Berkeley Rent Stabilization Board Meeting Agenda: 09/15/2022

RENT STABILIZATION BOARD
Regular Meeting
Thursday, September 15, 2022
7:00 p.m.

Zoom Video Archive (1:50)

AGENDA

*Times allotted for each item are approximate and may be changed at the Board’s discretion during the course of this meeting.

1. Roll call – 1 min.*
    
2. Land Acknowledgment Statement:  The Berkeley Rent Stabilization Board recognizes that the rental housing units we regulate are built on the territory of xučyun (Huchiun-(Hooch-yoon)), the ancestral and unceded land of the Chochenyo (Cho-chen-yo)-speaking Ohlone (Oh-low-nee) people, the ancestors and descendants of the sovereign Verona Band of Alameda County. This land was and continues to be of great importance to all of the Ohlone Tribes and descendants of the Verona Band. As we begin our meeting tonight, we acknowledge and honor the original inhabitants of Berkeley, the documented 5,000-year history of a vibrant community at the West Berkeley Shellmound, and the Ohlone people who continue to reside in the East Bay.  We recognize that Berkeley’s landlords and tenants have and continue to benefit from the use and occupation of this unceded stolen land since the City of Berkeley’s incorporation in 1878 and since the Rent Stabilization Board’s creation in 1980. As stewards of the laws regulating rental housing, it is not only vital that we recognize the history of this land, but also recognize that the Ohlone people are present members of Berkeley and other East Bay communities today.
    
3. Approval of Agenda – 1 min.*
    
4. Public Comment – 2 min. per speaker for non-agendized items*
    
5. Public Comment – 2 min. per speaker for items on the agenda*
    
6. SPECIAL ORDER OF BUSINESS – Presentation of honorary resolution to former Rent Board Staff Attorney, Matthew Siegel, for his more than 27 years of service Distributed at the meeting
    
7. CONSENT ITEMS – 1 min.*
   1. Approval of the July 21, 2022 regular meeting minutes
   2. Proposal to approve staff recommendations on the following requests for waivers of late registration penalties (Executive Director/Registration Unit Manager)
      
      Ministerial Waivers
      Property Address
      
      2390 MCGEE
      1922 WOOLSEY
      2171 ALLSTON
      2130 BROWNING
      1730 HIGHLAND #4
      3025 DANA ST
      2016 9TH
      1409 CYPRESS
      2803 REGENT
      1902-06 RUSSELL
      
      Discretionary Waivers
      Waiver No.                 Property Address
      W5050                        2918 STANTON
       
8. APPEAL – 7:30 p.m.**
   **This appeal will not be heard before 7:30 p.m. but may be heard any time thereafter.
   
   Case No. T-5946 (2226 7th Street, Unit D)
   
   Landlord Gershon Luria (“Landlord”) filed an appeal of a hearing decision granting in part and denying in part Tenant Deloris O’Neal’s (“Tenant”) Petition for Individual Rent Adjustment (“petition”), seeking a rent reduction due to certain claimed substandard conditions of the rental unit located at 2226 7th Street, Unit D, Berkeley, California 94710 (“premises”).
   
   On appeal, Landlord claims that: (1) the hearing examiner improperly applied Regulation 1269, (2) Tenant failed to meet her burden of proof, (3) Tenant and Tenant witnesses lacked credibility, and (4) the hearing examiner was biased against Landlord. A review of the record shows that the hearing examiner correctly applied Regulation 1269 and that his decision is supported by substantial evidence. The appeal repeats meritless arguments and testimony previously submitted and fails to substantiate its claim of bias. The decision of the hearing examiner should be affirmed.
    
