SATURDAY, JUNE 10, 2017 
VOLUME 11 NO. 23COUNCIL SET TO DISCUSS RENT CONTROL/ 
SATURDAY, JUNE 10, 2017 
VOLUME 11 NO. 23COUNCIL SET TO DISCUSS RENT CONTROL/
COFFEE WITH SIERRA MADRE'S FINEST 

STABILIZATION IN SIERRA MADRE 


SIERRA MADRE RESIDENTS ARE 
STILL URGED TO CONSERVE WATER 

Despite improved statewide conditions, we are still striving toreturn to our local groundwater supply. 

Consider the variety of rebates that are being offered by ourfriends at the San Gabriel Valley Municipal Water District here:
http://sgvmwd.org/CONSERVATOR/Rebates

SIERRA MADRE EDITION 


On Tuesday, the Sierra Madre City Council discuss the subject ofRent Control/Stabilization for the first time in at least 15 years,
perhaps the first time ever.
In response to request from citizens, Former Mayor John Harabedianagreed to bring the subject before the full council. In preparation forthe meeting, city staff prepared a thorough preliminary report onthe matter. You can read the full text on the city’s website by going 
to: 
http://cityofsierramadre.com. The matter has already become 
a controversial one with letters for (http://mtnviewsnews.com/v11/ 
htm/n22/p19.htm) and against such controls. (See LETTER TO 
THE EDITOR - Page B7 of this edition). 

Excerpts from the Staff Report: 

Rent Control or rent stabilization is a collection of laws that restrict 
the rents a landlord can charge and limits the reasons for eviction. 
Rent stabilization is not a state law because it is considered a local 
issue. Rent stabilization is a law passed by cities where the supply 
of housing is limited resulting in increased rents. A total of 15 
California cities provide some form of rent control stabilization. In 
Southern California those cities include Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, 
Palm Springs, Santa Monica, Thousand Oaks and West Hollywood..

 Rent control is typically only necessary where the vacancy rate 
in the area is below 5%. The vacancy rate measures the overall 
housing availability in a community and is often a good indicator 
of how efficiently for-sale and rental housing units are meeting the 
current demand for housing. A lower vacancy rate can indicate that 
households are having difficulty finding affordable housing, which 
can lead to overcrowding and/or overpayment. A particularly tight 
housing market with insufficient vacant units for normal mobility 
may also lead to high competition for units, placing upward 
pressure on rents and for-sale housing prices. 
A vacancy rate of about 5% for rental housing is generally consider 
healthy and suggests that there is a balance between supply and 
demand for housing. According to the Department of Finance 
Population and Housing Estimates, residential vacancy rates for 
Sierra Madre is at 6.4% as of January 1, 2017, indicating a healthy 
balance between supply and demand for housing. In comparison, 
Table B below shows the vacancy rates in nearby San Gabriel Valley 
Cities; and Table C shows the distribution of owner occupied 
housing to renter occupied housing units.
Not all rental housing within rent-controlled cities is subject to rent 
control. Under state law in California, property that was issued a 
certificate of occupancy after February 1, 1995 is exempt from rent 
control. State law also exempts tenancies for single-family homes, 
if the tenancy began after January 1, 1996. Also, most cities exempt 
new construction built after the date of the ordinance, and owner-
occupied buildings with four (or sometimes three or two) units. 
Tenancy rent control -The most common form of rent control is 
where rents are initially freely negotiable but there is a limit on the 
amount of rent increase. 

PORTANTINO JOINS SENATEPRESIDENT DE LEÓN TO 
INCREASE CAL GRANTS 
FOR COMMUNITY COLLEGE 
STUDENTS 

Sacramento, CA – On Tuesday, May 30, Anthony J. Portantino (D

– La Cañada Flintridge) joined Senate Pro Tem Kevin De Leónin presenting SB 539 on the Senate floor. The bill will provideadditional support to high-striving community college students. SB539 passed the Senate floor with overwhelming support and is nowheaded to the State Assembly. 
SB 539 establishes the Community College Completion IncentiveGrant (CCIG), which will provide an additional $4,000 in financialaid to California Community College students receiving the 
existing Full-Time Student Success Grant, if they complete 15 units.
Transportation costs, in particular often prove to be prohibitive forstruggling college students. 

