Denny's Free Grand Slam Breakfast Day Tuesday
Muni Bus Nails a Fire Hydrant
Prop 8 Trial Judge Is Gay; Should This Matter?
Marina Yoga Studio Donates Old Mats for Haitian Relief
One Dead in Fisherman's Wharf Nightclub Shooting
Last Thursday, the New York Times published a piece about the trials and travails of a bunch of old ladies living in a San Francisco Housing Authority building in the Castro that was overrun by crystal meth fiends. Apparently, the old ladies repeatedly complained to the Housing Authority about the addicts in their midst and were, unsurprisingly, pooh-poohed for their troubles. The neighborhood had to collapse into the gutter followed by a police raid on the building to shut down the resident meth lab before the Housing Authority was willing to take steps to evict the meth addicts.
A year and a half later, with about half a million American dollars spent on legal bills and building security, they were finally able to get the meth heads out. Alas, like the proverbial cucaracha, meth addicts tend to multiply and where one once ground his teeth like a frenzied moron, a million more show up snorting around, looking to party with tina.
All this aside, the true revelation in this article was the following quote:
"I don't know what crystal meth is, sir," said Henry A. Alvarez III, the agency's executive director.
Come again? Wait a minute. Let's get this straight. The Executive Director of the SFHA, the agency responsible for putting roofs over the heads of the San Francisco's poors and downtroddens, has never heard of a drug that has been the scourge of the city for over a decade? Hasn't he seen the public health campaigns against meth that feature bad neo-constructivist art/sexy cartoon characters/meth-addled porn stars who keep falling off the wagon? Didn't he get an orientation pep talk on the city's woes when he landed this gig? You know, something with a sassy, gum-smacking, street-smart social worker who talks the hep jive of today's youth and says things like "Meth is (insert snappy negative rhyming word here)," like in an episode of "The White Shadow."
For those of you generous enough of spirit to wonder whether this fella was misquoted, take note. The author of this piece, Scott James, wrote a follow up blog post, describing himself as stunned when Mr. Alvarez made the above pronouncement not just once, but three times during their interview! Unbelievable. Also, unacceptable. Particularly for a job that undoubtedly pays well into the six figures. For that kind of coin, this writer would expect the executive director of the public housing authority to be able to rattle off drug names like a god damned pharmacist.
add to stumble upon
add to reddit
tweet this
post to facebook
Meth dealers proudly represented by:
http://www.evictiondefense.org/
That is an amazing story. Someday I hope someone will tell the whole story of the $42 million HUD Hayes Valley HOPE VI Housing Development, but it would take thousands of pages. It's the same pattern though, on a larger scale.
that's not the only case similar. In the largest non profit housing for the homeless, they don't know what meth is either, and all the needle drop boxes are for diabetics. There are a very large number of diabetics roaming around this city
http://www.bluoz.com/blog/index.php?/archives/695-McGarr-v-THC-depositions-and-updates.html
Auweia: No one is claiming dropboxes are for diabetics-- dropboxes in housing known to have high amounts of drug use protects the workers from getting stabbed with dirty needles. It's called Harm Reduction (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harm_reduction)
From the deposition of senior housing director, James Holland:
MR. WEISS:
Q. Do you know why receptacles for syringes were on each floor of the residence for the Hartland Hotel in 2008?
A. We have some people like myself that have to use insulin, so I have one of those receptacles in my office.
Q. Is that why the receptacles are on every floor of the Hartland Hotel in 2008 for people with diabetes?
MR. ELLIS: Objection. It calls for speculation.
MR. WEISS: I'm asking if you know. You don't have to guess. Just what you know.
THE WITNESS: That's what you are asking me to do is to guess. I know we have the receptacles for people to use every floor.
MR. WEISS:
Q. You just don't know why, is that your testimony?
A. I don't know why.
wow...somebody actually read the depositions...I'm stunned..
thanks!
Henry Alvarez is a complete tool - I know this from personal, first-hand professional experience. They brought him in from San Antonio's Housing Authority to clean up the mess of the SFHA (which the previous tool of a director - Gregg Fortner - has done zip to address). Granted, the SHFA's Board of Commissioners isn't much better - its 80% filled as a dumping ground for third-tier political hacks and 20% with folks who actually know housing but are powerless to do anything about it. (surrounded, as they are, by the morons on the board)
He talks a big game - like your average Texan - shoots first, and asks questions when he feels like it. I'm not surprised he would lie through his teeth claiming he doesn't know what crystal meth is. (Hasn't he ever watched Breaking Bad?) If he stated he knew what it was, then he (or his agency) should have known better regarding the complaints of those little old ladies. Better to just plead ignorance and hope not to get sued.
Yes, I could NOT believe this quote. My 15 year old son and I are still talking about it: like the guy never reads...um a newspaper, a billboard, a handbook on running urban housing programs? he never watches TV? did he think someone was asking about his personal habits rather than a subject closely related to the program he is responsible for? simply unbelievable. And no spin doctor has stepped up to explain how this was misreported etc.
I'm amazed at the amount of shock in the comments regarding meth/needles. They're not dumb. Tools, yes.
Classic catch-22: They deny knowledge because they have to. The moment they acknowledge its existence, they will be required to address it. But they can't because they do not now, and will not likely get the resources requiried to address it. So if they acknowlege it, but don't do anything (because they can't), they're possibly legally liable.
This illustrates the clusterfuck of a system we've got.
I think you've got it here. If he acknowledged it in the interview, the next question would surely be "do you know how much meth is present in your buildings?", and then "why haven't you done anything about it?" which would surely open a Pandora's Box of trouble for that executive director. Better to (sound like an idiot and) close off that line of questioning as quickly as possible.
... as much as I enjoy RobInSF's post, it was supposed to be a reply to seandub...
I've said it before but, anyone responsible for the maintenance, operations or management of public housing should be required, by law to LIVE in it for 6 months out of every year.