Rent at Kenai’s Vintage Pointe, the City’s independent Senior Housing facility, were increased by $35 across the board during last night’s City Council meeting.
As former Director of the Senior Center, Mayor Pat Porter said she’s sympathetic to the needs of Kenai’s seniors, but said the facility was never intended to be publicly subsidized…
Mayor Porter: “When the residents make the decision to subsidize Vintage Pointe, then it would be very easy for me not to increase rents. In the meantime, residents don’t seem to be interested in subsidizing the rents, so that is the reason why at this point in time I think they still need to remain at market value.”
Councilor Bob Molloy had asked the Council to keep rates flat for those with grandfathered rents.
Cm. Molloy: “These are tenants that have been there before June 30th, 2013, and every year since then we’ve raised their rental rates on an annual basis and many of these tenants are on a fixed income. Their only income is Social Security.”
Molloy said the increases may price some seniors out of their units.
The measure passed 4-3.
