Santa Cruz council tightens relocation assistance, adds tiered payments for short-term displacement
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Summary
Council adopted code amendments aligning relocation assistance and replacement-housing rules with state law and created a three‑tier schedule (0–14 days, 15–59 days, 60+ days) for payments; council also clarified the tenant definition and narrowed some city exemptions.
The Santa Cruz City Council on Nov. 18 voted to amend municipal code provisions on relocation assistance and replacement housing to align local rules with state law and the city’s Housing Element objectives.
Staff described three primary changes: updating relocation assistance to mirror statutory requirements, replacing subjective discretionary findings with objective standards, and creating a tiered relocation assistance schedule for short‑term displacements ordered to abate hazardous conditions. Under the new tiers, displacement of 0–14 days would trigger 1 month of market‑rate rent plus $300 per adult tenant; 15–59 days would trigger 3 months of market rent plus $300 per adult; 60 days or more would continue to trigger 4 months of market rent plus $300 per adult.
Lee Butler, director of planning and community development, explained that “market rate” in the ordinance refers to HUD market rate for the applicable year and said the changes seek to make the ordinance clearer, more proportional to the duration of displacement, and consistent with state law. Butler and staff also proposed a clarified definition of “tenant” and a narrowly tailored exemption for city‑owned properties limited to specific provisions.
Council discussion focused on the effect on small landlords and long‑term tenants who pay below‑market rents; members asked staff to explore narrower exemption language and guardrails for city‑owned properties. Vice Mayor Kalantari Johnson moved staff recommendations with the added tenant definition and specified exemption language; the motion was seconded and passed by roll call.
Next steps: staff will implement the ordinance amendments; a second reading is scheduled for Dec. 9 where applicable provisions that are part of the local coastal program will be forwarded to the Coastal Commission for review.
