
The owner of Oakland's Coliseum Connections apartment building must pay the relocation costs of the tenants of his building due to flooding on New Year's Eve that rendered it uninhabitable, Oakland City Council members affirmed Tuesday.
A city ordinance passed in 2017 requires property owners like UrbanCore Development, LLC, which owns Coliseum Connections, to pay relocation costs when tenants are displaced because the property is not up to code.
UrbanCore's President and CEO Michael Johnson was unavailable Tuesday afternoon and Tuesday evening to comment on repairs or whether he acknowledges he must pay relocation costs.
City officials have informed Johnson of that obligation, but Supervising Deputy City Attorney Laura Lane said she is not aware that Johnson has acknowledged his responsibility.
Oakland officials are making $300,000 available to Coliseum Connections for emergency repairs along with associated expenses. Another $750,000 may be used to pay for relocation costs and expenses for tenants in affordable housing units.
Any money that Johnson gets will be contingent on his obligation to pay the relocation costs of tenants. Oakland may place a lien on his property if he takes any money and fails to pay the relocation costs. Other legal remedies may be available to the city, too.
More than one tenant of Coliseum Connections called into the city council meeting and asked to relocate rather than move back into the apartment building when it is repaired.
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"Just please help us relocate," said Andre and Essence, Coliseum Connections tenants, during the public comment period of the virtual meeting. The couple asked for a voucher to go somewhere else.
Damage to the apartment building was done mainly to the garage area, but tenants allege mold is now in the building as well. The building also sustained electrical damage.
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No permit has yet been issued by the city to repair the electrical system, chief building official Chris Ragland told the council.
UrbanCore is entering into contracts for repairs, which will be done by the end of March at the earliest, said Christina Mun, interim Director of Oakland's Housing and Community Development department.
"These tenants are entitled to direct payments from the landlord, which would enable them to choose their own apartment or hotel or whatever they choose," said City Councilmember Rebecca Kaplan, who helped write the ordinance that requires the payment of relocation costs.
The ordinance, called the Code Compliance Relocation Program, is Section 15.60 of the Oakland Municipal Code.
"A tenant may be eligible for relocation benefits if the City has declared the rental unit unsafe for human habitation or if the landlord is seeking to make repairs necessary to bring the rental unit up to code that cannot be made while the unit is occupied," according to a brochure from Oakland's Housing Resource Center.
Last week, the Oakland City Council authorized up to $2 million to pay for the hotel costs of the Coliseum Connections tenants. City officials expect the Federal Emergency Management Agency to reimburse the city.
Fifty-four households in the apartment building located at the corner of 71st Avenue and Shell Street pay market rate for their units while 54 pay below market rate. About two-thirds of the households have children.
A move of 60 days or longer can be considered a permanent relocation, according to the city. Households in studios or one-bedroom apartments are eligible for more than $7,000 in relocation benefits.
For the households in two-bedroom units, the relocation benefits exceed $9,000 and the benefits exceed $11,000 for households in apartments with three bedrooms or more.