California Landlords Celebrate End of Eviction Protections With Cocktail Party

A group of California landlords celebrated the end of the three-year-long eviction moratorium with a cocktail party, which led to protests and several physical altercations.

The Berkeley Property Owners Association (BPOA) viewed the reinstatement of their eviction rights as a reason to celebrate or at least an occasion to network. The association’s event, “Fall Social Mixer: Celebrating the End of the Eviction Moratorium,” was a ticketed event held at the Freehouse bar near the University of California-Berkeley campus.

The eviction moratorium in Berkeley was initiated in March 2020 at the onset of the pandemic and officially ended on September 1, 2023, as reported by SFGate.

The event notice on BPOA’s website read, “We will celebrate the end of the Eviction Moratorium and talk about what’s upcoming through the end of the year.”

BPOA President Krista Gulbranson told Berkeleyside that they were “celebrating the end of the tenants who could have paid rent, and chose not to.” However, Leah Simon-Weisberg, chair of Berkeley’s Rent Stabilization Board, countered that tenants weren’t taking advantage of the moratorium, stating that the BPOA provided no evidence of fraud.

News of the landlords’ party spread to renters, prompting about 100 people to rally outside the bar in protest. The protesters held signs and chanted, “See our might, see our power, landlords get no happy hour,” and “Get up, get down, f*** the landlords in Freehouse."

After around an hour outside, the protesters entered the venue, marching around the patio where BPOA members had assembled. This section of the protest was cut short when several altercations erupted.

Witnesses claimed a man attending the BPOA event slapped a woman from the Tenant and Neighborhoods Councils, a group protesting the event. Video footage captured a protester knocking the glasses off an event attendee, and another attendee is believed to have punched a protester.

Despite being recorded on video getting pushed while attempting to intervene in a fight, Gulbranson claimed she didn't see who initiated the conflict. Although police were nearby monitoring the protest, they chose not to enter the venue upon Gulbranson’s request.

Gulbranson told Berkeleyside, “(When protesters entered) I went around and told our members to remain quiet, and peaceful and not engage — and they didn’t,” She continued, “The protesters got in the face of some, and I don’t know how it went down from there, but next thing I know people are shoving each other.”

Many of the protesters left shortly after violence broke out.