Artist cooperative asks Emeryville council to allow $205,000 claim after sewer repairs

An attorney representing the 40 Fifth Street Artist Cooperative asked the Emeryville City Council on Feb. 3 to allow a $205,000 claim so the coop can replenish reserves after paying for urgent sewer repairs.

"May it please the council, my name is Gary Fergus. I represent the 40 Fifth Street Artist Cooperative," Fergus said, adding he represents the cooperative pro bono and that "the proceeds of this claim, which is $205,000, will go entirely to the reserve fund for the coop to pay for needed repairs and maintenance of a 100-year-old building where low- and moderate-income artists currently live." Fergus said the coop paid roughly $200,000 after being told it had to, and asked the city to allow the claim on equitable grounds.

Fergus told the council the East Bay Municipal Utility District (East Bay MUD) has ordinances governing sewer-lateral responsibility and that Emeryville adopted those ordinances in July 2011. He argued when a public entity owned the land at the time the problem arose, the public successor (the Redevelopment Agency of Emeryville, now the successor agency) should bear lateral-maintenance responsibility. Fergus also cited available redevelopment funds, saying the successor agency had about $19,000,000 at the end of last year that could be used for infrastructure.

A cooperative representative described the group's history and its role providing affordable live-work studios, saying the coop has roughly 58 studios and has long contributed arts programming to the city. Fergus identified board president Dominic Chaine and treasurer Tara Cummings as present at the meeting.

Council did not take a formal action on the claim at the Feb. 3 meeting. After public comment the council proceeded to closed session; the city attorney later reported there was no reportable action from closed session that evening.

The cooperative asked the council to treat the request as an equitable remedy, not a penalty: Fergus argued city practice had applied condo-style rules that do not fit the limited-equity, affordable artist housing at issue. The council did not debate or vote on the request during the public meeting.

Next steps: the cooperative said it will seek the council's consideration of the claim; no staff report or council directive was recorded in the transcript that night.