California
More than 100,000 people applied for Airbnb.org’s free housing program, which offers credit to use on Airbnb rentals. But some fire victims who received the vouchers claim they’re useless.
World & Nation
The ancient Roman Colosseum will be the venue of gladiator fights for the first time in two millennia under a $1.5-million sponsorship deal with Airbnb.
Vladyslav Yurov and his partners are the focus of a new lawsuit by the L.A. city attorney, who alleges that they made more than $4 million through illegal short-term rentals on units they had leased.
The Police Commission says it has “neither the infrastructure nor the staffing” to implement L.A.’s Responsible Hotel Ordinance, which took effect July 1.
Business
The former Ace Hotel in downtown Los Angeles, which helped lead an economic revival on a historic stretch of Broadway a decade ago, has reopened and will offer rooms in a style akin to Airbnb.
Dorner’s gun was found at armed robbery suspects’ Airbnb in Los Angeles, the complaint says. Federal prosecutors are unsure how they got it.
Travel & Experiences
Under the state law known as SB 478, which takes effect July 1, businesses now must include mandatory fees — such as resort fees and cleaning fees — in their initial advertised prices.
Cleaners found boxes full of drugs at an Alhambra Airbnb. A U-Haul driver spotted officers and “quickly” tried to make a U-turn and skedaddle, police say.
Facing a worsening housing crisis, the Hawaii Legislature overwhelmingly passed a measure that allows counties to phase out short-term rentals. Maui almost immediately announced efforts to transition vacation rental apartments into long-term housing.
For the last year, Nikeeta Sriram says she has watched helplessly as her tenant turned her L.A. home into a lucrative Airbnb against her will.