We assist low-income DIY spaces with life-safety alterations and tenant-led building acquisitions. Safer DIY Spaces (https://saferdiyspaces.org) IS A 501(c)3 NON-PROFIT CORPORATION (EIN: 81-5217454). All tax-deductible donations can be made directly to our organization. Safer DIY Spaces is a San Francisco Bay Area-based organization providing technical building code and development assistance to
alternative 'DIY' spaces presently engaged in live/work and/or community gatherings (assembly). The program provides technical direction for confidential site inspections, corrective construction, legal costs, and other tasks necessary to make core life-safety improvements, in turn bringing sites into compliance with local building, fire and zoning codes. We also work on improved policy relating building, fire and zoning codes. BACKGROUND: In the wake of the December 2, 2016 Ghostship Fire in Oakland, California, DIY communities nationwide are facing unanticipated inspections and sudden evictions, especially those inhabiting live/work warehouses viewed as identical to the building where this tragedy occurred. Alternative spaces are invaluable sites for social alliance, activism, artistic growth, and creative production. Those who live and work in these spaces are often socially marginalized and economically disadvantaged, and have gone to great lengths to create affordable, supportive, and productive environments otherwise unavailable in conventional housing and cultural venues. Safer DIY offers assistance to individuals and groups that face immediate housing and safety crises and works to stabilize alternative spaces. All proceeds go directly toward confidential inspections, remediative construction, legal costs, and other fees necessary to make core life-safety improvements. Safer DIY covers safety supplies and improvements, permit and construction costs, legal fees, and relocation expenses for those facing displacement. Safer DIY recognizes that people of color, members of the LGBTQ community, and other marginalized groups often face greater challenges in economic stability. We prioritize grants for those most at-risk. This initiative facilitates the production of physically safer spaces for a vibrant arts, culture, and political scene in the Bay Area. If you live, work, and/or provide space for communities to gather and share culture, and are at risk of displacement or have safety concerns, you may be eligible to receive assistance, and we encourage you to apply. Please contact us via our web request form located at:
https://saferdiyspaces.org/request-help
or email: info (at) saferdiyspaces (dot) org
Thank you!
