As some of you already know, I am a part of the tenant association in a building on Larrabee Street in West Hollywood, and for the last two years I have posted several updates about our ongoing dilemma that started with an illegal Airbnb business established in our rent-controlled dwelling.
Our “voice” has been picked up by several entities starting to help us navigating through a complex and often confusing interaction with the City of West Hollywood. I have spoken on the open mic to the Council and Rent Stabilization on many occasions and updated my neighborhood about the rising concern reflecting the ongoing rejecting from various departments within City Hall; Legal, Code Department and Rent Stabilization.
Code Officers misconduct aside; Rent Stabilization and the legal entity of the WeHo bureaucracy all seem to adhere to one singular man – as mentioned by many concerned citizen – holding the strings of all departments in his hands; unethically manipulating the machinery behind closed-door meetings and seemingly leading many to conclude – it appears there is corruption.
Recap
In 2022, we, the renters here on Larrabee, were the victims of a serious six-month illegal short-term rental scheme that only was stopped by tenants coming together and providing the City with steadfast proof of this criminal action.
We engaged with Code Department that denied this being factual and even had Danny Rivas, the head of Safety in West Hollywood, attending a meeting in my flat, where he claimed he had ended the Airbnb next door to my unit—while a UK renter was present!
The inspired activism that day led to the wider issue in our deceptive common area in this building, and when we insisted that the Code Officers should help us with the serious neglect presented by the owners; these Code Officers involved—Torres, Alper and Bonitez—displayed a nonchalant attitude towards our outreach.
We started to investigate the details of what entailed the duty of a Code Enforcement employee and quickly learned what the laws included, understanding the details of their job description and studied the people involved that had made it a sport to belittle our concerns.
They falsely claimed for three years that mold was never an issue; and what they can’t see can’t be documented. One month ago, professional mold experts confirmed the presence of serious mold in all four corners of our building… Code Officers still don’t show a sliver of understanding the seriousness of their lack in action!
Whistleblowers and Denials
A whistleblower amongst them made aware they are told to ignore not just general concerns throughout our City but specifically issues brought to their department from our building!
Danny Rivas at one point felt comfortable enough to admit that Notices of Violations (NOV’s) in West Hollywood were just an empty exercise and penalties a nuisance without merit:
“…You can’t collect on those, nobody pays the fines and we don’t have the necessary resources collecting them…”
Lack of Action
We reached out to the Council and invited the Mayor (then) John Erickson to get involved. He was/is too busy chasing after his political aspirations and ignored us, as did Meisters, Heilman and our current Mayor of West Hollywood Chelsea Beyers.
West Hollywood is an ideal “jumping-board” for a start-up politician and letting someone ambitious like Danny Rivas run “freely” could invite for corruptive intentions. Mr. Rivas—according to several whistleblowers—has surrounded himself with “loyal” people.
If that sounds a little like taken from the current presidential board-game – yes, that’s the notion!
Rent Deduction
Our apartment-building is granted one of the highest Rent deductions by the independent Rent Stabilisation Chair. This is an ongoing fact: for over one year, because of ongoing refusal by the owners to amend 12 serious common area violations, we the tenant have a rent deduction in the amount of $1551.25.
Code Officers in the entirety of the last twelve month have NEVER followed up on citations, enforcing compliance or even as much as acknowledge that we need their assistance.
The Code Officer supervisor, Yasmine Bonitez, in tow with Code Officer Andy Torres, during an inspection in my apartment two weeks ago, confirmed never even having looked at the D-4877 finding listing these twelve violations.
Sewage and Construction Chaos
One of our tenants reached out to the Code Department three weeks ago, after raw sewage backed up in the showers of four units. Andy Torres showed up 11 days later and claimed he had no serious resources to enforce compliance to fix the issue.
