Labor, religious leaders square off over City Hall’s affordable housing rules

Good morning, and welcome to L.A. on the Record — our City Hall newsletter. It’s Dakota Smith, with help from David Zahniser, bringing you the latest on all things local government.

Religious leaders in L.A. were thrilled when the city’s Planning Department started work on a proposal several years ago to encourage churches, synagogues and other faith-based groups to build affordable housing.

The proposal, passed by the Planning Commission last month, would allow those groups to build multi-unit affordable housing on their parking lots or other parts of their properties, even in neighborhoods zoned for single family homes.

The proposal is similar to a new state law authored by state Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) targeting faith-based groups. But there are some key differences: L.A. wouldn’t mandate that construction workers receive union-level pay, known as “prevailing wage” and, on larger projects, health care and other benefits.

And while Wiener’s law allows for the quick government approval of all faith-based developments where every unit is considered affordable, the city’s proposal lowers that threshold to 80% of units.

The city was attempting to give more financial flexibility to faith-based groups, some of which are struggling because of a drop-off in attendance following the pandemic.

Now, amid a lobbying push by labor, the city proposal may effectively be killed before it goes to the City Council for a vote.

A motion put forward this week by City Councilmember Tim McOsker and six other council members seeks to ensure that faith-based groups stick to the requirements in the state law.

The motion instructs the Planning Department and other city agencies to suggest language that “fully incorporates the labor standards and the affordability requirements” of Wiener’s law, which went into effect Jan. 1.

A representative for the Planning Department declined to comment on the motion.

The Western Regional Council of Carpenters, which represents workers in Southern California and the western U.S., registered with the city earlier this year to fight the city plan, city filings show.

Among those representing the group on the matter is lobbyist Rick Jacobs, a former consultant to then-Mayor Eric Garcetti. Jacobs, whose alleged sexual harassment of a LAPD officer triggered a lawsuit and a $1.8 million settlement, kept a lower profile at one point but is now a regular presence at City Hall.

Jacobs attended recent parties in the building for new City Council President Marqueece Harris-Dawson and outgoing president Paul Krekorian.

United Brotherhood of Carpenters Western District Vice President Pete Rodriguez told The Times that his group has been a vocal advocate for “swift local implementation of state laws,” including Wiener’s law.

“We know that faith leaders and their congregants stand with us in working to end the exploitation that causes fully half of California’s construction workforce to depend on public assistance,” said Rodriguez. “If we want to end homelessness, we must build more housing, end worker exploitation and build up our middle class.”

Pastor Martin Porter, who leads Quinn African Methodist Episcopal in Moreno Valley, predicted that the 100% affordability requirement would effectively limit churches to partnering with large developers who use tax credits.

“The motion disincentivizes affordable housing on church-owned land,” said Porter, who heads a development company that partners with churches. “It also punishes churches, squeezing their margins of profit and their hope for some back end dividend and income.”

Pastor John Oh, project manager of faith in housing at community organization L.A. Voice, said that his group values provisions that benefit workers.

But he fears that the prevailing wage requirement in Wiener’s law “might prevent smaller projects from getting built.”

Bishop Lovester Adams, who heads Greater New St. Matthew Missionary Baptist Church in South L.A., told The Times earlier this year that he can’t afford to build affordable housing on his property unless the city proposal passes.

Prevailing wages and benefits in California are generally higher — and in some cases, significantly higher — than the minimum wage.

McOsker, in an interview, said he wants to make sure that any proposal to encourage affordable housing reflects the city’s “values.”

“I do not want to create a situation where we’re building housing and we’re incentivizing housing, but we’re taking advantage of workers who are building housing,” said McOsker.

McOsker, an ally of organized labor, also introduced a motion earlier this year that would create a prevailing wage requirement for affordable housing projects made possible by Executive Directive 1, Mayor Karen Bass’ signature program.

