SOS Stages a Low-Key Reopening at New Site : Charity: Only a few indigents show up as the agency tries to establish good relations with its neighbors, its downfall in its previous home.

COSTA MESA —  After being without a home for the last six months, Share Our Selves quietly opened its doors at a new location Friday morning amid concerns that its nearly yearlong battle is still not over.

“We are relieved that we’re finally open,” said Jean Forbath, the agency’s founder and executive director. “But we do have some trepidations and are hoping that there’s no organized opposition.”

The agency’s opening in a business district at 1550 Superior Ave. was marked with excitement. But there was restraint as well.

Brenda Dickerson, who has been an SOS volunteer for 17 years, said that controversy surrounding the agency and its fight against former neighbors had taken its toll.

“We’re exhausted,” she said. “The thing that bothered us most was thinking about where these people were going to go.”

SOS organizers say they have been working closely with new neighbors to ensure that the same problems do not reoccur.

One SOS neighbor is also its tenant, Garf’s, a bar and grill, which shares a parking lot with the agency.

Rita Garofalo, who runs Garf’s, said initially that she wasn’t thrilled about the agency buying the one-story building next door. But Garofalo said she now does not have strong feelings about SOS or its clients.

“They bought the property and now we lease from them,” Garofalo said. “They’re my landlords.”

In its old location, SOS provided service to about 5,000 people a month. When the agency opened its doors at 9 a.m. Friday, only about 20 people were waiting in line. By mid-afternoon, about 35 people were sitting in the agency’s waiting area.

Forbath blamed the low turnout on the lack of bilingual flyers, as well as the agency’s hard-to-find address.

“We usually get a lot of Hispanics,” Forbath said. “But there aren’t many here because many of the flyers were written in English.”

Many of those who made it to the opening said SOS was difficult to find because it is housed in a warehouse building that blends in with the rest of the businesses in the area.

Raidel Amieva, 32, who heard about the reopening through a social worker, said the agency needs a sign.

“The street numbers run funny,” he said. “That makes it pretty hard to find and you can’t see the building from the street.”

Forbath said she realizes that SOS clients are going to have a difficult time in finding the agency. But she said that SOS has more pressing issues to overcome, such as making sure its relationship with neighbors remains solid.

SOS volunteers have agreed to keep an eye on the parking lot to make sure it isn’t overcrowded and that clients don’t loiter. The agency has also distributed flyers to local businesses, explaining who it is and what it does. And a hot line has been set up to field community complaints, Forbath said.

“We’re doing everything we can to please them (neighbors),” said Dickerson, adding that keeping clients from loitering in the parking lot will be one key to keeping peace.

Even though the opening signifies the re-emergence of SOS, organizers say they wanted to keep the event low-key. And they have reason to be worried. Last summer, the agency was driven from its previous home at 661 Hamilton St. after the city of Costa Mesa refused to renew its lease. Residents and merchants had complained that people seeking emergency food, clothing and financial help from the agency disrupted their neighborhood.

Amieva said he doesn’t think clients will cause SOS any problems. He said if anything, businesses should thank SOS for reopening.

“SOS helps knock down crime because now people won’t have to steal as much to get what they need,” he suggested.