SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. (KRON) – A sailboat community in South San Francisco is facing eviction. Dozens of boat owners -- also referred to as “liveaboards” -- have been living near Oyster Point Marina for more than a decade, but the group is now trying to find a way to stay in the Marina or at least have good options elsewhere.
Boaters in the cove are being told they have to leave. The notices were sent to residents or liveaboards on June 15th. They were the first for people like Matt Klein who have lived here for more than a decade.
“It’s been a drag, man. It just messes with your security completely,” he said.
The marina’s owner, Kilroy Realty Corporation, offered people like Klein $10,000 if they signed an agreement to leave within four months.
“At first it sounded really good because they were giving us that money for moving but we had to tell them within 15 days,” liveaboard Sharron Harper said.
Some residents said the timing of all of this has been rushed. There’s also been the challenge of finding a new place to live.
Many marinas do not have the space for more liveaboards, and the San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission would also have to approve an increase to the number of people who live at each marina. The BCDC currently allows for just 10 percent.
“That’s an arbitrary number. It has to be changed to 20 or 25% to be sensible," Klein said.
The City of South San Francisco has offered to help evicted residents with low-income housing, but residents say their boats are already low-income while also being low-impact.
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“Our rents are all paid. We didn’t do anything wrong and all of a sudden ‘Poof you’re on the street,’” one liveaboard said.
The BCDC is meeting Thursday to consider emergency permits for liveaboards to temporarily move to a nearby marina. But those permits are only being looked at as a stopgap. Activists are now planning to call on the BCDC to do more.
from KRON4 https://ift.tt/c3Bzv01
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