Hyattsville approves housing plan calling for rent control, tenant rights

Editor’s note: Route 1 Reporter is a subscriber-supported local news website. In the interest of the public discourse, articles about government policy are available for free. If you like the reporting, please support Route 1 Reporter on Patreon. Hyattsville City Council unanimously approved an ambitious “Housing Action Plan” whose policies, if fully fleshed out, they hope will preserve and produce affordably-priced housing in the growing suburb. The vote came during the city’s May 17, 2021, Council meeting without much comment, perhaps because City Council has been deliberating over the document for more than a year.

Hyattsville could pay landlords for apartment upgrades

Hyattsville apartment owners could soon get money from the city for making major repairs to their buildings. But the program needs to be approved by Hyattsville City Council. The proposal, called the Multi-Family Improvement Rebate Program, would reimburse property owners for half the cost of upgrades that either increase energy efficiency, remediate environmental toxins, improve air quality and circulator, or increase the realiability of heating and cooling systems. In other words, for every $2 the landlord spends on eligible projects, the city would reimburse $1. However, the total reimbursement would be capped at $50,000 per property. 

The proposal was first discussed by Hyattsville City Council at its Dec. 7, 2020, meeting.