PRR 14631 Document 1 PDF
PRR 14631 Document 1 PDF
PRR 14631 Document 1 PDF
org]
Sent: Tuesday, February 09, 2016 3:08 PM
To: Marqusee, Alexander G.
Subject: Fwd: Final draft for review by Wed., 2/9 -DRAFT Housing Cabinet Report
My/EBHO's comments....
---------- Forwarded message ---------From: Gloria Bruce <[email protected]>
Date: Tue, Feb 9, 2016 at 1:16 PM
Subject: Re: Final draft for review by Wed., 2/9 -DRAFT Housing Cabinet Report
To: "Hood, Heather" <[email protected]>
Hello Heather! I could probably take a more in-depth look at this, but I'm out of time. I think overall this is a
comprehensive and ambitious document that accurately summarizes the policies and process of the Cabinet. (And I like
the framing in the beginning that explains the connections to the Housing Equity Road Map).
I took as close a look as I could and also quietly shared some pieces with Jeff to get his technical framing. He and I both
had some questions about the pipeline numbers, for example, where the 900 units of affordable housing are coming
from. I can refer you to him for more questions/updates on that piece since he had a lot of comments on the numbers
that I didn't have time to absorb and summarize.
See my comments attached in track changes, adding some nuance/questions.
To answer your big questions:
1. Does this document communicate the material and final recommendations in a clear way to people you think will
look at it (10 people contributed so wed like to be sure it flows in a sensible way)? Well, yes, but the writing style is a
little uneven and at times oddly informal (Jeff also noted this). It's a little unclear who the audience for this document is,
and I think it will benefit from one more editing pass to smooth out the differences in tone; I tried to note places for this
to happen.
2. Does it strike a balance between being succinct and detailed? Yes, I think it's the right amount of detail.
3. Does the communicate the material and final recommendations in a compelling way that will inspire constructive
action? Sort of. On the one hand, I like that the report doesn't spend a lot of time laying out tons of statistics describing
the problem - we all know those stories, and the Road Map did that. I just think that the organization of the strategies
and sub-headings needs to be clearer and more consistent to make it easier to navigate. Some people will gravitate
towards the narrative, others to the graphics, so its great to have both - just make sure they are tied together, because
sometimes the graphics (like the one with all the 3-D houses) are a bit hard to grasp at a glance.
4. Are there simple things we could do to improve any wording or graphics? Much of the text in the graphics is too
small. Make the list of strategies just text rather than a jpg.
Hope this is helpful and thanks for the tremendous amount of work on this! (And THANKS for including that public action
stuff! I am most happy about the work and recommendations of the public lands group.) Of course, I wish that we
could push further on some of the tenants piece and the impact fee, but I know that this is not just an EBHO report. I
hope that CJJC will weigh in on the renters services question; I know there is a politically tight line to walk there but I'm
not sure it really does justice to how uneven the power dynamic is right now. I hope that in the discussion moving
forward, the needs of the lowest-income folks and those struggling to afford even substandard housing continue to be
brought to the forefront.
Thanks and looking forward to the next steps Gloria
The team is working on filling in some detail in the meantime. Your insights and suggestions on these questions would
be helpful:
1. Does this document communicate the material and final recommendations in a clear way to people you think will
look at it (10 people contributed so wed like to be sure it flows in a sensible way)?
2. Does it strike a balance between being succinct and detailed?
3. Does the communicate the material and final recommendations in a compelling way that will inspire constructive
action?
4. Are there simple things we could do to improve any wording or graphics?
Please kindly respect the sensitive nature of this draft report. The Mayors Office is crafting a communications strategy to be vetted with other leaders- and the plan is to release the report on or soon after Thursday, February 11th. An
extensive appendix will follow later and all will be available on a website. Meanwhile, this week, the Coordinating
Committee will start shaping on a mechanism to ensure the strategies keep advancing.
Thank you for your interest and help in this phase. Excited to push on with 2016 priorities!
