In a public volley during the election stretch run, opponents of the rent control referendum on the Nov. 4 ballot have been mailing letters to Bayonne residents for the last three weeks asking them to vote “no” on the proposal to reinstate rent control in the city as it existed until a few years ago.
The “Bayonne Taxpayers for Fairness” have sent out letters, dated Oct. 10, 17, 24, and 27 decrying the effort to reverse the current “vacancy decontrol,” which allows landlords to raise rents after tenants have left rent-controlled apartments.
“The current law discontinues the practice of rent control for new tenants moving into apartments, while ensuring existing tenants’ rental agreements will remain intact,” read the letter dated Oct. 10.
The letter went on to say that the current law was put into place following the Bayonne tax assessor’s annual reports outlining that year after year specific rent-controlled buildings lost assessed value for the city to tax and resulted in rent-controlled apartment buildings paying fewer taxes each year.
“Public records indicate that from 2007 through 2013 apartment buildings lost more than $10 million in assessed value and paid more than $1 million less in taxes,” the letter went on to say. “The city did not reduce its tax collection! It shifted its revenue lost from apartment buildings owners to all other property owners in Bayonne!”
Citizen activist Leonard Kantor, a past candidate for mayor and councilman, said much of what the group is saying is inaccurate or untrue. Kantor noted that the sentence about “2007 through 2013” and “paid more than $1 million less in taxes” references were not in a subsequent mailing. He also said he had met with City Tax Assessor Joe Nichols and that Nichols told him that all properties in the city are assessed in the same manner.
“They’re distorting the facts and belittling our city,” Kantor said.
Kantor doubts that Bayonne residents are actually behind the letters rallying against rent control, noting that they come from a Secaucus address. He said he believes it’s a group of landlords who have hired a third party to fight the rent control effort.
The Secaucus letters list a line reading “Supported by the Liberty Board of Realtors. Executive Vice President Joseph Hottendorf of that organization said the goal of the Bayonne Taxpayers for Fairness is merely to educate the public. Part of that education, he said, is informing Bayonne residents that local rent control is not necessary because state laws protect all residents of New Jersey’s towns.
“The landlord has to prove the increase is fair to a judge” because of that state law, Hottendorf said. “Why put another rent control law in place when they’re already protected by the state?”
Hottendorf also said that vacancy decontrol in Bayonne has had a demonstrable effect.
In a little over two years with vacancy decontrol in place, “apartment ratables went up,” he said. “It’s created a theme for investors in Bayonne, and we want to keep that theme going.”
Hottendorf said vacancy decontrol encourages capital improvements. He said the opposite was true with traditional rent control, which he believes is an impediment to landlords wishing to upgrade their properties.
Ed Gilligan of the Bayonne Tenants Organization, the primary force behind this year’s 2014 rent control referendum drive, doubts that there are many Bayonne residents involved with the Bayonne Taxpayers for Fairness.
“How many residents belong to that group,” he asked. “Who’s the chairperson of that group? How often do they meet? What else have they done in the city?”
Hottendorf said he would have to check to see exactly how many Bayonne residents belong to his group, but that it was between 300 and 600 people. He also would not disclose who was chairperson of his group. He cited election laws as the reason that he could not disclose that information.
As for how often his organization meets, Hottendorf said, “We’re an organization created for the election. It’s not a group, it’s an entity.” He said the entity will be disbanded after balloting.
In answer to Gilligan’s query on what Bayonne Taxpayers for Fairness does for Bayonne, Hottendorf said it is “totally supported by the Liberty Board of Realtors,” sponsors an annual scholarship at a Hudson County college, helps feed the hungry on Thanksgiving, aids the St. Joseph’s School for the Blind, and assists a holiday toy drive.
He also said that Bayonne Taxpayers for Fairness is not connected in any way to the “Bayonne Residents for Taxpayer Fairness,” a group listing an Edison address. This second organization has come under fire for a four-color glossy mailer that some have said is misleading, or worse. On the brochure, scenes of vandalism, drug dealing, and burglary are depicted. The writing on the brochure links those actions to property neglect, allegedly because of rent control.
E-mail joepass@hudsonreporter.com.