June 2, 1987. 3) The
hearing officer be selected by a list of qualified members from agencies
such as the American Arbitration Association or comparable agency approved
by Council with a recommendation to the CAO and Council Subcommittee. 4)
A contract with the hearing officer should be similar to that currently
used by the City and its labor relations consultant in the process of
contract contents, again subject to Council approval. 5) Park residents
and owners to be to meet and confer.prior to meeting with the hearing
officer over issues of the rent question. 6) The park owners and tenants
to pay fees for the hearing officer and related support needs. The fee to
be no more than $9 per year to be collected by the park owners and
submitted to the City under separate account. This account can be
reviewed by the CAD with the assistance of the Council after six months
.for purposes of adequacy and need. 7) The hearing officer decisions to be
appealable to the City Council. 8) The performance of the hearing officer
reviewable by the City Council. 9) The hearing officer to have access to
all relevant documents needed to make findings and conduct informal
hearing procedures. 10) The existing Rent Stabilization Board having
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City Council Minutes
Tuesday, April 14, 1987' -'7:00 p.m.
P1 ,ye 4
accomplished their objectives and made their recommendations, to be
retired. The CAO to proceed with the hearing officer process and the
Council to meet again by the dates proposed.
Motion died for lack of a second.
Councilwoman Dove y could support the concept of a hearing officer:
however, she felt that this person's decision would be appealed the same
as the hearing board, and the Council would be right back where it is now
if it's appealable to the Council. She said that the Council might just
as well serve as the hearing board to save the hassle. She would consider
looking at the hearing officer concept with refinements. The issue was
that the tenants and owners that needed to talk and resolve their own
problems.
Councilwoman Rap pa stated that the ordinance, as it is written, does not
give clear direction to who ever is reviewing it. She would like to see
the Council sit down and clarify the ordinance with all the
recommendations that have been given to the Council. She agreed that the
Council needed to set an early date to review the ordinance.
Councilwoman Dove y stated that of the recommendations that were made by
the Board, she would like to seriously consider: 1) safe harbor, 2)
vacancy decontrol /change of occupancy; 3) methodology for determining a
reasonable rate of return. On #4 of the staff report, water metering and
any utility allowance, she would like to see this broken out of the base
space rent and allow a pass through of any increases. On #5 she would
like to consider the consumer price index recommendation; #6 definition of
a recreational vehicle; and #8) rent control based on economic need, would
like to encourage the concept of the parkowner's fund. She would like to
see some refinements by staff on these issues and some suggested language
as an ordinance amendment in each of those areas. She also agreed with
the Board on #9 concerning leases.
Councilwoman Rappa recommended that the ordinance be amended to reflect
that the Council serve, on an interim basis, as the review board, rather
than the Rent Review Board.
Councilman Settle moved to direct the City Administrative Officer to
prepare a communication for the purposes of investigating a hearing
officer from an agency such as the American Arbitration Association and
secondly, retain the Mobilehome Rent Stabilization Ordinance as it
currently exists using alternative #2, until the Council makes its
recommendations on changes to the ordinance as to the points in the staff
report on either May 5 or June 2.
Motion died for lack of a second.
Vice -Mayor Griffin suggested that the Council: 1) help create an
environment through which the parkowners and tenants can bargain on an
equal footing through agreements which result in stabilized rent
increases; 2) develop a more complete framework of regulations which would
reinforce in a constructive and a balanced way the relationship between
the landlords and tenants and which would be straight- forward, fair and
more certain; and 3) remove the ongoing and extensive direct involvement
of the staff and advisory body and perhaps even the City Council in
resolving hardship cases of the landlords and tenants, and identify
critical and exclusive factors to be applied in determining those hardship
cases. He recommended that the Rent Review Board be disbanded, substitute
the Council on an interim basis and, concurrently, move ahead to meet and
refine some of the recommendations to the ordinance.
Moved by Vice -Mayor Griffin, seconded by Councilwoman Rapp a, to direct
staff to prepare amendment to the existing ordinance substituting the Rent
Review Board with *the City Council (4 -0 -1, Mayor Dunin absent).
Moved by Vice -Mayor Griffin, seconded by Councilwoman Dom, to direct the
City Administrative Officer.to expand the analysis and present options for
refining the existing ordinance that would take into consideration
recommendations of the Rent Review Board in these areas (concepts only):
safe harbor, vacancy decontrol, methodology for rate of return, separate
City Council Minutes
Tuesday, April 14, 1987 - 7:00 p.m.
Page 5
metering of utility allowances, consumer price index. resolving the
definition of recreational vehicle, further exploration with cooperation
of the park owners and the Housing Authority on an economic need based
alternative and a hearing officer or mediation concept.
Councilwoman Rappa stated that she could not support any further
exploration of 1) safe harbor; and 2) vacancy decontrol /change of
occupancy. She could support a hearing officer or some other procedure
Councilman Settle agreed with Councilwoman Rappa.
After brief discussion, motion failed 2 -2 -1, Councilmembers Rappa and
Settle voting no; Mayor Dunin absent.
After discussion, moved by Councilwoman Rappa, seconded by Vice -Mayor
Griffin, to direct staff to provide information for ordinance amendments
dealing with the following areas: 1) determining reasonable rate of
return; 2) utility allowance; 3) consumer price index; 4) definition of a
recreational vehicle; 5) economic need; 6) mediation; and 7) hearing
officer concept to be brought back in early June. Motion failed on a
2 -2 -1 vote, Councilmembers Dovey and Settle voting no; Mayor Dunin absent.
Councilwoman Dovey supported at least an evaluation and discussion of safe
harbor and vacancy decontrol.
After discussion, Moved by Councilwoman Rappa, seconded by Councilman
Settle, to direct staff under the authority of the City Administrative
Officer to bring forth suggested wording changes re: 1) methodology for
determining a reasonable rate of return; 2) water metering /utility
allowance; 3) consumer price index; 4) definition of a recreational
vehicle; 5) rent control based on economic need; 6) mediation; and 7)
comprehensive review of the hearing officer procedure. To be brought back
the first week of June, 1987. Motion passed on a 3 -1 -1 vote, Councilwoman
Dovey voting no; Mayor Dunin absent.
There being no further business to come before the City Council,
Vice -Mayor Griffin adjourned the meeting at 11:35 p.m.
By
I Z&V on Jones, Recording Secretary
Pa Voges,, Cit�Clerk
APPROVED BY COUNCIL: 6 -16 -87
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