Tag: business license fee

By Posted on Posted in Actions

The Berkeley City Council may finally pass some Short Term Rental (STR) laws on Tuesday, May 31. The problem for tenants is that city staff won’t enforce the existing ban on STRs until Council makes the new laws, yet the draft being contemplated by Berkeley repeats the mistakes that have caused problems for San Francisco, Portland and other cities with tight rental markets that are popular tourist destinations.

In May and June of 2015, several activists and tenants impacted by short term rentals in their building filed code enforcement complaints on behalf of BTU against some of the landlords who are listing multiple empty units on AirBnB and other websites.

So far, Berkeley has refused to act on these and other complaints.

Some Landlords List Many Units
Some Landlords List Many Units

A new report from San Francisco on the impact of AirBnB on the rental housing market calls for SF Supervisors to require “hosting platforms” to only advertise rentals that are legally listed with the city. Yet Berkeley’s draft recommended by planning Staff does even require that an advertisement show an identifying license number.

We ask Berkeley Tenants to join BTU in asking the City Council to enact legislation requiring hosting platforms to only list units and hosts that are registered with our City and to fine hosing platforms like HomeAway, FlipKey and Airbnb if they advertise rentals which are not legal here. This would allow less expensive enforcement of the new laws, which will allow regular folks to rent out their own home. We hope the new law will stop large landlords from turning whole apartment buildings into hotels – as several have done already!
We also want to support the Rent Board, Planning Commission and Housing Commission in suggesting that units where tenants have been evicted through OMI or Ellis Act evictions should not be allowed to be short term rentals in Berkeley. Please take a look at the report from the Rent Board, which is an attachment below.
Finally, we suggest you write to the City Council to request that no whole units, not even in-law or accessory units, be converted to hotel rooms when we need every single housing unit to be offered to folks who live and work in Berkeley! Although the original Council referral asked that the law require any short term rental to be someone’s primary home, the Staff draft of the new law would allow some 2nd units on owner-occupied properties to be offered as tourist rentals. As the analysis of the impact of Airbnb in San Francisco shows, losing units to short term rentals does drive up housing costs.

More Information:

Kathy’s Letter on Enforcement
STRS Council May 2016 from KH

Handy Chart on Different Versions from Jesse Townley
http://www.cityofberkeley.info/uploadedFiles/Rent_Stabilization_Board/Level_3_-_General/7a2.pdf

Council Item 30 for May 31
This item has six attachments, including two versions of the ordinance. BTU favors the Planning Commission draft, but even that’s not ready to be law as written. The best place to access the item is in the full agenda packet on page 285.
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/35320626/2016-05-31%20Agenda%20Packet%20-%20WEB.pdf

Rent Board Report on No-Fault Evictions
https://www.cityofberkeley.info/Rent_Stabilization_Board/Committee_Meetings/2016/16_May_12_FULL_Agenda_Packet_4x4_Committee.aspx

Berkeley’s Housing Commission on Vacation Rentals
http://www.dailycal.org/2015/10/04/housing-advisory-commission-makes-short-term-rent-recommendations/

SF Report on Enforcement
http://www.sfbos.org/Modules/ShowDocument.aspx?documentid=55575

SF Analysis of STR Impact 2016
http://www.sfbos.org/Modules/ShowDocument.aspx?documentid=52601

Also on the May 31 Agenda:

Item 19 Support AB 2502 Inclusionary Housing
Ask the state to allow local requirements for affordable rental housing. Right now, Berkeley can’t require that developers include lower-income units on site if the housing being built will be rental housing. California needs to make a law to allow Berkeley control over local zoning mitigations.

Item 21 – End Discrimination Based on Tenant’s Income Source
Owners would have to accept Section 8 Housing Vouchers.

