Text Box: Lennar Corporation’s Broken Housing Agreements (continued from page 3) Though it made previous commitments to build low income housing in its Bayview developments, Lennar has rapidly abandoned those promises. Lennar is now moving to build almost all market rate and high income housing, claiming that because of a weak national housing market, it can no longer afford to build the low income units that it promised us. But what Lennar has cleverly neglected to mention, is that San Francisco has not experienced a housing crash as other cities have. Property values remain high enough in San Francisco to easily make it profitable to include low income units in Lennar’s housing projects. And this is not the first time Lennar has perpetrated a bait and switch on affordable housing. In Oakland and Orange County, Lennar promised that it would construct low income housing, only to go back on those promises once contracts were approved. Lennar has also been sued in Florida for the shoddy construction of homes which later collapsed during hurricane Andrew. Lennar Stirring Up Deadly Asbestos, With The Complicity Of The San Francisco Department Of Health The worst result of Lennar’s activities in the Bayview has been the widespread release of deadly asbestos dust. Asbestos is one of the most toxic substances known, and inhaling just one micro-fiber of it can lead to cancer. As previously noted, the Bayview Hunters Point is partly situated on serpentine rock which is a natural source of asbestos. For the past several months, Lennar has been digging up the serpentine, and because it did not abide by proper safety procedures, dust and asbestos have been released in large amounts, exposing workers, residents and school children in the area to breathing in the dust and fibers. The San Francisco Department of Health has been complicit in this outrage by claiming in public hearings that there is no danger, and that exposure levels in the construction area are safe. However it is well established science that there is no safe level of asbestos exposure! To ensure that this public poisoning stops, it is vital that Lennar’s activities be halted. Bayview activists and Supervisor Chris Daly are pursuing a moratorium on the Lennar construction projects. Be on the lookout for your chance to support this effort!

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