Ida Martinac for Rent Board

Landlord Workshop: Welcome Orientation Are you a new Berkeley landlord? Whether you've just registered a property or recently purchased a rental, this in-person workshop is designed to help you stay compliant with confidence.Join us at 10:00 AM on the third Wednesday of every month at the Berkeley Rent Board offices for a welcome orienta...

“Friends of the Court” Ask SCOTUS To Raise Rents Billionaire real estate interests and conservative megadonors with ties to Supreme Court justices want the high court to end rent stabilization.

The Right to Housing Slate supports Measure N, of course.

"Given that it would have such a limited impact, and that its passage is all but presumed, you could be forgiven for wondering why Measure N is on your ballot in the first place.

The answer lies in Article 34 of California’s state constitution, a provision adopted by voters in 1950 that requires cities to get approval from residents before they can build “low-rent” housing. California is the only state in the nation with such a requirement.

Critics regard Article 34 as a racist and exclusionary relic that has limited the production of affordable homes for decades by giving existing residents veto power over efforts to house less-wealthy people. It was approved, they note, a year after the passage of federal legislation outlawing racial segregation in public housing.

Voters rejected plans for thousands of affordable homes in the years after Article 34 was adopted, according to The Los Angeles Times, while other projects died because officials feared they wouldn’t pass at the ballot box. Although the measures routinely pass these days, the Times found, the requirement is one more hurdle for efforts to build affordable housing in California."

https://www.berkeleyside.org/2022/10/17/berkeley-measure-n-election-2022-affordable-housing