NBOA Zoom Call: Update on Mayor Johnson’s Proposed “Protecting Renters Ordinance” and How to Oppose It

Noon – 1:15pm

TLG Properties

Moderator

Joe Moore Strategies

Panelist

Sphere Public Relations

Panelist

Sparrow Public Affairs

Panelist

If adopted, the ordinance would make sweeping and damaging changes to Chicago’s Residential Landlord Tenant Ordinance. These changes would make it harder for responsible housing providers to manage their properties, address problem tenants, and maintain safe, high-quality housing. A summary of some of the most harmful provisions appears at the bottom of this email.

A competing ordinance, the “Fair and Accountable Illinois Rental Ordinance” (FAIR), has been introduced by the City Council’s Budget Accountability Coalition, a group of approximately 22 aldermen who have consistently challenged the Mayor. While FAIR is far less harmful than the Mayor’s proposal, it still includes provisions that raise serious concerns for housing providers. FAIR may be considered by the City Council’s Zoning Committee, chaired by Ald. Gilbert Villegas, one of the coalition’s leaders, at its next meeting on September 23, the day before the City Council meeting.

The Neighborhood Building Owners Alliance (NBOA) and our industry partners are fighting back. We are meeting directly with aldermen, issuing Calls to Action, and executing an aggressive social media strategy to make clear that this ordinance would harm housing providers, tenants, and neighborhoods alike. Our efforts are strengthened every day by the thousands of housing providers and community stakeholders who understand what is at stake.

At the same time, we are working closely with our City Council allies to address the troubling provisions in FAIR and ensure that any alternative proposal protects both tenants and the housing providers who make neighborhood rental housing possible.

NBOA is sponsoring an important informational meeting to brief you on the status of both proposals and explain exactly how you can help defeat the Mayor’s deeply harmful ordinance. NBOA Board member Eugene Lee, Managing Partner of TLG Properties, will lead a panel discussion with NBOA lobbyists Joe Moore and Adriann Murawski, and publicist Myk Snider.

Please make every effort to attend. Your voice matters, and your participation is essential to stopping this proposal.

Sincerely,

Mike Glasser

President

Neighborhood Building Owners Alliance

Mayor Johnson’s PRO would impose burdensome new regulations on housing providers and limit our ability to operate effectively, maintain our properties, and respond to real problems in our buildings. Below are some of its most onerous provisions:

·      “Just Cause Eviction:” PRO will give tenants a perpetual right to renew their lease if they pay rent on time and comply with the lease agreement. This would strip housing providers of the ability to non-renew a lease unless they prove in court that a tenant has materially violated the lease. In practical terms, housing providers would be forced into costly, time-consuming eviction proceedings before they could remove problem tenants who disrupt buildings or threaten the stability of a property.

·      Relocation assistance: PRO would require housing providers to pay tenants thousands of dollars in relocation assistance simply to regain possession of their own property, creating another costly mandate that will ultimately make it harder to provide affordable neighborhood housing.

·      Rental registry: PRO would create a new City bureaucracy with the power to investigate and penalize alleged RLTO violations, funded by an annual fee of up to $60 per unit imposed on housing providers.

·      Ban move-in fees and cap security deposits: PRO would ban move-in fees and other fees labeled as “junk fees,” while capping security deposits at one month’s rent. These restrictions would reduce flexibility, increase compliance burdens, and make it more difficult for housing providers to manage risk responsibly.

You need not wait until our Zoom call on September 1 to register your objection to PRO.



Click below to take action. It should only take you a few minutes, though we urge you to express your sentiments on the message that we already crafted.

Edgewater Uptown Builders Association (EUBA)

Greater Austin Development Association (GADA)

Lakeview Developers Association (LDA)

Latino Real Estate Investors Council (LREIC)

Lincoln Park Builders of Chicago (LPBC)

North Suburban Housing Providers (NSHP)

Northwest Side Building Coalition (NSBC)

Rogers Park Builders Group (RPBG)

South Side Community Investment Association (SSCIA)

Southside Builders Association (SSBA)

Southwest Housing Providers Group (SWHPG)

West Suburban Building Owners Association (WSBOA)

Neighborhood Building Owners Alliance is a 501(c)4 tax-exempt organization.

Accordingly, contributions are not deductible as charitable donations.