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THE CITY OF 13 ~~ P ~L~£~S~4NTON® llate: May 1, 2009 To: Mayor and Members of the City Council From: Oftice of the City Attorney Subject: Supplemental Agenda Report Concerning the Appeal of the Planning Commission's Decision to Deny the Tentative Map Application for the Vineyard Villa Mobilehome Park Summary On the Council's regular agenda for May 5, 2009 is an agenda report concerning an appeal of the Planning Commission's decision to deny the tentative map application that would allow the Vineyard Villa Mobilehome Park to be converted to "residential ownership". For the reasons expressed in that agenda report, staff recommends that the appeal be granted and therefore the application, with conditions, be approved. ~fhe purpose of this supplemental report is to recommend that Council, in addition to approving the application, take action to: add a condition to extend the term of the current Rent Stabilization Agreement to 2025; support legislation that would strengthen local control over mobilehomc conversions; and support other public entities' litigation efforts to exercise more local control over mobilehomc conversions. 1. Extendin¢ the term of the current Rent Stabilization [1~reement. [n 2007 the City Council approved a 2enl Stabilization agreement with the owner of the Vineyard Villa Mobilehome Park. In general terms, it limits the park owner to raise rents annually to a cost of living index, but with a floor of 2% and a ceiling of 5%. The Agreement has a five year term but also provides that if the Council approves the residential conversion, the term would be extended for five additional years, i.e., through December 2017. Under existing state law concerning residential conversions, once lots begin to be sold, local rent control regulations are abrogated in favor of state law provisions. 'I~hose provisions provide that as to households that qualify as lower income households (currently, two person households earning less than $53,000 annually would qualify as lower income), the park owner could raise rents no more than the average of cost of living increases over the previous tour years. Hence, lower income households that choose not to purchase their lots will continue to have rent control protection even after conversion. For households that do not qualify as lower income households (and choose not to purchase their lots), the state law provisions allow the park owner to raise space rents to "markcP', but over a five year period. Flere, the owner has agreed that if the application is approved, he will not begin selling the lots for at least 10 years; through at least 2017, rents would continue to be controlled through the current Rent