Opinion: In Oakland, people can’t find a place to call home

When my organization teamed up with the Oakland Housing Authority to develop our latest affordable housing complex, we knew there would be a lot of interest. In the face of soaring housing costs, the Bay Area has a well-documented shortage of affordable homes.

True to our expectations, applications poured in for the new Prosperity Place building, which opened this year in Chinatown. By the end of the process, we had received a total of 12,000 applications — for just 71 new affordable apartments. Behind each and every one of those applications is the story of people and families looking for a place to call home.