Oxnard Lays Out Plan to Fight Alleged Housing Discrimination : City Council: The action comes after a report warns of bias against Latinos and single mothers. The study comes under criticism.

Responding to recent findings that Latinos and single mothers are being discriminated against in their search for housing in Oxnard, city officials Tuesday began laying out a strategy for ending such practices.

A city-commissioned fair housing report released earlier this month concluded that “clear evidence of substantial discrimination” exists in Oxnard’s rental housing market.

To remedy the problem, the City Council agreed to put a city commission in charge of monitoring fair housing practices. And affordable housing advocates suggested a re-examination of the city’s strategies for providing low-cost housing to the poor.

“I think we need to understand the nexus between fair housing and affordable housing,” said Barbara Marci-Ortiz, an attorney with Channel Counties Legal Services, a provider of legal aid to the poor.

She said few housing units are affordable to poor residents, a situation that leads to overcrowding and discrimination.

“I think the council really needs to show some leadership in this area,” Marci-Ortiz said. “If we are committed to fair housing in Oxnard, we have to look at building a housing stock that responds to the needs of our residents.”

Oxnard Mayor Manuel Lopez said the city is laying the groundwork for an aggressive push to build low-cost housing for the poor.

“I think we need to issue a policy statement on affordable housing,” he said. “If we let the market decide then we will never get anywhere.”

Last year, the City Council hired Metropolitan Planning Associates of Los Angeles to assess housing practices, a requirement for cities receiving federal Community Development Block Grant funds.

The city paid $32,000 for the 62-page report, the first of two phases. The second report will provide specific recommendations for the city.

But Councilman Mike Plisky said he was so disappointed with the report that he did not want to continue with the second phase of the study.

“I believe the report wasn’t any good, that it isn’t valid,” he said. “You’re making it sound like we haven’t done anything at all to achieve fair housing and provide affordable housing. I think we have done an outstanding job.”

Metropolitan consultant Dan Cohen, who co-authored the report, said he didn’t intend to convey that message.

“I’m not saying that you are not providing any housing units whatsoever,” Cohen explained. “But there still is a need that isn’t being met by this particular community.”

As part of the study, a team of three Latinos, two African-Americans and two Anglos were dispatched to 15 sites where apartment vacancies had been advertised.

Latinos and single mothers received unfavorable treatment at least half the time, the report said.

The study also used the team to look at whether real estate agents were steering prospective minority home buyers to communities with high minority populations. The report also stated that some agents made negative remarks about Latinos and about different communities, such as La Colonia and south Oxnard.

While acknowledging that some housing discrimination exists, real estate representatives Tuesday said such practices are rare.

Charli Daniels, a representative of the Oxnard Harbor Assn. of Realtors, told council members she worried that the report unfairly characterized real estate agents.

“We feel we were very poorly represented,” Daniels said. “I’m not here to say this stuff doesn’t exist, but this kind of publicity does no good for us and does no good for the community.”

In addition, Daniels said she believes the study was misleading and inaccurate in its conclusions.

“We are astounded that the city would spend our tax dollars to purchase such an inferior study,” she said. “A report such as this is not just a waste of taxpayer dollars, it is inflammatory.”