Low-Income Tenants Get Eviction Reprieve

Tenants living in federally subsidized housing received a temporary reprieve Friday when the owner of six buildings in Los Angeles agreed to keep the units in the program until a court hearing can be held.

Under an agreement reached in Los Angeles Superior Court, the six buildings that make up L.A. Pro VI will remain in the Section 8 program until at least Sept. 27, when a judge will hear the case. The buildings are in South Los Angeles, some near USC.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Reginald A. Dunn did not grant the city’s request for a temporary restraining order, but city attorneys and officials said they were pleased with the agreement.

For the moment, “they’re not going to evict; there will be no change in rents,” said Cecilia Estolano, special assistant city attorney. “We accomplished what we hoped to achieve through the temporary restraining order.”

Scott Chaplan, an attorney representing HAP Partners V, which owns four of the buildings, said worries that tenants would lose their homes are misplaced.

“Nobody wants ... to get rid of low-income tenants,” he said. “They want them to stay. It’s their intention to continue to offer low-income housing.”

The contract with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, set to expire today, has been extended to Oct. 31, officials said.

Requests for injunctions involving owners of Sun Valley and Venice apartments in the Section 8 program will be heard Tuesday, Estolano said.

Earlier this week, Mayor James K. Hahn and Los Angeles City Atty. Rocky Delgadillo announced that the city was filing for temporary restraining orders and injunctions against several apartment owners who were attempting to remove their buildings from Section 8.

City officials argue that the owners failed to abide by a state law that requires extensive notification to tenants and several public entities before removing buildings from the program. Notification allows the city time to take measures to preserve the units as affordable housing.

The issue has been a key concern for Hahn, who urged the legal action, which also won unanimous support from the Los Angeles City Council.

“We’re excited that the owners came to the table, and we’re going to be able to work with them to protect the tenants,” said Sarah Dusseault, assistant deputy mayor for economic development, referring to the L.A. Pro VI buildings. “The most important thing is that owners need to know that they need to include the city in their decisions to opt out of Section 8. We want the notice as required by state law.”

The city attorney’s office withdrew its request for a temporary restraining order against the owners of Arminta North and South in Sun Valley because tenants there have received enhanced Section 8 vouchers that will allow them to remain in their apartments, Estolano said.

The contract for the Venice building has been extended until December. The city’s request for injunctions, however, remains in place.

“We’re still going to compel those owners to give us proper notice under the law,” Estolano said. “This is about preserving our affordable-housing stock.”