Rent Control - Part 12 A Dialog, Sort of

Two very nice ladies knocked on my door this morning from the Yes on R campaign.  I told them right off I was opposed and working against R. It didn't take them long to figure out I am "Joe from the internet" so Voice readers can be assured the rent controllers are also reading what you and I write here.  As I said, the ladies were nice, but they really cannot refute an informed challenge.  We talked about the rigged Commission, the lack of budget controls, the need for a data base of rental units and renters, my concern that this will accelerate the demolition of pre-1995 apartment buildings in town.  The responses are very vague and really not on point or satisfactory.  It was kind of a one-way conversation.

On another aspect of Measure R, you don't have to look very hard to find a letter about how much money the No on R/Q side has raised.  Yet the Yes on R side seems to be doing quite well.  Printed T-shirts, door hangers, mailers.  I know more than I would like to about funding and running a campaign and this one doesn't look starved for money to me.  You have to wonder where it's coming from.  Homework for another day.

Two last thoughts:  The door hanger starts off by saying "Measure R is not rent control".  Wow, really?  They apparently think only an ordinance that actually sets rents is rent control.  That is disingenuous to say the least.  Second, the mailer has some reasonably well known, actual B'game people quoted.  For later reference, here they are:

Comments

[Jim]

Joe, I'm a new owner of a SFH in Burlingame and recently moved from SF where I was both an owner and a renters. I'm fascinated by the discourse around measure R (which I categorically oppose).

The best argument against rent control is that it distorts the market prices much like the mortgage interest deduction that I so dearly love does. Once in place, you can never get rid of it. We have single friends who have lived in three bedroom rent controlled apartments (they used to have roommates) in SF for 20 years and remain in them for the very rational reason that it would be more expensive to move to a smaller place.

If, as a community, we want to ease the burden on renters then the all of the taxpayers of Burlingame should allocate money to subsidize the rents of people who meet some sort of means testing rather than taking the easy way out of imposing the burden on landlords. Moreover, we should not be so knee jerk in our opposition to building new housing.

On the other hand, it's also perfectly fine for us to admit that we do not want to help low income people live here. That's my stance. I feel lucky to be able to live in such a nice community as Burlingame, but I can't afford to live in Hillsborough or Beverly Hills. Some will say that they don't oppose that goal, but don't offer any reasonable plan for doing so. After all, any such plan will affect our pocketbooks in some way

I wish both sides could be more honest. Burlingame is a majority renter city. If we aren't careful rent control will win at some point.

Keep up the good work.

[Mike]

Joe, you have no farther to look than Tenants Together, Faith in Action, Diana Reddy, Causa Justa, and Unite Here2, and Cynthia Cornell to see where a lot of the funding has come from. These along with CLSEPA have an agenda to run rent control statewide, one bite at a time. Do the research and it is all very clear.

[Joe]

Thank you both. Agree on all points with the voice-in-the-wind exception of "We need to build more housing". Jim may not follow the Voice as closely as some, so I'll just repeat myself again-- over the long haul there is not nor will there be enough water for what we have already approved and are building. Just ain't gonna happen naturally or by government action. The overbuilding is stunning the more one moves around the Peninsula--office and residential both. We will be looking at water rationing/wars for a long time and when that hits, rents won't make much of a difference either way. (Stepping off soap box for a little bit).

[Charlene]

I thought Deborah Griffith was better than that.

[[email protected]]

I wish I had a comment..
Sorry All.

[professorawesome]

Joe, you can find all the campaign disclosure documents on the city website: https://www.burlingame.org/index.aspx?page=3608

You'll see that the NO on R groups have spent about 10 times as much as the YES folks. Those yard signs don't come cheap!

[Joe]

Trust me, Prof. I know where to find and how to read a 460. I've signed a few dozen myself.

[[email protected]]

Dear Joe,
are you sure you read a 460, instead of a 420?
Also, Joe do you recommend a Presidential Candidate?
I am betting Dollars to Donuts you Joe may be a Trump fan. May be.

Mr. Dickenson is surely going for the "Crack Pot" party.
Since Mr. Dickenson shares his thoughts regarding Cultural/Political life in, and of the US, he must also be able to Vote.
US Citizen or not...
What say yee?

[Mike]

Just read what they write from FaceBook
Tenants Together

October 20 at 12:32pm ·

Gabrielle Dolphin calling out the dog-whistle racist and classist undertones in campaign messaging against rent control:

"One fear that has surfaced is that should M1 rent stabilization be passed, it will be impossible for property owners to evict the criminal elements who will surely flock to Alameda. Despite being left to wonder who these horrible criminals are within our midst, some small, but important, points of clarification need to be raised.
"First, recognize this for what it is: fear-mongering at its finest. There are no factual arguments to counter this assertion. The best argument regarding the criminal element would be more akin to a Trumpist assertion that all Mexicans are rapists and criminals."

[Joe]

I'm writing in Holyroller for president--you might even qualify for a security clearance which we cannot say of all the candidates.

Now can we stay on topic please? I'll start. Today's Examiner front page article is on the EssEff District 5 supervisor race--someone named Preston challenging someone named Breed. Here is my favorite part:

"At their cores, the two candidates differ on housing in one major way: serious regulation verses working with market forces.

Preston believes government intervention like rent control has been and continues to be the main tool that should be used to create and keep people in their homes.

Breed, on the other hand, believes government must deal with the real world instead of working towards a pipe dream."
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Too funny. Should be mandatory reading for BHS student unless he/she is "offended" by straight talk.

