Controversy is mounting in Sebastopol at the new Woodmark Apartments, an affordable housing complex built with funds designated specifically for farmworker families.
According to the Press Democrat, despite this mandate, developers initially rented most of the 48 units to other low-income residents last year, including people like Beth Gallock and Melissa Page, who desperately needed stable housing.
Now, to comply with funding obligations, the developer is forcing most of these non-farmworker tenants out. While some accepted buyouts of up to $10,000, 14 households are fighting to stay as their leases expire.
Local officials have intervened, but the U.S. Department of Agriculture confirms the developer will not be allowed to renew the leases of non-farmworker residents. Critics are calling the situation a severe injustice that has harmed both the current vulnerable tenants and the farmworkers the project was meant to serve.
