Akron voters approved two charter amendments on November 3 that dramatically reshape the relationship between renters and landlords — and now the harder work of making Issues 11 and 12 function begins, the Akron Beacon Journal reported. Both amendments take effect 30 days after their approval, and City Council must enact implementing legislation within 90 days of that effective date.
Issue 11 requires property owners and operators to offer three- or six-month security deposit payment plans, criminalizes failing to notify tenants of that right, bans fees and other payments before a rental agreement is finalized, and criminalizes collecting application fees, according to the Akron Beacon Journal. Issue 12 makes criminal history — except for sex offenders and arson offenders — and source of income protected classes in housing, and bars landlords from refusing to rent based on criminal history.
Council President Margo Sommerville told the Akron Beacon Journal in a November 4 email: “The residents of Akron have spoken. Once the results are fully certified by the Board of Elections, we will work with the Law Department to meet our legislative drafting obligations.” The Summit County Board of Elections is scheduled to certify the results on November 23, and council expects to begin considering enabling legislation soon after.
Freedom BLOC, the nonprofit that led the coalition collecting signatures to place the issues on the ballot, says it will publicly track council’s 90-day deadline. “We won. That’s the only thing to say. The people won,” Freedom BLOC Executive Director Ray Greene Jr. said in a November 5 press release quoted by the Akron Beacon Journal. The group says it is also prepared to defend the amendments in court.
That defense may be needed. Don Taylor of Welty Enterprises, the firm renovating downtown’s CitiCenter Building, previously said he was prepared to challenge the amendments’ constitutionality, and told the Akron Beacon Journal on November 4: “We’re evaluating our options.” Taylor said renovations of the CitiCenter building remain paused, though he stressed his companies are “not going anywhere” and remain committed to Akron.
Other opponents struck a more collaborative tone. The Greater Akron Chamber, which opposed both measures, said in a November 4 statement quoted by the Akron Beacon Journal that it is ready to work with council and the mayor as a “constructive partner” on the implementing legislation. The Akron Cleveland Association of Realtors said it will monitor the city’s implementation and wants the city to communicate clearly how the requirements will be applied and enforced.
Mayor Shammas Malik, who initially opposed both issues, said the day after the election that the people have spoken and his administration will respect their voice, the Akron Beacon Journal reported. His administration will help craft the implementing legislation and introduce it to council. What happens next: certification on November 23, the amendments’ effective date 30 days after approval, and then council’s 90-day clock to write the rules that will determine how Akron’s new renter protections work in practice.
Photo: Andre Carrotflower, CC BY-SA