Sausalito apartment owners evict all tenants at 39-unit complex
SAUSALITO, Calif. - Tenants residing at a Sausalito apartment complex found eviction notices taped to their doors last week, informing them they had to be out by the end of October.
Known as Portofino Riviera, the 39-unit complex sits along Sausalito's waterfront with visible signs of aging. Several occupants are elderly, long-term renters.
The property owners intend to refurbish the complex and reintroduce it to the rental market upon completion of the renovations. They are already offering renovated units, that have yet to undergo any actual remodeling, starting at $2,600 for a studio and $3,700 for a one-bedroom.
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Ursula Goldstone, a 93-year-old resident, voiced her distress, stating, "I don't know where to get the rent from, where to go, what to do, how to handle it."
Her son, Jerry Goldstone, shared his concern for his hypertensive mother, currently recovering from a severe neck injury and has lived in Sausalito for decades.
"She's losing sleep because she's concerned about losing her home," said the woman's son, he said. "She thought this would be the last place she would be living, and she loves it. So this has been nothing short of a traumatic piece of news for her."
Losing a home is one thing and ;losing hope is quite another.
"I thought at least at this age, which I'm gonna be 94 next year, I could, die in peace. I've had a good life for 92 years. And all of this is just too much for me," said Ursula Goldstone.
Elaina Gunn shared her own plight. After her apartment suffered flooding due to malfunctioning gutters, she was moved to a smaller unit. However, she did not get a rent reduction.
"To have to go through moving twice in a year and twice because of this company," said Gunn.
Now, the landlord wants Gunn and her teenage daughter to vacate before the school year ends.
"Uprooted from friends. Hopefully, we can stay in the same school. You know, the protections here are not what they are in the city," said Gunn.
Ursula Goldstone remains fraught with worry and trepidation.
"To me, it's just something that wants me to forget I'm here and like, get to heaven," she said
The owners want tenants occupants to vacate by the close of October. Some residents have hired legal representation, a process that could take time to settle.
The property owners have not responded to KTVU's request for comment.