From AIDS to Housing Crisis — Castro’s Long-Time Residents Fight to Stay

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Jeremy Mykaels stands outside San Francisco's City Hall after speaking out against Ellis Act evictions. Photo by Liz Mak/KALW

By Liz Mak, KALW
Jeremy Mykaels is in his early 60s, and he has AIDS. As a young gay man, he moved to the Castro, where he has lived for almost 40 years. He has been in his Victorian apartment on Noe Street for about half that time — but he may not be living here much longer.
Mykaels is the last tenant still living at 460 Noe. The tenants in the other two units left around the time the new owners bought the building two years ago. But because Mykaels would not leave, the new landlords have tried to evict him with the Ellis Act, a state law designed to protect property owners who want to take their rental units off the market. The law is a controversial one, and according to some people — including Mykaels — landlords are actually misusing the law to make a profit. KALW reached out to the building’s owners, but could make contact with one; he declined to comment.

In protest, Mykaels has put up posters that cover most of the windows of his second-story unit. The signs read: “Boycott this property. Do not buy properties where seniors or disabled tenants have been evicted for profit by uncaring real estate speculators using and abusing the Ellis Act.”

Read the complete story at KALW. 

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