Steven Kalmbach of HomeAid Northern California threatens to evict tenants

Steven Kalmbach of HomeAid Northern California threatens to evict tenants

By Lynda Carson - December 5, 2017

Wealthy landlord Steven Kalmbach of Piedmont, and board member of HomeAid Northern California, a nonprofit housing organization assisting the homeless, reportedly has been threatening to evict his Oakland tenants if they cannot afford to pay the higher rents he is demanding. Reportedly, in some cases he is doubling their rents, and threatening the renters with homelessness if they cannot meet his demands. This totally contradicts his role as a board member of HomeAid Northern California, unless his intention is to drum up more business for HomeAid Northern California.

From an article in the East Bay Times: “It’s a tale of two cities,” said Justin Tombolesi, lead organizer for Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment, which has been negotiating with the landlord on behalf of the tenants. “You go to his house in Piedmont and there’s a Tesla and a BMW and then you come here.”

“Here” refers to a low-income neighborhood in the flatlands of Deep East Oakland, where many of the residents are immigrants from Mexico and Central America.

Norma Sanchez, a housekeeper, logs 12-hour work days commuting to Mountain View because the pay is better. Her husband Ambrocio Carrera works at a Togo’s sandwich shop. They’ve lived in their two-bedroom place on Hillside Street for eight years. The youngest of their three sons was born there.

The couple said their initial rent of $1,100 has increased by just $100 since they’ve lived there. But then a month ago, a notice came saying that the new rent would be $2,400 on Nov. 1.

“We can understand that he would want to raise the rent, but not to such an extent,” Sanchez said. “We’re barely making it as it is.”

Steven Kalmbach & HomeAid Northern California

According to the 2015, 990 tax filing, for HomeAid Northern California of Walnut Creek, a.k.a. Shelter Providers of Northern California, the mission of HomeAid Northern California is to build or renovate shelters for the temporarily homeless men, women and children of the greater Bay Area.

In 2015, HomeAid Northern California had gross receipts of $802,868, with a fund balance of $635,349 at the end of the year. Cheryl O’Connor, CEO of HomeAid Northern California raked in $140,000 in salary and wage compensation in 2015. This stunning revelation means that the organization spent more on the salary and wage compensation of Cheryl O’Connor in 2015, than it did to assist the homeless during 2015.

Additionally, Cheryl O’Connor was also raking in $140,000 a year in salary and wage compensation in 2014. During 2014, HomeAid Northern California had gross receipts of $844,165, and had a fund balance of $705,641 at the end of the year. Oddly, the majority of the money raised and spent by the organization in 2014, also went to cover the salary and wage compensation for Cheryl O’Connor, rather than the homeless.

Further documentation in the form of a 990 tax filing for 2013, reveals that HomeAid Northern California had gross receipts of $833,945 in 2013, with a fund balance of $628,110 at the end of the year. Cheryl O’Connor raked in $135,000 in 2013, once again revealing that the organization spent more on the salary and wage compensation of Cheryl O’Connor than it did on the homeless for 3 straight years in a row.

In contradiction to the mission statement of HomeAid Northern California, it would be fair to say that the three latest 990 tax filings for HomeAid Northern California reveal that the main activities of the organization are expending more time and energy to raise and spend money, on the salary and wage compensation of Cheryl O’Connor, than it does on the homeless each year.

Records also reveal that during 2015, HomeAid Northern California spent $6,525 for legal expenses, $12,362 on accounting expenses, $2,087 for bookkeeping expenses, $13,872 on advertising, $5,032 on office expenses, and $42,043 for occupancy expenses.

Considering that Steven Kalmbach is a board member of HomeAid Northern California and threatening many Oakland tenants with higher rents and eviction that may create much more homelessness, one can only why Cheryl O'Connor and HomeAid Northern California allow Steven Kalmbach to remain as a board member of their organization that claims to assist the homeless.

Additional records reveal that Steven Kalmbach has contributed rental space for HomeAid Northern California, despite the fact that he has reportedly been threatening his tenants in Oakland with higher rents, and homelessness if they do not meet his demands.

Cheryl O’Connor of HomeAid Northern California, did not respond to my request for an interview regarding the greedy activities of wealthy landlord Steven Kalmbach, or my questions regarding her extravagant salary that was more than what the organization spent to assist the homeless during 2015, 2014, and 2013.

According to the Anti-Eviction Mapping Project, “After buying a new $4 million mansion in Piedmont in July 2017, John Steven Kalmbach apparently needed to up his income.  Having picked up a group of single family homes in East Oakland at rock bottom prices during the foreclosure crisis, he recently decided to double the rent on many low income households living in those homes.”

Listing of properties owned by John Steven Kalmbach in Oakland according to the Anti-Eviction Mapping Project:

• 1087 WARFIELD AVE

• 2827 HARRISON ST

• 3221 E 17TH ST

• 1087 WARFIELD AVE

• 15 MUIR AVE

• 6 LINDA AVE

• 2669 RITCHIE ST

• 2684 RITCHIE ST

• 1450 86TH AVE

• 1633 87TH AVE

• 1717 89TH AVE

• 2526 RITCHIE ST

• 2735 76TH AVE

• 8020 HILLSIDE ST

• 8027 HILLSIDE ST

• 79 Hazel Lane

• 2531 78th Avenue

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

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