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October 06, 1998

October 06, 1998B>

 

 

 

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

Tuesday, October 6, 1998 at 6:00 p.m. at
25 Van Ness Avenue, Suite 70, Lower Level

  1. Call to Order

    Vice-President Marshall called the meeting to order at 6:07 p.m.

  2. Roll Call

    Commissioners Present:

      Becker; Bierly; Gruber; Marshall; Moore; Murphy.

    Commissioners not Present:

      Lightner; Mosser; Wasserman.

    Staff Present:

      Grubb; Wolf.

    Commissioner Justman appeared on the record at 6:30 p.m.

  3. Approval of the Minutes

    MSC: To approve the Minutes of September 15, 1998. (Becker/Murphy: 3-0)

  4. Consideration of Appeals

    1. 1231 - 11th Ave. #2 T001-07A (cont. from 9/1/98)

      The tenant’s petition alleging unlawful increases in rent was granted and the landlord was found liable to the tenant in the amount of $1,699.20. On appeal, the landlord maintains that, out of compassion for the tenant’s financial situation, she failed to impose rent increases to which she was entitled; that she acted in good faith and relied on erroneous information from Rent Board staff in calculating the annual increases; that determining the increases to be null and void results in a forfeiture; and that the decision creates a financial hardship for her.

      Since the tenant had not had a chance to respond to a late submission by the landlord, at the meeting on September 1, 1998, it was the consensus of the Commissioners to continue consideration of this appeal.

        MSC: To deny the appeal. (Becker/Marshall: 4-0)

    2. 1245 Kearny St. #2F T001-13A

      The tenant’s petition alleging a substantial decrease in housing services because of the landlords’ refusal to allow her to obtain a replacement roommate was granted, and the landlords were found liable to the tenant in the amount of $2,911.02. On appeal, the landlords assert that: short-term subletting of the premises to a series of persons who maintain permanent residences outside of the United States does not constitute residential use; the value of the rent reduction should be no more than 25% of the rent, since the tenant sublet for only short periods of time, and not the entire year; the value of the two garage spaces available to the tenant were not impacted by the loss of the right to have a roommate, and their value should be factored in; and the length of time the rent was reduced should be lessened by one month because the tenant’s roommate was on the premises for most of the month of November, 1997.

        MSC: To deny the appeal except to remand the case to the hearing officer on the record regarding the issue of whether the rent reduction is warranted for the month of November, 1997; a hearing will be held only if necessary. (Becker/Marshall: 4-1; Gruber dissenting)

    3. 306 Eureka St. T001-08R

      The landlord’s Petition for Extension of Time to Do Capital Improvement Work was denied by the hearing officer. The tenant appeals the denial of the petition on the grounds that: the hearing officer failed to distinguish between "calendar" and "working" days in his estimates of the time it would take for the work to be completed; that the contractor’s time estimates were based on incomplete information; and that the required permits are not in place.

        MSC: To recuse Commissioner Becker from consideration of this appeal. (Murphy/Justman: 5-0)

        MSC: To deny the appeal. (Gruber/Justman: 5-0)

    4. 1229 Folsom St. T001-14A

      The landlord’s appeal was filed 20 days late because his mail had been placed in a colleague’s mailbox inadvertently.

        MSC: To find good cause for the late filing of the appeal. (Gruber/Becker: 5-0)

      The tenant’s petition alleging substantially decreased housing services due to leaks in a back porch area that the tenant uses as a darkroom was granted, and the landlord was found liable to the tenant in the amount of $4,000.00. The landlord appeals the decision, claiming that the hearing officer erred in finding that the instant leak relates to a problem that originated in 1991, but that the tenant failed to raise in a petition he brought in 1996; that the porch/darkroom area does not comprise 15% of the floor space in the unit; and that, in fact, no leak exists.

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

    5. 660 Bush St. #503 T001-09R

      The tenants’ appeal was filed 6 days late because the tenant, whose first language is not English, claims that he came in to the Rent Board office and was told that he could not file an appeal.

        MSC: To find good cause for the late filing of the appeal. (Gruber/Marshall: 5-0)

      The tenants appeal the decision certifying capital improvement costs, claiming that the work was in the nature of repair, and did not constitute capital improvements.

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

    6. 1076 - 1078 Capp St., Apts. 2, 3 & 4 T001-10R thru -12R

      Three tenants appeal the decision granting certification of certain capital improvement costs on the grounds that the work was necessitated by the current owner’s deferred maintenance, which resulted in code violations.

