Unclear If 'Mayor' Of Balmy Alley's Eviction Will Be Delayed

San Francisco CA

13 April, 2022

7:22 PM

Description

By Annika Hom, Mission Local April 12, 2022 Those living on the Mission District's iconic mural-laden Balmy Alley know Andrés Rojo as its unofficial "mayor." The 54-year-old Latino artist and bicycle repairman has for years fixed up locals' bikes at the garage where he also lives, at 7-9 Balmy Alley. So last week when a jury ruled in favor of Rojo's eviction from the garage on the basis that it was a nuisance and fire hazard, the community was outraged. On Monday, Rojo's attorneys officially filed for stay pending appeal, which means that if an appeal is granted he will not be evicted. In case that fails, they also filed a petition to delay any eviction for at least 40 days. "I'm a Latino guy living in the heart of the Mission, providing a service to the community. The astonishing thing is I know everybody who comes here, and the first thing [my landlords] do is call me a nuisance," he told Mission Local. "All of these years, none of the neighbors had any complaints about me." To read the full article, click here. Mission Local covers San Francisco from the vantage point of the Mission, a neighborhood with all of the promise and problems of a major city. You can support Mission Local here.