When I pointed out the units are uninhabitable in these conditions, he returned with his Supervisor Bonitez who tested if my shower water—wrapped behind construction plastic cover—had running water. They refused accepting images of the flooring damage: termite, mold and rotten wood… exposing 20 years of ignored complaints.
The Absurd Twist: “My Unit Does Not Exist”
Two weeks later, on August 22nd 2025, after ten days waiting for a response from the Code Department, our contractor marched into the City of West Hollywood to personally communicate the urgency of finishing a non-functional bathroom in my flat.
The Code Officer expressed to him that he had no permit request, and such “displacements” happened often.
When the Contractor showed him the license number and email confirmation in his computer, the officer explained the actual problem was that my apartment unit did not exist.
At first, the Contractor thought this was a joke, but the Code Officer was serious. When offered that he should come and verify in person that my unit existed, the City Employee declined and requested the contractor to submit a google imaging and the architectural blueprints indicating my unit actually exists.
Conclusion
I know this is a retaliative move by Manager Bonitez and Torres for calling them out ten days earlier as juvenile. I should have said instead: this latest action is equal to the hissy-fit of a seven-year-old not getting his lollipop.
I can’t resist to cynically ponder if that means the contractor could now fix my bathroom since it would be impossible for any Code Officer claiming he had illegally fixed a flat that does not exist.
We are not the only building experiencing this sort of stupid inaction from City Employees. The corruption is so blatantly expressed from various departments it actually scares me to think my personal safety is at stake.
Where is the Council? What does their silence demonstrate?
-Raphael; writing this in a flat without bathroom access that does not exist!
Have you contacted the Housing Rights Center over on Wilshire, you can reach them at 800-477-5977?!
jeff
I believe these tenants should seek injunctive relief. Mold alone is a major risk to the health and well being of all residents. It’s absolutely possible to hire counsel, armed with tests results, to seek an injunction compelling action by the landlord and if not the city then the county which can supersede the gross negligence of the City and Rivas who is known too well for his lack of competence and his little fifedom in a city so poorly managed it has failed to protect the health and safety of renters. Rent Control does not mean you should be… Read more »
Thank you for that support: We are indeed active and collecting the details of our journey. It’s a thirty unit building and it has been poorly managed for decades. Add to this a curious relationship between city hired Officers and sloppy managers that should be unbiased with a history of perplex decision making – in a total void to anyone of the Council to put a stop to this – here we are! Yup, I fully admit that – after having quietly fixed my own flat for 15 years – my limit of general neglect has reached a boiling point:… Read more »
Apparently some commenters here think that rent stabilized units, which comprise the bulk of rental housing in West Hollywood and Los Angeles, are just flats for peasants who can’t afford a $1.25m home (the average price across the area). We have laws for a reason, and everyone deserves safe and habitable housing. This family/landlord has owned the building since the 1970s without any lien on the title, and very low property taxes. It is a choice to not invest to maintain their property. It is a choice that has consequences for those paying little in rent as well as those… Read more »
One of the fundamental flaws of rent control is its tendency to distort market dynamics. By artificially capping rents below market rates, it creates a mismatch between supply and demand.
Landlords find it unprofitable to maintain or invest in rental properties, leading to a decrease in the quality and quantity of available housing.
Moreover, rent control discourages new construction, as developers are hesitant to invest in markets where their potential returns are limited by regulations.
Not true at all. Rent control is limited to housing built before 1978. New construction is not bound by such regulations. It is an entirely different set of regulations which make the cost of development a hindrance, alongside NIMBYism. To your point about it being unprofitable, this is a farce often employed by the landlord lobbying associations because they are greedy and want to maximize profit— which they do. When a unit becomes vacant the landlord can raise that unit to market rate, reflecting the supply/demand dynamics of the area. Tenants have a right to habitable housing, at any rate.… Read more »
Update: On 8.22.25 the contractor of our building received a message from Andy Torres threatening him with a hefty penalty if he does not apply for a work order permit before days end: When questioned how to proceed – since the unit in question is “non-existing” with the Code Enforcement terminal (yet verified by Rent Stabilization) – the Code officer claimed he should utilize a permit request through one of the “existing units” – Although that makes no sense and the process is not a ten minute job: This endless chain of unprofessional demands is unacceptable. My response to the… Read more »
Who is the owner of this building?
