Santa Monica : Board to Discuss Rent Cuts

The Rent Control Board will meet at 7:30 tonight at City Hall to discuss plans for awarding rent decreases to tenants who have maintenance problems.

The rent board staff has suggested that tenants in the city’s 30,000 apartments be allowed to file for rent decreases for problems such as dirty carpets, old paint and old drapes. Rent decreases of up to $100 a month could also be awarded for loss of heat and leaky roofs.

Rent board administrator Howell Tumlin said the plan is designed to encourage better upkeep of apartment buildings. The board will conduct a public hearing on the proposal on Dec. 5. Tumlin said he expects the plan to go into effect before the end of the year.