Oakland housing organization believes the poor are dirty and unclean

Oakland housing organization believes the poor are dirty and unclean

By Lynda Carson March 4, 2009

Oakland - Residents in a 21 unit affordable housing building filled with low-income tenants were shocked to receive a notice on March 2, telling them that the City of Oakland will be doing an annual review of Effie's House, and that it's time for the tenants to clean up their apartments by sweeping, vacuuming, removing trash, etc., and to pick up any cables or cords off of the floor of their homes. Effie's House tenants have been faced with no less than 4 inspection notices or more since last May, and feel that they are being harassed into giving up their housing.

The latest 2 page inspection notice signed by building manager Clifford Gatewood goes on to advise tenants of a building inspection to occur March 10 between 10:00 am and 1:00 pm, by a representative of Oakland's Community and Economic Development Agency (CEDA). The March 2 notice states, "We will not know which units are to be inspected until that very day, so everyone should be prepared for inspection."

The east side building is owned by East Bay Asian Local Development Corporation (EBALDC), a nonprofit corporation with over $64,000,000 in assets and over 1,000 rental units in Oakland.

Former Berkeley Rent Stabilization Commissioner Eleanor Walden said, "It's outrageous that a nonprofit housing organization would assume that it's renters are dirty and unclean, and it's disrespectful to send them such a notice. I reside in an affordable housing development run by a nonprofit, and never have I or my neighbors been addressed in such a way. We have inspections once a year, and are told several months in advance before the inspection is to occur in case our apartments need some kind of repair or maintenance."

"These types of inspections have nothing to do with vacuuming or sweeping in tenant's homes," Walden says, "and by assuming that the low-income tenants are dirty and unclean reveals that something is wrong with the way the tenants are being treated. These inspections are meant to determine whether the building is being maintained properly by it's owners. Inspectors check for window problems, roof leaks, and try to determine if the building has electrical or plumbing problems. These kinds of inspections should never be used as a bludgeon to abuse the poor, and nonprofit corporations should know better. This is totally outrageous, and needs to stop."

It may be that people in prison or nursery school are told when it's time to vacuum and sweep their floors if that may be the case, but when corporations believe that they can run their so-called affordable housing sites with an iron fist, the poor should rise up to fire the employees involved and demand an investigation into the way they are being treated.

While Effie's House tenants are going to be tied up for hours with an annual review or so-called housing inspection that may not even occur in their apartments on March 10, at 2:00 pm on that very same day, CEDA board members will be voting whether or not to approve millions of dollars in loans for some major residential renovation projects being proposed citywide by local nonprofit corporations.

Effie's House is among the numerous buildings on the list of major renovation projects being proposed that will displace hundreds of Oakland's poor in coming months, if approved by CEDA on March 10, and the City Council on March 17.

Oakland low-income housing sites on the CEDA list of developers seeking millions in loans for major building renovations, or new developments include;

Drachma Housing Project Located At 1428 8th Street, 1510 9th Street, 1711 Goss Street, 1030 Wood Street, 1479 12th Street, 1107 Center Street, and 1503 12th Street. (Renovation project)

The Effie's House Project Located At 829 East 19th St. (21 unit renovation project)

The Hugh Taylor House Project Located At 1935 Seminary Avenue. (43 unit renovation project)

Eldridge Gonaway Commons Project Located At 1165 Third Avenue. (40 unit renovation project - OCHI owned)

The Foothill Plaza Rental Project Located At 6311 Foothill Boulevard. (54 units - OCHI owned)

Marin Way Court Apartments Project Located At 2000 International Boulevard. (20 unit renovation project - OCHI owned)

The Oaks Hotel Project Located At 587 15th Street. (84 SRO's renovation project - OCHI owned)

The Slim Jenkins Court Project Located At 700 Willow Street. (32 unit renovation project - OCHI owned)

The Posada De Colores Apartments Project Located At 2221 Fruitvale Avenue. (Renovation project including 2 buildings with around 100 units in one, plus 100 tenants or more in the other building.)

The 6th And Oak Senior Homes Project Located At 609 Oak Street. (70 unit development.)

The Harrison Street Senior Housing Project Located At 1633 Harrison Street And 321 17th Street. (73 unit, 5-story building development.)

The St. Joseph's Senior and Family Apartments Project Located At 2647 International Boulevard. (84 unit development.)

The Sausal Creek Homes Project Located At 2464-2470 26th Avenue. (Development)

The Golf Links Road Homeownership Project Located At 8379, 8395 And 8477 Golf Links Road. (Development)

The Tassafaronga Village Homeownership Project Located At 949 85th Avenue. (87 public housing families have been recently displaced to make room for this development.)