A South San Jose modular housing project for homeless people is finally opening after months of delay due to issues with mold, plumbing and structural safety.
The 3-story temporary housing campus situated on a 2-acre lot at 1 Branham Lane will welcome up to 214 unhoused residents later this month. The project is the first of its kind in the state geared toward multigenerational families, containing 204 rooms with private bathrooms and kitchens, including 24 adaptable family apartments. Officials and nonprofit partners gathered at the site Wednesday to celebrate.
“I am just blown away by the transformation of this site,” Mayor Matt Mahan said. “This lot was the site of an unmanaged encampment, and it had fires, it had trash and a lot of noise and a lot of issues.”
But construction of the temporary housing project was marred with problems, pushing back the opening for nearly a year. Paul Simpson, chief financial officer of nonprofit service provider and site developer LifeMoves, said the mold and structural issues have been remedied and the housing site is ready.
“Before any construction site is finished, obviously any issues that arise in construction is dealt with,” Simpson told San José Spotlight. “The mold has been remediated since May of last year and there’s been no issues since. The site just received a certificate of occupancy yesterday.”
The site will be able to house up to 214 people at a time, with the ability to support up to 612 people annually. The ADA-accessible facility includes a community garden, pet park, storage space and therapy room. LifeMoves will offer case management services to help people find permanent housing and employment.
The $60-million project will incur annual operating costs of about $6 million. It is funded with nearly $52 million from the state through the Project Homekey program, $4 million from Santa Clara County, $5 million from the Sobrato Foundation and nearly $39 million in city dollars, spread out over seven years.
This is one of several projects in the city’s pipeline. The Cherry Avenue tiny homes project will house up to 136 people and open in September. The Rue Ferrari tiny home site expansion will double its bed capacity and house up to 270 people. That’s slated for completion in October. Other tiny home sites including Via Del Oro and Cerone Yard are expected to open within the next year.
San José Spotlight first reported last March how Branham Lane’s factory-made homes, hailed as a cheap, cutting-edge homelessness solution, arrived unfinished in October 2023 and grew mold after sitting out in the rain for weeks.
Months later, officials documented deficiencies in the dwellings’ factory-installed waterproofing, as well as faulty installation of exterior protective finish. Meanwhile the city’s Planning, Building and Code Enforcement Department found critical firewall separations missing, as well as plumbing errors made during factory construction.
A Nov. 7 memo from City Housing Director Erik Soliván blames the delays on the project’s developers, Devcon Construction, Inc. and subcontractor Volumetric Building Companies, which was responsible for manufacturing the homes. Officials say a lack of coordination caused issues installing the prefabricated homes to the foundation, which is critical for stability and should have been addressed in an initial project review prior to installation.
Devcon President Gary Filizetti denied there being a lack of coordination on his company’s part.
“It was poor and unacceptable workmanship by Volumetric Building Companies,” Filizetti previously told San José Spotlight. “The units were supposed to have been inspected and passed in the factory by state approved inspectors and were ready to be set and connected. Which they obviously were not.”
The modular housing model has been heralded by Mahan as an innovative homelessness solution because it could be built quicker and at a lower cost than traditional apartment construction. It’s part of his plan to add 1,000 beds in temporary housing sites across the city.
Marissa Carino, LifeMoves’ lead case manager and someone who had experienced homelessness since she was a child, said she’s overwhelmed to see the project come to life.
“As I walked around Branham Lane, I was like, man, if (only) my family would have had something like this. This is so beautiful,” she said.
Contact Joyce Chu at [email protected] or @joyce_speaks on X.
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