Habitat for Humanity is an international Christian non-profit, building new homes for sale to low-income families. Anyone may apply to buy (income limits apply), and all volunteers are welcome, regardless of skills, eperience, or faith. In the East/South Bay, Habitat has built almost 600 homes, with 10-20 typically under construction at any time. Habitat sometimes also rehabilitates older homes, helping veterans and seniors to safely stay there. Details on how families can qualify to buy a home are here.
Visit www.habitatebsv.org for more information.
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At this site, Mike is now mainly focused on getting temporary power installed and ready at the location of the 19 new homes whose construction will start in a month or so. This will supply power for battery chargers in the tool containers and for the office trailer, as well as for all the saws, air compressors, etc. used during construction.
Here's some pictures, starting with the vacant land, and up to today, where you can see all four buildings of Phase I. The homes are 99% done, painted, and with their solar panels on their roofs.
This September work got underway on Sequoia Grove, a new 10-home project on "A" Street in Hayward. While volunteers worked on new perimeter fencing, Mike and the electrical team got busy on a 24-foot tall pole, which will become the source of temporary construction power on this site.
While Esperanza Place is Habitat's BIG project at the moment, Mike recently completed lots of electrical work at a 90-year old Victorian home in Oakland that Habitat was re-doing. He's also been working on various projects at the newly opened Concord ReStore (Habitat's version of a thrift shop).
A couple of years ago, Mike worked in Fremont at a 30-condo project. In addition, Mike was part of Habitat's efforts helping the City of San Jose with some "sleeping cabins" for the homeless: almost 200 cabins are now on their permanent sites, with bathrooms, showers, laundry, kitchens, etc. in common buildings.
Several years ago, Mike worked, doing mainly electrical work, at a Habitat 20-home development in Martinez, now finished and occupied by the new owners. Here's a few pictures from that project, from vacant lots to final completion, in just under 3 years.
Here's Mike and some of the volunteer electrical team, all looking smug, after building inspectors said "two thumbs up" for their work on some recent homes. (Habitat developments get the same inspections a "for profit" home builder would.)
In addition to putting in panels, switches, plugs, and lights, Mike is part of the Habitat Speakers Bureau, and frequently gives talks to service clubs and other groups, seeking volunteers or donations.
