10/24/1979 Meeting - Laserfiche WebLink

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. Teresa Bishow, an Outreach Coordinator with the West University Neighbors, said that the problem and concern at the Patterson Towers was first e discussed in September. The neighborhood group voted to express its concern about the condominium conversion and she added that the residents of Patterson Towers have added a great deal of stability to the neighbor- hood. Some of these residents have shown much leadership. There is not enough available housing in that neighborhood if some of those tenants need to move, she said. Carl Hosticka, 2420 Emerald, Public Affairs Professor at the University of Oregon, feels that, if the City attempts to relieve the situation by providing moving assistance, it will encourage other developers to convert more units to condominiums. The City will be saying that it will stand ready so the developers need not worry. He feels that the social disrup- tion of the tenant should be the responsibility of the developer, not the taxpayer. He felt that a moratorium was necessary to develop a policy. John VanLandingham, Legal Aid, spoke against the staff report, as he felt that the City has the legal authority to impose a moratorium. In reference to staff's opposition to a moratorium because it is a selective mechanism, he said Council has acted similarly before. Without a mora- torium, he said, there could be delays anyway because of financing problems. A moratorium would protect people during that period. As to any legal risks, he would like to hear the City Attorney's response. He also pointed out that the vacancy rate in 1978 was below one percent. In May 1979 it was 1.9 percent. The Metro Update Plan shows it has declined significantly. He feels displaced seniors will have trouble finding e places to live. He said he also feels that buying a condominium is more costly than renting. People buying condominiums will be those with higher incomes. Jean Beachdel, 1309 Willamette, Senior Law Service Program, attested to the trauma that the seniors will experience. She believes there will be numerous relocations taking place if condominium conversion is not regu- lated. She added that habit patterns are difficult for seniors to break. Sometimes they do not resume normalcy at all after a relocation. It is a very serious matter, and she feels that in many cases it would prematurely force seniors into nursing homes. Jo Lu Roberts, 2775 Friendly, supports the moratorium. She feels the City is creating a drastic situation and that it should get out of the policy of dictating people's choice of housing. She feels that HCC has discouraged elderly housing in the past. Curtis Irving, 2594 Pierce Street, a local real estate agent representing the Boise firm that is purchasing the two high-rise buildings, said that Oregon has good laws regulating condominium conversions. It has recently been further refined in terms of how much notice is to be given, the kind of notice, what kind of information should go out on purchase options, e 58b 10/24/79--8