Founded in 1984, Townspeople is a referral agency assisting homeless, at-risk individuals and those living with HIV/AIDS in finding affordable housing, as well as other human services for low income individuals and those with HIV/AIDS. The organization, located at 3969 Park Blvd., suite B, also provides biweekly affordable rental listings, bed availability at local group homes and publishes a “Finding Affordable Housing Manual” and a “Landlord Resource Guide.” According to a program for the organization’s seventh wine tasting fundraiser event, held May 22 of this year, over the previous 12 months the organization had responded to 10,755 requests for information and services from men, women with children, the disabled and those living with HIV/AIDS.

According to Townspeople Executive Director Jim Puccetti, this number includes people who phone or visit the office, fax, e-mail or visit the rental area of the organization’s web site seeking information about “entitlement programs, legal assistance, medical assistance,” housing and other services. “We have to track this very carefully for the county and present a recap every month,” said Puccetti, who noted that the number of clients served may decrease to just under 9,000 people for 2003.

“We’ve had many of our clients come in this year to say goodbye,” explained Puccetti. “They’re going to Las Vegas, they’re going to Palm Springs, they’re going to Arizona. They cannot afford to live here anymore.

“Not everyone comes here looking for housing,” stressed Puccetti. “Some people will come in saying, ‘I’ve got a legal problem with my landowner,’ [or] ‘I can’t get housing because my credit report is so bad,’ so we’ll refer them to a credit counselor.”

Asked how many inquiries led to actual placements over the past year, Puccetti said he knows for certain that Townspeople placed 279 individuals or families, though he estimated the actual number of placements could be three to four times greater.

“It’s very difficult to determine, because they don’t come back once they get housing,” said Puccetti. “Twice a month we contact all of the landowners and the roommates on our list to see if their rental is still vacant, if they have new rentals to put on our list [or if] they know whether or not the person they rented to came to them through Townspeople. The problem with that is that there’s a confidentiality issue and a lot of people don’t want to say, ‘I got your name off the Townspeople list,’ because it identifies them as having HIV/AIDS. We used to hand out postcards and say, ‘If you get housing through us, would you please just drop this in the mail?’ That didn’t work; we never got them back.”

In addition to the services offered by Townspeople, the organization also oversees a subsidized apartment complex for people living with HIV/AIDS on Wilson Avenue in City Heights.

According to Puccetti, it costs about $45,000 a year to keep the Wilson Avenue apartments up and running. The actual amount collected in subsidized rent is $22,000. It is up to Townspeople to fill in the remaining $23,000 in grants, private donations and money from their annual fundraiser.

The Wilson Avenue units are funded by two separate grants, each with different criteria for tenants. “Four of the units are funded by HOPWA (Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS) and four are funded by the San Diego Housing Commission’s Home Trust Fund,” said Puccetti. For the HOPWA units, designated only for those with a full-blown AIDS diagnosis, Townspeople cannot charge the residents more than 30 percent of their gross income. The four units funded by the Housing Commission will accept people who are HIV symptomatic or have AIDS, establishing a monthly rental rate based on their individual case.

Puccetti said the organization’s budget is around $205,000 a year, which includes two full-time and one part-time staff. In addition to funds from county grants, Townspeople also receives limited funding from AIDS Walk, the United Way and the Combined Federal Campaign.

Though Townspeople has several contracts with the county, not all of those contracts are fully funded, leaving the organization to raise around $50,000 each year from the private sector.

According to figures provided by Puccetti, 210 tickets were sold for Townspeople’s wine tasting event in May, which netted $14,156. Total ticket sales and sponsorship were each around $13,500, while expenses were close to $18,000, including about $600 to rent the top floor of the Park Manor Suites. Though the organization considers the event an “annual” affair, the last wine tasting event was held in 2000, netting close to $10,000.

A “non-event” fundraising drive last year brought in only around $2,000.

This year’s event was held in honor of former board president Mike Cross, who died in a motorcycle accident last year. Though some have criticized the organization’s use of a paid consultant in 1999, 2000 and 2003, Cross said the event’s proceeds have actually increased since they brought event consultant Stephanie Edwards on board.

As part of her agreement, Edwards received about $6,400 for this year’s event (about $1,000 more than she received in 2000). According to Edwards, her duties included securing some of the sponsorships (which included Wells Fargo and the California Endowment), putting together a “task list,” meeting with the event committee and assisting with the design of the souvenir program and invitations.

In addition to its Wilson Ave. apartments, Puccetti noted that in order to deal with the ongoing housing crisis in San Diego, Townspeople is looking to acquire and refurbish another 10 to 12 units for low-income individuals living with HIV/AIDS. “We hope to start before the end of the year with county support,” he said.

Townspeople also offers a rental assistance program for people living with full-blown AIDS, which provides 300 individuals/families a month with a $150 rental subsidy paid directly to their landlord.

The rental subsidy comes from Ryan White CARE Act Funds. Though Ryan White and state funding for HIV/AIDS have been subject to substantial cuts recently, Townspeople Housing Program Manager Greg Curran said the organization’s funding has largely remained unscathed, receiving fourth place in priority by the HIV Planning Council in a recent meeting about which programs should be cut.

“The average individual we’re serving is making $770 a month on SSI and disability,” said Puccetti. “So $150 gives them a significant percentage of their gross income, which actually creates disposable income for them for their nutritional needs, for transportation needs and other needs that they have. It sounds like a little bit of money, but when you’re making $770 a month and you have a subsidized rental of $150, that is very significant.”

The Townspeople office also features a client workroom where people can call landowners, their doctors or case managers, as well as access information on entitlement programs and other funding. The organization is currently looking for people to serve on the organization’s board of directors. For more information, phone Greg Curran at (619) 295-8802.