ACTION Apartment Association

As Legislature Tries to Stuff More Housing Down the Throats of Cities, California Just Says No

04/23/2019 8:51 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

The Los Angeles City Council voted unanimously to oppose a proposed bill in the California State Senate, SB 50, which would offer waivers and other encouragements to housing built close to urban railway stations.

The bill would override local zoning and allow structures up to five stories tall in areas currently populated with single-family homes. It would also allow waivers for parking, with less than 0.5 parking spots required per unit. An apparently far-reaching law with many prongs to it - the text runs several pages - SB 50 would also take over local guidance regarding affordable housing, requiring any building over 10 units to include a certain number of affordable units.

Wall Street vs. Main Street: Ocean Front Walk Editon

04/23/2019 8:43 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

However, the organs of power within the City; namely, the money interests, all too often collude to err on the side of overdevelopment. Are they delivering what the people want or delivering big dollars for themselves? Are they providing needed housing for a diverse community or luxury housing to line their pockets? Are they adhering to our Land Use and Circulation Element (LUCE) or doing what they can get away with to increase profits? Are the community benefits paid really enough? Blame cannot be placed on the developer entirely; it’s the City facilitating the excesses by adopting misguided design standards and “tiers.”

Development Plan for Downtown Santa Monica Spurring Housing, Report Says

04/23/2019 8:04 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

A total of 1,762 units have been proposed under the Downtown Community Plan (DCP) approved two years ago, which foresees 2,500 new multi-family units built through 2030, according to a status report from planning staff.

They are among the 2,586 residential units that are under construction, approved or making their way through the planning pipeline, according to the report sent to the City Council on March 22.

If completed, the proposed units would nearly double the 3,210 residential units Downtown officials say have already been built in the Central Business District, most of them constructed in the past two decades.

Owner of 2 Apartment Units Faces Tenant Harassment Charges

04/23/2019 8:00 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

The City Attorneys office last week filed a criminal complaint charging the owner of a two-unit rent-controlled apartment with five counts of tenant harassment.

Miesha Charnae Grant, who owns the two detached units at 1914 18th Street, was charged with operating a business without a license, unlawfully charging rent and five counts of criminal contempt.

Beach-front housing appeal heads to Council

04/22/2019 9:10 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

A group of residents are continuing to fight plans to build a five-story apartment building near Santa Monica State Beach.

City Council will vote Tuesday whether to deny appeals filed by South Ocean Avenue Residents (SOAR) and UNITE HERE Local 11 that claim that the hoteliers behind the developments at 1828 Ocean Ave. and 1921 Ocean Front Walk will treat the buildings as an extension of their two adjacent hotels, Shutters on the Beach and Hotel Casa Del Mar. SOAR also argues the five-story 1828 Ocean Ave. building will box in the low-slung homes along Vicente Terrace.

City of Santa Monica staff is recommending Council deny the appeals and uphold the Planning Commission’s approval of both projects.

Rent Control Advocates File for New California Statewide Ballot Measure for 2020

04/22/2019 8:49 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

Housing justice and rent control advocates affiliated with Housing Is A Human Right ( HHR ) will host a PRESS TELECONFERENCE Monday, April 22nd, at 9:00 amPT to announce the launch of a California statewide ballot measure to be known as the ‘ Rental Affordability Act.’ HHR is the housing advocacy division of AIDS Healthcare Foundation

Last Friday, advocates from Housing Is A Human Right filed papers with the California Attorney General’s office for a Title and Summary for the Measure, the first step in the citizen initiative ballot measure process. Advocates intend to qualify the measure for the November 2020 presidential election ballot. AHF’s Housing Is A Human Right (HHR) is providing financial support for the ballot measure.

Build 10,000 houses for homeless in 10 years?

04/22/2019 8:42 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

In 2016, Los Angeles voters approved a $1.2-billion bond measure to help fund housing for homeless people, with a goal of 10,000 new units in a decade.

Now, after hustling to get as many housing projects started as soon as possible, city officials are coming to the end of the money available through Proposition HHH, and it’s not certain that promise will be kept.

City Attorney Files Multiple Criminal Charges in Tenant Harassment Case

04/19/2019 10:13 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

The Santa Monica City Attorney’s Office has filed a criminal complaint charging Miesha Charnae Grant with five counts of tenant harassment in violation of Santa Monica Municipal Code (SMMC) Section 4.56.020, one count of operating an unlawful business in violation SMMC Section 6.04.020, five counts of grand theft in violation of Penal Code Section 487, five counts of criminal contempt in violation of Penal Code Section 166, one count of vandalism in violation of Penal Code section 594, and one count of battery in violation of Penal Code section 242. The charges relate to actions taken with respect to tenants in rent-controlled units at 1914 18th Street.

The investigation revealed evidence that Grant disobeyed a court order; defrauded tenants by posing as a landlord charging rent in violation of a court order.

Venice Homeless Shelter Approved at MTA Bus Yard on Main Street and Sunset Avenue

04/19/2019 9:46 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

A Venice neighborhood group has initiated a legal fight against plans by the City of Los Angeles to erect a 154-bed homeless shelter on a former Metro bus yard, a few blocks from the beach.

The shelter was approved by the LA City Council last December and is to be funded from Mayor Eric Garcetti's A Bridge Home initiative. The site is supposed to provide 'transitional' housing, with the residents eventually moving on to more permanent housing.

Council Set to Endorse New Mission Statement for Planning Commission

04/19/2019 8:50 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

In a sign of the times, the Planning Commission likely will have an updated mission statement the City Council is expected to endorse Tuesday night.

Instead of promoting the "health, safety and general welfare" highlighted in the statement endorsed by the Council in 1947, the new statement envisions Santa Monica as a city of "wellbeing, sustainability, and equity," according to staff.