Five Percent Rent Cap May Ease Tenants' Pain

At Monday night’s Township Council meeting, the recently introduced “unconscionable rent control ordinance” generated praise and thanks from local rent control advocates who said it could help stabilize Bloomfield’s economy by keeping renters from moving out of town.

The ordinance calls for a five percent cap on rent increases, a measure that would prevent landlords from imposing “unconscionable” hikes onto tenants.

Kevin Lindahl, Vice President of the Bloomfield Tenant’s Association, thanked the council for supporting tenants’ rights by voting on the ordinance.  He praised Councilman-at-Large Bernard Hamilton for moving the motion forward “and getting us across the finish line.”

Calling it “the first legislation in twenty years to give the tenants a real chance at affordable living in Bloomfield,” Lindahl said, “By capping rents at five percent, tenants will not only be able to stay in their homes but will be able to build up a savings, and spend that money here in town on businesses in Bloomfield.  It’s good for businesses, it’s good for tenants and it’s good for the town.”

He concluded, “I want to you guys to know you’re really making a difference.  I wish you could see the looks on the tenants’ faces . . . We’ve had our disagreements on the past but in the end you did the right thing.  I want to thank you all for doing the right thing.”

Applause followed his remarks. 

After the meeting, Hamilton spoke to Patch about the ordinance, saying there was an effort to move it forward as quickly as possible. 

“We appointed a committee to look at some rent leveling issues but the tenants needed some relief [in a hurry],” he said.  “Hopefully we’ll try to get this passed before the Christmas holiday.”

Hamilton acknowledged the truth of some of Lindahl’s points.   

“We’re trying to make it fair for everybody and keep residents [from moving out],” Hamilton admitted.  “The issue of the businesses is factual.  It affects businesses because if people are paying rent they’re part of the community.  It goes toward the economic development of the township.”

Before the ordinance passes, he said, "the [township's] law department wants to look at it to make sure everything is sound.  We’re not trying to reinvent the wheel, we’re just trying to let the public know, ‘there’s support for you’.”

The five percent rent cap, he said, would guarantee legal protection in the event of landlord noncompliance. 

“This way, renters have the recourse to petition the courts [while holding their rent in escrow],”  he said.  “So far, this has been the best resolution we can come up with.”

Other News

• Appointment of the Restaurant Week Committee

The committee, engaged to visit every sit-down restaurant in Bloomfield in preparation for Restaurant Week in February, was sworn in by Councilman-at-Large Hamilton (who was presiding in Mayor McCarthy's absence.)

• Presentation of Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month

Upon declaring November 2011 Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month in Bloomfield township, Hamilton, reading a statement, said Pancreatic Cancer has a 94% mortality rate within five years of diagnosis, is considered incurable and affects a disproportionately high number of African Americans in the US.

Hamilton's statement was followed by a presentation from Michael Weinstein of the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network.  Weinstein, a pancreatic cancer survivor and advocate for increased research, thanked the township of Bloomfield for the proclamation and for its support in the past.

“The one way we’re going to make any progress against this disease is through awareness,” he said, noting that it affects all types of people, not just “celebrities like Steve Jobs, the Nobel Laureate Dr. Stienman . . . and Patrick Swayze.”

For more information on the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network's New Jersey Affiliate, go to: www.pancan.org or call: 973-378-2444.