San Jose veterans home operator dumped over poor conditions

Formerly homeless veterans living in poor conditions at a San Jose complex hope things get better with the change in nonprofit service providers.

The property at 10. Kirk Ave. is home to dozens of veterans that have lived with black mildew, fire hazards and unsafe electrical systems, among other problems — issues that have been going on for years. Santa Clara County purchased it last year and promised to turn it around. Homeless Veterans Emergency Housing Facility, a nonprofit led by CEO Irvin Goodwin, provided case management and meals to veterans at the site, but the veterans lived in squalor. Two months ago the Veterans Administration, which had been been funding a majority of the programs, said it would not renew its contract with the nonprofit, and the contract expired on Monday.

To avoid a lapse in service, the county brought in Abode Services on Tuesday to take over day-to-day operations through the end of the year.

The contract, approved by the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors on Aug. 27, is only through the end of December. The county took $500,000 out of its general fund contingency reserve to make sure on-site veterans are still getting meals, case management and services needed to transition into permanent housing.

The county is banking on Abode getting a contract with the Veterans Administration to maintain services for veterans into the new year. Deputy County Executive Director Consuelo Hernandez said Abode’s contract with the Veterans Administration is “pending inspections” of the site. If the Veterans Administration doesn’t end up giving Abode a contract, Hernandez said the county will work to see what else needs to be done or provide a plan to help the veterans transition out.

“Our stance is we care about the veterans,” Hernandez told San José Spotlight, adding that transitions can be difficult because there is uncertainty in regards to who is responsible for what.

An Abode spokesperson deferred questions on the contract and transition to the county.

The transition hasn’t been without hiccups. A case manager for Homeless Veterans Emergency Housing Facility said they were trying to get veterans out of the building because the Veterans Administration initially told them all veterans had to leave the premises before the contract expired. The nonprofit rushed to move some veterans into apartments and shelters.

Other veterans felt unsettled because they didn’t know where they would go.

“I was living in limbo because I didn’t know,” a veteran who asked to remain anonymous for fear of retaliation told San José Spotlight. “I was worried about having to leave.”

The veteran said a worker from Abode contacted him last Friday and told him he would be able to stay, but he’d have to work out a new lease with the Veterans Administration.

Hernandez told San José Spotlight no veterans are being asked to leave. There are about six veterans who reside in a building with mold, and they will move to another building on the premises while repairs are being made, she said. There were about 40 veterans on the premises Aug. 13.

The complex is made up of eight, single-story buildings with the capacity to house 150 veterans. The county acquired the 4.26-acre site for $14.5 million last November from Swenson Builders, one of San Jose’s largest developers. Since the acquisition it has fixed the fire sprinklers, installed new piping, re-roofed several buildings, remediated the mold in some buildings, pumped standing water out of the basement and installed air conditioning in some rooms, among other repairs.

Before the county took over, buildings did not have hot water, the veteran said. Toilets would get clogged constantly. His room has black mold, which he painted over, he said. He will have to move to another room when mold remediation takes place.

Prior service provider Homeless Veterans Emergency Housing Facility has a 2-star rating out of 4 stars on Charity Navigator for not having a conflict of interest policy and failing to publish tax documents online.

The veteran said he is hopeful things will improve with the county owning the building and Abode managing the operations. Others are still uneasy with the transition.

“I think it’s going to be a lot more fair,” he told San José Spotlight. “I’m handicapped and (Goodwin) wouldn’t give me a handicap (parking) spot. There was a lot of favoritism going on.”

Contact Joyce Chu at [email protected] or @joyce_speaks on X, formerly known as Twitter.