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San Anselmo Town Council Considers Rent Control

May 4, 2022

San Anselmo Town Council Considers Rent Control

With the price of homes and rents skyrocketing, more people are making the difficult decision to leave Marin for cheaper pasture. In January, the Apartment List, an online apartment listing service, found Marin County rents were up more than 16% since last January.

Sadly, increasing rents and unjust evictions in one of the most expensive housing markets in the United States are annihilating the diversity of the community. It’s obvious that Marin must act, but solutions often prove divisive, as a recent meeting of the San Anselmo Town Council made apparent.

Since last October, organizers with the Marin Democratic Socialists of America have been urging local cities to pass rent control policies. They argue that rent control is a simple solution to end the mass exodus of Marin’s youth, seniors and essential workers, such as teachers, firefighters and store clerks. Right next door in San Francisco, rent control and just cause eviction protections have shielded many tenants from price increases and evictions for decades.

Under a rent control ordinance, the amount a landlord can increase the rent each year is capped, often at a rate tied to the increase in cost of living. Tenants can’t be evicted on the whim of a landlord. Just cause evictions are permitted for tenant lease violations and specific situations, such as the landlord moving into the building or the demolition of the building.

Even the State of California jumped on the rent control train when lawmakers passed AB 1482, the California Tenant Protection Act of 2019. It offers renters some protections; however, not enough, according to rent control advocates. One criticism of AB 1482 is that it is difficult to enforce.

Under AB 1482, rents could rise up to 10% annually based on the Consumer Price Index. And, thanks to a previous state law, none of the rental protections apply to the rentals of single-family homes, condos or buildings built after 1995.

Every weekend for six months, supporters of the Marin DSA’s campaign have gone door-to-door or set up tables in front of grocery stores in San Anselmo, Fairfax and other parts of Marin to discuss the issue with neighbors and gather petition signatures.

The campaigners have collected 1,500 signatures countywide in support of rent control and just cause evictions, more than 450 from Fairfax residents and 350 from San Anselmo folks. The results have been shared with the town councils in Fairfax and San Anselmo.

Fairfax council members agreed to hear a presentation from rent control supporters a few weeks ago. After the presentation, the council directed town staff to draft a report on rent stabilization ordinance. The Fairfax staff report, which is on the May 4 town council meeting agenda, contains three options and recommends a rent stabilization ordinance.

Twice in April, the rent control supporters attempted to solicit a similar outcome with the San Anselmo town council. People shared their personal experiences and those of friends and family who were forced to leave San Anselmo. Young people starting out in their careers, elderly residents on fixed incomes and low-income earners are most affected by rising rents and are the first to leave their community.

A case in point is Curt Ries, who grew up in San Anselmo and met his wife, Kyle Marie, at the local high school. The couple graduated and moved away due to cost-prohibitive rents. After a decade of working, the couple was finally able to return home to live in San Anselmo. Ries, who is now employed by San Anselmo’s public works department, is aware that his family’s living accommodations are precarious without the adoption of rent control and just cause eviction protections. That’s one of the reasons Ries and Kyle Marie are active members of the Marin Democratic Socialists of America.

“More than one-quarter of the town’s population are renters,” Ries said in an interview. “We feel a constant sense of anxiety and stress about being able to keep up with rent increases. And there are no just cause eviction protections. It’s hard to report black mold, poor maintenance and insects, when you can be asked to leave.”

In the April 12 council meeting, the supporters’ request to place rent control on a future agenda was shot down. During a meeting on April 26, open public comment took approximately an hour, with the majority of commenters asking for rent control to be placed on a future meeting agenda.

A discussion made it clear that San Anselmo’s five council members are divided on the issue. Mayor Alexis Fineman and Vice Mayor Steve Burdo said they were moved by the speakers’ stories and agreed to place rent control on an upcoming agenda. Neither Fineman or Burdo are landlords.

Councilmember Ford Greene also agreed. Councilmembers Brian Colbert and Eileen Burke refused.

However, it was the remarks made by Green, Colbert and Burke, all landlords according to recent economic disclosure forms, that disappointed rent control supporters.

