Pomona : Tenants Seek Rent Freeze

Residents of a Pomona mobile home park, who unsuccessfully sought a rent freeze last year to stop their landlord from raising their rent by 50%, urged the City Council again this week to impose a moratorium to block another round of rent hikes.

The council took no action, although some members said they are willing to consider rent control.

Alan Cartnal, co-chairman of the tenants association at Pomona Mobilehome Park, said rents, now $347 a month, will be raised to as much as $440 on Jan. 1. He asked the council to impose a moratorium to give tenants time to seek a ballot measure to regulate rate increases.

Councilman Willie E. White called the park owner a “rent-gouger,” but Mayor Donna Smith said the city should not impose rent control on its own. If there is going to be rent control, she said, it should be done on a countywide, if not statewide, basis.

Dave Deutch, assistant property manager for owner Alan Alevy, said most tenants will pay $382 a month, not the $440 reported by Cartnal. The lower rate is available to tenants who have long-term leases and agree to give up legal claims against the park.