ACTION Apartment Association

29 candidates file papers to run for local offices

08/18/2022 11:52 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

Three candidates (Kurt Gonska, Daniel S. Ivanov and Ericka Lesley) filed paperwork for the three open seats on Rent Control Board but it’s still possible for a write-in candidate to run. Even without a contested election, current election rules require an election no matter how many individuals are on the ballot. However, a package of rent control reforms will be before voters this year including a proposal to allow officials to cancel future elections if they are uncontested.

13 Candidates File for Council Race

08/18/2022 8:19 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

The four who filed by the 5:30 p.m. deadline included Armen Melkonians, the founder of the once-powerful grassroots online group Residocracy, who is expected to run as a "Change" candidate in the November 8 race for three Council seats.

The three candidates vying for three seats on the Rent Control Board -- incumbent Ericka Lesley and challengers Kurt Gonska and Daniel S. Ivanov -- have made the ballot.

Malibu’s Airbnb ordinance thrown out by Coastal Commission

08/17/2022 11:35 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

The city proposal to ban overnight rentals unless a host is present was aimed at preventing the rental of party houses. But Coastal staff said it would drive too many Malibu homeowners out of the overnight rental business.

Field of Potential Candidates Dwindles

08/16/2022 10:03 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

That is also the case in the race for Rent Control Board, where the last-minute withdrawal of one candidate, left only three vying for three open seats by last Friday's deadline.

The withdrawal of Carl Hansen, the former director of government affairs for the Chamber of Commerce, leaves only three candidates running for three open Rent Board seats.

Time to Crack Down on Vacant Homes’ Owners

08/15/2022 9:35 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

How extensive is the vacancy problem? One estimate from the California Association of Realtors suggests as many as 1.2 million units, apartments and single-family homes, now sit vacant around California. Most are in cities, where in some cases, entire apartment buildings are empty.

Construction Begins on Michigan Avenue Affordable Housing Development

08/15/2022 8:57 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

A new affordable housing project has begun construction in Santa Monica as reported by Urbanize Los Angeles.

The new development will replace the Santa Monica Nikkei Hall at 1413 Michigan Avenue near Woodlawn Cemetery in the Pico Neighborhood.

Real Estate Report

08/15/2022 8:54 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

Property, Developments, and Listings on the Westside.
* City Council Votes to Unanimously Backs Proposal to Cut Rent Increases
* Sunset Park Custom Home Lists For First Time Ever By Original Builders $5.9M
* Local Properties for Sale and Rent

See More: https://smmirror.com/2022/08/sunset-park-custom-home-lists-for-first-time-ever-by-original-builders-5-9m-santa-monica-real-estate-report-august-15th-2022/

Federal Judge Paves Way for Deposition of Mayor's Husband in Housing Lawsuit

08/12/2022 8:29 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

A U.S. District Court judge last month paved the way for the deposition of Santa Monicans for Renters' Rights' (SMRR) co-chair Michael Soloff in a lawsuit challenging the City's ban on short-term rentals.

According to the lawsuit filed by NMS and its affiliated companies, Soloff, who is married to Mayor Sue Himmelrich, was "the primary drafter" of the ordinance requiring leases of at least one year.

The order issued on July 26 by U.S. District Judge Fernando L. Aenlle-Rocha denied the City's motion in May to stay Soloff's deposition.

Santa Monica's Entrenched Homeless Strategy an 'Abject Failure'

08/12/2022 8:21 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

Letter to the Editor

What to do about this?

First, recognize the folly of trying to “address” the needs of every homeless individual from anywhere and everywhere. Change the strategy: Target generous assistance to those who became homeless while living or working in Santa Monica, not to any lawbreaker who drifts across the City line from anywhere in the region, state, and country. Challenge with energetic skepticism all advocates of the failed policies that plague Santa Monica.

Related to this folly, stop enticing more homeless individuals to come here, as Mayor Himmelrich proposed in her radio interview.

Opposing Arguments Promise Bitter Transfer Tax Battle

08/11/2022 7:38 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

Unlike Brock's measure, which sunsets in ten years with a possible five-year extension, Himmelrich's tax, the argument notes, "will never end."

The Mayor's measure will also "hurt local churches and charitable organizations by forcing them to pay hundreds of thousands in new taxes instead of using funds for programs providing assistance to those in need."

And the funds raised by Himmelrich's measure will bankroll "costly government-built housing" that benefits "those developers who get these lucrative government contracts."