Mayor Katjana Ballantyne and the City of Somerville invite community members to provide public comments about rent stabilization at a third and final listening session. The City hosted two listening sessions last month and is now scheduling a third session for anyone who was unable to attend earlier or has additional comments. This session will prioritize individuals who have not previously provided comments.

The final listening session is on Tuesday, September 12, from 5:30 to 9:30 p.m. The meeting will be hosted in a hybrid format, with the opportunity to participate in person at the Armory or remotely on Zoom. This session will be recorded and posted on voice.somervillema.gov/adtf. The City has also extended the written comment period through September 10.

Background
As part of ongoing efforts to continue to reduce displacement and increase housing affordability, the City’s Anti-Displacement Task Force (ADTF) is drafting a rent stabilization law, and community members are invited to share their input on what should be included.

Rent stabilization is a legal strategy that aims to keep housing affordable. It includes laws that prevent rents from rising too quickly and laws that offer protection against wrongful evictions. It also includes considerations for property owners, such as what types of buildings are exempt from the law and parameters regarding when a unit that formerly qualified for rent stabilization could potentially remove its restrictions.

Somerville’s Proposal
The ADTF will use the feedback received at the listening sessions to help inform the proposed legislation draft.

Note that the City is already committed to submitting draft legislation to the State. Comments should address specific elements of Somerville’s proposed new rent stabilization rules, which, if approved by the City Council and the State Legislature, would become Somerville law. Some example considerations are:

• Tools to ensure sustainably affordable rental prices:

  • Should rent stabilization take effect starting the day the law is passed? If not, when should it take effect? (Example: One year before the day the law is passed.)

  • Should income be used to decide who lives in rent-stabilized units? (Example: Low-income tenants prioritized over higher earners.)

  • How much can landlords raise rent when a lease is renewed?

  • Who should make sure the rent stabilization law is followed? The City Council? A new board?
    
    

• Tools to ensure housing production is not slowed down:

  • Should the rent increase limit still apply if a tenant moves out of an apartment, or can a landlord raise it more?

  • Should property owners be allowed to raise rents if they improve the unit or if taxes or utilities go up?

  • Should anyone be exempt from the rent stabilization law?

  • Should the rent stabilization law apply to new buildings?

The ADTF will then submit the draft law to the City and the City Council, and then to the state legislature, where the City will formally ask the State for permission to enact the law (known as a “home rule petition”).

How to Provide Comment

• Register & Speak at a Listening Session:
  • Advance registration is required to speak at the session.
    • Sign up to provide comments at this link: https://forms.gle/RqKPc2T43Y7oL41q6
  • Sign up by Sunday, September 10, at 5:30 p.m. at voice.somervillema.gov/adtf or by calling 311 (617-666-3311).
  • Registration is only required for those providing comments. If you do not register ahead of time but wish to speak, we will do our best to accommodate you but cannot guarantee you will have an opportunity to do so.
• Submit Written Comment: Written comments will also be accepted until midnight on Sunday, September 10, by email to adtf@somervillema.gov or by mail at:

City of Somerville, Attn: Luis Quizhpe
Office of Community Development and Strategic Planning
93 Highland Ave., Somerville, MA 02143

How to Attend the Listening Session

• Attend in person at the Armory, 191 Highland Ave.
• Join online: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86840930785?pwd=d1k3RGF0bExyZ2xEZy9USHhpY1hHQT09
• Join by phone:
  • Dial +1 646-931-3860
  • Enter Webinar ID: 868 4093 0785
  • Enter Passcode: 464941

Persons with disabilities who need auxiliary aids and services for effective communication (i.e., CART, ASL), written materials in alternative formats, or reasonable modifications in policies and procedures in order to access the programs, activities, and meetings of the City of Somerville should please contact Adrienne Pomeroy in advance at 617-625-6600 x 2059 or apomeroy@somervillema.gov.

Interpretation into any language is available upon advance request (at least seven days in advance) by contacting the SomerViva Office of Immigrant Affairs at somervillema.gov/ContactSomerViva or calling 311 at 617-666-3311.