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June 29, 1999

June 29, 1999B>

 

 

 

 
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF
THE SAN FRANCISCO RESIDENTIAL RENT
STABILIZATION & ARBITRATION BOARD,
Tuesday, June 29, 1999 at 6:00 p.m. at
25 Van Ness Avenue, Suite 70, Lower Level

 

 

I. Call to Order

    President Wasserman called the meeting to order at 6:03 p.m.
II. Roll Call Commissioners Present: Becker; Bierly; Gruber; Lightner; Wasserman.

Commissioners not Present: Justman; Murphy.

Staff Present: Grubb; Wolf.
Commissioner Marshall appeared on the record at 6:05 p.m.; Commissioner Mosser arrived at the meeting at 6:07 p.m.

III. Approval of the Minutes MSC: To approve the Minutes of June 15, 1999.

(Becker/Marshall: 3-0)

IV. Remarks from the Public A. Landlord Tom Garber addressed the issue of interest rates when capital improvement work is financed with a variable rate mortgage. He informed the Board that all available loans for such purposes are variable; that he is currently paying 12%; and that business loans charge 3-1/2 - 4% above prime.

B. A landlord stated her belief that under rent control, landlords are treated badly and that rental units are being taken off the market as a result.

V. Public Hearing

Ellis Act Amendments

At the request of President Wasserman, Senior Hearing Officer Sandy Gartzman explained that she had proposed that the Board delete Rules and Regulations Section 12.18 because the procedures contained therein currently make it difficult for landlords to exercise their right to withdraw units from the rental market; and that the Regulations are unnecessary, in that all necessary procedures are contained in the Rent Ordinance. At 6:11 p.m. a Public Hearing on the proposed change to the Rules and Regulations was convened, which was concluded at 6:21 p.m. The following individuals spoke as follows below:

A. Landlord Anthony Schultz, owner of a 3-unit building, said that his building is "falling down", and he needs to take it out of rental use in order to work on it.

B. Janan New from the S.F. Apartment Association thanked staff and the Commissioners for recommending necessary amendments to bring the Rules and Regulations into compliance with State law, and stated her belief that other areas of the Rules and Regs. also need to be amended for this reason.

Upon conclusion of the public testimony, the Board voted as follows: MSC: To delete Rules and Regulations Section 12.18 in its entirety. (Lightner/Becker: 5-0) Ms. Gartzman then gave the Commissioners a Memorandum regarding procedures that staff will follow to implement the Board’s action prior to the Board of Supervisors’ acting on recommended changes to the Ellis provisions of the Rent Ordinance {Ordinance Section 37.9(a)(13)}. V. Consideration of Appeals

A. 73 Cumberland St. T001-62A

(cont. from 6/15/99)

The landlords’ petition for certification of capital improvement costs was granted, in part. The costs of construction of a rear porch and deck were disallowed to the tenants in two units pursuant to Rules and Regulations Section 7.12(b) ("The 6-Month Rule"). On appeal, the landlords claim that, while some of the preliminary architectural and engineering design work occurred prior to the move-in date of the tenants in one unit, the physical construction did not commence until ten months after the move-in date. They contend that prior cases have held that the date the actual physical construction commenced should be used for triggering the 6-Month Rule. MSC: To accept the appeal and remand the case for a hearing to determine what representations, if any, were made to the tenants at the inception of the tenancy regarding the capital improvement project.

(Becker/Marshall: 4-1; Gruber dissenting)

B. 469 - 8th Ave. T001-63A

(cont. from 6/15/99)

The tenant’s petition alleging substantial decreases in housing services was granted, in part, and the landlords were found liable to the tenant in the amount of $4,972.50 due to habitability defects on the premises. On appeal, the landlords claim that: they should not be liable for problems that existed prior to their purchase of the property; they never received letters from the tenant regarding defects on the premises; the tenant has been uncooperative in providing access to the premises and has failed to move her belongings so that the ceiling could be painted; and the light over the mantle did not need repair as it was not broken. MSC: To accept the appeal and remand the case for a hearing to determine whether any of the conditions have been abated and, if so, the date the rent reductions should terminate. (Marshall/Becker: 3-2; Gruber, Lightner dissenting) VII. Communications In addition to correspondence concerning cases on the calendar, the Commissioners received the following communications:

A. A letter from Attorney Nancy Lenvin on behalf of the Housing Industry Policy Council (HIPC) requesting that the Board amend Rules and Regulations Section 6.14 in light of the Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act.

