A peek at Oakland’s housing implementation cabinet

A peek at Oakland’s housing implementation cabinet

By Lynda Carson - November 4, 2015

Oakland - With much hoopla and fanfare, Mayor Libby Schaaf announced recently that she has created a special housing cabinet (aka housing implementation cabinet) to come up with solutions to solve Oakland’s housing crisis.

A peek at the list of members for the Mayor’s housing implementation cabinet may shed a little light on how serious Mayor Libby Schaaf may be in regards to solving the housing crisis, and ending the mass displacement of renters that is already taking place.

Because of extremely high rents, the lack of a real rent control program, a lack of criminal penalties in the Tenant Protection Ordinance, and lax condo conversion laws, the housing crisis has created many casualties.

Additionally, a lack of enforcement laws to stop Airbnb and it’s clients from getting around Oakland’s rent laws, has made matters worse. And the lack of developer’s fees needed to create “real affordable housing projects” that do not discriminate against the poor with “minimum income requirements,” is another problem added to the housing crisis.

A partial list of members to the Mayor’s housing implementation cabinet include City staff members, including Michele Byrd, Housing and Community Development; Mark Sawicki, Economic and Workforce Development; Rachel Flynn and Darin Ranelleti, Planning; and Kelley Kahn, Special Projects.

Housing experts include Carol Galante, UC Berkeley; Olsen Lee, Oakland resident and SF Mayor’s Office of Housing; Matt Schwartz, California Housing Partnership Corporation (CHPC); Eric Johnson of the Oakland Housing Authority; Josh Simon, of the East Bay Asian Local Development Corporation (EBALDC); and Susan Friesland of Satellite Affordable Housing Associates (SAHA).

Advocates: Gloria Bruce, EBHO; Sarah Karlinsky, Spur; Kalima Rose, Policy Link; and Greg McConnell, Housing and Jobs Coalition.

Market rate housers: Mike Ghelmetti, Signature Properties; Regina Davis; John Protopappas, Madison Park Financial; and Jesse Blout, Strada Investment Group.

Other friends of the City include: Fred Blackwell, The San Francisco Foundation.

According to sources, the Mayor’s office also created a task group, and renter’s working group as part of the components to the housing implementation cabinet. The Mayor’s office, Oakland’s City Council members, and Michele Byrd did not respond to my questions, or request for information about the housing implementation cabinet, the renter’s working group, or the task group.


A little back ground on some of the members of the housing implementation cabinet.


Indeed, a little back ground information on some of the members of the Mayor’s “housing implementation cabinet” may help to shed a little light on what may be ahead for Oakland renters.

During early October 2015, Rachel Flynn, Director of Oakland’s Planning and Building Department, made quite a stir when it was reported that she told a conference of real estate developers in San Francisco, that Oakland’s renters are not currently facing an affordable housing crisis. According to RentJungle.com: As of August 2015, average apartment rents within 10 miles of Oakland, CA, is $3,392. One bedroom apartments in Oakland rent for $2,897 a month on average and two bedroom apartment rents average $3,706. To all the renters being forced out of their housing due to massive rent increases, a housing crisis definitely exists in Oakland.

While Carol Galante was with the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) she took credit for helping to create the Rental Assistance Demonstration program (RAD). RAD is a housing program that is presently being used to privatize 185,000 public housing units across the nation, while displacing tens of thousands of low-income families from their housing in the process.

Click on link below for more…

http://ced.berkeley.edu/ced/faculty-staff/carol-galante

Josh Simon, executive director of the East Bay Asian Local Development Corporation (EBALDC). In one of their housing projects in Oakland, EBALDC teamed up with the Related Companies owned by 2 out-of-state billionaires, and the Oakland Housing Authority to privatize the Coliseum Public Housing Project, resulting in the displacement of nearly 178 low-income families from their housing.

Click on link below for more…

http://poormagazine.org/node/1754

During 2013, Matt Schwartz, president of California Housing Partnership Corporation (CHPC), raked in $182,043, plus $34,780 in other compensation. CHPC is a consulting group for the so-called affordable housing industry that supports the privatization of public housing, and the RAD program that is displacing tens of thousands of public housing tenants from their housing across the nation, while thousands of good union jobs are being destroyed in the process.

Click below for more…

http://www.chpc.net/about/staffboard.html

Gloria Bruce, of East Bay Housing Organizations (EBHO). EBHO has a number of members from the so-called affordable housing industry involved in the RAD program and the privatization of more than 6,000 public housing units in San Francisco. Most of the members of EBHO in the so-called affordable housing industry have minimum income requirements at their so-called affordable housing projects, that discriminate against the poor.

Click on link below for more on EBHO…

https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2015/10/16/18778898.php

Greg McConnell, Housing and Jobs Coalition. For many years, Gregory R. McConnell, a familiar face at Oakland City Hall, can generally be found at City Council meetings when he is speaking out against any renter protections being considered to protect Oakland renters. Renter protections that may help renters fight back against the eviction-for profit-system, rent increases, or harassment from greedy landlords, and shady realtors.