“As a colleague and the Chair of Budget Subcommittee onEducation, I am proud to be a joint author on SB 539 and work closelywith Pro Tem De León. In order to make college affordable, not onlytuition, but non-tuition costs, such as textbooks, transportation,
food, and housing have to be addressed. Not being able to afford thetotal cost of attendance can be a major obstacle and hinder students’ability to succeed in class and meet their academic goals. This pieceof legislation is a fresh approach to ensuring college affordability andstudent success. I look forward to continuing to work with our ProTem to help our California students,” commented Portantino. 

Sen. Portantino represents nearly 930,000 people in the 25th SenateDistrict, which includes Altadena, Atwater Village, Bradbury,
Burbank, Claremont, Duarte, Glendale, Glendora, La Cañada 
Flintridge, La Crescenta, Lake View Terrace, La Verne, Monrovia, 
Montrose, Pasadena, San Dimas, San Marino, Shadow Hills, Sierra 
Madre, South Pasadena, Sunland-Tujunga, and Upland. 

Housing Distribution in Sierra Madre 


Rent stabilization Board 

Most jurisdictions with a rent stabilization policy enact a rent 
stabilization or rent advisory board. The purpose of a rent 
stabilization board is to regulate residential rent increases and to 
protect tenants from unwarranted rent increases and to act as a 
mediation board to resolve renter disputes. If the City of Sierra 
Madre pursued a rent control policy, the City would need to appoint 
a rent stabilization board. 

Housing Department 

A city housing department typically administers rent stabilization 
policies for the local jurisdiction. Typical programs administered 
through a housing department include Section 8 Housing 
(authorizes the payment of rental housing assistance to private 
landlords), fair housing programs (the right to live where you 
choose without fear of discrimination), inclusionary housing 
(requires that a percentage of all newly constructed residential 
units be sold or rented to low and moderate income households), 
city subsidized affordable housing programs, and first time home-
buyer programs. 

The Sierra Madre City Council will meet on Tuesday, June 13, 2017 
in City Hall at 6:30 pm S. Henderson/MVNews 


PLANNING COMMISSION TO CONSIDER AMENDMENTS TO THE 
R-3 ZONE (MULTIPLE FAMILY RESIDENTIAL), R-1 ZONE (ONE FAMILYRESIDENTIAL), R-C ZONE (RESIDENTIAL CANYON), VARIANCES ANDCONDITIONAL USE PERMITS ORDINANCE, SIGNS ORDINANCE,
AND ELIMINATION OF THE CONDOMINIUM AND APARTMENT 
PROJECTS ORDINANCE. 

The Planning Commission will hold a public hearing to consider recommending adoption to the City Council of an ordinance amendingChapter 17.28 R-3 Zone (Multiple-Family Residential), Chapter 17.20 R-1 Zone (One Family Residential), Chapter 17.30 R-C Zone(Residential Canyon), Chapter 17.60 Variances and Conditional Use Permits, and Chapter 17.72 Signs. The purpose of the amendmentsis to revise the development standards of the R-3 Zone Ordinance which necessitates various amendments to the other above mentionedordinances for consistency of zoning requirements across ordinances. The Planning Commission will also consider deleting Chapter

17.76 Condominium and Apartment Projects since these types of development are already subject to the requirements of the R-3 ZoneOrdinance. Following a Planning Commission recommendation for approval, the proposed text amendment will be forwarded to the CityCouncil for consideration. 
The Planning Commission meeting will be held on June 15, 2017, at 7:00 p.m., in the City Council Chambers at the Sierra Madre City Halllocated at 232 West Sierra Madre Blvd. The meeting is open to the public and there will be opportunities to make comments. Information 
regarding the draft amendments will be available on Thursday, June 8th, at 5:30 PM on the Planning and Community Preservation pageon the City’s website at www.cityofsierramadre.com, at the Planning and Community Preservation Department counter at City Hall, andat the City’s Library. 

Owner-Occupied Dwellings 
Renter-Occupied DwellingsHousing Units Unoccupied 

Source: Sierra Madre 2014 Housina Element 


On Thursday, SMPD Chief Joe Ortiz (above left) and membersof the SMPD took a little time out to mix and mingle with local

residents. Below, Officer Lou Oronoz with resident and business 
woman Laura Hirsch. 


Mountain Views News 80 W Sierra Madre Blvd. No. 327 Sierra Madre, Ca. 91024 Office: 626.355.2737 Fax: 626.609.3285 Email: editor@mtnviewsnews.com Website: www.mtnviewsnews.com