Don Garza on March 02, 2010, at 03:44PM – #1

I don't know why mention of Single Room Housing Corporation as the possible buyer is not mentioned... we all know already,, downtown who is in line to acquire the hotel and who is in line to manage it and , we all know who the source is of the information . Downtown is such a small town we all know..

We are all still waiting on a blogdowntown article about the acquisition of the Rossylyn Hotel.hmmmm

Don Garza on March 02, 2010, at 04:24PM – #3

My source has told me that another buyer is buying HUntungton, but SRO will manage upper floors and it is an initiative coming through CRA to expand the reach out of skid row through CRA for both SRO and Skid Row Housing Trust..

The initiative requires SRO and Skid Row housing trust to have these buildings so as they rehabilitate they can put in skid row residents so they don't have to pay out relocation benefits that can top 10, 000 dollars per resident. In other words, move in those displaced through capitol improvements on existing hotels or newly acquired properties.. I don't see why they can't just keep building from the ground up , it is much less expensive to the tax payer instead of rehabilitating the larger older structures.. which is far more expensive.. it would be interesting if you can find out if SRO or Skid Row Housing Trust do qualify under the Adaptive Reuse Ordinance when it come to structures such as the Ford Hotel , The Rossylyn , and the Huntington. , considering the Control Ordinance does not allow for any other use of these buildings other than low income affordable.

David McBane on March 02, 2010, at 05:45PM – #4

Don - Rehab is cheaper. I've been building and rehabbing buildings for 10 years now and rehab is almost always significantly cheaper compared to building a similar sized new building. I'm not sure where the belief has come that rehab is more expensive -- maybe because rehab had a lot more headaches than building new and can take longer -- but think of all of the savings just from not having to buy all of the materials for structure and exterior.

Don Garza on March 02, 2010, at 05:50PM – #5

I will put up the numbers soon...

SRO and Skid Row Housing Trust have different set of rules to go buy as averse to the adaptive reuse when a for profit developer rehabs one of these buildings. HUD comes into play as well as another number of issues. Smaller structures have cost well over 30 , 000 dollars per unit , sometimes over 100,000 dollars per unit... will explain later.. gotta go workout..

Don Garza on March 02, 2010, at 08:27PM – #6

Mcbane...? Isn't the guy from the simpsons that is the parody of Arnold the governator..

Don Garza on March 02, 2010, at 08:49PM – #7

Eric, Sources are telling me that SRO had to make a choice between the Huntington and The Rossylyn... don't know how reliable the sources are , but I can guarantee you after having been Downtown for over ten years , SRO or Skid Row Housing Trust will be "alotted" the Huntington , or some other non-profit entity.. Will get the numbers up on the ARO expenses as averse to the Non-profit expenses in rehabbing these huge structures such as the Rossylyn . I believe the Rossylyn will be the first huge structure rehabbed to fit section 8 subsidized housing criteria outside of a for profit low income developer like Amerland. The Ford Hotel still hasn't been converted to anything.

General Jeff on March 03, 2010, at 02:21AM – #8

Why does it seem as if everyone is 100% sure that SRO Housing is gonna get the Rosslyn? Now, is it supposedly guaranteed that SRHT is gonna get the Huntington?

I'm not convinced of either one!

It's time to get some all together new low-income affordable housing management groups in Skid Row!!

These two can't be the only game in town!

Where's the "welcoming" committee when you need it? How 'bout we invite some "fresh eyes" into the mix!

An old saying goes.... If you always do what you've always done, you will continue to get the same result. If you want a different outcome, one must change what they do!

It's time for change!

We need new housing landlords in Skid Row!

General Jeff on March 03, 2010, at 01:39PM – #10

Hey Dan,

I don't know if you noticed, but there are current lofts in the Downtown Los Angeles area that aren't even close to being filled up completely with tenants. Why build more?

In Skid Row, every single housing apartment has a really long waiting list with only a limited amount of new housing coming online.

Let's see, who really needs the housing.........

Anyway, my point is this, with a different set of Skid Row landlords that will work to move our community forward, all in Downtown should be in support of that. Those that want to remain in the past and keep Skid Row where it is (was) need to be removed from their positions of power and influence.

If the rest of Downtown is upgrading, improving and moving forward, why can't Skid Row?

The community members are ready. Why aren't the non-profits and the social service providers?

What's really going on?

Can't you see that Dan's diamond in the ruff needs polishing?

Don Garza on March 03, 2010, at 08:52PM – #12

if you are speaking about the Rossylyn Apartments owned by Amerland.. you are fortunate.. SRO Housing Corporation or Skid Row Housing Trust would be charging you a guest fee every time someone stayed overnight.. they would not let you have more than one guest in the building at a time , they would inspect your apartment every month , then find a reason to enter your apt even more times than that. Their in house managers would be ex addicts , some that are still using, the managers would be paid less than 15,000 dollars a year., thus having a key to your apt and the chances of theft happening from it would be substantial. There would be a huge file on you. If you question one of their managers they would pencil mess yu in your files. They would pay security guards and managers and employees to lie about you if they wanted to evict you... One of the reasons I helped secure funding from the CRA when SRO lost a federal grant was because many of those employees are decent and law abiding , but no one would ever hire them because of their criminal backgrounds... and they would have lost the only job they could get while putting together a decent job history. You can;t throw the baby out wit the bath water.