Best
~Heather
Heather Hood
Deputy Director, Northern California
Enterprise Community Partners
101 Montgomery Street, Suite 1350
San Francisco, CA 94104
[email protected]
direct line: 415.400.0973
-GLORIA BRUCE
Executive Director
EAST BAY HOUSING ORGANIZATIONS (EBHO)
510-663-3830 ext.322 | [email protected]
538 Ninth Street, Suite 200 | Oakland, CA 94607
Join our 500-member-strong EBHO family and build community power for affordable homes. Become a member or
renew today at www.EBHO.org.
Celebrate EBHO and learn how to take action in 2016 at our FREE Annual Membership Meeting and Celebration on
Nov. 4th! RSVP and Sponsor today!
Visit us at www.EBHO.org and follow us on Facebook and Twitter.
End
Thanks Oliver for sending this to me--I wasn't aware it was happening. Very glad that there's some activity occurring. I
have the following preliminary observations for your consideration:
1. The relocation assistance amount of $8,500 per unit seems low given the housing costs in Oakland and nearby cities,
as well as based on the standards in other cities. It would have been good to have seen a comparison chart of the
different City standards and the median rent costs. Also, many of the comparison city standards were enacted several
years ago, i.e. Berkeley's $8,500/unit requirement was enacted in 2007, and may be in the process of adjustment given
the severe housing crisis occurring across the State.
2. In the Oakland Housing Equity Roadmap that the Council adopted on 9/30--thank you Dan for your leadership!, we
had recommended that tenant relocation terms be standardized across different forms of eviction sources--condo
conversion, Ellis Act, Just Cause, Code Enforcement. It's been very confusing for residents and City staff to know what
the different requirements are. I'm wondering why only Ellis Act is being addressed.
3. In the Roadmap, we also recommended that staffing from the City Attorney's office be increased to enforce the
current and new tenant relocation laws. Hoping that gets enacted soon, since as your office deeply understands, even
with great laws in place, the City still needs the right type and #s of people to educate and enforce our laws.
All the very best!
Margaretta
On Mon, Dec 14, 2015 at 5:19 PM, Luby, Oliver <[email protected]> wrote:
Hi all,
You probably already know about this, but, in case not, we wanted to make sure that your organizations were aware
that Oaklands Housing Department staff have brought forth proposed legislation amending Oaklands Ellis Act
Ordinance. Heres the title:
Adopt An Ordinance To Amend The Ellis Act Ordinance O.M.C. 12530 C.M.C. To (1) Extend Relocation Payments To All
Households Regardless Of Income; (2) Set The Base Amount Of Relocation Payment At $8,000 Per Unit; (3) Require An
Additional Payment Of $2,500 Per Unit For Units With Tenants Who Are Seniors, Disabled, Low-Income, Or Families
With Minor Children; And (4) Require That Half Of The Payment Be Made When The Termination Notice Is Given And
The Other Half Of The Payment Made Upon Tenant's Move Out
It will be before tomorrows (Tuesday, Dec. 15) CED committee meeting at City Hall, which starts at 1 pm:
https://oakland.legistar.com/MeetingDetail.aspx?ID=447511&GUID=9AD744FF-47FE-4799-AFB29A7FCF3D5487&Options=info&Search
Oliver Luby
Policy Manager
Office of District 1 City Council Member Dan Kalb
City of Oakland
1 Frank H. Ogawa Plaza, Suite 226 Oakland, CA 94612
(o) 510-238-7001 (d) 510-238-7013 (e) [email protected]
Click this link to subscribe to Council Member Kalb's newsletter.
Another world is not only possible, she is on her way. On a quiet day, I can hear her breathing.
Arundhati Roy
Margaretta Lin
Principal
The Dellums Institute for Social Justice
End
FYI
Olga A. Bolotina, Chief of Staff
Office of District One City Councilmember Dan Kalb, City of Oakland
1 Frank H. Ogawa Plaza, Suite 230, Oakland, CA 94612
Direct: 510-238-7240
[email protected]
Click this link to subscribe to Councilmember Kalb's newsletter.