B. The office workload statistics for the month of May, 1999.

VIII. Director’s Report Executive Director Grubb reported that the departmental budget was approved by the Board of Supervisors. The Supervisors added an additional hearing officer position to those that had been requested by the department. That position has been placed on reserve, and the funds will be released only if necessary. IX. Old Business

A. Interest Rate When Capital Improvement Work is Financed With a Variable Rate Mortgage

The Board continued their discussion of a proposal by Commissioner Lightner to raise the rate of interest allowed landlords who finance capital improvement work with a variable rate loan, since the imputed interest rate is currently less than the "teaser rate" on such loans. The possibility of having three different interest rates was examined: one for fixed rate loans; one for variable rate loans; and an imputed interest rate. In conjunction with retention of the 10% "cap" on interest, Commissioner Wasserman asked to see interest rate indexes for the past several years. Discussion of this issue will be continued at the July 20th meeting. B. Proposed Amendments to Rules and Regulations Section 6.15 Discussion of proposed amendments to Rules Section 6.15 authored by Commissioner Lightner to address rent increase and eviction issues where there is an absolute prohibition against subletting and assignment was continued until the meeting on July 20th. Supervisor Leno has introduced legislation addressing this issue which will be considered at a continued meeting of the Housing and Land Use Committee on July 6th. C. Translation Services In response to several requests from the Chinese community, and at the Board’s direction, Mr. Grubb investigated the costs of providing translation services at Board meetings and Public Hearings. Translators charge $120 per hour, with a 2-hour minimum. In order to make such translation effective, transmitters and ear pieces would need to be purchased at a cost of approximately $5,000.00. Since such expenditures were not budgeted for, the Commissioners suggested that the Director investigate the possibility of borrowing the necessary equipment from another agency. The Board will attempt to provide translation for all Public Hearings and at regular Board meetings only upon request. D. Minute Order Program Senior Hearing Officer Sandy Gartzman informed the Board that the Minute Order Pilot Project is now 6 months old, and is an unqualified success. An average of 20 Minute Orders are issued each month and, out of approximately 100 Minute Orders, there has only been one request for issuance of a full decision. The Board gave the continuation of this program their blessing, and thanked Ms. Gartzman and the hearing officer staff for their hard work on this enhancement of the agency’s service to the public. IV. Remarks from the Public (cont.) C. A landlord informed the Board that a fire in her building was caused by an illegal sublessee, and that she is now facing a lawsuit for wrongful eviction.

D. A landlord spoke about the pending legislation sponsored by Supervisor Leno, and expressed his belief that tenants should be required to submit prior written notice prior to subletting because subtenants are moving in prior to submitting rental applications.

E. Landlord Gary Briggs expressed his belief that San Francisco neighborhoods are "run down" because the capital improvement certification process is too complicated and the interest rates allowed are too low. He also contended that, because of subletting, in most cases the tenants who signed the lease with the landlord are no longer living in the unit.

F. A Chinese speaker said that the translation services provided were inadequate and requested that the Board borrow transmitters and ear pieces from City Hall.

G. A landlord asked who is liable if a sublessee turns out to be a criminal, and said that revolving roommate situations are more like hotels than residential units.

H. A landlord expressed support for expenditures for translation services. He said that he lives in his building, and that his tenants shouldn’t get to decide who lives with him. He suggested that the Board institute a "residency requirement" in order to address the issue of "pied a terres."

X. New Business

Commissioner Protocols

Commissioner Lightner relayed concerns from the landlord community about the way that the Housing and Land Use Committee of the Board of Supervisors hearing on the Leno legislation was conducted on June 1st. She said that, because Tenant Commissioners Marshall and Becker spoke without time limitations, it appeared to some people that the Rent Board had sponsored the proposed legislation. XI. Calendar Items July 6, 1999

8 appeal considerations

July 13, 1999 - NO MEETING

July 20, 1999

10 appeal considerations (1 cont. from 6/1/99)

Old Business:

A. Interest Rate When Capital Improvement Work is Financed With a Variable Rate Mortgage

B. Proposed Amendments to Rules and Regulations Section 6.15

XII. Adjournment President Wasserman adjourned the meeting at 9:00 p.m.

Last updated: 10/9/2009 11:26:13 AM