NEW ORLEANS (WGNO)— New Orleans City Council is considering a new ordinance to hold slumlords accountable. It aims to protect the health and safety of renters.
Black mold, rats, roofs collapsing—these are all issues some renters in New Orleans face because their landlords are not keeping up with the places they own.
“We really tried to create an ordinance that’s tailored to our city and hold accountable the bad actors,” Maxwell Ciardullo, Louisiana Fair Action said.
The New Orleans City Council is working on a new “Healthy Homes” ordinance that will protect the health and safety of tenants.
“Unlike many other cities in our country, our city lacks standards,” Yasin Frank Southall with Jane Place said.
Community activists say there are thousands of apartments that aren’t liveable and this ordinance will provide solutions, like helping residents from being evicted and much more.
“Establish a rental registry, establish retaliation protection so tenants who report repairs and one of the things I love the most, it’ll create a fund for small landlords to upkeep their rental properties,” Southall said.
The “Healthy Homes” ordinance will also require a certain level of compliance for all landlords.
“Force these big corporate slumlords who live in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, and want them to put that money into buildings they manage,” Southall said.