The Complexity of Pasadena Housing Crisis

Pasadena residents at City Council meeting on Monday, Oct. 22, 2018 (Photo – Garrett Rowlan).

While it is not surprising that the issue of housing is the number one concern brought before the Pasadena City Council, Monday’s meeting hinted at the complexity of the issue and the response to it.

By Garrett Rowlan

After the swearing in of three new city commissioners and the acknowledgement of National Friends of Libraries Week, where Mayor Terry Tornek cited Pasadena’s ten libraries as its commitment to literacy, the session began in open forum.

Speakers here advocated for improved housing in terms conciliatory, Biblical (quoting Leviticus and Matthew 25:40), and provocative, claiming that gentrification was an act of violence.

The open forum ended on this note, and Council moved on to the agenda, the main business was the proposal to opt for municipal bonds of a fixed-rate nature against those of a flexible rate, the assumption being that rates will rise and in the long run the city will save money, possibly as much as 4.4 million. This presentation and follow up questions took some 25 minutes. The measure was approved, along with grant money for improved health services in Pasadena.

Next came the proposed modification to the Tenant Protection Ordinance. It drew the next swarm of comment and reaction, from Nicole Hodgson of the Pasadena Tenants Union saying that, even with the proposed modifications, “TPO comes up short,” to various apartment owner associations warning that a revised ordinance, along with the potential passage of Proposition 10, will have dire consequences on “Mom and Pop” apartment units.

Of the four possible modifications to the ordinance, the council seemed to lean toward adopting the first of those, which stated that long-term tenants in good standing should be compensated for the expense of relocation.

This discussion ended on a note calling for further study, since several questions needed to be addressed, such as what constitutes a “multi-family” dwelling, what impact would ADUs have on the issue, and what would be the unintended consequences of a beefed-up tenant ordinance, such as de facto rent control by slow implementation.

“A good exercise,” Councilmember Tyron Hampton said at the conclusion of the meeting, putting a nice spin on a contentious, difficult issue.

> Watch the full Pasadena Council Meeting on Monday, Oct. 22, 2018.