9. ACTION ITEMS
   from Board Members, Committees, Executive Director or Staff
   
   Public comment will also be heard prior to the Board’s vote on each action item listed below – 1 min. per speaker.
   1. Chair Update (Chair Simon-Weisberg) – 5 min.*
       
10. INFORMATION, ANNOUNCEMENTS AND ARTICLES/MEDIA
    from Board Members, Committees, Executive Director or Staff
    
    NOTE:  The Board may vote to move Information Items to the Action calendar.
    1. Screening of the film, “Push!” at the Grand Lake Theater in Oakland on September 26, 2022 at 6:30 p.m. – Verbal (Chair Simon-Weisberg) – 3 min.*
        
    2. Update regarding Ellis Act prohibition in the Eviction Moratorium and update regarding recent Ellis Eviction cases filed in Berkeley – Verbal (General Counsel) – 3 min.*
        
    3. Elevator Ordinance Referral item from the Commission on Disability (General Counsel) – 3 min.*
        
    4. Update on Rent Board staff outreach at National Night Out on August 2, 2022 –  Verbal (Executive Director) – 1 min.*
        
    5. Update on Rent Board staff outreach at the Solano Stroll on September 11, 2022 –  Verbal (Executive Director) – 1 min.*
        
    6. July 27, 2022 Berkeleyside article by Manuela Tobias titled, “This new website will help you respond to an eviction notice” (Executive Director) – 1 min.*
       https://www.berkeleyside.org/2022/07/27/website-california-tenants-eviction
        
    7. August 10, 2022 The Daily Californian article by Rae Wymer titled, “’It was pretty brutal’: Tenants share experiences renting in Berkeley” (General Counsel) – 1 min.* https://www.dailycal.org/2022/08/10/it-was-pretty-brutal-tenants-share-experiences-renting-in-berkeley/
        
    8. Date to submit agenda topics/items for October’s regular Rent Board meeting: Friday, October 7th at 5:00 p.m.  NOTE: This is a hard deadline and will be enforced.
       
       Information Items carried over from the June 16, 2022 regular Rent Board meeting:
        
    9. April 28, 2022 Owner Move-in Eviction Tracking Report (January 2019 - December 2021) (Eviction/Section 8/Foreclosure Committee & Executive Director) – 2 min.*
        
    10. Rent Board’s participation in the 35th Annual Berkeley Juneteenth Festival on Sunday, June 19th from 11:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. – Verbal (Executive Director) – 2 min.*
         
    11. Update on the Rent Board’s presentation at the May 20, 2022 “Rent Stabilization: Lessons Learned from Implementing Rent Stabilization Policies” webinar (Minneapolis/St. Paul) from  9:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. Pacific Time – Verbal (General Counsel) – 2 min.*
         
11. COMMITTEE/BOARD MEETING UPDATES AND ANNOUNCEMENTS
    1. Budget and Personnel Committee (Commissioner Chang, Chair) – 5 min.*
       Next regularly-scheduled meeting:  Monday, Sept. 12th at 5:30 p.m.
       
       September 12th agenda
        
    2. Eviction/Section 8/Foreclosure Committee (Commissioner Mendonca, Chair) – 5 min.*
       Next regularly-scheduled meeting: Thursday, Sept, 22nd at 5:30 p.m.
       
       July 28th agenda
        
    3. Legislation, IRA/AGA & Registration Committee (LIRA Committee) (Commissioner Kelley, Chair) – 5 min.*
       Next regularly-scheduled meeting:  TBA
        
    4. Outreach Committee (Commissioner Laverde, Chair) – 5 min.*
       Next regularly-scheduled meeting:  Wednesday, Sept. 21st at 5:30 p.m.
       
       August 10th agenda
        
    5. 2 x 2 Committee on Housing: Rent Board/Berkeley Unified School District (Chair TBA) – 3 min.*
       Regularly-scheduled meeting date:  TBA
        
    6. 4 x 4 Joint Task Force Committee on Housing: City Council/Rent Board – 5 min.*
       (Mayor Arreguín and Chair Simon-Weisberg, Committee Co-Chairs)
       Next regularly-scheduled meeting:  Wednesday, Sept. 28th at 3:00 p.m.
        
    7. Ad Hoc Committee on Rent Board Technology Issues (Commissioner Selawsky, Chair) – 3 min.*
       Next meeting date:  TBA
        
    8. Updates and Announcements – 3 min.*
        
    9. Discussion of items for possible placement on future agenda – 5 min.*
        
12. ADJOURNMENT