Mold, wage theft complaints plague SJ affordable housing construction site

SAN JOSE, Calif. - A construction site near the intersection of Branham Lane and Monterey Road, when finished, will be affordable housing for some of the South Bay’s most vulnerable residents. But on Thursday it offered lingering questions after mold was discovered in five of 117 units.

"This is just the tip of the iceberg. There are so many other things going on," said Mauricio Velarde, of the South Bay Piping Industry, a labor-management cooperative.

He said workers sent him pictures of mold inside some units, and warning notices on the outside.

Executives from the construction contractor, Devcon, said in an emailed statement, "Before shipping the prefabricated building modules, the manufacturer in Tracy wrapped them in temporary weatherproofing…Devcon had already been working to clean these five units and to make sure that all 117 of the building modules are water-tight." 

Mold remediation work is being done this week.

But mold isn’t the only alleged problem. There are complaints of wage theft by some of the workers.

"You have workers traveling from the central valley, coming over here, not even getting paid half their wages, working 12 hours a day. You have the mold issue…how can you even think about putting the most vulnerable in our society in such undignified [conditions]? It’s just appalling," said Velarde.

Mayor Matt Mahan, (D) San Jose, was asked about the issues surrounding the South San Jose site as he arrived at the Valley Transportation Agency headquarters for a meeting during the lunch hour.

"The city’s role is really to hold people accountable to compliance issues. We’ll go out with code enforcement. I understand there’s been a wage theft complaint. We’ll follow up on that. And city staff will ensure contractors pay everybody fairly," he said.

Mahan further said the city has already completed six unhoused communities, and that problems are part of the process. Still, he’s committed to ensuring these new homes are safe and comply with the city code.

"We’re providing high-quality dignified housing to those who are currently on the streets. And I’m gonna make sure we hold the contractor to that high standard of delivering a quality product to our homeless neighbors," said Mahan.

City officials said the timeline to complete the site is still sometime in the summer. But before anyone moves in, a final inspection will be done to make sure the building meets code. Then the housing department will issue an occupancy permit.

Jesse Gary is a reporter based in the station's South Bay bureau. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) @JesseKTVU and on Instagram, @jessegontv