Rent Control Ordinance Survives Legal Challenge

A federal judge has upheld the constitutionality of Malibu’s rent-control law, throwing out challenges from the owners of the two mobile home parks in the city.

“It’s a complete victory for the city,” said Christi Hogin, an attorney for the city, of last week’s summary judgment by U. S. District Judge Mariana Pfaelzer in Los Angeles. The city asked for and got a ruling that, as a matter of law, the ordinance was constitutional, Hogin said.

The two mobile home parks, one at Point Dume and the other at Paradise Cove, have spectacular seaside locations. With few exceptions, the roughly 550 residents of the two parks lease the spaces beneath their mobile homes at monthly rates ranging from $300 to more than $1,000.

The residents include many elderly people on fixed incomes but also include wealthy individuals who use their mobile homes as weekend retreats and as investments. Depending on the view, it is not uncommon for mobile homes in the two parks to sell for $300,000.

Attorneys for the Adamson Cos., which owns the Point Dume mobile home park, and the Kissel Co., owner of Paradise Cove mobile home park, have said they will appeal the ruling to the U. S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.

Hogin said the purpose of the ordinance is to regulate rents at a fair level and provide that owners receive a fair return. Pfaelzer’s ruling, she said, affirms the city’s authority to step in when a park owner has complete control over the market.

Tom Gibbs, attorney for the Adamson Cos., contended that the ordinance prevented the Point Dume park from charging market-level rents. “Point Dume is one of the most beautiful points in all of Malibu, with a 360-degree view,” he said.

He also argued that the people who live at Point Dume aren’t low-income residents needing protection from the city. He estimated that the average income for residents is $70,000 per year.

However, Paul Atkinson, president of the homeowners group at Paradise Cove, disputed the notion that residents are rich weekenders.

“We’re the tradesmen, the waiters, and the clerical and administrative workers of Malibu. . . . We’re not rich, but moderate income at best,” Atkinson said.