LOS ANGELES (CNS) - Mayor Eric Garcetti has the authority to “commandeer'' hotel rooms to house the homeless and protect people's lives during a local emergency like the COVID-19 pandemic, City Attorney Mike Feuer opined in a report to the City Council.
Feuer submitted the report Wednesday in response to a motion introduced by Councilman Mike Bonin and Councilwoman Nithya Raman on Jan. 26. The motion asked Feuer to report on steps that could be taken for the city to commandeer hotels and motels to use as housing for people experiencing homelessness.
Los Angeles already houses people in hotel rooms through the Project Roomkey program, but hotels have to opt in and are not forced to participate.
At the time the motion was introduced, Project Roomkey had housed 6,150 people since it began last March to protect unhoused Angelenos from COVID-19 by placing them outside congregate shelters.
Feuer said Los Angeles Administrative Code Section 8.30 gives the mayor authority to “commandeer local private property as is needed for the protection of life and property of the people.''
The city has to provide fair market value for the property, and Feuer said that because demand for hotel and motel rooms has decreased during the pandemic, the rental value of the rooms is likely lower than historic market rates.
The city does not need to pay hotels before commandeering the property, and the hotel or motel may be afforded a post-commandeering administrative hearing to determine the appropriate amount of compensation, Feuer said.
“Because of the need to act quickly during the pandemic, such an administrative hearing process would likely satisfy the constitutional requirements,'' according to Feuer. “We recommend that the city inform, in writing, a hotel or motel owner of the city's need to commandeer a specific number of rooms. The letter should explain to the owner that if the city and owner cannot agree to an amount of compensation, the city will proceed to take possession of the rooms and afford the owner a hearing to determine the amount of compensation on a later date.''
Bonin and Raman could not immediately be reached for comment. Some community activists and homeless advocates have been pushing the city to commandeer hotels to provide emergency shelter for the homeless amid the pandemic.
Project Roomkey was started in March 2020 as state and county officials sought to find short-term shelters for homeless residents over 65 or with serious health conditions -- hoping to keep them safe from the spread of the coronavirus.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency reimbursed 75% of those costs under the Trump administration, but in late January, President Joe Biden issued an executive order to fully reimburse the cost.
Following that announcement, Bonin and Raman called for the city to significantly expand the program to house more homeless Angelenos.
“This is a tremendous opportunity to get tens of thousands of people off the streets quickly,'' Bonin said in January. “Compared to other solutions, using hotels and motels is quick and easy. We can put Project Roomkey on steroids and make a major dent in homelessness at no cost to Los Angeles. It is imperative we seize this moment.''
During Garcetti's Wednesday COVID-19 briefing, he said he authorized up-front funding to extend Los Angeles' leases for Project Roomkey hotels through Sept. 30. The city began filling 300 empty rooms Thursday, Garcetti said. Half the rooms are being set aside for people living on Skid Row, and the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority will prioritize immediate placement for Black women, seniors and people living in homeless communities in Echo Park, according to Garcetti.
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