News: Santa Rosa
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The Santa Rosa City Council decided to pursue a mandatory Section 8 ordinance Tuesday, but not before pledging to work with CAA to make the program more workable for local landlords.
The council advanced the ordinance on a 5-1 vote and is expected to formally approve the law after a second reading next month.
The measure will prohibit blanket policies against accepting Section 8 applicants, ban “No Section 8” ads, and make it illegal to deny a tenancy based solely on the tenant’s possession of a voucher.
In the November election, Santa Rosa voters have an opportunity to boost affordable housing while speeding the city’s recovery from last year’s devastating wildfires.
Last fall, the fires in Northern California’s Wine Country eviscerated 6,000 homes in Santa Rosa alone.
“Couple that with a statewide housing crisis of epic proportions, and Santa Rosa finds itself in dire need of additional housing supply,” said Alex Khalfin, CAA’s vice president of public affairs for the North Bay region. “While we can debate how this problem should or shouldn’t be solved, one fact remains clear — something must be done.”
Enter Measure N… Read More
Taking a cue from the voters of Santa Rosa, the City Council this week backed away from a proposal to explore a rent control ordinance.
Tagged: Rent Control North Bay
After a petition to put rent control on the November ballot in Santa Rosa failed to qualify last week, several elected officials are ready to discuss passing their own ordinance at City Hall.
The Santa Rosa City Council on Tuesday, Aug. 7, is scheduled to discuss the possible adoption of a city-drafted rent control ordinance. The California Apartment Association is calling on members to attend the meeting and voice their opposition.
“Your voice is needed to tell the City Council to focus on real solutions to rebuild Santa Rosa and stop wasting time on policies that are proven to fail,”… Read More
Tagged: ElectionsRent Control North Bay
Although a rent control measure could be headed for the Nov. 6 ballot in Santa Rosa, a movement on the City Council is afoot to explore a rent control ordinance at City Hall as well.
On Tuesday, the council was scheduled to discuss a potential rent control ordinance, spurring members of the California Apartment Association to attend the meeting to voice their opposition.
The mayor ultimately pulled the item from the agenda, and it is unclear whether the council will revisit it.
Talk of a possible rent control ordinance from the City Council comes as election officials count and verify… Read More
Tagged: ElectionsNewsRent Control North Bay
Less than a year after voters rejected rent control in Santa Rosa, tenant activists are attempting to return the issue to the ballot box.
Efforts are now underway to qualify a rent control and “just cause” eviction measure for city’s the November 2018 ballot.
Spearheading the initiative campaign is the North Bay Organizing Project, which needs to collect at least 8,985 valid signatures from registered Santa Rosa voters by July 6 to qualify the measure for this fall’s general election.
The proposed measure, accessible here, would limit rent increases to the inflation rate, impose strict eviction controls, establish strict guidelines… Read More
The Santa Rosa City Council scrubbed a scheduled vote on eviction controls this week, citing a conflict of interest among three council members.
The council Tuesday took no action on a proposed urgency ordinance that would have immediately imposed just-cause eviction regulations in the city.
Tagged: Just Cause Eviction North Bay
On behalf of all of us at the California Apartment Association, our thoughts are with our members and their families, employees, neighbors, and residents who have lost their homes to the devastating fire in the North Bay Area. Recognizing the losses of many residents and the state of emergency that Sonoma and Napa County residents are facing, CAA is calling upon our members to show compassion for those who have lost their homes and, at a minimum, keep rents at current levels.
CAA recognizes the demand for rental housing will escalate over the coming weeks as displaced families look for… Read More
Tagged: News 2017 Wildfires North Bay
The California Apartment Association is leading an effort to identify available housing for residents left homeless by the devastating fires in Sonoma and Napa counties.
Some of the displaced families are looking for short-term (up to six months) housing, just long enough for their fire-damaged housing to be rehabilitated. Others are looking for long-term, permanent housing. As the need is great and varied, CAA is calling on the rental housing industry to help identify available units.
CAA aims to provide the city of Santa Rosa, as well as Sonoma and Napa counties, with a comprehensive list of vacant units so… Read More
Tagged: Philanthropy 2017 Wildfires North Bay
After a strong grassroots campaign by the California Apartment Association and its allies, Santa Rosa’s rent control and just-cause eviction measure went down in defeat Tuesday.
The people of Santa Rosa rejected Measure C with 52.5 percent of the vote, compared with 47.5 percent in favor of rent control.
“Voters understood that Measure C would have come at high costs while assisting only a fraction of the population,” said Joshua Howard, CAA’s senior vice president for Northern California. “Now, Santa Rosa can focus on the real solution to its housing crisis — building more homes.”