Homeless greet new Tuff Sheds with hesitation, hope

Alex Pettit, worker with Sustainable Urban Neighborhoods, installs electrical outlets for phone charging and an LED light in one of 20 Tuff Sheds converted into rooms to house two people each at the newest Tuff Sheds community in Oakland on May 7. phase in Oakland’s plan to tackle a crisis that has sent shantytowns sprawling across the city’s sidewalks and displaced families into parked cars and RVS that line the streets.

The Northgate project cost almost $1 million, including $175,000 for the sheds, $550,000 for onsite staffing and services and a $125,000 fund for helping residents land permanent housing – but the funds came from outside donors, not from the city’s coffers.

Watkins was one of several people living in a massive encampment at Northgate and 27th who expressed reservations about moving into the sheds but said they were willing to give it a try.

“I’m hopefully going to give this one a shot,” said 31-year-old Jonathan Jacobs. “But if this one doesn’t work out, I’m going to have to construct another plan.”

To Jacobs, the Tuff Sheds aren’t a huge step up from his tent on Northgate.

“We’re still here on the street,” he said, “it’s just on the other side of the street.”

Oakland launched its first Tuff Shed community in December, erecting 20 units at Sixth and Brush streets, and city officials say they have since improved the shelters. The new sheds have three windows instead of one, with double pane glass to better block out the roar of the freeway and BART trains thundering by overhead. Other improvements include more insulation, doors with deadbolts and low-voltage electricity to power an LED light and charge cellphones. The sheds also are slightly longer than the prior units, providing more space between roommates.

“These Tuff Shed shelters are better,” Assistant City Administrator Joe Devries, who has spearheaded the project, said during a media tour.