By Charles Kaminsky

What do you do with a piece of property that you no longer want and you consider surplus?

It has two houses on it: one occupied and one that hasn’t been used in years.

The land connects to a nearby canyon and the site has some great views of the bay and could be considered prime real estate. You could probably get quite a good price on it if you sold it. There might be two options: sell it or develop it.

I think there also might be a third option: give it away or donate it for some worthy community benefit.

The property in question at Union and West Laurel streets in Bankers Hill is known as the Truax House and owned by the city of San Diego. For many in our LGBTQ community, and especially the survivors of the AIDS epidemic, the Truax House is considered to be a special place of significance. Almost sacred ground, if you wish.

As I write this, the choice has been made: It will be sold. The City Council made their decision this week and accepted an offer to buy the property from from Nakhshab Design & Development who has “… been an advocate for the preservation and historic designation of the Truax property …” and who, if selected as the buyer, would like to incorporate a community space that “… could be used by community members, nonprofits, etc. …” and who would “… be looking to the LGBTQ community and the Uptown Community for assistance with a memorial within this community space.”

Officially opened by city and community leaders in March 1989, the San Diego AIDS Assistance Fund-sponsored house was named after Dr. Brad Truax, an early leader in San Diego’s LGBTQ community. Dr. Truax was one of the first physicians to open a gay medical practice and who, for years, was also known for his political activism and leadership.

Dr. Truax initiated and coordinated the formation of the San Diego mayor’s AIDS Task Force and was the first chair of the follow-on San Diego County Regional AIDS Task Force. Truax died of AIDS on Nov. 29, 1988.

I disagreed with the original decision by the city to declare the property surplus and offer it for sale. The city was in the midst of preparing an LGBTQ Historic Context Report that would identify those spaces and places that might be of significance to our community so that sensible land use and planning decisions can be made.

Simultaneously, the city is implementing an update to the Uptown Community Plan, a specified area that includes the Truax House property. Neighbors in Maple Canyon looked at the property as a front door link back into the canyon. The San Diego AIDS Memorial Committee supported a sale in hopes that proceeds from the sale would support a permanent AIDS memorial in the city.

I had hoped a decision by the city on whether to sell the property would wait until the Context Report was finished, thus giving both the LGBTQ community and the Uptown community the time to develop a workable community benefit plan for the property.

Meanwhile on July 28, the City’s Historical Resources Board determined that the Truax House, “… provided a sanctuary and vitally needed care to terminally ill individuals with limited resources suffering from AIDS, at a time when the AIDS epidemic was relatively new, poorly understood by the general public, and highly stigmatized …” and officially designated the Truax House as an historical resource.

At the City Council meeting this week, Councilmember Todd Gloria specifically asked the proposed buyer about his commitment and intent for the property. Soheil Nakhshab reiterated his plans to preserve and restore the Truax House, dedicate the ground floor of the Truax House as a community center, incorporate a communal courtyard space, work with the adjacent property owners to provide public access to Maple Canyon and build sustainable housing project with a portion of the housing for affordable/low income housing.

Part of the City Council discussion and public comments included Gloria’s commitment to work with Mayor Faulconer to find financing and a home for a San Diego AIDS Memorial.

These are lofty goals and appear to meet all the varied neighborhood, community and LGBTQ desires: preservation, memorial, community space, canyon access, affordable housing, etc. Now that the city has accepted the offer to buy the property, it will be up to all of us to monitor the proposed development as it works its way through the various city departments, though community presentations and reviews to ensure that the City and the developer keeps their words and promises.

—Charles “Chuck” Kaminsky is a local LGBT historian and activist and a board member of the Lambda Archives of San Diego.