This is simply inexcusable.
When I lived in Hollywood, the rules were such that if the owner refused to fix an issue, you could hire somebody to do the work and I imagine then have to sue the owner for payment.
I think this is correct…
You sound like a fucking crybaby. You’re a renter. Don’t forget that you don’t even own your property.
Christalmighty.
Oh shut it!
So according to your logic, the 78% of West Hollywood that rents should just live in squalor? All because they cannot afford a $1m+ home? You sound lovely.
Interesting. I remember when the owner of this blog stated such language would not be tolerated nor published.
Im not interested spending any time digesting or refereeing every comment people choose to write. The abuse and snarkiness along with many disgusting things thrown this way is a bit much.
I guess the prohibition against personal attacks doesn’t apply to property owners like you. Good to know.
Spoken like a true Boomer. And if you’re an actual homeowner in the city of West Hollywood, then you know it’s only a matter of time before whoever becomes the executor of your trust then sells to a developer when you die and forgets you ever even existed other than an occasional “Thanks for the money!”
My friend had a similar situation and the owner chose to tear down the building. This is what happens due to unfair rent control laws. Puts too much of a burden on the property owner and benefits a lucky few tenants who end up living in squalor.
Maintaining a safe and habitable place to live is unfair?
There is no burden here. The landlord/family which owns this building has owned it since the 70s with very favorable property taxes and no liens. Regardless, you’re required to maintain habitable housing according to the law (which is not enforced in this city). Unlike more restrictive rent control measures, owners of rent stabilized housing can raise rents to market rate upon moving, incentivizing a profit model conducive to making proper repairs. Nobody should live with mold, leaks and termite damage— whether a renter or owner.
Just move. Also too old to still be renting.
Curious as to what’s the age cap for renting? The El Mirador on Sweetzer just reopened with apartments renting for $9,500 to $20,000 per month. You seem too old to be giving opinions that no one cares about.
Just as minimum wage jobs are for teenagers……renting after the age of 30 is the result of bad life decisions. Living in a rent controlled unit is significantly more egregious. Sounds like he has lots of stuff to complain about.
Sounds like the cynical rhetoric of an old person who already has one foot in the grave. “Renting after the age of 30 is a result of bad life decisions”. Where did you get this information from? Who even talks like that in 2025 when a 2 bedroom 1 bath condo cost over a million dollars. As stated previously, there are apartments that cost more than $10,000 per month. Can you yourself afford that? Or are you just ranting your opinion to others while you rub your gummy gums together.
I bet you’re the same person who complains about tents around our city; as seniors are sadly among the fastest growing segment of homeless. How callous a comment!
Relax Francis. We flooded the country with 10’s of millions of poor unskilled people……so of course they can’t afford to live on the west side of LA. Adults living in rent controlled apt’s ARE also part of the problem.
There’s zero incentive for builders to invest in anything other than luxury housing. So we’ll have to listen to these sad stories until politicians stop pandering to the unproductive class.
‘Ham’ is a psychological term for someone with a strong desire for attention… Throwing around outdated terms like ‘relax Francis’ from the 1940s and using code-name ‘Ham’ clearly signals deep-seated prejudice against the Jewish community. It’s easy to sling xenophobic insults from the shadows of anonymity, but let’s not pretend it’s anything other than cowardly bigotry.” In most of Ham’s “comments” lingers an undertone of dislike towards people he feels reflect his own fear of being associated with. Yet, he doesn’t quite say what’s on his tongue, enabled by the increasingly hate-driven rhetoric of today… Bravo to Larry for letting… Read more »
Lighten up Francis. You have a lot of issues.