Report A Problem | Public Works Agency Call Center | (510) 615-5566
www.oaklandpw.com | [email protected] | Mobile app:SeeClickFix
----- Forwarded message ----From: "Kitty Kelly Epstein" <[email protected]>
To: "Bolotina, Olga" <[email protected]>
Subject: Housing Emergency resolution from John George, Post Salon, Wellstone and other orgs and individuals
Date: Thu, Mar 10, 2016 11:15
Dear Olga,
I understand that you are interested in a digital copy of the resolution on the Housing Emergency which was scheduled
by the last Rules Committee at its meeting last week.
The resolution is attached. My contact information is attached if you have questions
End
End
End
End
End
What the mayor is proposing is il-legal. Both proposed appointees have already served two complete terms - one as a
so-called "neutral" (non-renter or residential rental property owner) and the other as a residential rental property
owner.
There are over 400,000 residents in Oakland. Roughly 40% are not residential renters and their wages tend to be double
or triple what the typical renter household in Oakland earns. These two categories should be the easiest to fill. The
mayor can surely find two NEW responsible candidates
Past experience will suggest that neither the city staff or the city attorney will give good advice on legal issues.
brian geiser
-
End
End
Hello Alex
Pardon for being so late getting back to you, but as writer of the ordinance and a number of balls moving very
fast simultaneously the past week, its been hard to keep up.
These are some bullet points of the proposed new rent ordinance:
The new ordinance revises the present ordinance (a last minute decision to avoid it having to be a charter
initiative which requires many more petitions)
Modifies the composition of the Rent Board to reflect Oakland's population (presently 60% tenants); thus 4 of 7
board members must be tenants.
One rent board member from each of the 7 Council districts. Members serve max of 2-3 year terms.
Incorporates the "just Cause Ordinance" into the rent control ordinance to form a comprehensive, coordinated
"rent stabilization program."
Extends "just cause" eviction protections to all buildings, including new and future residential units -- as permitted
by Costa-Hawkins..
Exempts 2-unit dwellings (duplexes) from both rent control and eviction protections, where owner occupies one of
the units
Due to Costa-Hawkins (until repealed), residential buildings after 1983 continue to exempt from only rent
control.
Sets the rent as of 31 Dec 2016 as the "base rent."
Permits 60% of "CPI-all items" as (automatic) annual adjustment.
Permits that owners who claim that CPI adjustment denies them a "fair return" may petition for hearing to obtain
adjustment to restore "fair return."
Maximum rent increase in any 12 month is 5%. 5% can be extended to future years if necessary to restore "fair
return" to owner.
Tenants may challenge an owner petition; or may petition for "downward adjustment" based on "loss of housing
services" or habitability violation.
Petitions have 3-year statute of limitations; appeals have 1 year limit.
Board will maintain an accessible file of the "legal rent amount" for all covered units.
Board will provide language translation services when requested; language assistance cannot be used against
tenants.
Rent Board hires own director, attorneys, hearing officers, and staff -- all staff remain under city's civil service
Vastly expands duties of the rent board
Provides legal assistance services for both low and moderate income tenants and owners, upon request.
Requires funding and implementation of the "Tenant Protection Ordinance."
Provides for administrative, injunctive, and civil remedies
The "Renter's Upgrade Initiative" is promoted by a coalition of Oakland renters, clergy, teachers, homeowners, city
workers, small business owners, and landlords and seeks to severely reduce displacement, and greatly strengthen fair
and equitable protections for Oakland tenants and those most impacted by the Citys catastrophic housing crisis. Oakland
families and voters know there is a raging crisis, and that it is past time to take steps toward a comprehensive and
effective solution.
