Council Extends Hold on Eviction of Tenants

By a 13-0 vote, the Los Angeles City Council on Tuesday approved and sent to Mayor Tom Bradley a six-month extension of a moratorium on tenant evictions for “major rehabilitation” of apartments.

The moratorium is designed to protect tenants while city officials study ways to plug a loophole in the rent-control ordinance.

That loophole allows landlords to evict renters and raise rents if the landlord spends $10,000 a unit on renovations.

The provision was intended to encourage owners of substandard and unsafe buildings to improve the quality of their housing.

Critics say it has enabled landlords to evict long-term tenants who typically pay low rents by spending $10,000 a unit on cosmetic improvements, such as painting and replacing drapes.

Tenants of the Diplomat Park apartments in North Hollywood--most of them elderly--are among those facing eviction under the provision.

The council action extends the moratorium, which was to expire June 30, to Dec. 31.