50 Homeless Move Into New Apartments

Christmas came early for about 50 homeless San Franciscans who settled into newly remodeled homes on Treasure Island this week.

“It will be a wonderful Christmas,” said Lorraine Williams-Watters, who had just picked up keys to the two-bedroom apartment she will share with her 19-year-old daughter and 2-year-old granddaughter.

The Williams-Watters family is one of 17 placed in renovated military housing on the decommissioned Navy base this week by Catholic Charities, working with the mayor’s housing office.

On Chinook Court, three blocks away, another set of apartments has been occupied by 20 formerly homeless men receiving treatment in the behavior, health and substance abuse program run by Walden House, a nonprofit rehabilitation program based in San Francisco.

Christmas was in evidence there, too, mostly in the form of Santa Claus hats. A fur-lined red hat was neatly pinned on a bulletin board above a bed in one of the newly occupied apartments. A second bulletin board was laden with family pictures, including children at play and a happy bride standing before a Christmas tree.

Another Santa hat rested on Chris Mills’ head.

“I was living in a shelter before I moved out here,” said Mills, as he and other residents stood outside in the afternoon sun. “In the shelter, a lot of people were using 1/8drugs 3/8 or were fighting--a lot of crazy stuff.”

Mills, 42, described his move to Treasure Island this week as the biggest Christmas present of his life.

Facility manager Sam McDaniel said Walden House clients at Treasure Island are driven into the city each day for treatment. All will leave once their treatment programs are completed.

“We’re trying to get them standing on their own two feet so they can move out,” he said.

The apartments are attracting hundreds of tenants who do not come from homelessness. Although 222 units will be filled by the Treasure Island Homeless Development Initiative, another 766 are being rented at market rate. So far, 300 have been occupied.