Fifth in a series
Re “Collaborative Way to Reach Accord on Harnessing Rents”
[img]1307|right|Meghan Sahli-Wells||no_popup[/img]As perhaps the most aggressive advocate of collaboration on the City Council, Mayor Meghan Sahli-Wells says that before any form of rent stabilization is imposed, elected leaders need to confer with residents.
“No. 1, we need to discuss this thoroughly with the community,” she said, using the term workshops. “We need to make sure renters and property owners are at the table so we can figure this out together.”
Lately, Ms. Sahli-Wells has been saying that, in the name of creating a fair environment for renters and landlords, the historic (three decades) mission of the Landlord Tenant Mediation Board should be altered. Their findings should be mandatory.
“In my view, some of what the Landlord Tenant Mediation Board is doing is good,” she said. “But the Board can’t make things happen” because their rulings are not binding.
“In my mind, the Board has to have that kind of authority. You should not be able to just raise rent 100 percent and give someone 60 days to pay up or leave.”
The mayor is prepared for resistance when the subject is expected to reach the Council in September.
“This is not going to be an easy change,” she said. “I know there is going to be pushback. I have heard about it already.
“We need to go forward and do this.”
Sounding excited, Ms. Sahli-Wells embraced her own advice.
“Let’s do our own Culver City model. Let’s make something that works for us.
“I am not interested in taking somebody else’s model and imposing it on Culver City. I am I am interested in a local solution that works for both renters and for landlords.”
