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August 20, 1996

August 20, 1996B>

 

 

 

MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF
THE SAN FRANCISCO RESIDENTIAL RENT
STABILIZATION & ARBITRATION BOARD,

Tuesday, August 20, 1996 at 6:00 p.m. at
25 Van Ness Avenue, Suite 70, Lower Level

I. Call to Order

President Becker called the meeting to order at 6:05 p.m.

II. Roll Call

Commissioners Present: Becker; Bierly; Gruber; Lightner; Marshall; Moore; Mosser; Murphy; Palma.

Commissioners not Present: Wasserman.

Staff Present: Grubb; Wolf.

III. Approval of the Minutes

MSC: To approve the Minutes of August 6, 1996.

(Palma/Marshall: 5-0)

IV. Remarks from the Public

An individual asked questions regarding the composition of the Commission.

V. Consideration of Appeals

A. 2840 Greenwich St. R001-03R

The landlord’s petition for certification of the costs of a new toilet, exterior siding and painting was approved, resulting in a monthly passthrough in the amount of $136.45 to the tenant in one unit. The tenant appeals the decision, asserting that the costs of similar work done to a larger building on the same property should be taken into account in determining the reasonable cost for the work; and that the tenant should not be liable for 50% of the cost of work done to the ground floor, as the tenant has the use of less than 50% of the garage area.

MSC: To deny the appeal. (Lightner/Gruber: 4-1; Marshall dissenting)

B. 2047A Broadway St. R001-03A

The tenant’s petition alleging substantial decreases in housing services was granted, and the landlord was found liable to the tenant in the amount of $469.15 due to lack of access to the laundry room and garage, a leaking full-length window and an inoperable garbage disposal. On appeal, the landlord asserts that the facts on the record do not support the findings in the decision; that the landlord was not given an adequate opportunity to present her case at the hearing; and that she has retained new counsel to assist in the presentation of her claim.

MSC: To deny the appeal. (Marshall/Palma: 3-2; Gruber, Lightner dissenting)

C. 1278 - 19th Ave. R001-04A

The tenants’ petition alleging substantial decreases in housing services and unlawful rent increases was granted, in part, and the landlords were found liable to the tenants in the amount of $771.78 for the refund of rent overpayments and $3,035.00 for rent reductions due to decreased housing services. On appeal, the landlord alleges that several of the conditions had been abated prior to the issuance of the decision; that the rent overpayments resulted from the Rent Board’s failure to notify landlords of the change in the amount of the allowable annual increase from 4% to 1.6%; and that the amount of the rent reductions is excessive.

MSC: To accept the appeal and remand the case for a new hearing to determine the proper termination date, if any, for rent reductions in light of the February 16, 1996 Notice of Violation abatement. (Gruber/Palma: 5-0)

D. 686 Valencia St. #3 R001-05A

The tenant’s petition alleging substantial decreases in housing services and unlawful rent increases was granted and the landlord was found liable to the tenant in the amount of $495.00 due to decreased housing services and $434.19 due to rent overpayments during the period November 1994 through January 1995. The tenant appealed the decision on the grounds that the hearing officer should have considered unlawful rent increases back to 1982 and that he had not been given the opportunity to present evidence on this point. The tenant’s appeal was accepted and remanded on the issue of the rent history only. In the Decision on Remand, the landlord is found liable for rent overpayments totaling $4,837.53. The landlord, who failed to appear at the properly noticed remand hearing, appeals the Decision on Remand on the grounds that some of the work for which rent reductions was granted in the original decision had been performed.

MSC: To deny the appeal. (Marshall/Palma: 5-0)

VI. Communications

In addition to correspondence concerning cases on the calendar, the Commissioners received the office workload statistics for the month of June, 1996.

VII. Director’s Report

The Executive Director announced that the office is very close to meeting mandated timelines for the scheduling of hearings and issuance of decisions due to the additional of a temporary hearing officer position, the denial of hearing officer vacation requests for the months of August and September, and the success of the mediation pilot project.