Item 27 – Placing a Measure on the November 8, 2016 Ballot to Increase the Business License Tax on Owners of Five or More Residential Rental Units

Item 31 – Tenant Protection OrdinanceRead more »

By Posted on Posted in Issues

Videos From the November 22 Housing Teach-In:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLS2O9Gttsg5cwvAjJi-VMccKBLLu3-Iun

teach-In

Media Estimates 180-plus Attended Teach-In November 22

“Audience members lined the walls, balcony and sat on the floor for the “teach-in,” organized by the Ad Hoc Committee for a Progressive Berkeley in conjunction with eight other advocacy and tenants’ rights organizations.”
http://www.berkeleyside.com/2015/11/24/20k-a-month-for-berkeley-house-skyrocketing-rental-prices-draw-crowd-to-housing-affordability-teach-in/comment-page-1/

“Among the ideas discussed, Stephen Barton, panelist and former deputy director of the city’s Rent Stabilization Program, proposed an affordable housing tax that taps into the excess profits landlords receive from rent. Revenue from the tax would be used to aid the development of below-market-price housing.”
http://www.dailycal.org/2015/11/23/community-members-meet-affordable-housing-teach/

“Areas included housing for teachers and firefighters; those sleeping in doorways; workers who can’t pay escalating rents; seniors whose fixed income is less than even small rent increases allowed under rent control; students stuffed five or more into two-bedroom apartments; and very low income tenants with federal housing vouchers that no local landlord will accept.”
http://www.insidebayarea.com/breaking-news/ci_29160259/berkeley-panel-urges-community-activism-address-housing-crisis

“The city is an increasingly unaffordable place for low- and moderate-income households and for students, which is threatening the city’s valued diversity,” according to the Berkeley Progressive Alliance, which is sponsoring the event. Co-sponsors include Sustainable Berkeley Coalition, Berkeley Citizens Action, Berkeley Tenants Union, California Public Interest Research Group (CALPIRG), the Berkeley NAACP, Black Student Union of Berkeley City College and the Better Berkeley Working Group.There will be a panel composed of former Berkeley Housing Director Stephen Barton; affordable housing activist Moni Law; Rick Lewis, executive director at Bay Area Community Land Trust; Berkeley Student Cooperative President Austin Pritzkat; and Katherine Harr of the Berkeley Tenants Union.”
http://www.contracostatimes.com/breaking-news/ci_29145519/berkeley-affordable-housing-teach-explore-solutions-skyrocketing-rents

A Similar Message at City-Sponsored Panel
“Christina Murphy, with the Friends of Adeline Corridor, spoke from the audience, saying in her work as housing case manager at the Berkeley Drop-in Center, she sees a growing number of seniors and people working three jobs without housing.” People going to Cal live in their cars,” she said, arguing the solution is a windfall profit tax on landlords, a proposal the city council will address.” People are building in our town and not putting in the money they should,” she said.”
http://www.contracostatimes.com/bay-area-news/ci_29124916/berkeley-few-prospects-affordable-housing-panel-says

Public Finds City-Sponsored Panel Lacking Solutions
“No mechanism was described whereby the people would gain a seat at the planning tables, at which they could actually shape the course of things to come. But still, it was called “participation.” The issues involved, from the neighborhood’s perspective, in these prior meetings, were clear. Affordable housing, no dislocation, no evictions; at several meetings, that was summed up as a call for a moratorium on market rate housing until the need for affordable had been satisfied. Somehow, none of that appeared in this A-H 101 session.”
http://www.berkeleydailyplanet.com/issue/2015-11-20/article/43940?headline=State-of-Emergency-101—Steve-Martinot

Broken Elevator Illustrates Need for Code Enforcement
The elevator at Acton Courtyard – owned by Equity Residential and exempt from the Rent Ordinance because it is recent construction – was broken for 14 days, despite Berkeley codes which require repair within 24 hours. Disabled residents were trapped in their homes or unable to access their units.
Changes to Berkeley’s code enforcement will be discussed at Council December 1.
http://www.berkeleyside.com/2015/11/24/broken-elevator-strands-disabled-berkeley-tenants/comment-page-1/

No Place for Students
The UC system is adding 10,000 students and Mayor Bates says Berkeley might get 4,000 of those. Currently, UCB houses only 8,244 of their 37,581 students. Now, students say a proposed city law regarding Group Living Accomodations will make it harder for student co-ops to provide affordable housing and build community. Meanwhile, private dorms like Casa Cedar and The Berk are charging students $1000-$1400 a month TO SHARE a room.
http://m.eastbayexpress.com/oakland/where-are-students-supposed-to-go/Content?oid=4588970

Oakland to Increase Rent Board Fee
“The city needs to triple the existing fee that funds the program, from $30 to $110 per every rental unit, or it will be unable to enforce its rent adjustment rules and resolve tenant landlord disputes. However, both landlord and tenant advocates are opposing the proposed fee increase, on the grounds that it’s excessive.”
http://www.eastbayexpress.com/oakland/eviction-and-rent-hike-complaints-skyrocket-in-oakland/Content?oid=4580708

