Victor works two different jobs, has an internship, and is a full-time political science student at SRJC. Growing up, Victor never had his own room; his family has always lived in small, crowded apartments. Victor’s family loves and wants to stay in Santa Rosa. But with rising rent costs, it is becoming more and more difficult for them to thrive in their community.
Even working two jobs, Victor can only afford to rent a shared room in an apartment with four other people. With frustration in his voice, Victor stated how “this is ridiculous, something has to be done, [and] we need to deal with this now and find a solution.” Although he is only 18, Victor is already thinking about the housing market. He is worried that even with an education, he won’t be able to pursue his dreams here.
When asked why he’s passionate about housing, this was Victor’s response: “I wanna see local recruitment of jobs and local retainment, I wanna see the people that grew up here be able to get a job here and be able to stay here. I wanna see our locally grown workforce, professionals, and entrepreneurs want to stay in their hometown and not have to go anywhere else because of unrealistic housing prices. If we are able to maintain a suitable lifestyle and suitable housing level, we are gonna be able to retain bright young professionals that not only bring the money, but also the culture and the name of Sonoma County. If we bring down the pricing of housing, we’re able to retain this local intelligence and professionalism, so that’s why I’m passionate about housing.”
Generation Housing’s mission and vision for the community really resonate with Victor. He believes that we can solve the housing crisis in Sonoma County, saying: “we gotta maintain our ganas.”