[BHS-Censorship]

The BHS Economics teachers are backing rent control for the masses. You won't get free market support out of that group.

The BHS Economics teacher who would have had the students read the market based analysis of the rental market got booted for telling the truth the first time.

[local motion]

Cynthia Cornell donated 3 G's. A legal secretary for Cooly LLP has an extra 3 grand laying around to give to a political campaign. How does that work? Isn't that about 2 months salary after tax for a legal secretary?

[No on R]

Legal secretaries for big firms make $70-80k. If experienced enough, even more.

[local motion]

So about one month's salary. She must be fronting someone who is making 5 times that or more.

[Samiselfie]

People can endorse whomever or whatever they like, Joe.

This may not be the best worded rent control measure but everyone is entitled to their opinion. It takes a lot courage for Griffin, Poland and Cannon to put themselves out there. They are good people in our community who recognize there is a housing crisis.

It is a David versus Goliath campaign. Tons of $$$ is being poured into mailers and signs for No on measure R.
I've been getting one or 2 almost every single day in my mailbox.plus they are running Tv ads. The must be afraid of "David".

Both sides have brought up important issues and have created a dialog about housing the Bay Area.

Cynthia Cornell is very brave. Whether this issue wins or loses, I admire a person who walks the walk and talks the talk.
It takes a lot of guts, energy, time and a tough hide to withstand the opposition. Would you agree, Joe? Your wife was one tuff cookie many years ago when facing gigantic forces of evil on our city council. People like that are brave.
.

[Mike]

Consider if one will, Cynthia Cornell is at the end of her rope. Many of the main leftist party known as Bad Advocates Ruining the Peninsula are so called "self-employed", "consultant", "college instructor" which is usually a code word for part-time or unemployed. So it stands to reason why they are fighting so hard. It isn't for social justice, it isn't for righteousness cloaked in the emotional rhetoric that they bestow, it is because many, many are at the end of their financial rope and are panicking because of out of date skill set, age, and lack of opportunities. A lot of the language was written for the Cindy's of the Bad Activists Ruining the Peninsula.

[Samiselfie]

Gosh Mike, if I had a dollar for every homeowner I met over the years who told me they are a "consultant" or "self-employed", I would have rolls of Jacksons in my wallet.

Speculating on what Burlingame renters do for a living and commenting on their financial situation should not be a concern.

With all due respect, your statement is deeply flawed.

[Mike]

Samiselfie--No not at all flawed. A bit harsh, yes. What is even more harsh is the language that is in the Just Cause Eviction and Rental Housing Commission sections of the document...not what the pro R folks want any citizen to focus on. The uprising is so strong because what they are attempting to do with the backing of socialist organizations like Tenants Together who have a stated mandate to control the housing market statewide is of much more a concern than calling someone a consultant or self employed. Actually I'm self employed.
It was Tenants Together that Cindy got her organizing kit from and do you know the proposed Rental Housing Commission can tap ANY Available Source including your tax dollars to fund their commission and that with BARP being a member of the Tenants Together in San Francisco network, they would be funneling tax payer money to that organization so it can go about their mission? Oh don't forget that Daniel Saver the attorney behind this at Community Legal Services EPA, is also part of that network? If the language in Measures R&Q isn't that bad, why doesn't Daniel on City of San Mateo and Burlingame closed TV and discuss the language with a housing attorney?? That won't happen cause it will bring down these measures like a house of cards in a blizzard. Don't be fooled!

[Joe]

People can absolutely endorse whomever or whatever they like and they can do it as publicly as they like. They also can be criticized for it as much as one likes and should be prepared for it--as I well know from personal experience.

This measure is a disaster waiting to afflict Burlingame. Anyone who spends at least 30 minutes reading that and cannot figure that out should be prepared to be criticized.

[Cassandra]

Spoke with a crowd of folks holding signs in downtown San Mateo who are against the measure. They said they had been going door to door and that some people had already voted for the measure without reading it because it had the endorsement of the League of Women Voters... true?

[hillsider]

The more prominent the opinion the more prominent the opposition. Deal with it.

[dtn]

These four in the photo are part of the Nagel clan. Cannon, Poland and Griffith for sure are. It might be time to get Nirmala on the record on Measure R. That would be revealing.

[Mike]

The proponets of these measures are dangerous in spreading misinformation. One recent example is their protest in San Mateo about a mailing that was sent. Pease note the result.
Political mailers that highlight criticism of rent control as noted by the Legislative Analyst’s Office do not violate the Fair Political Practices Act, a state agency concluded this week. The state’s Fair Political Practices Commission said it found no evidence of campaign violations, concluding that the mailers appear to be “properly identified as coming from the California Apartment Association Issues Committee.” Tenant advocates filed a complaint with the FPPC after the CAA Issues Committee published campaign literature detailing the LAO’s conclusion that rent control doesn’t work.

[Mike]

Private property rights is a founding concept of America. It is not surprising that there are individuals willing to give time and money to defeat Measures R&Q. Since the beginnings of the country, many thousands of Americans have paid with their lives to protect private property rights.

"The true foundation of republican government is the equal right of every citizen in his person and property and in their management." --Thomas Jefferson to Samuel Kercheval, 1816.

[[email protected]]

Whoa Big Fellow.
All the concepts that were put into place "in the olden days" have out lived their purpose.
The US has been attempting to make those concepts world wide for way to long.
The more we learn about other cultures should stop US from the belief "One Size fits All."
I just got hic-ups.
Got to go.