Colbert admitted he had “heard a lot of stories tonight” and received email, but that he hadn’t heard any stories of people’s rent being raised in an egregious manner.

Perhaps Colbert missed Donna Nicoletti’s story about a landlord doubling her rent, or maybe he doesn’t consider a 100% increase egregious. Burke said she agreed with Colbert.

But it was Greene’s response that surprised some. Anyone familiar with the slogans on Greene’s website, including “Fighting for freedom of speech since 1952” and “Restore Public Trust. Respect the People’s Choice,” couldn’t understand why he chose to criticize a display of local democracy—citizens speaking out about an issue impacting them.

“Simply because I’m willing to have the discussion shouldn’t be interpreted that I’m going to agree or support,” Greene said. “Yes, there’s community outpouring; that’s one way to look at it. Another way to look at it is that it’s pretty coercive. We’re almost an hour and a quarter into our meeting, and we haven’t even gotten past public time. It’s very clear to me that if this isn’t agendized, every meeting we can expect what happened last meeting and this time. So, there is a certain coercive quality to that. I think the proponents ought to be aware that there is a certain coercion to it. Oftentimes that can backfire. But I’m not going to agree that necessarily there is going to be any sort of rent control in San Anselmo. I am willing to discuss it and talk about it. I don’t want in the future to have our meetings taken up with an hour and a quarter, an hour and a half worth of public comment forcing the issue.”

Apparently, a citizen exercising their right to speak at a council meeting can be perceived as a threat. Ries aptly summed up the likely reason for Colbert, Burke and Greene’s odd comments on the governmental process, rent control and just cause evictions.

“I will say anecdotally, through my experience canvassing, the only dedicated demographic that opposes rent control is landlords,” Ries said.

In the end, a vote of 3-2, with Fineman, Burdo and Greene assenting, has ensured that rent control will be on the future agenda of the San Anselmo Town Council.

On the Wild Side: WildCare cares for the wildlife

Isabella Cook

May 4, 2022

On the Wild Side: WildCare cares for the wildlife

Community brings to mind the image of family, friends and of people hurrying through their day-to-day lives around us.

But, to WildCare, community includes the natural wildlife that shares the dynamic landscapes of Marin County. WildCare, located in San Rafael, strives tirelessly to ensure all species can coexist, not just by treating over 3,500 sick or injured animals a year, but also by offering programs to educate children and adults to foster an understanding and appreciation for local wildlife.

By sharing knowledge and instructions on living peacefully with the animals who cohabit this scenic county alongside humans, and by advocating for better protection of wildlife and the remaining local open spaces, WildCare advocates for the animals of this community and acts as a voice for the creatures that cannot speak up for themselves.

“The two primary sides of our facilities here are the hospital and the educational programs,” said Alison Hermance, director of communications at WildCare. “I love that the programs we offer help people to have a better understanding of the boundaries between wildlife and people. All of the programs work together with that goal in mind.”

Upon entering the WildCare facility, one is immediately greeted by the level stare of a red-tailed hawk, a curious quail named Calli, and the intense scrutiny of Vladimir, the turkey vulture.

“In the summer, we have kids come and make treat-filled toys for Vladimir,” said Hermance. “We tried to release Vlad, and he wanted nothing to do with it or the other turkey vultures.”

Further in the facility, a pool with a pair of pelicans, Baja and Marshall, offers a playful dynamic. The older, brown pelican mostly minds his business, while the young American white pelican causes mischief and nibbles at his companion’s feet when passing by.

Mohave, the desert tortoise, rests in a bath and will soon be indulged in some of his favorite snacks, including dandelions, jícama, rose petals, watermelon and cucumber. Trill, a western screech owl, rests on Dr. Ryane Logsdon’s gloved hand.

Contrary to the name of her species, Trill does not screech so much as let out pleasant coos and trills. She suffered neurological damage that effectively left her blind and unable to survive in the wild. These animals, fondly dubbed “animal ambassadors” by WildCare, are local wildlife that were too injured or domesticated to return to the wild. While healing and rehabilitation are the primary goals of WildCare, they also provide a sanctuary to animals such as these, who would not survive if released back into their natural habitats. Instead, the animal ambassadors live on premises, receive top-of-the-line care, and act as living links to nature, for visitors to stop by and appreciate.