A big problem is that SRO Housing Corporation will not help their section 8 tenants maintain housing , even if SRO is getting shelter plus care. Thus you get a big turnaround in their hotels because many of them are evicted and can't get section 8 housing and they wind up homeless on the streets around those buildings.. This is one reason that there is a huge worry over the Rossylyn Hotel across from the Rossylyn Lofts and Rossylyn Affordable Community.. The biggest issue is the mentally ill verses those who are recovering addicts... There is tension between the two groups because recovering addicts have low self-esteem issues and it gets tense.. they blame the mentally ill for all of the skid row problems only because addicts present with symptoms of mental illness when using or coming down off of their drug of choice.

Conditions that should be put in place if SRO Housing Corporation acquires the Rossylyn..

1. Because it is very far from the Missions in skid row, there should be provided three square meals a day... if this doesn't happen you will see an increase at the end of every month folks from the Rossylyn Hotel panhandling for money on the streets of the Historic Core. Many receive only 800 dollars a month and some only 220 dollars a month in income..

2. SRO Housing Corporation has roaming security guards. This means they roam from Hotel to Hotel , over 25 properties. There should be on site security at all times.. They should increase the salary of said Security Guards to deter them from being bribable by Drug dealers , on site mangers who have become drug dealers, or tenants who pimp out their rooms for prostitution... This was happening at the Southern Hotel..

3.SRO and United Central City East Prevention Project work hand in hand. SRO Housing Corporation leases the Ellis Hotel storefront to them. United Central City East Project fought against every liquor license that Cedd Moses and other legitimate business owners have been working hard at putting together in the Central City. They fought the Nickel also. SRO Housing Corporation uses UCEPP to nuisance abate properties so they can acquire them. Be ready to see an increase in complaints against local Historic Core businesses once SRO Housing Corporation owns the Rossylyn Hotel.. UCCEPP did do a great job when they opposed SRO when they took it upon themselves to care for the kids of skid row when the Ford Hotel was full of them..

Anyway... the dynamics in the Historic Core are about to change big time...

General Jeff on March 03, 2010, at 10:43PM – #13

To be technical, UCEPP stands for United Coalition East Prevention Project. They are a drug and alcohol group that in recent years is mostly known for speaking out against the approval of liquor licenses throughout most of Downtown. They insist that this area is still Skid Row and therefore an active recovery zone.

They have even gone to City Hall to prevent AEG, Staples Center and all the LA Live businesses from obtaining liquor licenses which include ESPN Zone, Trader Vic's, Yardhouse and Lucky Strike.

Just last week they went to the DLANC Planning committee to speak out against a restaurant that is applying for a liquor license but left quickly without a word after it was established that the address was not on EAST 6th street, but WEST 6th street.

Who knows what bar, nightclub or restaurant is next???!!!!!!!

And yes, their offices are in one of SRO Housing's hotels.

General Jeff on March 04, 2010, at 06:54PM – #15

Regarding SRO's and the rents, with a government subsidy covering most of the rent, all that is required from the tenant is 1/3rd of their income.

So if a person is receiving G.R.( General Relief), also known as welfare, which is $221 per month, they pay around $60 bucks a month in rent.

Those receiving more still pay about 1/3rd of their income including Social Security, any disability checks as well as VA checks (veterans).

The actual overall rent amount is reduced before the subsidy is applied( I guess Uncle Sam is a really good negotiator) and the landlords are happy because they have guaranteed income with a guaranteed 12-month lease contract with Uncle Sam.

Their only concern at that point is getting the tenants to pay their part.

Once they get their monthly check, it is each tenant's own responsibility to pay their portion of the rent. And in Skid Row, there are many folks that continuously struggle with this due to either their addictions and/ or issues related to mental illness and other concerns.

Most mental illness tenants wind up missing their due dates and eventually after a couple months of overdue rent, find themselves qualifying to be evicted. And with the high demand for housing in the area, the Skid Row landlords seem to have a fast-turning "revolving door" that rotates them in and out, without any room for compassion.

I even heard today( from a reliable source) that the Project 50 folks, a project that focused on identifying and housing 50 of the most needy and vulnerable homeless people in Skid Row, lost 40 of their 50 tenants for various reasons, including jail and relapses. These 50 folks weren't paying ANY rent. The taxpayers covered them. Now, that money goes down the drain and and all new money has to be raised for the next batch of Project 50 tenants.( 40 if you're keeping score at home).

I don't know who was doing the picking, but it's not that hard to determine who is ready to be responsible and who isn't. In all fairness, I have also seen long-term homeless folks "straighten up" long enough to get housed, then after a month revert back to old habits and old ways and wind up back out on the streets.