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

    7. 640 Eddy St. T001-15A

      Two tenant petitions alleging substantially decreased housing services due to the landlord’s failure to provide keys to the front security gate and alley gate were granted, and the landlord was found liable to the tenants in the amount of $50.00 per month. On appeal, the landlord asserts that the "fine" is excessive; the calculation used for the time period for the rent reductions is incorrect; and that keys were given to the tenants subsequent to the hearing.

        MSC: To deny the appeal; the parties shall make adjustments to the amounts owing from the landlord to the tenants, if necessary. (Becker/Marshall: 3-2; Gruber, Murphy dissenting)

    8. 2807 Bryant St. T001-13R

      The tenant’s petition alleging a substantial decrease in housing services and the landlord’s failure to perform requested repairs was dismissed due to her failure to appear at the properly noticed hearing. The tenant appeals, claiming that she arrived in the vicinity of the Rent Board office in time for the hearing, but could not find a parking space for approximately twenty minutes.

        MSC: To accept the appeal and remand the case for a new hearing. (Becker/Murphy: 5-0)

  5. Communications

    In addition to correspondence concerning cases on the calendar, the Commissioners received the following communications:

    1. The office workload statistics for the month of August, 1998.

    2. A letter from Attorney Tim Lee of the Tenderloin Housing Clinic regarding a problem with the wording of Section 37.9(a)(8)(i)(1)(B)(i) ("The Moratorium") regarding the definition of "disability".

    3. A letter from a tenant concerning the case at 1550 Bay Street (S001-93R thru S003-53R; considered on 9/15/98), stating that the Assessor’s Office and Rent Board appear to have a different understanding as to whether the acquisition of land constitutes a "transfer" within the meaning of the "Anti-Spec Clause" {Rules and Regulations Section 6.10(f)}.

  6. Old Business

    Disability Determinations Pursuant to "The Moratorium" {Ordinance Section 37.9(a)(8)(i)(1)(B)(i)}

    The Board reviewed the following draft language prepared by the Deputy Director which would allow for disability determination hearings pursuant to Ordinance Section 37.9(a)(8)(i)(1) to be conducted by a designee of the Rent Board other than a Hearing Officer:

      Section 11.10 Time of Hearing; Consolidation

      (additions underlined)

      Within a reasonable time following the filing of a petition and payment of the estimator fee, if required, the petition shall be referred to a hearing officer. If the petition is for a determination of disability pursuant to Ordinance Sections 37.9(i)(1)(B)(i) and (ii), such hearing may be conducted by a hearing officer or other designee of the Rent Board. That hearing officer shall hold the hearing within forty-five (45) days of the date of the filing of the petition. Where petitions are filed by or for tenants of a single housing complex, and there are common material issues of law or fact, those petitions shall be consolidated for hearing, unless to do so would be unfair to either party. Written notice of the hearing, by mail, shall be given at least ten (10) days prior to the date of the hearing. A declaration under penalty of perjury stating the date and place of the mailing of such notice and stating to whom and at what addresses the notice was sent shall be retained in the file of each case.

    The Commissioners also discussed an issue raised by Attorney Tim Lee of the Tenderloin Housing Clinic. Mr. Lee is currently representing a tenant in an unlawful detainer action who is 82 years of age and, allegedly, disabled. She is on SSI due to her age and, therefore, the Social Security Administration has made no determination of disability in her case. Since the Ordinance provides that a tenant may show disability by either a determination by SSI/SSP or "any other method of determination as approved by the Rent Board", and the Rent Board does not yet have such a "method" in place, it is possible that a tenant could be precluded from submitting medical or other evidence of disability in a court case. Mr. Lee proposed possible language to rectify this problem to which the Board made certain modifications, and which follows below:

      PROPOSED NEW SECTION 12.14(d):

      (d) In determining whether a tenant is disabled as defined under Section 37.9(a)(8)(i)(1)(B)(i), a finder of fact shall consider relevant evidence,

      including:

        (1) findings by any government entity concerning a disability;

        (2) testimony concerning the disability; and

        (3) medical evidence concerning the disability.

        MSC: To put out proposed amendments to Rules and Regulations Section 11.10 and new Section 12.14(d) for Public Hearing on October 20, 1998. (Becker/Marshall: 5-0)

  7. New Business

    Commissioner Gruber expressed his concern regarding the departmental budget, especially in light of the greatly increased workload and the fact that the rental unit fee will remain the same for this fiscal year.

  8. Calendar Items

      October 13 1998 - NO MEETING

      October 20, 1998

      5 appeal considerations
      6:00 Public Hearing: Rules Sections 7.12(b); 11.10; and 12.14(d)

      October 27, 1998 - NO MEETING

  9. Adjournment

    Vice-President Marshall adjourned the meeting at 7:40 p.m.

Last updated: 10/9/2009 11:26:14 AM