Tony Thurmond’s Housing Town Hall
“Some solutions proposed, such as increasing the impact fees levied on building developers, were quite popular among the audience. Acknowledging others that were not, such as adding an annual tax to cable subscriptions to fund affordable housing, Thurmond requested at the onset that the audience members ‘boo quietly’ if they wished to.”
http://www.dailycal.org/2015/11/15/assembly-member-holds-town-hall-on-affordable-housing-shortages-talks-solutions/

SF Mission Home For Sale at Discount
It’s kind of sad that selling your house for only $650K makes the news, but what this woman did for her Mission District community is still cool.
http://sfist.com/2015/11/25/woman_sells_mission_apartment_for_2.php

History Lesson
This good tenant attorney blog gives a little etymology.
http://crowandrose.com/2009/06/they-dont-call-em-landlords-for-nothing-2/

…And the Fun Never Ends
Councilman Arreguin may bring back necessary changes to the demolition ordinance at the December 15 City Council meeting.

By Posted on Posted in Issues
Durant-Project
Other apartment buildings will be at risk if the Durant demolition is permitted.

Mayor Bates would like to us to give up, and stay out of important City business. Berkeley City Council has two meetings on Tuesday December 1st, and both agendas are packed with issues concerning housing, renters, and poverty. The meetings will be held at Longfellow instead of old City Hall: 1500 Derby, at Sacramento Street.
The already burdensome agendas now also include items held-over and postponed from the last couple of meetings, including several issues which tenants have already waited hours to see discussed:

► Demolition Appeal (7 pm) Item 24
SUMMARY: Allowing the demolition presents dangerous precedents: This would be the first time Berkeley has allowed an owner to claim he can’t make a fair return on a rehabilitated building. The developer invited the Berkeley Fire Department to tear out walls and cut holes in the roof!! To grant this project as requested is to condone willful destruction of housing.
ACTION: Come to the hearing on December 1st and hold signs showing support.
More Info: https://www.berkeleytenants.org/?p=1477
Berkeley Citizens Action: BCA-letter-111715

► Rental Housing Safety (7 pm) Item 28
SUMMARY: Landlords are letting their housing fall apart. Besides proactive inspections and confidential complaints, this would also make mold and mildew a public nuisance, and require landlords to actually turn in the self-inspection they are supposed to do each year.
ACTION: Take a photo of unsafe conditions and send to Council by November 30.
More Info: https://www.berkeleytenants.org/?p=1456
Wellstone Democratic Club: Wellstone-letter-111715

► Affordable Housing (5:30 pm) Items 2a, 2b, 2c, 2d, 2e
SUMMARY: Common-sense measures to make city funding for affordable housing easier.
ACTION: You already signed the petition, but did you ask your friends?
http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/fund-affordable-housing-2.fb48?source=c.fb&r_by=9240326
More Info:
Sierra Club Letter: Sierra Club 10-27 Berkeley City Council Items on Affordable Housing
Daily Cal: http://www.dailycal.org/2015/11/08/housing-advisory-commission-talks-assessment-of-affordable-housing-mitigation-fee-predevelopment-funding/
Cool Map: http://ww2.kqed.org/pop/map-where-can-you-find-an-affordable-one-bedroom-near-bart-san-francisco-bay-area-oakland

See You Tuesday December 1!
Longfellow Middle School, 1500 Derby

Also on the 5:30pm Agenda:
Below Market Rate Housing Report; Housing Trust Fund Status Update; Use of Predevelopment Funds by Nonprofit Housing Builders; Report from Berkeley Housing Authority.
http://www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/Clerk/City_Council/2015/12_Dec/City_Council__12-01-2015_-_Special_Meeting_Agenda.aspx

Also on the 7:00pm Agenda:
Accessory Dwelling Units; Appointment to Human Welfare Commission; Police Crowd Management Policies; Lien for Noncompliance with Seismic Mitigations 1734 University; 2nd Reading of Anti-Homeless Laws.
http://www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/Clerk/City_Council/2015/12_Dec/City_Council__12-01-2015_-_Regular_Meeting_Agenda.aspx

 

Update from the Windfall Profits Tax Special Workshop November 17:

FundAffordableHoudingThe City Council gave the new landlord PAC, the Berkeley Rental Housing Association, a seat at the table for their very own PowerPoint on how it must be somebody else’s job to fund affordable housing. However, the Council seemed receptive at the workshop since the measure has what passes for bipartisan support, Berkeley-style: both Arreguin and Capitelli want to fund affordable housing through a reasonable increase in the business license fee. Only Mayor Bates asked aggressive questions which betrayed his ignorance of the process of crafting Council ballot measures.

