Court Delays Decision on Rent Controls

A group of 40 Cambridge tenants failed to force immediate application of the rent control law yesterday, as Middlesex Superior Court delayed until Nov. 16 a decision on the tenants' bid for an immediate declaratory judgment.

According to Ronald L. Cheney, director of Cambridge Legal Services, Cambridge rental rates have risen as much as 300 per cent in anticipation of the rent control law. "Our contention is that the bill was effective Oct, 17 and that the tenants should have relief under it," Cheney said yesterday.

Philip M. Cronin '53, Cambridge City Solicitor, said the city needs more time to make administrative preparations before the law can take effect. "The real question is whether the definition of a dormitory is broad enough to include married-students housing such as the Botanic Gardens," Cronin said.

In spite of today's court action, a group of Cambridge tenants plan to withhold a portion of their November rent payments.

Eugene Arnold, an M. I. T. graduate student, said he hopes to join other tenants in making a test case of today's court decision. "The rent on my two-room apartment has risen from $105 to $210 since March," Arnold said last night.

The Cambridge City Council enacted a rent control law Sept. 17. Under the law, residential rents will be frozen at the March level until landlords can show a justification for an increase.