San Francisco mayoral candidate Daniel Lurie, heir to the Levi Strauss fortune, has clarified that he doesn’t want further rent control.
In an interview with KQED “Forum” host Alexis Madrigal, Lurie suggested that, if elected mayor, he would veto plans by the Board of Supervisors to expand rent control to 16,000 more units, the San Francisco Standard reported.
Madrigal asked Lurie, in response to a caller’s question: If elected, would he veto a new law passed by the Board of Supervisors to expand rent control?
Lurie danced around saying “yes” to a veto, but did say he believes rent control policies should remain in their present form. In other words: “yes.”
“I believe we should continue the rent control policies that are in place now,” Lurie said. “I believe rent control has had a very positive impact, but expanding it is not something I’m considering at this time.”
This week, San Francisco passed an ordinance sponsored by Supervisor Aaron Peskin to move the city’s rent control cutoff date to 1994, from 1979, if a majority of California voters approve Proposition 33 next month.
Prop. 33 would allow cities in the state to expand their rent control measures, which are currently limited by the Costa Hawkins Rental Housing Act.
In San Francisco, the proposed rent control expansion would add 16,000 units built between 1979 and 1994 to the rent control registry.
Peskin, who is running for mayor, initially proposed expanding rent control to all buildings built through November of this year. But under pressure from housing activists, labor groups and developers, he scaled back the bill at the eleventh hour to a cut-off date in 1994.
In San Francisco, where most residents are renters, opposing tenant protections is politically risky, according to the Standard. Rent control is a tentpole of city politics.
Lurie has also been difficult to corner on details, in what may be a campaign tactic to draw second- and third-ranked votes.
Former mayor Mark Farrell, campaigning to retake his seat, opposes expanding the rent cap and has said so on the debate stage, according to the newspaper. Mayor London Breed supports expanding rent control as long as it doesn’t interfere with new housing construction.
Lurie has voiced opposition to Prop. 33, arguing the statewide rent control measure would impede the construction of new housing.
Opponents of Peskin’s first proposal, like Lurie, say rent caps could have a chilling effect on new housing development.
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“The point is, can we count on Daniel Lurie to be a supporter of an expansion of rent control, even something as modest as 30 years back?” Peskin asked. “The answer is no.”
A second reading of Peskin’s rent control ordinance will go to Breed for her signature or veto.
— Dana Bartholomew