Special Notice / Hearing: None__
Vote Required: Majority
To: Honorable Board of Supervisors
From: Michael Callagy, County Manager
Subject: Team of the Month for January 2020
RECOMMENDATION:
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Presentation providing update on 855 Barron Mobile Home Park and honoring the 855 Barron Project Team as Team of the Month for January 2020 and authorize the President of the Board to sign the commendations.
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BACKGROUND:
The Team of the Month program was established in September 2018 to recognize and honor County teams who consistently demonstrate an outstanding level of performance.
Our Team of the Month for January 2020 are members from multi-departments including District Four, Office of Community Affairs, County Counsel, Department of Housing, Human Services Agency, Planning and Building, Public Works, and the County Manager's Office. The team, spearheaded by Supervisor Slocum and Peggy Jensen, includes: Marci Dragun, Mitzy De La Peña Medina, John Nibbelin, Brian Kulich, Monali Sheth, Ken Cole, Doug Frederick, Nila Kim, Ying Sham, Selina Toy Lee, Emma Gonzalez, Sandy Becerra, Miles Hancock and Kevin Sporer.
DISCUSSION:
About three years ago, Supervisor Slocum asked County staff to create healthy and safe housing for the over 200 residents of the Redwood Village Trailer Park located at 855 Barron Avenue in North Fair Oaks. At the time of the request, almost all the units were in the park were structurally unsound and could have been red-tagged. If the units were red-tagged, the low-income residents could have been evicted by the park owner and displaced without other affordable housing options.
A multi-departmental team including the Supervisor and his staff, Office of Community Affairs, County Counsel, Housing, Human Services, Planning and Building, Public Works, the County Manager's Office and a contract capital project manager, worked with the property owner and the residents to renovate the park infrastructure and replace the dilapidated units. Community Affairs worked closely with all the residents to keep them informed and translate multiple documents, since the residents are primarily Spanish speakers. County Counsel led multiple negotiations with the property owner and his attorney, ultimately resulting in a mediated agreement developed with the assistance of a retired judge. The Department of Housing set up a low-interest loan program and managed the purchase of new units by the residents. Human Services developed and oversaw a relocation assistance program so that residents would have alternative housing while their new units were being built and delivered. Planning and Building provided guidance and direction on code and compliance questions. The County Manager's Office was the executive sponsor of the project. Mike Wasserman from Capital Project Management Inc. managed the multiple contractors who worked on site demolition and improvements including the contractors that installed and set up the new units.
The first phase of the site work began in April 2019. On December 20th, 2019, the last group of residents moved into their new homes. Redwood Trailer Village is now a model mobile home park with fresh paving, a new electrical system, clear lot lines and brand-new housing units. The project came in under budget and generally on-schedule with the exception of a factory delay. All residents are current on the loan payments and the County expects a full return on the $3.1 million loan program. The County contributed $2 million toward the demolition, site clean-up and site improvements.
This project was very challenging however the talented and committed staff from this team persistently worked together to make it a success. The Barron project is an excellent example of how a diverse team of County employees came together to make a make a significant difference in the lives of over 200 County residents.
The work this group did is an exceptional example of teamwork. Every step in this project was challenging. But for every obstacle that arose, a different team member would come up with a solution that enabled the project to move forward. When some team members recently visited the park and spoke with some of the residents, we forgot the challenges. Seeing smiling children, happy parents, elderly residents enjoying their new homes made all our work more than worthwhile.
San Mateo County is fortunate to have 855 Barron Project Team staff as an outstanding team in the County.