Disabled San Jose residents have been confined to their apartments for more than a week after the second elevator at their supportive housing complex fell. Residents said the housing operator’s slow response to this and other problems is disrupting their lives.
Villas in the Park, located in the heart of downtown San Jose and developed by People Assisting the Homeless (PATH), a nonprofit organization, has two elevators, one of which has been out of service for months. When the second elevator in the 83-apartment complex stopped working last Wednesday, the building became a “madhouse,” according to one resident. Some residents were trapped inside the elevator for hours, while other disabled residents waited in the lobby to enter their apartment, including Mary, who is in a wheelchair. Seeing that no one would come to fix the elevator that night, her friends carried her up the stairs to her apartment.
Mary, who asked that her last name be withheld for fear of retaliation, was frustrated by the situation. She had to ask her friends for help to buy food. She couldn’t go to the park to get fresh air. She was unable to see a doctor about the swelling in her legs or make an appointment to have the urinary cysts removed. She worries about the possible complications that could arise.
“I’m worried my pain will come back,” Mary told San José Spotlight. “I can not do anything. I always have to depend on someone else. It is awful.”
Villas on the Park, which was developed by Affirmed Housing and PATH San José, opened in 2019. It is one of San José’s first permanent supportive housing developments. Located at 280 N. Second St. near St. James Park, the $37 million project was funded primarily by San Jose and revenue from Measure A, a $950 million affordable housing bond approved by voters in 2016.
The day after San José Spotlight contacted PATH, a spokesperson said Otis Elevator Company was on site making repairs. The company immediately fixed the elevator that had not been working for months. PATH spokesman Tyler Renner said the second elevator should be repaired by early this week.
However, hours later, the first elevator broke down again. According to one resident, that elevator is mostly working now with occasional glitches.
At least one person has been injured as a result of the broken elevators.
Angel Dutra said he fell backwards on the stairs while trying to get to his apartment, twisting his spine and injuring his knees. He called an ambulance because afterward he couldn’t move his legs. Dutra suffers from congestive heart failure, which makes it difficult for him to climb six flights of stairs.
“It’s ridiculous,” Dutra told San José Spotlight. “I’m depressed, no one is trying to help me.”
Brenda Buenrostro, building manager for John Stewart Company, who oversees daily operations, said delays in elevator repairs are due to a shortage of parts.
“We’re on top of Otis every day trying to get an ETA for these things,” Buenrostro told San José Spotlight. “I know the parts were pending delivery.”
Buenrostro said he offered to relocate disabled residents while the elevators were down, but they wanted to stay in their apartments.
However, Mary and Dutra denied that they had been offered another place to stay and said they would have preferred to be in a motel room while the elevators were not working.
Mary moved into Villas on the Park when it first opened and said management has been slow to honor a request she’s had for more than a year to install grab bars in her bathroom to help her shower.
“They’re just not very helpful,” he said.
Renner said PATH could not comment on residents’ living situations due to confidentiality.
“We are working with property management to resolve these issues as soon as possible,” Renner said. “ADA units are built into the building and may need to be retrofitted on a case-by-case basis.”
Contact Joyce Chu at [email protected] or follow @joyce_speaks on X, formerly known as Twitter.
