Article on rent protest doesn’t tell the whole story
On May 17, the paper ran a cover story featuring the May Day protest march demanding that Concord city officials enact rent control.
In my opinion, the article was one-sided and biased to garner public support in favor of rent control.
The third paragraph gave the impression that skyrocketing rents, vast unjust evictions and displacement were facts – but this is not the case. The statement should have been in quotations, as they are the opinion of tenant advocate groups.
The article recounts the experience of Nicole Zapata, Betty Gabaldon and Dolores Ramos. Raise the Roof and the East Bay Alliance for a Sustainable Economy have recounted these same stories at numerous City Council meetings over the past three years.
If there are thousands of displaced families, as we are led to believe, where are they and why aren’t their names provided?
The story shared Ramos’ opinion that she was evicted from her residence on Parkside Drive so the new owner could charge more rent. This is inaccurate and misleading.
Where is the reporting that the property was bought at a premium price yet required more than $1 million in improvements for earthquake safety to the second story balcony, remodeling of all 30 units, repairs for the leaking pool and new filtration equipment, and installation of a playground?
Moreover, the new owners acted responsibly by offering temporary housing in other corporate-owned units, as well as providing $5,000 in relocation expenses negotiated by Mayor Carlyn Obringer. Most of the families took the package and relocated. Ramos successfully relocated to Walnut Creek.
Upon completion of the remodeled apartments, tenants would be allowed to return to their old units at the new market rate of $2,100 – a value for a remodeled unit centrally located in downtown Concord compared to the previous rate of $1,200 for an unsafe, dilapidated building reflecting rents not seen since 2005.
The article does not accurately tell the facts, contributing to the false premise that rent control is an effective policy. A survey of economists showed that 98 percent agree (whether conservative or liberal) rent control does little to improve the supply of affordable housing and actually creates shortages that further compound the situation by driving up costs.
The most expensive cities in America are those with rent control. While short-term gains may help a select few in place prior to implementation, the long-term effects negatively impact far greater numbers for decades who can no longer afford to move to these cities.
I encourage you to report the findings from the recent Stanford study analyzing rent control in San Francisco (https://web.stanford.edu/~diamondr/DMQ.pdf).
For further information, I suggest listening to the April 4 podcast by Stephen Dubner. The acclaimed economist, author and host of the “Freakonomics” radio show takes a hard look at the effectiveness of rent control, with interviews from economists and affordable housing advocates.
Blaine Carter is a rental property owner in Concord.