The financially embattled La Casa de la Raza successfully fended off foreclosure late last week, wiring an undisclosed sum to its lender to secure a 60-day delay of the July 20 public auction of its longtime lower Eastside community center.
The news of imminent foreclosure instigated a range of emotions, from the small panics of longtime patrons to eye rolling from those familiar with La Casa’s track record of financial close calls. Indeed, La Casa’s five full-time staffers and nine-member volunteer board of directors have faced three previous potential shutdowns in as many years.
Fielding concerns — and criticism — since the July 15 court ruling that cleared the way for the auction of the half-acre parcel and its 26,000-square-foot multipurpose building, Raquel Lopez, La Casa’s executive director since 2005, said that closing the doors was never an option. “We would never allow foreclosure to happen,” she said. “The legacy of this place is why we will never give up.”