Should Property Rights Be Decided By Majority Vote?
On April 21, 2008, the City Council for the City of Seal Beach voted 4 to 1 to adopt a controversial ban on third story construction in the downtown area. This decision could have enormous financial consequences for home owners in the area who bought with the expectation, under existing zoning, that they could build up to a third story. The Orange County Register reports that at least two of the four council members who voted for the ban cited "majority opinion" as the basis for their decision. Since when are civil rights--yes, property rights are a basic civil right--determined by majority vote? Do you believe that your right to develop and use your property consistent with existing zoning should be subject to change as long as a majority of residents favor it?
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Posted By Mark Alpert/HKC In Current Events
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The Press and Property Rights
My law firm is often involved in litigating cases that get press attention. We typically represent landlords and developers. The coverage couldn't be more biased and shallow. A perfect example is yesterday's Orange County Register, reporting on litigation relating to the interpretation of the ground lease for Huntington Harbor Mobile Estates. The article by Cindy Carcamo starts with the proposition that the Judge decided "to appraise the land for much more than the land has been historically valued." Carcamo neglects to mention, the Judge found the land should be valued for what it is currently worth, exactly as specified in the ground lease. She does find room for a headline suggesting the owner wants to give senior residents "the boot." Kudos to Rob Coldren, Bill Dahlin and Irene Kiet of HKC who worked on the case.
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Posted By Mark Alpert/HKC In Current Events
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Orlando Florida Weighs Housing Fee To Make Housing Affordable
Common sense would suggest that adding a fee to the cost of housing would make housing less affordable. As a Californian, I don't really expect common sense from our politicians. However, I would have expected better from Florida (Is it the heat?) The Orlando Sentinel reports that the City of Orlando is considering a housing fee for new real estate projects as a way of funding affordable housing programs. Next on the agenda is a food tax to pay for a program to provide food to the poor!
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Posted By Mark Alpert/HKC In Current Events
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Eminent Domain Reform Does Not Mean Economic Doomsday
Will there be an economic "doomsday" if governments cannot condemn property without the requirement of an actual public purpose for the condemned land? Seems like a ludicrous proposition, but it has been the primary argument against eminent domain reform. Well, the Institute For Justice prepared a study which showed eminent domain causes no economic ill effects. I am preparing a related study that demonstrates the sun will indeed rise and set without an official government decree.
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Posted By Mark Alpert In Regulation Nightmares
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Will Politics Trump Property Rights For Anaheim Stadium Project?
Archstone-Smith owns certain development rights to property adjacent to Anaheim Stadium owned by the City of Anaheim. Archstone-Smith wants to develop retail and commercial property on the site, which makes the most sense for the location. The lease between the Anaheim Angels (also known as the Los Angeles Angels) specifies that no residential project will be built on the site. Looks like we have the makings of an agreement. Not so fast. Enter the community activists who apparently have other plans for the property. The Orange County Register reports a group of about "150 community activists and residents" braved the rain to call for a "community benefit agreement" which provides for "child care facilities, park space, adequate wages and low-cost housing." I credit City Council Member Sidhu for some straight talk on the issue.
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Posted By Mark Alpert In Current Events
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WHY RENT CONTROL DOESN'T WORK
As someone who works in the area of rent control, it is hard for me to understand why anyone would think rent control was good government policy. Yet, too few people understand the basic economics which demonstrate that rent control does not help provide affordable housing. For that reason, I wanted to link a 1998 opinion piece by Thomas Sowell, from the Jewish World Review: "Cutting Edge California retreats to old failed ideas" It provides some historical context--demonstrating that rent control actually causes the loss of affordable housing.
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Posted By Mark Alpert In Rent Control
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Academic Study: Regulation Does Not Reduce Property Values
Education is a good thing, but sometimes I think getting a doctorate degree can be too much of a good thing. Perhaps all those years of study and memorization fills the cranium beyond capacity, squeezing out the space allocated for common sense. I had this thought when reviewing a study recently published by the Georgetown Environmental Law and Policy Institute, from Georgetown Law School. The title says it all: "Exposing the False Premise of Regulation’s Harm to Landowners" Apparently, property owners should be lobbying for more regulation.
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Posted By Mark Alpert In Viewpoints
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California Supreme Court Invalidates Anti-Competitive Measure
Bill Dahlin reports on the Supreme Court decision invalidating a collective bargaining agreement which gives preference to state employees over private engineers as a violation of Proposition 35, which the voters passed as a measure to protect the right of the state to contract with private entities for architectural and engineering services:
On November 5, 2007, the California Supreme Court issued its decision in the Consulting Engineers and Land Surveyors of California, Inc. v. the Professional Engineers in California Government decision. The issue in the case was whether a collective bargaining agreement entered into by and between the State of California and the Professional Engineers in California Government was lawful, in its entirety, under Proposition 35.
Proposition 35, for the millions of you who do not recall, added a provision to the California Constitution specifically allowing the State of California to have contracts with private firms to provide architectural and engineering services for public works projects. Employees of the State of California lobbied vociferously against the ballot initiative.
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Posted By Mark Alpert In Current Decisions
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Jarvis Backs A New Property Rights Initiative
The Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association is backing a new property rights initiative. The initiative has some similarities to Proposition 90, but also has many differences. It more clearly spells out limitations on rent control. The initiative is supported by the California Alliance To Protect Property Rights, which has lots of useful background information on the inititative on its web site. Much more on this later.
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Posted By Mark Alpert In Current Events
, Rent Control
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Seal Beach Council Backs Down From Third Story Ban
Facing an initiative vote, the Seal Beach City Council began the process of repealing the ban on third story housing, reports the Register. The Council voted 3-2 to repeal the ban. I applaud the victory for property rights. I am not a big fan of the initiative process, but, in this case, it worked. It's not over yet, as council members are promising "new laws intended to preserve the character of Old Town." (Translation: We won't let this "temporary setback" interfere with our right to tell you what you do with your own property)
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Posted By Mark Alpert In Current Events
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