Housing

Assessing Progress in Area of Fair Housing

Published

7 years ago

April 29, 2019

County takes steps to reduce barriers, encourage diverse communities

If a community has a genuine desire to foster tolerance, openness and fairness, it can achieve it by encouraging diversity across all demographic lines. At the County of Marin, equity programs have been emphasized and prioritized, including in the area of fair housing.

During National Fair Housing Month and beyond, County staff is taking meaningful action to combat discrimination, overcome patterns of segregation, and foster inclusive communities free from barriers that restrict access to opportunities for groups protected from discrimination by law.

The Marin County Board of Supervisors acknowledged Fair Housing Month during its April 16 meeting with a proclamation that read, in part, “that economic progress and competitiveness is best served by promoting diverse, inclusive communities with equal access to good jobs, schools, health care, transportation, and housing.”

The Marin County Community Development Agency (CDA) is the lead grant recipient for federal grants related to local housing. The grants often come in the form of Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) and HOME Investment Partnerships (HOME) funds that support affordable housing programs and services for the most vulnerable residents in our communities. Over the past five years, the County has received more than $7.5 million in CDBG and HOME grants from the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Towns, cities and counties that benefit from those federal grants are expected to contribute to those fair housing efforts.

The County has taken significant steps to reduce barriers to fair housing. Last year, the Supervisors approved an ordinance that requires just cause for eviction. Just cause means the landlord must demonstrate that an eviction or lease termination is justified, for example, non-payment or habitual lateness of rent, creating a nuisance, demolishing property or other breaches of a rental agreement.

County officials have hosted public discussions about how racism framed housing policies both locally and across the nation. Despite the 1968 signing of the Fair Housing Act into law, Marin continues to have many neighborhoods are segregated, including many communities that are more than 90 percent white/non-Hispanic.

Marin is one of the most expensive places to live in the United States, and the lack of affordable housing choices has been labeled as a local crisis by many elected officials and stakeholders. The median price of a single-family home in Marin is about $1.1 million, and the average monthly rent for a two-bedroom apartment is more than $3,100.

But it’s not just unaffordability that creates a barrier for many working-class families and people of color. CDA staff has illustrated how institutionalized racism dating back decades shaped neighborhoods in Marin and excluded African Americans and other people of color from purchasing homes. Even the Federal Housing Administration’s underwriting manual from 1936 said it was necessary that properties should be occupied by people of the same social and racial classes to “retain stability” and prevent “a reduction in values.” In a process called redlining, neighborhoods where African Americans lived were systematically denied various services and financial investment. Redlined zones from the 1940s show that the same areas that were denied economic opportunities in the past, continue to be concentrated areas of poverty today.

Beginning in 2016, CDA staff created a community advisory group and a steering committee to encourage community engagement to help develop recommendations to County officials that address barriers to fair housing choice. The advisory group and steering committee became familiar with fair housing laws and the effects of racism and gentrification in African-American and other communities of color, and members shared personal insights with CDA staff. The groups’ top recommendations were to pursue the just cause for eviction ordinance, support a housing oversight committee to help identify solutions to local affordable housing crisis, and continue with a robust community engagement process.

In addition to the just cause ordinance, the County has created source-of-income protections for tenants, encouraged the creation of junior accessory dwelling units, started a landlord partnership program, enhanced its multifamily housing inspection program, and advocated for ways to expedite the permit process for new affordable housing.

Learn more on the County’s fair housing webpage or through the Marin Housing Authority.

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post

Black History

In Wake of Death on Doorstep, Williams Chapel Baptist Church Calls for Better Care, Funding for Unhoused

An unhoused individual was found deceased on the steps of Williams Chapel Baptist Church in East Oakland at approximately 6:30 a.m. Monday. The church, located at 1410 10th Ave., extended condolences to the individual’s family, noting the tragedy reflects a broader crisis. Williams Chapel Baptist Church provides shelter and referral services, working with West Side Missionary Baptist Church. They call for increased funding and collaboration to expand services for unhoused individuals. Read more to learn about the church’s efforts and the call for solutions.

Published

1 week ago

September 27, 2026

Post News Group

Oakland Police and emergency vehicle arrive to Williams Chapel Monday morning. Courtesy photo.

By Special to The Post

Church extends condolences to individual’s family and loved ones

At approximately 6:30 a.m. Monday, an unhoused individual was found deceased on the steps of Williams Chapel Baptist Church, located at 1410 10th Ave. on the corner of 10th and International in East Oakland.

The individual appears to have come to the church seeking safety and may have needed medical support. We extend our deepest condolences and prayers to the individual’s family and loved ones.

This tragedy reflects a broader crisis affecting unhoused individuals and families throughout the Bay Area. Too many people are living without reliable shelter or timely access to medical care, mental health support, and other essential services. Limited funding and insufficient resources continue to leave vulnerable people without the help they need.

Williams Chapel Baptist Church, a member of the Interfaith Council of Alameda County, works alongside West Side Missionary Baptist Church to provide safe-haven overnight parking, tiny-home emergency shelter, and wraparound referral services to the unhoused.

