Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Housing Neighborhood Stabilization topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Bakersfield council approves neighborhood stabilization plan but tables $100,000 landlord-assistance allocation
Summary
After extensive public comment and council debate, the Bakersfield City Council approved a neighborhood stabilization and prevention funding framework drawn from ARPA savings but postponed a proposed $100,000 landlord legal-assistance allocation for further review.
Mayor Karen K. Goh and the City Council on Sept. 25 adopted a neighborhood stabilization funding framework using identified ARPA savings but removed and referred a proposed $100,000 landlord legal-assistance allocation for later consideration.
City staff presented a package of one-time and pilot programs aimed at preventing displacement and improving habitability, including expanded code-enforcement support, a forgivable grant program to remediate substandard rental units, outreach and trusted-messenger funding, and further study of residential hotel/motel inspections. Staff said the city started with roughly $94 million in ARPA funds and identified approximately $1.2 million in savings to reallocate toward these priorities.
The program summary cited existing investments the city already makes: about $100,000 annually for fair-housing activities, roughly $250,000 a year for home-buyer assistance, $4.5 million set aside from pandemic-era rental assistance, $750,000 in general-fund one-time dollars added earlier this year, a $250,000 barrier-removal fund, and an eviction-prevention pilot of about $350,000. Staff also described HOME and HOPWA allocations, a $1 million ARPA weatherization and solar program and larger TCC allocations intended for disadvantaged communities.
Public comment focused heavily on the proposed $100,000 landlord-assistance line. Tenant advocates and residents urged removal, arguing funding landlords for technical or legal assistance would worsen displacement. "Allocating funds for landlord legal assistance will only increase the number of people forced to sleep on the street," said Ash Huang, an ACLU fellow working on houselessness in Bakersfield. Speakers representing Tenants Together, Leadership Council for Justice and Accountability and other local groups similarly asked the council to prioritize tenant-facing rental assistance and habitability programs over landlord legal support.
Staff and partner GBLA told the council they had been offering twice-monthly workshops in English and Spanish but do not yet have detailed case-type reporting; GBLA’s early work has focused on education and outreach rather than individual legal representation.
In council debate, members split on the landlord-assistance item’s nexus to neighborhood stabilization and on the best use of one-time ARPA savings. Vice Mayor Gonzales moved to approve the framework but remove the $100,000 landlord-assistance allocation and refer that specific item to the Safe and Healthy Communities committee for further consideration; that motion carried. The final motion passed with Councilmembers Weir and Gray voting no and the remaining councilmembers voting yes.
Council members and staff discussed alternatives the council could pursue before returning the landlord-assistance question, including increasing joint tenant–landlord workshops, contracting GBLA for additional outreach, splitting the funding to boost education while seeking other sources for narrow technical assistance, or identifying a different non-ARPA funding source for targeted landlord support.
Next steps: staff will implement the three approved program elements and return to the council or the Safe and Healthy Communities committee with recommendations and options for the landlord-assistance fund, including possible reallocation to workshops or alternative funding sources.
