The city of Avalon is gingerly trying to find a way to regulate its existing stock of housing but continues to run into opposition and obstacles that are a significant challenge to creating a sustainable program.
City Planning Director Amanda Cook gave a quick overview of the developing program to the council on Tuesday, but quickly ran into some potential problems voiced by landlords and a member of the council.
Avalon Council member Richard Hernandez expressed concern about a situation where inspectors, while doing a routine inspection, find overcrowding during the inspection, they may be legally compelled to report the situation to authorities.
Debbie Avellana, the landlord of a 90-year-old structure, expressed concern for her building, saying she had been a landlord so long that she had a master’s degree in “landlordology.”
For sure, with the age of some existing structures on the island approaching 100 years, creating an equitable and enforceable inspection plan will not be easy, Cook acknowledged.
Avellana said she goes “above and beyond” for her tenants but feared the character of such a marvelous older building would not meet the slick standards of modern cities.
“We’re not Costa Mesa,” she told the council.
Council member Cinde MacGugan-Cassidy told Avellana that the program is being designed to be a simple check of basic safety measures for homes, not whether they meet fancy building codes. “We do have some real (housing) problems in this town and you’re not one of them,” she added.
Preceding the discussion, Cook gave the council and the public an overview of what the program could look like.
The council has not voted on the plan and has not yet even agreed on its final shape.
Tuesday’s discussion was simply for feedback.
Nevertheless, she said the program would;
• Educate the public about landlords’ and tenants’ rights
• Identify all Avalon’s year-round housing units
• Establish which properties require inspections (and consider exemptions)
• Establish inspection parameters.
• Create a self-inspection checklist.
• Inspect all year-round units (in a multi-year cycle)
• Facilitate prompt corrections to deficiencies.
• Set fees and fines for non-compliance.
In addition, while she suggested fee amounts for business licenses and citations that would be a part of the program, the city is still looking at various scenarios, said Cook.
Moreover, she said there is some consideration being given to utilizing existing housing money to assist landlords that are impacted.
Mayor Anni Marshall said once the program is established, she preferred the city to hire island contractors to do the inspections, saying the city does not have the manpower.
City attorney Scott Campbell said he would determine whether inspectors would be compelled to report other conditions found but the council emphatically pointed out they would not and the program was not designed for anything other than basic housing safety.
Other members of the Council repeatedly assured Hernandez that only basic safety issues like windows, fire detectors and other criteria would be inspected.
Avellana said tenants would ultimately bear the brunt of any increases and suggested to the city that inspectors be accompanied by “reasonable landlords” that understand the unique character of Avalon.
The council also discussed ways to pay for the program and how any inspectors should be paid and Cook took the multiple notes from the discussion, which became emotional at one point, and said she would use the feedback to develop a new draft of the program for later review.
The council hopes to have a program in place so that inspections can begin in January of 2019.
In other action Tuesday, the Avalon council;
• Learned that the L.A. Sheriff’s station was now enforcing truck routes and permits on the island. Capt. John Hocking said his deputies would be out in force checking that all trucks have permit and that they only use truck routes. Marshall requested assistance at the last meeting, saying trucks from the construction were going down private streets and some lacked permits.
• Voted to spend $235,000 of which a significant portion was granted to the city, to purchase new trash and recycling bins for placement around Avalon.
• Heard Public Works Director Bob Greenlaw say there will be a public workshop on the Five Corners intersection project on Oct. 10. There will be a gathering at 5:30 p.m. and a formal presentation from 6-7 p.m. Stakeholders will be available after the meeting for further discussion. The meeting will be held in Council Chambers.
• Renewed an agreement with Townsend Public Affairs for grant and legislative assistance at a cost of $4,000 per month.
• Heard Senior Accountant Matt Baker say the city was still on track to have its audited financial statements completed by early October.
• Heard Avalon resident Mike Sheehan ask them to quit paying the Island Company for leasing the fuel (casino) dock, saying he was there to share documents with them that had clear questions about who really owned the facility.
