City Council adopts interim ordinance to block ‘renoviction’ evictions; applies protections to pending cases

The Los Angeles City Council voted 12-0 on March 7 to adopt an interim control ordinance (ICO) intended to halt evictions tied to so-called substantial remodels, a practice tenant advocates call "renovictions." The council approved the ordinance as amended and voted to send the item urgent forthwith.

Tenant advocates and residents filled the public-comment line and council chambers during a special meeting devoted to the matter, telling the council that the city’s delay in enacting protections had left families facing eviction and homelessness. “Tenant protections are essential for people to build stable lives and communities,” said Angela Bai, research and policy analyst at the Los Angeles Alliance for a New Economy, who urged support for the interim ordinance and its amendments.

The measure commanded broad public support from tenants and legal advocates who described multiple pending cases in Boyle Heights and Echo Park. “These evictions are not hypothetical situations. These are real cases happening in court right now,” said Laura Matter, an attorney at the Inner City Law Center. Several residents described receiving repeated eviction notices after long tenancy and said one-month relocation offers were inadequate for families and elderly tenants.

Speakers for housing providers and landlord groups urged caution. A representative of the Apartment Association of Greater Los Angeles said the city’s data did not show a widespread problem of substantial-remodel evictions and warned the ordinance…