CLEARLAKE — The Clearlake City Council on Monday voted unanimously to repeal its moratorium on evictions during the coronavirus crisis, leaning instead on California’s statewide ban to support renters.
The council’s ordinance, adopted March 19, prevented eviction processes from beginning against tenants who could show they had been financially harmed by the coronavirus lockdown.
The state’s ban—enacted in an executive order by Gov. Gavin Newsom about a week after Clearlake’s moratorium took effect—achieves a similar goal, with slight differences.
“The goal is the same,” said Clearlake City Attorney Ryan Jones. “Both are protecting residents who are negatively impacted financially because of COVID-19 from being evicted.”
However, Newsom’s order, Jones noted, works by “stopping the eviction process in the court system, and prohibiting law enforcement from actually executing writs of eviction, whereas our ordinance would say landlords cannot even start the eviction process.”
Stressing that the council could vote to repeal or extend its own order—or else let it expire on May 3—Jones posited that potential liability arising from an eviction order would be more easily borne by the state than by Clearlake.
“If someone’s going to take that pressure from it, it might as well be the state, as opposed to the city,” Jones said.
Every city council member present at the meeting (Councilmember Phil Harris was absent) expressed support for repealing the city’s moratorium in favor of the statewide eviction ban.
“For us to continue on with possible litigations in the future just isn’t necessary,” argued Councilmember Joyce Overton. “We should repeal this.”
A Clearlake landlord also advocated for repealing the measure in a written comment read before the council.
“The potential financial hardship is only being shifted from the tenant to the landlord,” wrote the landlord, identified as Terry Stewart. “In most cases, in my experience, once tenants get behind, they never get caught up.”
The council voted 4-0 to repeal its moratorium. Newsom’s order is presently set to expire May 31.
Developer may build 18 homes
In a separate item during the meeting, the council voted unanimously to approve a purchase agreement for five lots along 36th Avenue on which a developer has proposed building 18 market-rate houses.
While the group of parcels was valued at a total of $35,000, the developer’s offer is for $18,000, said Clearlake City Manager Alan Flora. But the developer, Lake County-based Alpine Design Build, is also proposing to perform an estimated $79,000 of drainage and paved road fixes throughout the lots that will solve noted issues there, Flora said.
The city is likely to receive a “very small amount” of proceeds directly from the sale, which must be approved by the Lake County Redevelopment Agency Oversight Board before finalization, Flora added.
Long-term increased property tax revenue from the parcels, coupled with the benefits of adding housing to the city’s stock, seemed to appeal strongly to the council.
“Nothing but good can come from it,” said Vice Mayor Dirk Slooten.
“This is going to be a great improvement,” said Overton.
According to Flora, the developer is aiming to build homes to sell at about $250,000 each.
The city’s proposed purchase agreement with Alpine was amended prior to passage to include two new requirements: that the company complete the road and drainage work before allowing the lots to be occupied, and that it forfeit the project if the road and drainage improvements are not completed within a year.