Nothing about this entire homeless situation is easy.However, I personally think that it's time for change. Time to try something different. These current methods just aren't working at a high enough percentage to be deemed successful.

General Jeff on March 04, 2010, at 07:12PM – #16

I should also add to the list of folks that struggle to pay their rent, those that suffer from financial "mis"management.

And in Skid Row, that may very well be the biggest problem of all.

With people only getting 12 checks per year out of 365 days of the year, financial management is a very important discipline that needs further exposure and educational implementation. Not only for folks in Skid Row, but people all over the world.( And yes, many of those right here in Downtown LA)

Young children and teenagers as well.

FLEA on March 05, 2010, at 12:10PM – #17

Whoa! I tried to follow all this and understand more about low income housing but this is just to confusing for this lay person living in DTLA to understand.

All I know is I live at SB Main and the Huntington Hotel can be seen from my loft windows. The corner of 7th and Main up the street from the hotel is a nightly party of drug dealers and drug buyers. Sometimes there are as many as 12 of them hanging out at all hours of the early morning partying it up, littering the streets, dealing drugs, fighting with each other loudly and disturbing the peace and quiet of hard working and rent paying individuals living in SB Main and SB Spring, like myself. I've been there a year and all I know is I keep hearing from the police that they come from the Huntington Hotel and they can't do much about it. SO I DON'T GIVE A S____ WHO DOES WHAT BUT PLEASE JUST DO SOMETHING!

General Jeff on March 05, 2010, at 11:29PM – #18

Flea,

Sorry if anything that I said has anything to do with what confuses you. And if that's the case, then I won't go into tax credits and air rights!

Also, understand why LAPD's job is so hard. They can't just simply arrest somebody for nothing. They can't even arrest somebody cause they "heard" that they sold drugs. They have to literally catch them in the act. And it doesn't make sense to catch a one-time deal. That dealer will be in and out of jail before the summer and back at that same corner but this time with a chip on his or her shoulder.

That's why the LAPD, or any other anti-crime agency, tries to stack up a long-term case with long-term surveillance and hope that during a specific amount of time they will have enough evidence to put the dealers away for a very long time.

Unfortunately, due to limited resources, long-term surveillances cannot be applied to every known dealer or every known high-traffic drug area. And with constant complaints from regular tax-paying residents, the officers have to settle for short-term arrests to please the masses. And more often than not, the dealers are "back to work" even before the public knows that they were arrested.

Just as you are frustrated, so are a lot of the officers. And many of them will go "rogue" just to "serve justice", but in this country, even the criminals have rights. And if a strong case isn't made in court, the "alleged" suspects will get off scott free.

This isn't anything new, the feds went through this with Al Capone and the likes. Just cause they know what they do and who they are isn't good enough in any court in the world! You have to have proof. The more solid the proof, the better the case. That's why LAPD and the others always ask for the communities' help.

And realize that the notorious Al Capone NEVER went to jail for organized crime. He went to jail for tax evasion! That was all they could get on him. The only provable crime they could make a case for.

And that was over fifty years ago!

Nowadays, it's still a tough battle. What you got on these guys- noise, loitering, littering and possible drug sales. Which one made the sale? You can't arrest EVERYBODY for one sale. Not a strong case in court. And that's if you attempt to try. Everything else is considered a "throwback" ( a fish too small to keep). The paperwork will take longer and keep the officer in the station to long to notice the "real crimes" in the area.

I don't mean to frustrate you, I'm simply being "the messenger".

FLEA on March 06, 2010, at 02:24PM – #19

Yeah! Yeah! I've heard all before many times. But back to the issue of the Huntington Hotel. I have no problem with low income housing in the community and hopefully they have no problem with market rent lofts in their neighborhood as well. Just hoping that hotel cleans up it's act and ultimately has an impact on the high crime on the corner of 7th and Main.

Don Garza on March 07, 2010, at 01:51AM – #20

I do recall that jackolanterns were thrown from the sb lofts onto cars and pedestrians last year..

Don Garza on March 07, 2010, at 02:05AM – #21

Flea, ask your landlord how much he paid for each unit to ARO the building you are in? Then ask SRO Housing Corporation what it is costing them to rehab units at the FORD Hotel which they operate and manage now.. I am sure the difference is substantial..like I said, numbers are coming soon! And as a business owner and tax payer I would hope many of us would begin to question why these non-profits are rehabbing historic structures at over 100,000 dollars per unit , units that aren't over 300 square feet.. this is what we are speaking about!!

The supposition is that SRO or SHRT acquiring that building will stop the drug dealing on that corner where Dearden's is. I guarantee yu it will be much worse because then SKID ROW and the problems that they have will be there even more... the Southern Hotel is a case in point.. a major drug dealer with guns and rifles was residing at one of SRO Housing Corporation Hotels for ten years and they did absolutely nothing about it for that long? Wake up!!

There is more to this story , but the double standard for low income non profit housing developers is way different than ARO developers.. and I will continue to speak about the development policies and such .. because we all need to be familiarized with these things., esp if we are paying for it.