Developer on hunger strike after city halts construction on homes

If nothing else, Silicon Valley home developer Navneet Aron knows how to get attention.

Aron, the CEO of Aron Developers, has gone on a hunger strike in response to Sunnyvale, California’s decision to stop the construction of 18 townhouses Aron’s company is building on North Fair Oaks Avenue, the Mercury News reported.

He says he will not eat until his crews are permitted to go back to work.

The city halted construction after discovering Aron’s company neglected to obtain approval from Santa Clara County’s Department of Environmental Health.

Aron, however, says the decision to halt construction rather than permit his company to continue while the issue is sorted out will cost hundreds of thousands of dollars due to the delay.

In the meantime, he’s been appearing at City Hall with signs that read, “On hunger strike until death!” and “Day 6,” marking the number of days he’s gone without eating.

“This is simply, I believe, a bureaucratic exercise between the two agencies,” Aron told the outlet. “And we are simply suffering and forcing our people who have families and kids and live paycheck to paycheck to not be able to work on-site. They don’t have any other income. So that’s why I’m here.”

Aron’s plight highlights the difficulties smaller developers face in dealing with the city’s permitting process, which is making the housing shortage even worse, the Mercury reported. Last year, construction on townhomes for unhoused families in East Oakland was held up for a year due to permitting issues and city fees, the outlet said.

The issue in Aron’s case has to do with the installation of a plastic sheet, called a vapor barrier, that prevents toxins in the soil from rising into homes. Aron’s crew installed the barriers, but failed to get the DEH to sign off on it before they did so, the Mercury said. Aron said it’s his company’s first large multi-family project.

The delay could last as long as 45 days, something Aron said would break his company; he is paying $15,000 per day in interest on his construction loan, and $25,000 per week for his construction crew, the Mercury said. Layoffs could be coming soon.

The city, meanwhile, isn’t budging.

“Developers are ultimately responsible for having a compliant project,” city spokesperson Jennifer Garrett said in a statement obtained by the Mercury. “The city had to issue a stop work order because Mr. Aron failed to meet health and safety conditions for his project.”

— Ted Glanzer