HomeMy WebLinkAboutA036 - Letter from Mayor to City Council dated August 1, 2018 - VETO ArVi�,
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Smart Choice
August 1, 2018
Ames City Council
515 Clark Ave.
Ames, IA 50010
Re: "Rental Cap/Hardship Exception Ordinance"
Council Members,
We all have labored for many hours on the rental ordinances over the past seven months,
and five of you for well over a year. I appreciate your hard work and dedication to
representing the neighborhoods and the entire Ames community. So the following decision
has been made after a lot of reflection and is not made lightly.What follows is with respect
to the "Rental Cap/Hardship Exception Ordinance" Council passed Tuesday night July 31St
While I do not necessarily agree with absolutely every"point" of the "Hardship Ordinance",
I was in general agreement with what had been prepared and included in the Council
Packet. However, on Tuesday night, when the "definition" of a bona fide rental was added
in 13.300 (10) v. stating in part that a "bona fide rental includes an owner-occupied dwelling
with a non-owner occupant who pays rent" I believe that the spirit and principle of what
Council has worked on for months was compromised.
It was my understanding that Council,via the 13.300 (10) Rental Concentration Cap
Exception, was intending to accommodate
• a few property owners who have been working to convert their properties into
rentals (hence the building permit clause) prior to the moratorium and rental cap
going into effect and/or
• those who had intended on turning their properties into rentals sometime in the in
the future (as non-owner occupied rentals) the opportunity to do so, but it needed
to occur now.
In lieu thereof, by defining"bona fide rentals" as described above, it turns this exception
into an "immediate opportunity" vs. addressing a "hardship condition".
As the amended Ordinance now reads
• any owner occupied property owner can procure a LOC now (albeit going through
the prescribed process and by September 1, 2018)
Mayor's Office 515.239.5105 main 515 Clark Ave.,P.O.Box 811
515.239.5142 fax Ames,IA 50010
www.CityofAmes.org
Page 2
• remain a homeowner occupying the property for years,
• as long as they have at least a non-owner occupant paying rent (as long as they
continue to comply with the stipulations contained therein) as a tenant.
On the basis they meet the above general criteria, they receive and retain a LOC, for as long
as they like. Ultimately they can turn it into a non-owner occupied rental at their discretion
and on their own time frame. This isn't really a "hardship situation".
This is where I believe the principle deviation occurred and is inconsistent with what
Council has been endeavoring to accomplish via these Ordinances (Rental Cap and
"Hardship").
Additionally,the Code already allows a homeowner to have one "renter" (non-owner
occupant who pays rent)without holding a LOC. So in one section of the Code it allows a
homeowner to rent to one person without a LOC, and now with the Tuesday night
amendment, the same situation being allowed to have a LOC in a Rental Cap neighborhood.
In my discussion with Mark Lambert today, I have confirmed that the only practical way for
me to request or make any changes at this point (the Ordinance passed on third reading) is
unfortunately for me to veto the entire "Hardship Ordinance."A mayor cannot"line item
veto" select portions of an Ordinance.
In light of this limited option, and with the objective of maintaining fidelity to what I
believe Council has been striving to achieve in these Ordinances, I am vetoing the
Ordinance that was passed Tuesday night.
1 want to stress once again that 1 am supportive of the "Hardship Ordinance"as was
contained in the Council Packet last Tuesday night(pre-amendment) and if that was/is
passed in the future by Council, 1 would have/will sign it.
I have taken the liberty of asking Mark Lambert to prepare a Memo for Council what
options are available going forward with the Ordinance now vetoed.
I continue to be proud to serve together with each one of you on Council. We have worked
together on many issues this year. I am confident that we will continue to do so on this
Ordinance and that we will arrive a mutually agreeable resolution.
Respectfully submitted,
John A. Haila
Mayor