Regarding the Guest perspective by Rick Bonilla of Nov. 7, as the founder of Housing for All Burlingame, I was an activist for renter protections from 2014 to 2020. Our group continuously pleaded with the City Council to collect fundamental data related to rent increases and unjust evictions so that informed policies could be developed. The city refused to gather any data or set any policies, which abetted the instability and displacement of working people, seniors, veterans and families. It continues today.
In our experience, officials in Burlingame, San Mateo, and other Peninsula cities are heavily influenced by the powerful and wealthy lobbies of the San Mateo County Association of Realtors and the California Apartment Association. These groups will likely object again under the guise of protections of “mom-and-pop” landlords, when in fact the majority of those moms and pops and corporate owners of rental property on the Peninsula became enormously wealthy because of the failure of cities to protect their residents.
I am one of those residents who was forced out after a lifetime on the Peninsula. In my 70s, I lost my job during the pandemic and had to relocate to another state to afford to retire. It is my hope that current councilmembers in Peninsula cities will reject the outsized influence of lobbies and enact policies to protect their residents who happen to be renters. I still have hope that the right thing can be done on my beloved Peninsula.
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Keep the discussion civilized. Absolutely NO personal attacks or insults directed toward writers, nor others who make comments.
Keep it clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
Don't threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Anyone violating these rules will be issued a warning. After the warning, comment privileges can be revoked.