SEASIDE – The Seaside City Council has adopted tenant protections on evictions in the city in order to assist residential and commercial renters who have been economically impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The Seaside City Council adopted tenant protections to prevent no-fault evictions,” said Lesley Milton, Seaside city clerk in a press release Wednesday. “A series of resources have been made available to assist both tenants and landlords on our website.”

The full urgency ordinance enacting the temporary moratorium can be accessed online at https://bit.ly/3aZMiqn.

According to a press release from the city, on March 19, the Seaside city manager issued an emergency order which implemented measures to protect the public and contain the risk of contracting the coronavirus. That same day City Council adopted an urgency ordinance which issued a temporary moratorium on evictions for non-payment of rent for residential and commercial property tenants who are unable to pay rent due to circumstances related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The ordinance provides no-fault eviction protection to renters that notify their landlords, in writing, within 30 days of rent being due, that they have been financially impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and can prove they are unable to pay the rent. This protection applies to both commercial and residential tenants and extends the repayment of any back due rent up to six months following the expiration of the local emergency. Tenants are still obligated to pay lawfully charged rent.

The city said that these actions are designed to prevent unnecessary housing displacement and to prevent housed individuals from falling into homelessness.

To assist tenants to collaborate with their landlords, the city of Seaside has created a city notification and form letter to assist with notifying landlords of delays in paying rent during the emergency order period. The letter, form and a series of frequently asked questions can be accessed online at the city website, http://www.ci.seaside.ca.us/.