Rental Housing Board to Select New Meeting Location as Council Chamber Becomes Unavailable

The Pasadena Rental Housing Board is scheduled to consider a resolution Thursday that would amend its 2026-27 meeting schedule and designate a new meeting location, because the City Council Chambers are no longer available for the Board’s use.

The Rent Stabilization Department recommends that the Board adopt a resolution designating one of the options presented as its meeting location, commencing on Oct. 1. The Board’s own Chapter 3 regulations require it to establish a regular meeting schedule annually, including the time and place of its meetings, and the City Charter gives the Board authority to establish rules and regulations for administration and enforcement of the Charter’s rent control and just cause eviction protections. The vote will set where the Board’s meetings are held on the first and third Thursdays of each month — and because there is currently no cost for use of the Council Chambers, the Board’s selection of any of the new locations would likely result in an increased cost.

The first option is the Robinson Park Recreation Center Auditorium, 1081 N. Fair Oaks Ave., the site named in the regular meeting schedule the Board first established on May 24, 2023. That site has conflicts on six regular meeting dates between October and June: Oct. 15, Nov. 5, Nov. 19, April 1, June 3 and June 17. Staff identified an added cost of $38 per hour per staff member at the site if the Board meets past the center’s 8 p.m. closing time.

The second option is Room 211 in the Upper-Level Conference Center at the Pasadena Convention Center, 300 E. Green St. The Convention Center has no Thursday availability on several dates, which would move some meetings to other days of the week and to different dates. Available dates at the site include Wednesday, Nov. 4; Wednesday, Feb. 3; Feb. 25; March 11; Friday, March 26; Wednesday, April 7; April 22; and Tuesday, June 22. The estimated total cost is $1,668.67, including $200 per meeting for the basic room, a food and beverage estimate of $1,200 per meeting for 15 persons, an additional $126.67 fee for a second meal room and a required guest services attendant at $35.50 per hour with a four-hour minimum. The room cost would increase with the amount of services needed, such as tables, chairs and tablecloths. Parking is available at $18, and street parking is not optimal.

The third option, the Arroyo Room at Brookside, 1133 Rosemont Ave., has no availability restrictions and capacity for 60 people. It would cost $350 for five hours per meeting, plus a minimum food and beverage spend of $500 to $1,000, subject to negotiation and approval, for an estimated total of $850 to $1,350 per meeting. There is no parking cost, though the room offers the smallest square footage of all the options.

The fourth option is the second floor of the Public Works Building at City Yards, 233 W. Mountain St. Because it is a City facility, there would be no reservation or food and beverage costs, and the room is similar in size to the Robinson Park Recreation Center Auditorium. Visitor parking and street parking are available. The only limitation is on Dec. 3, when the room is not available until 5 p.m. Staff described the site as appearing to be the most cost-effective option, though staff will be required to allow entrance into the building, which is officially closed after 6 p.m.

A fifth option would allow the Board to adopt a hybrid of the available locations. For example, where a location is not available on specific dates, the Board could hold special meetings at one of the other locations identified.

Draft versions of Resolution No. RHB-2026-15 have been prepared for each of the four specific sites. Designating any of the options may increase costs to the budget. For example, staff said there would be increased costs for Parks and Recreation staff required to maintain the facilities during meeting time, charged to the budgets of the Pasadena Rental Housing Board, the Rent Stabilization Department or both.

The Board has changed its meeting arrangements before. After starting with meetings on the second and fourth Wednesday of the month, it moved to the first and third Thursday of the month on July 24, 2024. On June 5, 2025, the Board established its schedule at the Pasadena City Hall Council Chamber, 100 N. Garfield Ave., Room S249, and on June 4, it again set the first and third Thursday of the month at 6 p.m. in the City Council Chambers.

Since its first meeting on May 24, 2023, the Board has established regulations covering its own rules, just cause for eviction, the petition process, hearing procedures, upward adjustment of rent, annual general adjustments, rental registration, security deposits, and anti-harassment and anti-retaliation. The Board has also amended its regulations through special meetings in response to the Eaton Fire emergency and on appeal hearings, and it recently amended its regulations to allow appeal hearings to be heard at a special meeting. The only remaining chapter regulations are Chapter 1: Purpose, Chapter 2: Definitions and Chapter 3: Standing Committees.

The Board’s priority topics are egregious habitability violations; rental registry regulations and online portal improvements; indoor heat; Chapter 3 standing committees; limiting public comment; liability of new landlords on rent rollback and registration fees; community outreach; and hiring a Board staff person who reports to the City Manager and works for the Board on non-department related work. Matters currently in process include penalty fees for Charter violations other than registration; substantial compliance and amendments to Chapter 8 for annual adjustments related to rent increases; regulations for repairs and improvements of rental units to ensure the least amount of disruption for tenants; Vega adjustment examples; Chapter 3 appeal record publication requirements; Board member compensation; adding a director update to the Board agenda; a habitability plan; junk fees; right to counsel; small landlord issues; training the Board on legal action against bad actors; adding LLC information to the Rental Registry; and placing a lien on a property or other enforcement measures.

Staff also recommends that the Board find the action exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act under the common sense exemption.

The Pasadena Rental Housing Board is scheduled to meet at 6 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 17, in the Council Chamber at Pasadena City Hall, 100 N. Garfield Ave., Room S249, in Pasadena. For more information call (626) 744-4124 or visit https://www.cityofpasadena.net/commissions/agendas/.