A Community’s Vision for Publicly Owned Land

It was a brisk October morning in downtown Richmond, when community members gathered at a vacant lot on MacDonald Ave, Richmond’s historic mainstreet, and 16th St, across from the Richmond BART station. Some of the group who live nearby mentioned that the lot had been vacant for as long as they could remember. Mostly everyone … Read more

From Being a Statistic to a Part of the Housing Solution

I can never forget that it was 2001 when I first moved to San Francisco because September 11th happened that year. It was a weird time. Like the pandemic we’re currently living through, there was a lot of fear and uncertainty. I accepted my first job after graduating college at a public affairs company and moved … Read more

Bringing COPA to the Community

I used to think I was one of only a handful people who enjoyed talking about affordable housing policy on a Friday evening. But a few weeks ago I was blown away when over 300 people came together in East San Jose to learn about San Jose’s proposed Community Opportunity to Purchase Act (COPA). SOMOS Mayfair, a … Read more

East Palo Alto Mobile Park Residents’ Last Shot at Ownership

After spending most of their lives in a neighborhood and homes that have brought them much comfort and joy, Melieni Felmaka Talakai and Germany Fomby are facing the unsettling reality: they might be losing their homes. In the Spring of 2020, Melieni, Germany and their neighbors at Palo Mobile Estates, a mobile park home in … Read more