Before
Surplus Spaces’ co-Founder and Director, Gabe Flores, created a partnership with a neighbor who is a long-term homeowner who needed some assistance. The property was seriously neglected for 15 years with a lot of demolition (walls, ceiling, electrical, and most of the plumbing was removed), but little to no reconstruction. The homeowner also had significant collecting tendencies, so the property was completely filled with items both inside and out. Flores sold the home he owned for 13 years with two of his siblings and wanted to create a way to reinvest with his community and slow down the process of needing to reinvest for personal profit.
Flores and the long-term homeowner, who's lived in southern California for the last few years, developed a project where Flores would go through the extensive well-worn collection both inside and out, pay upfront for all construction materials, design the space, renovate the house, and activate it as an exhibition space. At the end of November 2015 the owner of the house needed to only pay back the $30k used for materials. Flores also gave the resident an interest free $10k loan to help with the homeowners’ business expansion in order to assist with repayment. The homeowner began repayment in August 2015 and reimbursed the total amount November 2015.
Flores’ folks, Evelyn LaMotte and Jerry Gilmer, made the project possible giving their skills and labor with both the removal of 30 truckloads of material from the property and with the renovation. Jerry, our Resident Contractor, came up weekly donating a wide range of skills in carpentry, cabinetry, electrical, and plumbing. Evelyn donated her green thumb and help extensively in the removal of detritus both inside and outside.
Surplus Space is five houses down from the house Flores had lived in for 13 years and he sought to create a way to acknowledge how money is made in gentrified areas; the population of black residents has to get down to 9% – 12% and then the prices skyrocket. For Flores, the project is a way to pause the money made from the house he sold to see how else the funds could generate capital, even if he’s not the sole beneficiary. We estimate the value of the Surplus Space property has increased by $150k - $175k due to the renovation and estimate the seven houses that look onto the property have increased in value between $90k - $120k. By pausing $30k for 2 years we were able to generate roughly $250k in capital for the homeowner and the neighbors adjacent to the property.
For the most part, the photos below are after Flores went through the extensive collection.
The build out occurred between August 2013 and March 2014.
Flores and the long-term homeowner, who's lived in southern California for the last few years, developed a project where Flores would go through the extensive well-worn collection both inside and out, pay upfront for all construction materials, design the space, renovate the house, and activate it as an exhibition space. At the end of November 2015 the owner of the house needed to only pay back the $30k used for materials. Flores also gave the resident an interest free $10k loan to help with the homeowners’ business expansion in order to assist with repayment. The homeowner began repayment in August 2015 and reimbursed the total amount November 2015.
Flores’ folks, Evelyn LaMotte and Jerry Gilmer, made the project possible giving their skills and labor with both the removal of 30 truckloads of material from the property and with the renovation. Jerry, our Resident Contractor, came up weekly donating a wide range of skills in carpentry, cabinetry, electrical, and plumbing. Evelyn donated her green thumb and help extensively in the removal of detritus both inside and outside.
Surplus Space is five houses down from the house Flores had lived in for 13 years and he sought to create a way to acknowledge how money is made in gentrified areas; the population of black residents has to get down to 9% – 12% and then the prices skyrocket. For Flores, the project is a way to pause the money made from the house he sold to see how else the funds could generate capital, even if he’s not the sole beneficiary. We estimate the value of the Surplus Space property has increased by $150k - $175k due to the renovation and estimate the seven houses that look onto the property have increased in value between $90k - $120k. By pausing $30k for 2 years we were able to generate roughly $250k in capital for the homeowner and the neighbors adjacent to the property.
For the most part, the photos below are after Flores went through the extensive collection.
The build out occurred between August 2013 and March 2014.