Public records reveal that regardless of his past problems with cocaine and alcohol abuse, McConnell has been a close fixture at Oakland City Hall for many years, to lobby on behalf of businesses in Oakland, and the Bay Area.

Before conducting his anti-tenant activities in Oakland, at one time McConnell was disbarred as an attorney in the District of Columbia, for allegedly being involved in some serious violations of the District of Columbia Code of Professional Responsibility. Several complaints included the misuse of a client’s funds, while other complaints involved neglect. Years later he was reinstated back into the bar in the District of Columbia.

In contrast to his past problems with drug abuse and being disbarred as an attorney for the misuse of his clients money, during 2008, Greg McConnell spearheaded a campaign to gather signatures for a ballot measure for 300 extra police officers in Oakland, leaving many to believe that Greg McConnell may be a hypocrite.

As recently as April 29, 2015, McConnell made a political contribution of $700 to Oakland City Councilmember Lynette Gibson McElhaney, through his political action committee called Oakland Jobs Pac.

Additionally, records reveal that McConnell through his Oakland Jobs Pac, gave $700 to Councilmember Abel Guillen on March 18, 2015; in addition to $700 to former Mayor Jean Quan on Dec. 19, 2014; plus $700 to Councilmember Rebecca Kaplan on Dec. 16, 2014; including $700 to Councilmember Annie Cambell Washington on Jun. 26, 2014; and $350 to Councilmember Dan Kalb on Jun. 3, 2013.

Records also reveal that Signature Development Group gave $25,000 on April 24, 2015, to McConnells’ “Oakland Jobs PAC”, so that McConnell could lobby the City Council, and City officials on it’s behalf.

Other contributors to Oakland Jobs PAC, includes PG&E that gave a total of $22,500 to have McConnell lobby the City Council, and $12,000 from J&R Associates for lobbying expenses. The contributions occurred from 2013 through 2014.

In addition to attacking any proposals to help renters in Oakland with renter protections, during 1995, McConnell was involved in the passage of the Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act that restricts strong rent control protections in California. It would not be unfair to say that McConnell’s activities have placed millions of renters at risk of losing their housing throughout the state of California, due to the lack of strong renter protections.

Click on link below for more on Greg McConnell…

https://www.courtlistener.com/opinion/2383697/in-re-mcconnell/

Michael Gheilmetti, of Signature Properties/Signature Development, used Greg McConnell as a consultant to pass along $25,000 on April 24, 2015, to lobby the City Council, and City officials on it’s behalf through McConnell’s “Oakland Jobs PAC.”

Click below for more about Signature’s activities involving the planning department, with Rachel Flynn, Director of Oakland’s Planning and Building Department, who is also a member of the housing implementation cabinet, along with Greg McConnell…

http://tinyurl.com/q9jo56w

John Protopappas, Madison Park Financial: According to the East Bay Express, John Protopappas set up an organization called Made In Oakland, an organization that funneled $83,000 of $88,000 that it raised in campaign contributions for the inauguration events for Mayor Libby Schaaf, and on the transition of her incoming administration.

Click below on links for more…

http://tinyurl.com/nlzhlyc

Jesse Blout, Strada Investment Group: Jesse blout is a political insider who is well connected, and is used to having his way after making campaign contributions to politicians.

Click on link below for more…

http://tinyurl.com/8ae7uu6

Susan Friedland, Satellite Affordable Housing Associates (SAHA): During 2014, as executive director of SAHA, Susan Friedland raked in $178,291 in salary, plus $18,582 in other compensation from the subsidized housing projects of SAHA that are funded by tax payers through HUD, and the federal government. During 2014, and 2015, many elderly renters at the Strawberry Creek Lodge 150 unit housing complex in Berkeley, complained bitterly about being pushed around by SAHA’s contractors during a massive renovation project. SAHA is also a member of EBHO.

Click on link below for more…

http://tinyurl.com/nqrj4k2

Spur: In Spur’s vision for Oakland, on their website, there is no mention of a need for stronger renter protections, including a real rent control program, criminal penalties for the Tenant Protection Ordinance (TPO), a plan to strengthen condo conversion laws, or a plan to curb the abuses of Airbnb, and the unregistered rental unit market that is displacing renters in Oakland.

Based on the sampling of members in the Mayor’s housing implementation cabinet, it does not appear that there will be a big push for stronger renter protections that are needed in Oakland to fix the housing crisis, and to stop the displacement of thousands.

The Mayor’s office expects to have around 20 participants in the housing implementation cabinet that includes some of the members listed above, and according to documents, on November 5, they plan to have a meeting to focus on increasing resources, as they begin to compare their strategies, and deliberate about each strategies impact, as well as their interplay.

During December, the housing implementation cabinet plans to have some trade off conversation meetings, and wrap up their work. The working groups are scheduled to complete their reports at that point, and begin to finalize the report scheduled for release in early 2016, by the City.

Time will tell whether the housing implementation cabinet will focus on creating stronger renter protections in Oakland. Or if it will focus on ways to further enrich the well connected developers, as a way to solve the housing crisis. The same housing crisis that Rachel Flynn, Director of the Planning and Building Department, announced recently that it does not exist.

Lynda Carson may be reached at tenantsrule [at] yahoo.com

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