“We do as many reunites, returning animals to their natural homes and families, as we can,” said Hermance. “We had a really great reunite of a baby squirrel to its mother a couple of days ago. She picked him up and carried him right back up the tree and into the nest.”

While the front of WildCare is dedicated to the noble cause of educating and connecting visitors through the animal ambassadors, the back of the premises plays host to an extensive array of sick and injured animals in various stages of healing and recovery. There, they nurse everything from baby squirrels and raccoons to birds, to the occasional coyote, fawn, and, currently, a whole slew of opossums.

“We’re having a bit of an opossum apocalypse—an ‘opocalypse,’ really,” joked Hermance.

WildCare offers assistance to mammals, birds, reptiles and amphibians in need, in their wildlife hospital. Alongside the intensive care veterinary unit, led by veterinarian Dr. Juliana Sorem, where they attend to animals in a triage fashion, the back consists of winding hallways that lead to rooms specially designed for the care of the animals inhabiting them. One such room offers hospice to a baby squirrel that is hand-fed formula through the day.

Another room, warmer than the rest, houses countless birds at various stages of development, all of whom are hand-fed mealworms on a structured, quite literally timer-based, schedule by hospital manager in the birdroom, Lucy Stevenot. As her colleague Hermance admits, “I’m a total ‘bird nerd.'”

As WildCare is the only wildlife hospital in Marin County, they accept patients from other Bay Area counties, especially San Francisco, and have never turned away a patient in distress. The people at WildCare use the touching stories of their patients to educate people as to the impact they and their actions have on the local wildlife. Their director of animal care is Melanie Piazza.

“About 90% of the patients we receive come in because of negative interactions with humans,” said Hermance. “They have been orphaned or injured by people or their pets, not by natural causes.”

WildCare was notably featured in a National Geographic article, which served to highlight the number of animals killed annually by domestic house cats. In just one year, 232 animals died, and the bodies were kept as an effort to illustrate just how much damage is done by outdoor cats per year.

“We did a project in 2019 and collected and froze the bodies of every wildlife patient that was killed by a cat—the bodies were saved and photographed,” said Hermance. She provides her own felines with a “catio,” a fully enclosed outdoor extension, which allows her pets to live a full, enriched life, with access to the outdoors and without risking their lives or the lives of the wildlife around them in the process.

“Our message is really getting out,” said Hermance.

Nearly 200 WildCare volunteers give four-plus hours a week of their time, to help the wild animal patients and teach Bay Area schoolchildren and adults how to live well with wildlife through a complete cycle of respectful, practical and humane programs in wildlife rehabilitation and environmental education. Volunteers also provide the majority of the day-to-day care of the injured and orphaned wildlife patients in the wildlife hospital.

“This organization just attracts the most amazing people,” said Hermance. “It’s the best thing in the world because every day is different, every patient is different, and it’s just a fabulous place. I believe so strongly that we do incredible work here and make that boundary between people and wildlife more apparent.”

WildCare’s 2022 budget is $2.75 million. They receive no ongoing support from governmental agencies, but rely on memberships, donations, fundraising and volunteer hours to serve the community.

“I, like many people that moved up to Marin, wanted something to get involved with, and a boyfriend at the time said I should consider working at WildCare,” explained Hermance. “So, I became a part-time volunteer coordinator. I grew up in a place without a wildlife hospital, and the value of having one in the community is incomparable, indescribable, really. The relief I feel, to this day, in knowing an animal will get the best care and be released is incredible. I always loved animals, and the feeling of complete helplessness when you can’t save one was what made me want to contribute to WildCare.”

WildCare is working on plans to build a new facility at their current location in San Rafael, though it will take some time and a lot of planning to take the first steps in that direction.

“WildCare has been a community institute for years and years,” Hermance explained. “The value of this place as a fun and free place to bring kids, plus the animal hospital, makes WildCare a true community fixture. It’s such a huge community that cares about animals and that the relationship between humans and animals is harmonious.”