By Ethen Lieser
Right smack in the middle of the 531 Bay Street public housing development, there is a dilapidated dumpster reddening from rust. Nearby, a basketball hoop personifies an age-worn man, barely able to stand upright. Pasty pink and yellow paint is peeling off the complex, which surrounds this scraggly, depleted courtyard that only hints at any plant life.
But in the near future, this complex, built in the 1950s, could become a distant memory — thanks to Hope VI, a 1992 federal program funded by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) that renovates and rebuilds a series of rundown housing developments. The 229-unit complex, in which 40 percent of the residents are Asian American, houses mostly low-income families making around $11,000 a year. The residents pay 30 percent of their monthly income on rent, averaging $223 a month. And if the residents decide to move back when the new complex is built, sometime in the next two years, Juan Monsanto, the planning and program manager of the San Francisco Housing Authority (SFHA), said there is still a cap of 30 percent. But even under this universal cap, Monsanto still wants to bring more income diversity into this complex.
“Across the country, the idea is to not only have low-income families in the complex, but also middle-class families who can serve as a model for the rest of the families, to diversify the community,” Monsanto said. “We don’t want to diversify only racially, but also in terms of lifestyle.”
Making this work, of course, could very well involve some backlash from current residents because they will have to take the time to move to temporary public housing or just plain move out. Though the new complex will feature 355 apartments, only 126 will be available for renters who earn up to $48,000 a year, causing more headaches for current tenants. And because of the 98 percent occupancy rate in public housing, new apartment-seekers must often wait up to three years to obtain a unit under Section 8 leased housing, where the tenant must first qualify according to established income guidelines.
“For us, we just go with the flow,” said Peter, who didn’t want to release his last name. “It would be a hassle to move back because you’re already settled in.”
Monsanto, however, adamantly pointed to the residents’ right to return when the new complex is built. “One of the most important things Hope VI program has is that the residents have the first right to return,” Monsanto said. “As long as the residents are in good standing on paying your lease, not being convicted of a felony and following lease guidelines.”
Meanwhile, for one resident of 15 years who didn’t want to be identified, the hassles of moving justify the rewards of a renovated complex. “From other neighborhoods where they have rebuilt, it looks like a great plan, and they did a very nice job and it looks lovely,” she said. “Especially in this area, there are so many tourists around, so you want to make it look as nice as possible.”
Looking to the future of 531 Bay St., Monsanto and Cynthia Wiltz, the president of the North Beach Tenants association, foresee the same kind of success for this complex as other rebuilt developments, such as the newly renovated complexes in Hayes Valley and Plaza East Development.
“I want my tenants to feel proud about where they are living,” Wiltz said. “I know it’s going to be a big change for them, but they need to look ahead and try to make things better for themselves.”
In addition, the children who live in the complex have been exposed to drug use and other illegal activities, Wiltz said. Security guards make regular rounds on the complex but they have been unsuccessful in cleaning up the area. “The security guards need to be seen more,” Wiltz said. According to SFHA, children under the age of 17 make up 27 percent of the public housing population.
To assist the problematic situation, a state-funded program that provides free childcare and computer-training courses for the tenants has already been instituted at the complex and will continue when the new complex is built. “It’s very good for the parents who live here because they don’t have to travel to get their children, they will be right on site,” Wiltz said. The complex will also feature computer wiring in all the units and meeting rooms.
“We’re having residents coming back with better incomes, better educated, families recovering from drugs and alcohol and families with just a better standard of living,” Monsanto said. “Our idea is to not gentrify but to provide a better, safe and sanitized home to families where programs are helping them to be more self-sufficient.”
Reach Ethen Lieser at elieser@asianweek.com. |
