On Tuesday, the Concord City Council met to discuss a proposal to strengthen its tenant protection laws. It’s been seven years in the making, but the mayor reminded the public that ‘you can’t always get what you want’.
For Betty Gabaldon, the protections being discussed come too late. In 2018, after living in Concord for 18 years, she and her daughter were evicted from their apartment with no explanation.
“The owner just came in and gave everyone six days’ notice,” she said, “and he didn’t have to give us a reason why he was doing it. He just said it was because… he didn’t even have to give us a reason.”
Gabaldon became a housing activist with the Todos Santos Tenants Union and joined others at Tuesday’s Concord City Council meeting. They’ve been campaigning for rent control and just cause eviction protections for seven years, but on this night they argued that the proposed ordinance should NOT pass.
“It wouldn’t protect anybody,” said Gabaldon. “It wouldn’t protect any tenants if this ordinance is passed tonight.”
In law, words matter. The ordinance calls for a 3% cap on rent increases, but would not apply to accessory dwelling units. Campaigners say it’s so vaguely defined that ANY rental unit in the city could claim to be an ADU and be exempt. And they also take issue with the ease with which landlords can claim a “fair return”, allowing them to get around the rent cap.
“Even if they’re making a profit, they can claim this fair return every year,” says Gabaldon. “So the whole thing has to be sent back.”
But Mayor Edi Birsan said he wasn’t surprised there was dissatisfaction with the proposal… probably from both sides.
“Well, there’s an old saying: ‘If both sides are unhappy, it must be a good deal’,” he said. “I like to think that if both sides are happy… maybe I’m on some strange medication!”
Birsan said he supported greater protection for tenants. He said some landlords have treated people badly in the pursuit of greed. And he recognises that the rapid rise in rents is putting huge pressure on long-term tenants to pay more or get out. But he says good government is not a “zero-sum game” where one side wins and the other loses.
“Both tenants and landlords have to understand that they are in a compact to make the community work. And we write the rules so that people are reminded of what it is that makes the community work,” says Birsan. “And that’s why we’re having an intense time tonight. Because people’s perceptions… and what people want… and what people need… are all three different issues. ”
The mayor said he doubted any final decisions would be made until sometime in January. So the city’s new rent stabilisation law will continue to be debated – and argued about – for some time to come. And in the end, there’s a good chance that no one will be completely happy with it.