In case you have yet to hear the news, the red tag ordinance, which many of us have come to refer to as the “anti-slumlord ordinance,” has at last been passed into law.
By way of reminder, the idea of enacting such an ordinance was introduced to the Council by One San Mateo shortly after the horrendous conditions at 314 E. Poplar came to light in the Fall of 2017. The ordinance expands on the benefits provided by state law and creates penalties and enforcement mechanisms that give the requirements real teeth.
The Daily Journal has a convenient write-up on the law and its passage here:
Kudos to everyone who helped sustain the advocacy required to get this ordinance across the finish line. At our regular One San Mateo meeting last Wednesday evening, we celebrated the red tag victory by toasting with red punch. Cheers!
On another positive front, we have heard rumblings suggesting that our advocacy with the Peninsula Health Care District may finally be cracking the resistance of the thus far highly intransigent PHCD board. The chair of the board has given indication that the original developer for the project has now been instructed to reach out to affordable housing developers to explore the idea of partnering with them. What this will amount to is still to be determined, so we need to keep applying pressure to show that the community insists that this land should be used not for market-rate housing but rather to address our urgent affordable housing need.
Both of these developments are salve to the souls of all of us who care so deeply about creating a society that is just and humane. The work involved can be enormous, but with persistence we can achieve progress.
One San Mateo 