San Francisco Nonprofit Conard House Targeted For Abusing Tenants

San Francisco, April 16-At a noon protest at 10th and Mission today, activists gathered to protest abuses of tenants of Conard House.

Conard House is a nonprofit housing and social services organization that started in 1960 to help mentally challenged people.

Conard operates what it calls a Supportive Housing Program. According to labor activist Steve Zeltzer, this is going on in one residential hotel in the Tenderloin and another in the Castro. On its website, Conard house says it “owns, leases or manages 35 residential properties.”

Today’s action at 10th and Mission, outside Conard’s administrative headquarters, called on people to “Protest Conard House management To Stop Evicting Tenants And Whistleblowers;” to “Stop Illegal Fabricated Evictions & Privitization of Housing in SF;” and to “Speak Out For Justice!”

The press release at today’s action stated, “The Conard Housing Cooperative management has a long history unfortunately of retaliating against tenants who are whistleblowers about systemic problems in the management of their many properties. The Conard Management are also evicting tenants even when the clinical staff is completely opposed to such evictions and have done no investigations against these tenants.

“One tenant, Allen Zeltzer, has faced two eviction attempts by Conard management and both charges against were exposed when the tenants placed in his house were violent drug addicts and he was physically assaulted twice and is in the Victims Program in San Francisco.

“This effort to frame up tenants in order to make them homeless is not an isolated case. Conard management is spending tens of thousands of dollars on these malicious and fabricated eviction procedures. These public funds which Conard gets should be going to the tenants and their health services, and not eviction lawyers like J.ohn Zanghi of Zanghi, Torres, Arshawsky, LLP.

“At the same time, there is a Federal suit in the Supreme Court against the San Francisco police for the violent attack on a tenant at the same house and in fact in the same room. Theresa Sheehan is a tenant in the very same room that Allen lives in and was not treated properly by the staff at that time, and the same staff members in fact have been promoted by Conard Property management CEO Mark K. Hile.

Supporters of tenants and human rights need to call the SF Department of Public Health (415-554-2500) and ask why they are not doing proper oversight of Conard House and the many other publicly funded nonprofits.

The use of police should be last resort but for Conard management this seems to be a regular method. There was also no City or State oversight over whether Conard management staff is properly managing the facility. The city has a responsibility to protect the tenants and staff workers from retaliation and intimidation by Conard management and all properties funded by the city.

“You can call the Mayor at 415-554-6141.”

“You can call Conard Management at 415-864-7833 and let them know we are watching them.

Contact our committee to sign the petition to stop these illegal evictions NOW!”

Today’s action also addressed the current privitization of public and nonprofit housing in SF as promoting such abusive behavior against tenants by landlords.

Today I met someone at the protests who has been undergoing such mistreatment.

Following is this person’s testimony. This person does not live in a Conard House property, but the report tells a story that is currently happening all over SF:

“I’ve lived there 6 years. I hate it, but I have no choice.

“It’s a nonprofit, but about 2 years ago a private equity investment company took over management of the place.

“Before the takeover, someone from the Mayor’s Office of Housing came to us, and there was supposed to be a hearing at City Hall. But on the day of the hearing I went To it and no one else was there.

“They emptied it floor by floor. There are 12 floors, with 10 to 12 units on each floor. They took down the ceilings first, to remove the asbestos, they said. They took bags of it away, down the elevators. They said it was safe, but it had to be in the air.

“They turned the building into a construction site, they called it the ’mobilization.’

“The management brought in new staff who ruled the roost. What used to be community space was lost to them. They were inexperienced. They threatened you with eviction if you raised a problem.

“The office staff also added space. They took away space that had been for a nurse and recreation director. They were gone and not replaced.

“They put in surveillance cameras all over.

“80% of the tenants had to relocate while they were renovating. It took 2 to 3 months. In my place they divided the space in a way I wouldn’t have.

60% of the tenants are on Section 8—you pay 30% of your income for rent. Then some are on Site Specific Section 8—you lose it if you move.

Others have California Tax Credit, that helps bring down your rent a little.

“Everyone’s scared they’re going to raise the rent now that the renovations are done.

“The equity investment got interest free loans.

“It’s all very stressful. Sometimes I stay awake at night, thinking of the displaced people all over the world.

“I plan to keep living here, but I have illusions of escaping.”

For more information: United Public Workers For Action
http://www.upwa.info 415-282-1908