Dozens of Anglo-Saxon, Latino and African-American families participated in a 7.5-mile walk in the city of Pasadena, in defense of the rights of tenants to raise awareness about the need for rent control and to have new laws that prevent unfair evictions.
The citizens of that city and immigrants have developed a campaign to collect signatures from at least 13,000 for amendments to be enacted through the so-called “Pasadena Fair and Equitable Housing Amendments Charter”.
Among numerous sections, it is mentioned that the amendment is intended to promote neighborhood and community stability.
To qualify first, and to succeed later on the electoral ballot on the 8th of November, the amendment would help Pasadena families gain access to affordable housing and affordability for renters, all by regulating excessive rent increases and arbitrary eviction to the fullest extent permitted by California law.
At the same time, it would guarantee homeowners a fair return on their investment, while also supporting fair protections for renters, landlords and businesses.
Many volunteers participate in the campaign of the Pasadena Tenant Justice Coalition (PTJC), who as of March 3 had collected 7,666 valid signatures out of a total goal of 8,400.
“I think we already have the 13,694 signatures necessary for the petition to be placed on the ballot”, commented Anita Mackey, member of PTJC.
With less than three weeks to deliver the signatures next 25 of March , will continue working in order to reach 15,400 signatures.
“We are going to achieve it”, said Michele White, also a member of the organization. “We would only hope that the voters support us at the polls”.
The petition is not found on the internet. Since it is a petition for legal action, this means that the proponents need to obtain a physical signature that would be compared to the voter rolls by the county clerk’s office.
To sign such a petition, the citizen must be registered to vote at a mailing address in the City of Pasadena. Altadena, South Pasadena. The unincorporated areas of East Pasadena do not count.
The walk in Pasadena
- To the extent permitted by state law, increases of rent would be limited to 75% of inflation each year after a lease is established.
- The 75 % of inflation normally equates to about 2% to 3% each year. This means that the amount of time it would take for the rent to double is about 35 years.
- This would not set rents for new leases.
- If a tenant can prove that the services provided or the quality of their unit has decreased, they can request a special one-time rent reduction.
During cold weather, members of the National Day Laborer Organizing Network (NDLON), joined the peaceful march from members of Pasadenans Organizing for Progress (POP), to the Pasadena Tenants Union and representatives of Black Lives Matter Pasadena.
Protesters marched from the Pasadena Community Work Center on the street Lake, heading up Orange Grove Boulevard and all the way to Villa Parke, yelling at the top of his lungs: What do we want? Rent control. When? Now!” and unfurled banners with “affordable housing” or “eviction protection” messages.
Rents skyrocketed
“We have worked for months so that the petition qualifies for the ballot,” said Ed Washatka, a member of Pasadenans Organizing for Progress (POP). “The rents here are ridiculous.”
According to the protesters, in the last two or three years, rents in Pasadena have skyrocketed between 35% and 50%
Washatka reported that in Pasadena, a small two-bedroom apartment currently rents for $2,80 to $2,512.
“There are up to two or three families living in the same apartment or house because they don’t have enough money to pay the rent,” he added. .
One of the people who suffers from the high cost of rent is Adela Torres, a single mother from Oaxaca with two daughters, who pays $1,000 for a small fourth.
“Three years ago, in one fell swoop they raised me $0402 a month”, said the woman who cleans houses.
“With the inflation we are experiencing, now imagine how difficult it has become to be able to pay.”
Leticia Ortiz, from 60 years old, a native of Guadalajara, Jalisco, highlighted that she works recycling bottles and also takes care of a young man with special needs, although now his priorities are different.
“The first thing I think about is paying the rent and I leave food for later,” he told Real America News . “My husband hardly works anymore and that’s why we need to stop raising our rent.”
Jess Rivas, Pasadena Councilmember, said that as an advocate for working families and as a young mother she knows how the lack of affordable rent is affecting families of color.
“The higher the rent, the more families are pushed out of our neighborhoods and even become homeless. I am grateful for the efforts of the PTJC to highlight this fight and bring a possible solution to the voters in November.”
“It is a humanitarian crisis”
For Pablo Alvarado, co-executive director of the National Network of Day Laborers (NDLON), the housing shortage in Pasadena “is very hard for our people.”
Alvarado told Real America News that the 68 percent of Latinos living in this city rent, but also many have gone to other cities like Azusa or Monrovia where the rent could be cheaper, but they return to Pasadena because that is where they have their jobs.
He added that, during the coronavirus pandemic, learned of the cases of three single immigrant mothers who lost their apartments for not being able to pay the monthly rent.
However, she highlighted that, since before the health crisis, there was already a significant exodus of residents from Pasadena.
“Many ended up living in the living rooms of the houses of friends or relatives,” he explained. “These are true and very harsh testimonies”.
The leader and activist stated that the petition campaign and collection of citizen signatures will intensify in the coming months.
First they must collect more than 13,000 signatures, give them to Tameka Cook, the new City Clerk in the Department of Pasadena Administrative Services, and she to the county authorities for review and validation, before she qualifies for the ballot for the general election on November 8.
Regarding the expectations that have in NDLON and the other non-profit organizations that work to obtain rent control and prevent unjustified evictions, expressed that the city “has always declared itself progressive and the objective can be achieved.”
“You have to see if the owners have empathy with the people who rents them”, he said.
To do this, they will try to convince property owners of the need to show solidarity with those who helped them during the pandemic so that they could carry out their activities by phone or from the comfort of their homes.
Alvarado pointed out that in the city of Los Angeles and in the county there is a homeless crisis that has worsened by the stratospheric prices of housing rentals.
“This situation that is being experienced transcends common and current politics; it is already a humanitarian crisis where people can no longer pay more in rent, ”she stressed. “It is something terrible what is happening”.
Main components of the Amendment
- If a landlord can show that their operating expenses have increased, they can request a special one-time rent increase.