That motion hasn’t been taken up by the City Council. Housing developers sent a letter to Bass’ office earlier this year objecting to it.

Other council members who signed the recent motion involving the faith-based groups were Heather Hutt, Bob Blumenfield, Hugo Soto-Martinez, John Lee and Monica Rodriguez. Imelda Padilla seconded the motion.

A representative for the Los Angeles/Orange Counties Building and Construction Trades Council told The Times that the group supports the motion.

The Western Regional Council of Carpenters regularly backs council members’ election campaigns.

Hutt, who is running in the Nov. 5 election to keep her seat representing Mid-City, Koreatown and some South L.A. neighborhoods, benefited from at least $146,834 in outside spending by the group in the March primary, according to filings with the city Ethics Commission.

Hutt told The Times that the city should “not exempt ourselves from this important state law,” while Soto-Martinez said the city “must provide affordable housing and strong labor protections.”

The Planning Department’s faith-based affordable housing proposal is part of an array of housing recommendations that are intended to boost the number of units in the city.

Bass hosted a summit last year for faith-based groups so that religious leaders could get involved in the production of affordable housing.

Asked about the motion submitted by the council members this week, Clara Karger, a Bass spokesperson, said the mayor supports it.

“The mayor will continue to work with City Council, labor leaders and faith leaders to find a balance that increases affordable housing production, while ensuring the workers that build the housing can afford to live there,” Karger said.

State of play

—CLOSING THE BOOK: City Atty. Hydee Feldstein Soto’s office announced there was “insufficient evidence” to pursue misdemeanor wiretapping charges against a couple over the recording of a conversation between Councilmember Kevin de León, Nury Martinez, and Gil Cedillo and labor leader Ron Herrera that featured crude and racist remarks. Both De León and Cedillo criticized the lack of charges. The couple have denied wrongdoing.

— BOARD SHAKEUP: Mayor Karen Bass finally carried out her long-awaited reshuffling of the Board of Public Works, appointing three new members: Faith Mitchell, a recently retired judge; Steve Kang, a staffer with the Koreatown Youth and Community Center; and Jenny Chavez, a former executive at the L.A. Tourism and Convention Board and a onetime chief of staff to former Councilmember Joe Buscaino.

The public works board is the only city commission with a full-time salary, paying each member about $191,000 annually. While mayors usually install their public works commissioners shortly after taking office, Bass held off for nearly two years. In recent months, she appointed John Grant, a former president of United Food and Commercial Workers Local 770. And she kept Vahid Khorsand, the lone holdover from the Garcetti administration.

—BIG PRICE TAG: How much would it cost City Hall to end homelessness? About $21.7 billion over a decade, according to a new report by the city. That price tag raises the question of whether the city should scrap its strategy and come up with a new one.

—SCRUTINY ON THE LAPD: The city has paid out at least $11 million in damages for cases of discrimination, retaliation and other workplace strife based on gender brought by LAPD officers, according to a Times review. A recent lawsuit brought by a 29-year veteran of the agency alleges she was demoted, reassigned and put under internal investigation after complaining about verbal abuse.

—GLAZA GOES: The Greater Los Angeles Zoo Association, a nonprofit that has partnered with the city-owned zoo in Griffith Park for six decades, announced it will not seek another contract with the city, according to a letter the group sent this week to Bass’ office. The letter blamed the city for various issues, including “five years of negotiations, unending demands, and ever-increasing restrictions” on fundraising, among other complaints.

—NEW HOUSING HEAD: Bass selected Tiena Johnson Hall, executive director of the California Housing Finance Agency, to be the next general manager of the Housing Department. She will replace Ann Sewill, who held the position for several years.

QUICK HITS

• Where is Inside Safe? There were no Inside Safe operations this week, per the mayor’s office.
  
• On the docket for next week: The City Council’s public works committee meets Wednesday to take up plans for creating a Central American Cultural District. The committee will also review the mayor’s three new appointees to the Board of Public Works.