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Candidate Christopher Patrick King, sixth from right, when he filed his papers last Monday.
Rent control.
Around City Hall, the two words are like a full body rash.
When the three syllables ring out in a town where it never has been accepted, City Hall personalities start scratching as if the flies of summer have just returned.
For the first time there is a website advocating support for tenants (www.CulverCityRentControl.com), which makes it a natural question for City Council candidates this almost-spring.
Where does contender Christopher Patrick King stand on the thorny subject?
“It’s critical for our city to have a conversation about housing options and housing opportunities,” the mortgage broker told the newspaper.
“Right now Culver City is a wonderful place to live and work,” said the nine-year resident.
“We are incredibly blessed that our property values and our rents have been increasing.
“But it creates challenges, too. There are people who have been displaced because of lack of affordability.
“So we need to have this difficult conversation as a city about how we are going to address it,” Mr. King said.
“One thing that I am passionate about is creating more housing opportunities. That is something that, being a mortgage broker, I can specifically address.
“I have worked one-on-one, and I have written a position paper with a major developer in downtown Los Angeles about how cities can work with developers, and developers still can be profitable – yet cities still can participate to create more affordable housing.”
Will Mr. King stump for rent control during his campaign in the remaining 81 days?
“It’s a tough issue,” he said, “because so many members of our city are owners. I would not say it is one of my campaign platform pieces. But it is something I am sensitive to. I am working closely with Shireen Daytona (creator of www.CulverCityRentControl.com) to make sure all people’s needs and concerns are met.”
