Oakland’s worst housing complex taken over by a notorious gang

The apartment complex at 8701 Hillside St. in Oakland is owned by two East Bay men awaiting sentencing in federal court for bid-rigging and mail fraud. The buildings have descended into chaos, without security or management. People openly carry weapons on the property, deal drugs, and the complex is frequented by gangs. The city filed a lawsuit earlier this week to fix the problems or shut it down. less The apartment complex at 8701 Hillside St. in Oakland is owned by two East Bay men awaiting sentencing in federal court for bid-rigging and mail fraud. The buildings have descended into chaos, without security ... more Photo: Google Maps Photo: Google Maps Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close Oakland’s worst housing complex taken over by a notorious gang 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

Oakland’s worst housing complex sits at the end of a dead-end street off of 87th Avenue adjacent to Castlemont High School.

Here, in what looks like a two-building fortress, one of the city’s most notorious gangs — the Case Gang — has rooted itself, openly brandishing guns, dealing drugs and using violence to intimidate residents to maintain control. Stolen vehicles — some stripped down to the frame and others burned — sit in the lot.

I went early Sunday afternoon to get a look for myself after hearing that the City Attorney’s office had filed a suit against the complex’s owners, who apparently had a hands-off approach to managing the place. Not only did a gang take over — but no one apparently collected rent and some of the 100 tenants simply stopped paying.

The city is demanding that the complex owners provide “safe and humane living conditions” for tenants of the two buildings and their neighbors. Hillside has become so rampant with crime and problems, it’s one of the city’s top locations for police calls across the city — 155 calls so far this year.

There was a big sign on the building announcing new management, but it was pretty obvious that the guys out front in the white T-shirts, blue jeans and close-cropped hair were running the show. They eyed me like a pork chop at lunchtime.

It wasn't the first time I’d been a bit intimidated in Oakland, but it was the first time in 17 years covering the city that I would not go into a place without a neighborhood sponsor.

What city officials found during a recent investigation of the place was no visible sign of management anywhere. There was no security. It’s as if management had abandoned the complex. Units were in disrepair with plumbing and infestation issues.

During a five-month investigation into Hillside, there were five shootings at or near the complex, City Attorney Barbara Parker told me.

“It’s the only place in Oakland I’ve ever been where I felt we were in danger,” said Alex Katz, Parker’s chief of staff, who first visited the complex several years ago — with two police officers — to assess the problems.

Oakland recently went six weeks without a homicide — the longest such stretch in 15 years — and when a fatal shooting broke that spell it happened right outside Hillside. Alex Breggs, 18, an Oakland resident, was shot multiple times while sitting in a car there on Sept. 20.

Police are so familiar with the place, one officer told a city official that there’s an OPD bootprint “on every single door in that place.”

Failure of the owners to comply with the city’s demands could result in the city seeking a court order to shut down the complex, but it’s something Parker hopes to avoid.

“There are 100 tenants in this building. We don't want to make people homeless. We want it brought up to habitability.”

But, it turns out, this building may be its owners’ least concern. Owners Grant Alvarenz and Douglas Moore pleaded guilty in federal court in 2011 to charges of bid-rigging and mail fraud in connection with the public auctions of foreclosure properties. They acquired the Hillside Apartments in a foreclosure sale, authorities said.

Authorities said the pair would get a group of potential bidders to agree not to bid against one another to ensure that a buyer would purchase at low cost. Later, the conspirators would hold a second “auction” amongst themselves, selling the building to the highest bidder and dividing profits amongst themselves.

It appears Alvarenz and Moore got a lot more than they bargained for — not only in Oakland.

Chip Johnson is a San Francisco Chronicle columnist. His column runs on Tuesday and Friday. E-mail: chjohnson@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @chjohnson

To view YouTube videos city officials say were taken at the Hillside Apartments go to:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O-ckZI4xOBM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GJuMSEm-uug