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Title:
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Member Absence for the Landlord Tenant Mediation Board.
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City of Culver City, California
City Council Agenda Item Report
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends the Culver City City Council (the “Council”) consider the
continuance of service of Juanita Patterson-Wright, Member-at-Large
Representative, on the Landlord Tenant Mediation Board.
BACKGROUND:
The Landlord-Tenant Mediation Board (“Board”) was established by the City Council
in 1981 to offer voluntary mediation services to the tenant-landlord community.
Those services were expanded on May 20, 1987, by Chapter 15.09 of the Culver
City Municipal Code to provide mandatory “good faith” mediation to rental disputes
surrounding rent increases in Culver City.
The purpose and objectives of the Board are: 1) to build and strengthen
communications between tenants and landlords; 2) to reduce tensions in the rental
housing market by providing a means for tenants and landlords to resolve disputes
related to rent increases; and 3) to educate the rental community about tenant and
landlord relationships and the rights and responsibilities of both tenants and
landlords.
Since its creation in 1981, the Board has scheduled five hundred sixty-nine (569)
mediation sessions.
The Board consists of nine members who each serve three-year terms. There are
three categories of membership which include: three Landlord Representatives,
Meeting Date: 04/09/07 Item Number: A-2
AGENDA ITEM: Member Absence for the Landlord Tenant Mediation Board.
Contact Person/Dept.: Lillian Ikeda, CDD
Housing
Phone Number: (310) 253-5797
Fiscal Impact: Yes [X] No [] General Fund: Yes [X] No []
Public Hearing: [] Action Item: [X] Attachments: [X]
Public Notification: Juanita Patterson-Wright (03/01/07); Members of the Landlord
Tenant Mediation Board (03/01/07); Master Notification List (04/04/07).
Department Approval:
Todd Tipton (03/20/07)
City Attorney Approval:
Carol Schwab (by H. Iker) (04/02/07)
City Controller Approval:
Marlee Chang (04/03/07)
City Manager Approval
Jerry B. Fulwood (04/04/2007) City of Culver City, California
City Council Agenda Item Report
three Tenant Representatives, and three Member-at-Large Representatives. There
are also three alternate positions, one in each of the above-referenced categories.
Tenant Representatives must be residents of Culver City and have no financial
interest in residential income-producing property, either in Culver City or elsewhere.
Member-at-Large Representatives must be residents of the City and are neither
tenants nor have any ownership interest in rental property in Culver City. Landlord
Representatives must own, manage, or have a residential income property interest
within the City, and preferably be residents of Culver City.
DISCUSSION:
The rules and regulations in the “Organization and Implementation Guidelines” for
the Board states “the name of any member who within any one-year period has
more than one (1) absence of a regularly scheduled meeting, excused or
unexcused, shall be referred to the City Council for consideration of removal.”
Ms. Patterson-Wright has served on the Board since July 1, 2001, when she was
appointed as a Member-at-Large Representative.
The Board meets quarterly during the months of January, April, July and October on
the last Wednesday of the month. Ms. Patterson-Wright was absent July 2006 and
January 2007 meetings.
Ms. Patterson-Wright has provided a letter for her absences and has expressed her
desire to remain on the Board. Since Ms. Patterson-Wright’s appointment to the
Board, she has received 30 hours of professional mediation training at a cost to the
City of $625. Additionally, Ms. Patterson-Wright has mediated 11 cases since her
appointment in July 2001.
Should the City Council determine to vacate the seat, staff would proceed with the
advertisement process for filling the vacancy.
FISCAL ANALYSIS:
Consideration of the Member-at-Large Representative has no significant fiscal
impact. Should a vacancy be created, there would be potential advertisement and
training costs (including AB 1234 Ethics training) for the new Board member. These
costs would be absorbed in existing appropriations.
City of Culver City, California
City Council Agenda Item Report
ATTACHMENTS:
1) Letter from Juanita Patterson-Wright
MOTION:
That the City Council:
1) Allow Juanita Patterson-Wright to continue to serve as Member-at-Large
Representative to the Landlord-Tenant Mediation Board; or
2) Remove Juanita Patterson-Wright as Member-at-Large Representative from the
Landlord-Tenant Mediation Board and direct staff to advertise the resulting
vacancy.
MEETING DATE: April 9, 2007
AGENDA ITEM: Consideration of Member Absence for the Landlord-Tenant Mediation
Board
ATTACHMENTS
Pages
1. Letter from Juanita Patterson-Wright 1February 1, 2007
Lillian Ikeda
City of Culver City Mediation Liaison
9770 Culver Blvd.
Culver City, CA 90232
Re: Landlord/Tenant Mediation Board Aftendance
Dear Ms. Ikeda:
Thank you for the opportunity to send this letter to you regarding my absence
from the Landlord/Tenant Mediation Board meeting during the last year. As a
board member I value the importance of the service that the Landlord/Mediation
Board offers residents in Culver City.
During the last year there have been unforeseen family emergencies that have
prevented me from attending the meetings. Please take this under consideration
as I would like to remain on the Board. My term ends June 30, 2007 and I will be
coming up for reappointment and will be submitting my application again.
Thank you in advance for your consideration. Please feel free to contact me at
if you have any additional questions.
Sincerely,
g5- attersav- W/r .(7 rz:fa
Juanita Patterson-Wright, M.S.
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