Several readers have wondered whether or not there is a connection to Councilmember Ed Balico in the affordable housing “scandal.” (I use scandal in quotes because at this point we still don’t know what it is exactly. The insistence of City officials to remain stubbornly quiet in the face of press reports is only to [...]

A gap in construction phasing has resulted in a stalled state of construction for the Sycamore Downtown/North project. The contracting and phasing aspects of the contract was subcontracted to a construction management firm for a fee of $4m (or nearly 8 percent of anticipated construction costs), although the “bidding process for the subcontractors [is] managed [...]

A resident* of Hercules lambastes city officials in an editorial… “I commend you [the Contra Costa Times] on your investigative articles on some of the questionable activities from officials in the Hercules city government. Are they above the law? [...] They used the funds to bail themselves out of some condominium investments they made for [...]

Tom Lochner breaks down the family tree that operates as the affordable housing contractor… “She’s still in college, and until recently waited on tables at a Hercules waterfront restaurant, but at 20-something, Taylor Oliva already has three years’ tenure as president and CEO of a company with a multimillion-dollar portfolio. [...] Until her younger sisters, [...]

A Contra Costa Times reader and Waterfront resident opined on the affordable housing affair… “I am very concerned and would like an independent review. The words ‘grand jury’ come to mind.“

In what could lead to a series of investigations by the County, the Contra Costa County Assessor “will be reviewing all the condominiums in the city of Hercules.” Eep.

This is a rude awakening — paying more in property taxes because of (potential) affordable housing fraud… “When [Karen Kahn, the homeowner] called in May to protest, an assessor’s official told her a somewhat smaller condo on the same street had sold for $350,000 a few months earlier, Kahn said. Recent sales of ‘comparable’ properties [...]

The Contra Costa Times editorial staff rips the City’s affordable housing program (which should be suspended indefinitely)… “There are two issues here. First, there’s the issue of the conflict. Second, it’s clear that the city is throwing good money after bad. By paying off the loans, or, in some cases, buying the properties outright, the [...]

Affordable Housing Solutions Group (which also does business as NEO Consulting), the contracted consultant that runs the City’s affordable housing program, is made up — in part — of the following team… Michael A. Sakamoto, former Hercules City Manager and one-time mentor of current City Manager Nelson Oliva; Walter McKinney, former Chief of Police of [...]

An informative report by the Contra Costa Times’ Tom Lochner on the origins of the current Affordable Housing program in Hercules was published in 2003 (shown below; currently unavailable online). It should be noted that former City Manager Mike Sakamoto currently works for Affordable Housing Solutions Group, and is also a consultant to the City [...]

Interesting details uncovered by Tom Lochner… “NEO Consulting — the initials are Nelson E. Oliva’s — was founded by Oliva, but he divested himself of his interest in the company in early 2007 before he became Hercules city manager that April, he said. ‘[Oliva] does not manage the corporation and has never as city manager [...]

Another investigative report from Tom Lochner on the peculiar investments made by the City’s affordable housing agency… “A Hercules affordable housing loan program devised to help residents stave off foreclosure in recent years has bailed out numerous owners of ‘underwater’ homes, including the project manager for the contractor that runs the city’s Affordable Housing Department. [...]

In a related story, Tom Lochner reports that “the Hercules Affordable Housing Department and a slew of affiliated city programs are run from a portable next to City Hall by a private contractor, largely without City Council review. [...] The firewall between the city and its contractor at times appears ill-defined. In addition to referring [...]

According to Tom Lochner’s report, an affordable housing loan was made on a property owned by a manager of the City’s affordable housing program (which is run as an independent corporation), a loan of $295k on a purchase price of $345k (with an additional $50k first-time homebuyer loan issued later that covers the difference). The [...]