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SCRHA would like to sincerely thank all of the rental owners and managers who attended the Lemon Grove City Council hearing yesterday evening, May 19. We know it was a long and abnormal meeting. Even if you couldn’t stay until 10:30 p.m. when the item finally came up, your presence was felt and appreciated.
The meeting began 45 minutes late due to issues with microphones. Under The Brown Act, the public must be able to both see and hear deliberations and understand proceedings. While the tech issues were disappointing, we appreciate that city staff did their best to adhere to the law.
Unfortunately, this also meant that time was an issue and despite the Tenant Protection item being #2 on the agenda, the Mayor stated that they had to hear three other items that evening and therefore was pushing Item 2 to the end of the meeting. When one councilmember asked the audience to stand if they were there for the Tenant Protection Ordinance, more than half the room stood up. Despite that, they proceeded as the Mayor had outlined.
At 10:30, city staff, with the help of outside special counsel, presented information on current law and options for additional local tenant protections. When they moved on to public comments, all speakers expressed their opposition to a local ordinance. Interestingly, the Mayor paused to ask if any tenants in the room wanted to speak. This is unusual since the process is to fill out a speaker slip and submit to city staff in advance.
Once public comment was complete, the Mayor stated that she did not want to continue on to council discussion because it was late and suggested continuing the item to the second council meeting in July. As the Council deliberated, the Mayor stated that “she worked” and “needed a nap.” Councilmember Heredia wanted to continue discussions. Councilmember Altamirano motioned to postpone any further discussion of an ordinance until the existing temporary urgency ordinance expires in August. Ultimately, the Mayor received support from two other colleagues.
Next steps. Discussion on the item should occur on June 16. Hopefully that agenda will not include other pressing matters and the Tenant Protection Ordinance will get the deliberation it deserves. SCRHA will continue to advocate for consistency with state law with additional focus on education and outreach.
Make sure you are signed up for SCRHA Action Alerts so you can receive important updates and calls to action on this matter and many others facing rental housing providers.
Thank you!
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