When Mary Baratto lost her 3-year-old daughter to a trailer fire 17 years ago, she started a spell of binge drinking that didn’t stop until last year.
 Doctors recently had to amputate the toes on one of Mary Baratto's feet. Photo by Rob Kuznia
“It was a death deal,” said Baratto, 38.
Then she found El Carrillo, the first-ever permanent housing complex for homeless residents in Santa Barbara County.
“It saved my life,” she said Monday.
Located at 315 West Carrillo, on the downtown side of the Highway 101 onramp, the eight-month-old development sponsored by the City of Santa Barbara Housing Authority is easy to miss. But a look inside the gate reveals an impressive living quarters. A two-story cluster of Spanish-style buildings holding 61 apartment units surrounds a grassy courtyard dotted with small palm trees.
The goal of the project is to help residents find steady jobs, so eventually they can afford nicer digs in the regular housing market. Of the 61 residents at El Carrillo, 12 have found jobs, officials said.
 Mary's tattoo bears the name of her older daughter Katie, whom she hasn't seen in 15 years. Photo by Rob Kuznia
“I slept in parks, on bus benches, railroad tracks, the beach. Basically I just laid down and just slept wherever I ended up,” said Baratto, who added that she achieved her first full year of sobriety in April.
Once, in 2003, she was horrified to wake up next to a dead man at Vera Cruz Park on Haley Street. Some other homeless men had beaten him to death and put him next to her before fleeing.
The housing project is part of a 10-year county plan to address chronic homelessness. Because the plan is part of a wider effort initiated by the federal government, about 80 percent of its $10.5 million startup cost has been bankrolled by a national program in which people in the private sector receive a tax credit for investing in affordable housing projects.
 All 61 units of the complex on West Carrillo are full. Courtesy photo
On any given day, Santa Barbara County is home to roughly 800 chronically homeless people, about half of whom live on the South Coast, said Rob Fredericks, director of administrative services with the city Housing Authority. About 300 people are on the waiting list to get into El Carrillo. It could be a long wait.
“People like it here, and they want to stay,” Fredericks said.
El Carrillo, which is a partnership between Housing Authority and a non-profit organization called Work Training Programs Inc., could be considered a cross between an affordable housing complex and a homeless shelter. Rent for the units is even lower than that of most subsidized places – between $350 and $470. Residents who do not make a living do not have to pay rent initially.
The dwellings themselves are modest, almost resembling hospital rooms: just a livingroom, kitchen sink and bathroom, with linoleum floors. They come fully furnished, with high-speed Internet access.
To qualify, a resident can earn a maximum of 40 percent of the area's median income, which Fredericks said is around $47,000.
 The two-story cluster of Spanish-style buildings surrounds a grassy courtyard dotted with small palm trees. Courtesy photo
Mentally, though, she said feels as healthy as she’s ever been. El Carrillo has not only given her a lifeline, it also has reunited her with her family.
A few months ago, she saw her father for the first time in nine years.
“He was so surprised about my sobriety, and my place – he loved it,” she said.
And in the next month she will be visited by her 18-year-old daughter, Katie, whom she hasn’t seen in 15 years. When Baratto was in the throes of her drinking days, she gave custody of Katie to her sister. Now, Katie is attending San Francisco State University, where she is studying journalism. Baratto hopes that an upcoming surgery will not interfere with their reunion.
“I want to be able to spend time with her and be healthy enough to enjoy it,” she said. “To talk and get to know each other, and to let my sister know I’m not trying to butt in and play mom – just to get to know her as friends.” |