VIII. Old Business

A. Proposed Amendments to Rules and Regulations Section 10.10 Regarding the Issue of Constructive Notice

At their meeting on August 6, 1996, the Commissioners held a Public Hearing on proposed amendments to Rules and Regulations Section 10.10 regarding the issue of constructive notice. After the conclusion of the Public Hearing, the Board members discussed and extensively revised the proposed amendments, and made and seconded a motion to adopt the proposed amendments which were to be distributed in final form prior to the August 20th meeting. After further discussion and final revision, the following motion was passed:

MSC: To adopt proposed amendments to Rules and Regulations Section 10.10 as modified at the meeting on August 20, 1996. (Becker/Marshall: 4-1; Lightner dissenting)

Effective August 20, 1996, Rules and Regulations Section 10.10 reads as follows:

Section 10.10 Decrease in Services

(a) A tenant may petition for a reduction of base rent where a landlord, without a corresponding reduction in rent, has (1) substantially decreased housing services, including any service added after commencement of the tenancy and for which additional consideration was paid when it was provided, or (2) failed to provide housing services reasonably expected under the circumstances, or (3) failed to provide a housing service verifiably promised by the landlord prior to commencement of the tenancy.

(b) A petition for arbitration based on decreased services shall be filed on a form supplied by the Board. The petition shall be accompanied by a statement setting forth the nature and value of the service for which the decrease is being sought, and the date the decrease began and ended, if applicable.

(c) No rent decrease as requested in the tenant’s petition will be allowed prior to one year preceding the filing of the petition except where one or more of the following is found:

(1) extraordinary circumstances;

(2) where the tenant establishes by a preponderance of the evidence that there has been long term notice, oral or written, from the tenant or other reliable source, regarding such decrease occurring in the interior of the tenant’s unit, or where such condition existed in the interior of the unit at the commencement of the tenancy and the landlord had constructive notice of same; or

(3) where the tenant establishes by a preponderance of the evidence that there has been actual long term notice, oral or written, from the tenant or other reliable source, and/or constructive notice regarding such decrease occurring in any common area.

(d) For the purposes of this section, notice is defined as follows:

(1) Actual Notice: Actual notice occurs when the tenant or any reliable person or entity informs the landlord, or the landlord’s agents, orally or in writing, of a decrease in housing services as defined in the Rent Ordinance at Section 37.2(g).

(2) Constructive Notice: Constructive notice occurs when a decrease in housing services exists and the landlord should have known about the condition. (For example, constructive notice may be found when a reasonable inspection would have revealed the condition in the common area at any time or in the unit prior to the commencement of the tenancy.)

(e) With respect to Newly Covered Units, the earliest permissible effective date for any rent decrease allowed under this Section 10.10 shall be December 22, 1994; provided, however, that the initial base rent, as defined by Section 37.12(a) of the Rent Ordinance, shall include all housing services provided or reasonably expected on May 1, 1994, or as of the commencement of the tenancy, whichever is later.

(f) Except where a failure to repair and maintain results in a substantial decrease in housing services, any relief granted by the Board under this section shall preclude relief under Section 10.11 below. This provision shall not limit any civil remedies that would otherwise be available to a tenant or landlord.

B. Extended Amortization Schedules for Seismic Work

The Commissioners discussed an amendment to the Rules and Regulations proposed by Commissioner Marshall which would extend the amortization schedules for seismic renovation work and resulting major structural improvements to thirty years. Commissioner Marshall expressed a concern in the tenant community that extensive seismic renovation of residential buildings will lead to large rent increases and resultant displacement of tenants. The landlord representatives on the Board questioned the necessity of such a change, articulating their belief that the 10% "cap" on capital improvement passthroughs and hardship appeal provisions of the Regulations provide a sufficient "safety net" for low-income tenants. There was also discussion of the terms of certain agreements that were made between representatives of the tenant and landlord communities when the City’s bond-financed UMB loan program was being established.

Further discussion of this issue was tabled pending a request from a Commissioner that it be put back on the calendar.

IX. Calendar Items

August 27, 1996 - NO MEETING

September 3, 1996

6 appeal considerations

New Business: Report on Mediation Pilot Project

September 10, 1996 - NO MEETING

X. Adjournment

President Becker adjourned the meeting at 8:00 p.m.

Last updated: 10/9/2009 11:26:12 AM