Contra Costa Times Covers Landlord Tax
“Satellite Affordable Housing Associates Executive Director Susan Friedland said $4 million annually would mean construction of 40-to-50 affordable units every year given that nonprofit housing developers must get about 25 percent of their funding from local sources to leverage other funds….Barton proposed a number of exemptions, including one- and two-unit and nonprofit-owned properties; rent-controlled properties with pre-1999 tenants (before vacancy decontrol allowed landlords to set rents of rent-controlled units as high as the market will bear when units are vacated); low-and-moderate income landlords; and units with federally subsidized tenants.”
http://www.contracostatimes.com/breaking-news/ci_29134727/berkeley-tax-proposed-fund-low-income-housing

Affordable Housing Panel November 14
Amy Davidson, community project coordinator for the City of Berkeley, said it takes $500,000 to develop one unit of affordable housing and then discussed the city’s $28,000 fee for developers with a complete lack of irony.
http://www.contracostatimes.com/bay-area-news/ci_29124916/berkeley-few-prospects-affordable-housing-panel-says

By Posted on Posted in Actions

Berkeley Tenants Union has three important items at the City Council on Tuesday.
For more info, see the posts below this one. 

About the Demolition (Item 21):
If the City Council allows this demolition to go forward, the law prohibiting unmitigated demolition of rent controlled housing means nothing anymore, and all of Berkeley is at risk of being bulldozed to make way for luxury housing.

About changes to the Rental Housing Safety Program (Item 23):
One reason developers give to tear down affordable older units is that they are in really bad shape. Never mind that they continue to rent them out while simultaneously making a claim that they are unsafe. In order to preserve our housing, we must make cyclical inspections a reality in Berkeley as they are in most other major cities.

November 17 will also see the Council discuss a Windfall Profits Tax on High Rents. There will be a special workshop at 5:30 PM in order for the Council to consider a ballot measure to increase the business license tax on larger landlords and use the money to building and rehab affordable housing, including the student co-ops.

What you can do:

1) Take a picture of unsafe housing conditions and email it to City Council marked November 17, Item 23.  clerk@cityofberkeley.info  They have to get the email by noon on Tuesday.

2) Come to the Demolition Appeal at old City Hall on November 17 around 8 PM and hold a sign to support BTU and the ASUC during the appeal. We demand that the law which says

“Notwithstanding the above, the Board shall approve a Use Permit to eliminate a controlled rental unit only when it finds that…The replacement dwelling unit shall be available for occupancy to Households for Lower Income or Very Low Income Households” must mean that rent controlled housing can only be torn down if replaced unit-for-unit with permanently affordable housing! Look for us in blue BTU T Shirts to get a sign showing support. 

3) Come early to support the Windfall Profits Tax at 5:30 PM

If you can’t make the meetings, please send an email NOW
to Council marked Item 21 c/o  clerk@cityofberkeley.info

Rent Controlled housing should be torn down only if it is replaced one-for-one with permanently affordable housing. Developers should not be rewarded for allowing their buildings to fall apart.

For more information about the proposed demolition at 2631 Durant:

Letter From Student Tenants:
DurantTenantsLetter

Berkeley Tenants Union Op-Eds:
http://www.berkeleyside.com/2015/11/16/op-ed-stop-developers-from-demolishing-rent-controlled-buildings-without-replacing-them/

http://www.berkeleydailyplanet.com/issue/2015-11-06/article/43881?headline=Demolition-of-Rent-Controlled-Units-Sets-Bad-Precedent–Berkeley-Tenants-Union

News Articles:
http://www.berkeleyside.com/2015/06/25/berkeley-zoning-board-to-consider-demolition-on-durant/

http://www.dailycal.org/2014/08/24/56-unit-student-housing-complex-may-coming-durant-avenue/

City Documents:
http://cityofberkeley.info/Planning_and_Development/Zoning_Adjustment_Board/2631_Durant.aspx

Letter from Berkeley Neighborhoods Council:
2631 Durant Demolition Letter to City Council