ARTICLES

Elder Care Alliance

LEVADA FLEXES MUSCLE WITH ST. THOMAS MORE PROPERTY

By Eric Reslock

St. Thomas More parish has traveled a rocky road in the past five years. The church was closed in 1994 after the earthquake and opened again in 1996 in response to unceasing appeals from a group loyal to the church. Parishioner Nancy Manion recalled, "It was like a family that had been separated coming back together again. It felt so good to everyone. People even sat in the same pews they were in before." But despite the emotional victory four years ago, parishioners at St. Thomas More are in transition again. The church is not the issue in this case. What has captured the attention of the archdiocese of San Francisco is the spacious parking lot at the rear of the property.

The archdiocese has entered into an agreement with the Elder Care Alliance to build an assisted living facility on the existing parking lot behind the church. The Elder Care Alliance project is a joint venture between the Sisters of Mercy and the Lutheran run Elder Care Alliance. It will provide 124 studio and one-bedroom apartments, including a 12-unit wing for retired priests. In a letter to parishioners in July, Archbishop Levada wrote, "The Archdiocese of San Francisco is anxious to do what we can to assist our ever-growing population of elderly people to be taken care of and assisted in their later years. It is my obligation to see that the same care is available to our sick, retired and aging priests."

Thomas More It is not a large parish by San Francisco standards. Most who go there commute because of its location: boxed in between a large golf course, the 280 freeway, and Brotherhood Way on the San Francisco/Daly City border. It is a parish without a neighborhood. Besides the parking lot, very little parking is available within walking distance to the church. But according to parishioners, the church remains popular with people in the area, drawing over 120 cars on a typical Sunday.

The members of the Friends group have not lost hope, having previously held together two years waiting for their church to reopen in 1996.

Eva Weber came to the United States from Switzerland in 1962, married in the U.S. and has gone to St. Thomas More since. She said, "I am faithful to the Church and I've contributed to the charity all my life. The people who oppose this project are good Church people."

In her native Switzerland, bishops do not control the property of individual parishes. "Something like this could have never have happened over there," Weber said. When she wrote to the diocese to complain, Father Harry Schlitt, a diocesan administrator wrote back on August 11, "The Archbishop, who has the responsibility of the entire Archdiocese, has had to make a decision based on his knowledge of what might be possible. I assure you that much energy and thought have gone into this project. It amazes me that people of faith, like yourself, cannot find a place in your commitment to charity to open your heart to this facility to help the elderly and the many sick and retired priests who need care."

Archbishop Levada's letter announcing the project to the parish was filled with finality: "While I am pleased that St. Thomas More has been able to continue to provide a welcome to many former parishioners, parents of school children, and a new outreach to San Francisco State University, I also consider it essential to the future of the parish that this Elder Care Alliance initiative be brought to a successful completion. For this I ask your full cooperation and your prayerful encouragement."

Weber has also been critical of the financial aspect of the project. "The monthly fees for the facility are between $3,000 to $5,000 a month," she said. "This is not a community of well to do people. This facility will not serve the elders who go to this parish."

The resistance of the Friends group has brought stern words from the archdiocese. Friends members, in researching comparable facilities in the city, found for-profit care facilities that were charging the same amount as the not for-profit Elder Care Alliance.

One parishioner who wrote a letter to the Archbishop, Linda Shah, received a response in May from Archbishop Levada that said, "Should you find it impossible to be cooperative, I suggest that you return to your home parish in Colma, or find some other place to worship that will not cause you these anxieties."

The principal of St. Thomas More School, Joseph Elsebrend, wrote a letter in October to parents at the school denouncing opposition to the elder care project. "Undoubtedly, you are aware of a group who call themselves FRIENDS of SAINT THOMAS MORE. They are opposed to moving the Elder Care Alliance forward to completion. Indeed, this group is not a friend. They are committed to sabotaging a project that makes excellent use of Archdiocesan property and allows the Archdiocese to meet a serious ministerial need. Again, I urge you to get behind this project."

At an October 13th planning commission meeting, Elder Care Alliance opponents won a continuance. But the opponents swayed only two out of the five members of the city commission and on December 16th, the planning commission approved the Elder Care project by a vote of 3 to 2. Opponents have 30 days to appeal.

The Friends of St. Thomas More are not hopeful that they can stop the project. Their concern is now for their own parish projects, in particular over a million dollars worth of new school facilities that were planned for the property. Friends members question whether new school facility construction can now take place because of density restrictions in San Francisco.

Bill Manion pointed out that under the Alliance Care scheme, the playground at St. Thomas More School is supposed to be used for parking during daytime funerals, and that traffic congestion during normal school hours will spill out into neighboring streets. Fidel "Mel" Penna is another parishioner worried about projects for the school. He said, "I've been going to this parish for 50 years, and we paid for this stuff." But ultimately, the Friends group worries if the Alliance Care project will bring the re-closure of St. Thomas More church. A parishioner said, "Once they take the parking away, it's going to decrease attendance. Next step: Close the parish."

Archbishop Levada's spokesman on this issue, Father Harry Schlitt, denied this is in a phone interview. "They have been told on more than one occasion that on the contrary, this whole project will enhance the life of the parish. There never was any intention to close the parish," Schlitt said. "This is a whole new apostolate we didn't have 50 years ago." Schlitt continued, "We're not making any money from this. The purpose of this project is to serve the elderly. There are 15,000 people who need elder care in this city; this will serve 130 of them." Father Schlitt also mentioned that the 12 beds set aside in the project would provide care for sick and elderly priests. Currently, Schlitt said, the diocese has to send sick and indigent priests to Oakland. The appeal of the planning commission decision must be made by mid-January. The hearing, if called for, will be to the county board of supervisors.

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