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Marko Valentine

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Marko Valentine is an associate in the Real Estate, Energy, Land Use & Environmental Practice Group in the firm's San Diego office.

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California’s Commercial Tenant Protection Act (SB-1103) took effect on January 1, 2025. Conceived as a transparency and displacement prevention measure for small businesses, the new law creates tenant protections for small enterprises and nonprofits leasing commercial property that resemble those more typically found in residential leases. A tenant who self-attests that it is a “Qualified Commercial Tenant” (“QCT”) within the meaning of SB-1103 may receive longer notice periods for rent increases and lease terminations, as well as new rights and remedies with respect to passthroughs of operational costs. Under certain circumstances, the law also requires landlords to provide translations for QCTs who negotiate leases in any of California’s five most common non-English languages.Continue Reading California SB-1103: What Landlords Need to Know About New Rights for Small Business Tenants

On January 30, 2024, the San Diego City Council approved an ordinance implementing Mayor Todd Gloria’s proposal to establish an extensive project labor agreement (“PLA”), which is slated to impose various conditions and restrictions on most City-funded construction projects. Most notably, the PLA establishes conditions of employment and minimum wage requirements, additional safety protocols, and other regulations imposed on contractors and their subcontractors. The PLA also sets goals and introduces incentives for the hiring of certain “Targeted Workers,” which include homeless people, the undereducated, and those that have spent time in jail or prison.Continue Reading San Diego City Council Approves Union-Friendly Citywide Project Labor Agreement Restricting Most City Construction Projects

In the fourth quarter of 2019, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law a package of housing-related legislation that included 18 individual bills. Within this package, there were a significant number of important changes aimed at addressing the statewide housing crisis through a variety of measures, including, among others mechanisms, upzoning, approval streamlining and tenant protections.[1]
Continue Reading Tenant Protection Act (AB 1482) – COMPLIANCE GUIDE

As part of his last legislative act of 2019, Governor Newsom signed 18 housing-related bills into law in an attempt to alleviate California’s housing crisis. This package included Senate Bill (“SB”) 329, which prohibits landlords from denying prospective tenants based on their use of certain federal, state, or local subsidies.
Continue Reading New Law Aimed At Assisting Low Income Renters Invokes Additional Restraints on California Landlords