With funding, both East and West Oakland sites can increase to full capacity and extend to other congregations, creating more safe places for people living on the streets to seek shelter, support, and connection to services.

We invite government agencies, nonprofit organizations, interfaith communities, businesses, and neighbors to join us in this work. By working together with compassion and purpose, we can develop meaningful solutions and help more people experiencing homelessness receive care, stability, and dignity.

Post News Group

Posts by Post News Group

Commentary

Community Action Group ‘Friends of Zakiya’ Ask Sheriff for Time

“Friends and Neighbors of Zakiya,” a community group of more than 60 neighbors, friends and community activists, is standing strong with Jendayi. The group holds weekly vigils every Tuesday from 6 p.m.-7p.m. at Jendayi’s residence at 3614 Randolph Ave. in Oakland.

Published

2 weeks ago

September 22, 2026

Post News Group

By Tanya Dennis

Zakiya Jendayi received good news Monday, Sept. 14, when the appellate court ruled in her favor in the Hamlin v. Jendayi case, agreeing to hear the case on its merits regarding her motion to have Judge Sandra K. Bean’s ruling invalidated based upon Laura Dean Head’s living trust.

The bad news is that, at the time of this writing, the Sheriff’s Department was scheduled to evict Jendayi from her home yesterday.

The group is asking the community to join them and to make calls to Congresswoman Lateefah Simon, Attorney General Rob Bonta, Sheriff Yesenia Sanchez and DA Ursula Jones Dickson to stop what they deem the illegal eviction of Jendayi from her home of 13 years.

“I would hope that the Sheriff listens because, unlike the courts, my friends and neighbors have read the transcripts and seen for themselves the 42 findings that result in 35 false, six misleading, and one that is an error, which unbelievably the appeals court upheld.” says Jendayi. “With this new appeal, the court quite possibly will return my home to me, and so this makes no sense. The Sheriff is threatening to move forward to remove me before my appeal is heard.”

“This makes no sense,” says group member Rev. Raymond Langford. “She’s not a criminal, and she’s never had a criminal record. This situation has been horribly impactful on her physical and mental health. She’s now medically compromised due to all this stress, and all we’re asking for is time to see if the courts are in error. She should be given the opportunity for the appeal to be heard. That’s called justice, nothing more, nothing less.”.

Friends and Neighbors of Zakiya are organizing future protest actions to secure more time for Jendayi. They will be seen in front of the offices of Bonta, Simon and Sanchez, demanding that she have the opportunity for her case to be heard.

The Post is asking that the public join Friends and Neighbors of Zakiya and use the information listed to join in this fight for justice.

Friends and Neighbors of Zakiya asks you to sign the petition by activating the QR code below to enact a stay in Jendayi’s pending eviction from her home and to pursue a full and independent investigation into the ruling that invalidated Dr. Head’s trust.

Post News Group

Posts by Post News Group

Business

Mayor Lee Announces $1 Million Kaiser Permanente Grant for Pilot Program to Address Homelessness, Clean Up Public Spaces throughout Oakland

Achieving these goals requires unified City operations backed by new philanthropic and private sector investments. With Kaiser Permanente’s support, this project brings together the Mayor’s office, City Administrator’s office, Office of Homelessness Solutions, Housing and Community Development, Human Services, and Economic and Workforce Development.

Published

2 weeks ago

September 21, 2026

Post News Group

By Special to The Post

Innovative initiative combines employment, housing support, job training, and case management to create permanent pathways out of homelessness

Mayor Barbara Lee announced on Tuesday a $1 million grant from a Kaiser Permanente fund at the East Bay Community Foundation to launch the Workforce Development and Interim Housing Pilot Project. The initiative combines low-barrier employment with housing support to strengthen Oakland’s homelessness response while cleaning public spaces throughout the city.

Grant funding provides recipients with:

Part-time paid work focused on citywide sanitation and trash clean up, with pathways to permanent, full-time employment
One year of interim housing support
Comprehensive job training and wrap-around supportive services
Tailored case management designed to transition participants into permanent housing

“This pilot program gives us an essential tool to drive change for all of our neighbors affected by homelessness, including our Black and African American population who are disproportionately impacted,” said Lee.

Data show that having a job is critical to housing stability and preventing homelessness. This pilot provides unhoused residents with job opportunities that keep public spaces throughout the City clean, directly supporting the mayor’s goal to reduce unsheltered homelessness in Oakland by 50%.

The pilot is modeled after a similar program in Portland, Oregon, that offers low-barrier employment in sanitation services and housing support to people experiencing homelessness. Program results include a high percentage of participants moving to temporary or permanent housing and cleaner public spaces.

“We’re proud to support this innovative project because it creates meaningful opportunities for people experiencing homelessness while strengthening the health and vitality of the entire Oakland community,” said Yvette Radford, vice president of external and community affairs for Kaiser Permanente Northern California. “By providing job training, paid employment, supportive services, and a pathway to stable housing, this program offers people the tools to move forward with dignity and hope—while creating cleaner, safer, and healthier public spaces for everyone.”

The Communications Department of the Oakland Mayor’s office is the source of this report.