Editor:
One thing that I can't stress enough with people who play the "We'll never build enough to get prices to drop" card is mitigation. Just because something is hard, inconvenient or a challenge, doesn't mean we don't have an obligation to mitigate the consequences. If there is a leak in your house, and you know it's there, and you do nothing about it while waiting for it to get so bad you can file an insurance claim, guess what the insurance company will tell you? Pound sand, more or less. No claim check for you. You as an individual have a responsibility to mitigate the damage to the extent you can. We as a community have a responsibility to mitigate the impact of immigration on the area. People will not stop moving into the area. The difference here is, instead of a denied claim, it'll be an Ellis Eviction notice.
It doesn't matter that we can't build enough to drop prices. It does matter that we have a responsibility to limit the damage we can, to help stabilize them to the extent we can. If you don't think your building can be flipped and Ellis'ed, just search Realtor.com. You'll see many buildings already for sale and at prices that make condo conversion very attractive or just taking a loss for five years and then re-occupying the building.
There is a desperate problem of immobility in this town. People are literally trapped in their apartments because they can't afford to move. Look at the last two Palihouse hold-outs. One has been there 39 years. Generally you get sentenced to a 39-year stint in the same place, not forced because of a combination of factors outside your control.
The city has failed spectacularly to keep up with demand because so many of its citizens have self-defeating and selfish motivations. Santa Monica can't keep shifting the need for more housing to the future or other areas on the Westside. Los Angeles, Culver City and the Marina are building more. They are attempting to mitigate the issue. We can either help to mitigate the damage or accept the fact Santa Monica will become Newport-lite.
Daniel Shenise
Santa Monica
