EXPOSED: The City Hall/Slumlord Alliance

On November 14th, the San Jose City Council by a 6-5 majority voted against reducing the automatic allowable annual increase for rent controlled units. Despite the fact that other major cities in the Bay Area limit increases to a fraction of the CPI, tenants in San Jose will face increases of 5% a year. The City Auditor had documented the fact that a 5% automatic increase prevented the city’s rent control ordinance from providing any meaningful protection to hard-pressed working families. But that fact as well as the pleas from those desperately struggling to avoid homelessness failed to produce a change in the final vote.

However, one positive outcome did occur on that disappointing evening. The City Council’s decision – and the justification of the decision – provided unmistakable proof of a solid Alliance between several City Councilmembers and the worst landlords in the city. Several Councilmembers used the meeting to disparage the character of tenants – such as Johnny Khamis who snidely commented that all renters aren’t angels. But the harsh reality of the city’s own data shows a very different set of non-angelic individuals who dominate landlord-tenant relationships in San Jose. Over 40% of the rent controlled buildings in San Jose are in Code Enforcement Tier III. Tier III is as low as it goes in terms of failing to maintain buildings, of refusing to respond to legitimate complaints, or of doing patchwork repairs without inspections or permits. November 14th revealed that those Tier III landlords have a cabal of reliable supporters at City Hall.

The agenda of the City Hall/Slumlord Alliance (CHSA) has three major provisions:

  • Allow landlords to evict tenants when they complain about code violations or the need for other major repairs.

The CHSA attempted to achieve this goal by overturning the Just Cause Eviction policy adopted by the city earlier this year.

  • Provide financial rewards to landlords who fail to maintain their property.

The CPI proposal would have limited automatic increases to the cost of inflation, but good landlords who spent more to maintain their property would be eligible for higher increases. By submitting a “fair return” petition, good landlords would be able to raise rents to cover these maintenance expenses.  However, the CHSA supported giving ALL landlords of rent controlled units a full 5% every year even if they don’t spend a dime on repairs. To slumlords, the CHSA is the gift that keeps giving.

  • Fail to make “zero-tolerance” for slumlords a city priority.

The fact that 40% of the rent controlled units are in Tier III is ample proof of the willingness of the CHSA to ignore this problem. Each year, the City Council sets priorities for the coming year. In the recent priority-setting session, the CHSA members never raised the need to make zero-tolerance a major city objective.

Who are the members of the City Hall/Slumlord Alliance? Its leaders are two Councilmembers: Johnny Khamis and Dev Davis. They not only vote for the CHSA agenda; they advocate for it.

Mayor Sam Liccardo, Councilmember Lan Diep and Councilmember Charles Jones are ill-informed accomplices. They probably don’t realize the implications of decisions that the CHSA promotes. For example, Mayor Liccardo explained his vote for the 5% increase by saying he didn’t want to force good landlords out of business and have their properties taken over by slumlords. Amazingly, he used that comment to justify opposing a CPI plan that allowed good landlords to recover their maintenance costs while he supported providing slumlords a 5% increase even when they are cited by code enforcement for refusing to spend money on repairs.

It should be noted the City Hall/Slumlord Alliance does not include either managers or staff workers at the city, most of whom are dedicated and conscientious, struggling to do their jobs despite pressure on behalf of the slumlords’ agenda.

City Council elections will be held in 5 districts in 2018. One question should be asked of every candidate. Are you willing to stand up and oppose the CHSA?

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