Protect our rent-controlled stock
State housing laws increasingly threaten the units Santa Monica depends on. The Board should be the first line of defense, not a bystander.
I know how valuable rent control is, because I know what it's like without it.
I'm a Sunset Park mother and 16-year renter, now a homeowner and SMRR hotline volunteer, running to defend rent-controlled housing and the stability it gives our neighbors and our city.
Screenwriter · Member of the Writers Guild of America · SMRR hotline volunteer
Vote November 3, 2026
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Why I'm running
Before I moved to Sunset Park, I was a renter for 16 years.
During those years, rent control changed my life. My husband, Michael, and I lived in market rate apartments, where our rent increased wildly at times. One year our rent was raised by 50% because the market supported that.
We finally sought out a rent-controlled apartment, where Michael and I were able to stay for eight years because of the greatest gift that rent control provides: predictable rent price. We found the stability we needed to start a family, save money, and eventually buy a home in Santa Monica.
Rent control, fought for and won in Santa Monica in 1979, provides the vast majority of the socio-economic diversity that remains in Santa Monica. It is a bedrock principle of our city that protects over 25,000 of our housing units. But it is constantly under threat, most recently from overreaching state laws. I want to help protect rent control laws, our historic rent-controlled stock, our most vulnerable tenants (and all tenants!), and I want to have a louder voice from within the Board.
More about Heather →
My approach
Balanced growth protects rent control.
Unchecked zoning deregulation destroys existing rent-controlled stock to build luxury towers. Balanced growth protects our current residents, while focusing new affordable development where it makes sense.
Read Heather's priorities →Over 25,000rent-controlled units in Santa Monica today SM Rent Control Annual Report 2025
Over 2,000rent-controlled units lost to demolition, withdrawal, or conversion since 1986 SM Rent Control Annual Report 2025
~70%of Santa Monica households rent their home U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2024
On the Board, I will
Push back on Sacramento overreach
Bills like SB 79 hit renters in every neighborhood. Rent control boards should lead the effort to fight back.
Advocate to keep neighborhoods livable for the long run
Stability is the point. I will advocate for policies that let residents of rent-controlled housing make Santa Monica home for decades. Habitability and maintenance held to the highest standards.
Endorsements
Supported by the people who've built and supported rent control here
[Photo 3: Heather with supporters at an SMRR or Democratic Club event]
Honorable Ben Allen
CA State Senator, representing Santa Monica
Denny Zane
Former Mayor and co-founder of SMRR
Michael Soloff
Co-chair of SMRR and Vice President of the Santa Monica Democratic Club
Leslie Lambert
First elected Rent Control Board member
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