Item 17 - Review of Proposed Charter Amendments

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Section 8-3146 — Voluntary Mediation (a) Voluntary mediation services shall be provided by the City. Upon request, the Program Administrator shall appoint a Mediator and set a date for a mediation no later than thirty (30) days after the acceptance of the subject Petition, unless the Program Administrator determines that additional time is required under the circumstances. The Program Administrator shall notify the Landlord and Tenant(s) in writing of the date, time, and place of the mediation hearing at least ten (10) days prior to the mediation. This notice shall be served either in person or through ordinary mail or electronic correspondence. (b) It is the intent and purpose of mediation to provide a process in which Mediators may assist disputants in reaching a voluntary agreement. Accordingly, except as otherwise expressly provided herein, there shall be no penalty or disability, either civil or criminal, for failure to participate in the mediation process, and there shall be no penalty, either civil or criminal, for failure to reach agreement with a disputant in the mediation process. (c) Mediation is a voluntary collaborative process wherein the Landlord and Tenant(s) who have a disagreement can develop options, consider alternatives, and develop a consensual agreement. The role of the Mediator is to facilitate open communication to resolve a dispute in a non -adversarial and confidential manner. (d) If the Landlord and Tenant agree to a resolution, the Mediator may assist the parties in preparing a written settlement agreement for the signature of the Landlord and the Tenant, provided that in doing so the Mediator confines the assistance to stating the settlement as determined by the parties. Such agreement shall constitute a legally enforceable contract. (e) Should the parties fail to agree to a resolution, or the Mediator determines that the parties have reached an impasse, the Mediator may refer the Petition back to the Program Administrator to continue the Petition review process detailed in this Division. (f) All documents and results related to mediations and facilitations held pursuant to this Article shall be kept confidential and shall be inadmissible as evidence in any subsequent administrative or judicial proceeding. (g) The Mediator and/or Program Administrator shall provide documentation and translation services in the language that the Owner and Tenant used to negotiate the terms of the Tenancy (e.g., Spanish, Chinese, Tagalog, Vietnamese and Korean), as well as English. 29