A recent poll of likely voters in Oakland found that over 80% of voters agree that the cost of housing in our city is a very
serious crisis, and well over 85% agree that as a city, we must do more to protect tenants and long term residents of this
city from the type of abuses that are displacing families at an alarming rate
We respond by coming together as a community to lift up tenants with the Renters Upgrade Initiative Our solution is
straightforward and is consistent with similar laws and regulations in cities across the Bay Area. The goal of the Renters
Upgrade Initiative is to finally take proactive and doable steps toward confronting the unrelenting rental and housing crisis
that severely impacts the lives, physical well=being, mental heath, and domestic security of every family in this city.
James E Vann, cofounder
Oakland Tenants Union
510-763-0142
End
Hi Alex Following up on our conversation today. Here's a summary of existing housing relocation policies in Oakland:
The City has several different ordinances that provide some minimal level of assistance to tenants who are displaced by various
actions. These include:
1. Condo Conversion (OMC 16.36.040) - prospective tenants who are not provided with proper notice of a pending conversion are entitled
to relocation benefits of up to $500 for moving expenses and up to $500 for first month's rent. The law also requires a "Tenant Assistance
Plan" but doesn't require any specific amount of assistance for tenants displaced by a conversion.
2. Ellis Act (OMC 8.22.450) - an owner who "goes out of the rental housing business" must pay relocation assistance to any lower income
tenant who is displaced. The relocation assistance is equal to two months rent (in the current unit).
3. Code Enforcement Relocation Ordinance (OMC 15.60): Tenants who are evicted due to code enforcement actions may be eligible
for relocation assistance provided by the owner. If the owner doesn't provide it, the City is empowered to do so and then lien the property
(in practice, this is is limited by the lack of adequate appropriations). Relocation assistance is 2x the HUD Fair Market Rent, plus $200
moving allowance.
4. SRO Demolition/Conversion Ordinance (OMC 17.102.230). Covers demolition or conversion of SROs in commercial zones, and
conversion of apartments to non-residential use in commercial zones. Relocation benefits of one month's rent or $500, whichever is
greater.
These are badly out of date and inconsistent.
All of these benefits are wholly inadequate to help a displaced tenant find suitable replacement housing, and are FAR less than what would
be required if the displacement is caused by a publicly-funded project. (For federally-funded project, the Uniform Relocation Act requires
the difference between current rent and rent for a comparable unit in standard condition, for 42 months. Can be paid in lump sum. Also
includes assistance finding a unit and moving expenses. State law requirements are similar).
Jeff Levin
Policy Director
EAST BAY HOUSING ORGANIZATIONS (EBHO)
510-663-3830 ext. 316 | [email protected]
538 Ninth Street, Suite 200 | Oakland, CA 94607
*NOTE*: I am generally in the office only on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday,
so I may not be able to reply to your e-mail right away.
Join our 500-member-strong EBHO family and build community power for affordable homes. Become a member or renew today
at www.EBHO.org.
Visit us at www.EBHO.org and follow us on Facebook and Twitter.
End
Please find the attached agenda for the Dec. 2nd Housing Cabinet meeting that will take place in the mayors conference
room.
Winnie
-
End
End
Hi Alex,
Per our earlier convo. Heres what was emailed over to Connie regarding staff being aware of the rent board ordinance
amendments
Hope this will help, thank you.
-Sheng
From: Thao, Sheng
Sent: Wednesday, December 16, 2015 11:55 AM
To: Taylor, Connie
Subject: Re: Rent Board Amendments
Hi Connie,
Please see attached regarding what is being scheduled at Rules tomorrow for amendments to Rent Board per our
earlier conversation. Also, when is the best time for Vice Mayor to call you regarding relocation assistance item?
Best,
Sheng Thao
Office of Vice Mayor Rebecca Kaplan
Policy and Communications Director
City of Oakland
1 Frank H. Ogawa Plaza, Suite 243 Oakland, CA 94612
(o) 510-238-7008 (d) 510-238-7082 (e) [email protected]