welcome to assignment 7. today on our program, giving locally, how you can pick and choose was the donation. a water failure made the woman rush to michael finney. and redevelopment of aging train station that could put new life into east bay neighborhood. >> the number of people turning to food pantries is increasing in the challenging economy. one agencyhat that invaluable service. laura anthony explains. >> for the monument crisis center opened eight years the executive director never

imagined it would grow reich it has. >> when we started it was veryws small. now it's over 9,000 families that are registered here. >> that growth is the sign of the bad economic times but also an example of the commitment to e needs of the local community. a chef that was recently laid off says the center has helped him in many ways. >> these people are helping meem me, get me a job and also food for my family. >> a service provider for anothe itfit. it uses monument service to help its clients. she says the population in need has expand had over the years. >> it's changed dramatically because of the economy and the recession crisis. >> the crisis center wouldn't be what it is today without the dedication of staff and countless volunteers that have

worked here through the years. >> i just wanted to help people to get fed and clothed, whatever the need is, i wanted t wanted p provide it here. >> who else is going to do it? if the people who have cannot help the people who have not, we are very sad and unfortunate world, i think. >> she was one of the monument very first volunteers in 2003 when she translated for spanish speaking clients. >> i this center. i love helping here. the things you learn, the people you so m so many great things. >> the center has grown so much over the years they are looking for ager facility what they hope for in years to come, exclusive exclusive director says she number of people and volunteers exceeds the number of people that need help. >> many people have reservations

and donating and not knowing where the money will go. but a silicon valley company is hoping to ease that anxiety by electrical you pick in how the money gets used. dan ashley has more. >> reporter: single dad reginald thompson struggles to take care of his three young kids all day. >> i work all night and work a day shift and come home to baby-sit my kids. get very little sleep. it's clinging. >> he found help on a website give locally.net. full profit line let's those in need request assistance for specific need. donors can pick and choose where their money goes. >> i've gotten loan assistance and help with the pg&e bill, the water bill and groceries. >> among those that helped him

out. >> it's very transparent. it's easy to use. you can pick the family you want to help and see where your money is going. >> the idea was intriguing to the. he now the company's ceo. >> give locally.net is designed to be able to help working class people assist one another with needs that arise had that made them deviate from their standard budget. >> they take dona asas small as $5. charity watchdogs recommend nonprofit groups keep no more than 20% and the rest should go to people like samantha banks she will start college in washington, d.c. in august. >> we needed help in money. >> she got more than a thousand dollars for tuition.

>> i think it really helped. knowing that we could find hem when we needed. >> it they are pre-screened by give locally before they are posted on the site. on to make sure the money goes where it's supposed to they pay the money and pays the expenses on the behalf of the recipients. >> because we don't oversaturate the site with recipients, very rarely do we have recipients whose needs don't get met. almost never. >> there is good people out there with good heart that is willing to give. >> dan ashley, "abc 7 news." tens of millions of dollars are headed to a troubled housing project and it promises to bring major changes to the neighborhood. double rock housing project is near candlestick. >> the head of san francisco's housing authority henry alvarez did a dance. the district supervisor became

emotional. they are among those celebrating a federal grant of just over $30 million to help rebuild the rundown the alice griffith project known as double rock to residents. san francisco has every reason to be proud.etition competition, there were 42 progra for the program. >> it was built in 1972 and is in line to be torn down. it's part of the hunters point shipyard shipyard redevelopment plan. with the extra infusion of the cash should fast track the process. construction should begin in 18-24 months. >> we'll replace the public housing units and add more affordable housing and work force housing. at the end of the day, it will be mixed income community. >> when former mayor gavin newsom pushed the project years ago, he promised residents he

could stay in their apartments until the new ones are built. current mayor acknow acknowledgd acknowledged the promises. >> there is a delivery of hope that is reflected in the decision. >> the head of the tenants >> it's a big deal when action happens. it's a big deal to me when actually developments start. >> the redey agency has already committed $30 million towards this project but it's expected to cost about $240 million by the time its in in 2019. so this grant is nice chunk to help get them on their way. in san francisco, carolyn tyler, "abc 7 news." still ahead, a "7 on your side" investigation. >> i couldn't believe it.i had . that is what blew my mind. >> san francisco woman says the city broke her water pipe so why

does she have to pay for the fix?

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think about this one, what if a project damaged your home and you were told you had to pay for it. michael finney investigates. >> up-year-old helen had no idea there was any problem in our san francisco home out of blue a knock at the door. >> they came to say that i had broken a pipe and i would have to get a plumber out. >> unbeknownst to her, a city contractor had installed a new water meter for her house and it caused water pipe to burst. she had no running water and she would have to call a plumber to get it fixed and she would have to pay for it herself. >> i couldn't believe it. i no water. that what blew my mind. you couldn't wash or do the laundry or do anything. >> helen had to rush to find a

plumber and it wasn't cheap. $4200 to break open the sidewalk install a new pipe and then pour new concrete. >> thank god i had the money. >> shewith thed a claim with the city demanding to be reimbursed. the city rejected her claim but did turn it over to a contractor bsi meter services but the case stalled for weeks and then months. >> i got the idea of calling channel 7. i didn't know -- i didn't know who to turn us. >> she did call us. we found out this was much bigger than helen's case. >> this is about a two-year project to upgrade all the water meters. >> the water department is replacing all 177,000 water meters in the city with these new wireless models. the department admits the

installation can caused pipes to burst and it's happened to 36 homes so far. helen was one of them. >> what tends to happen, as you shut off the water it causes a ripple in the system. so in the case if the pipes are corroded or very old it could cause the pipe to burst. we've had 36 cases where that has happened. >> water department also says unless the contractor did something wrong, homeowners have to pay for the repair. that is because pipes tend to burst only if they are in poor condition. >> homeowners is responsible fop the upkeep and maintenance of their property. >> a spokesperson says pipe breaks are relatively rare. so far bsi has installed 52,000 meters, fewer than 1% resulted in broken pipes. still there are 125,000 more homes to go and the department concedes, some could be damagedy single case where the

homeowner's responsibility or whether the contractor is at fault. >> they contend homeowners should not have to foot the bill. >> if many pipes have already burst, who is to say that your home may not be next. the city needs to offer options to opt out. >> "7 on your side" found, so far five homeowners including helen have filed claims for burst pipes. all were turned over to the contractor. claime six claimed that the meter work caused other damage. bsi declined our request to sit down for an is o saying it is our practice not to comment regarding individual claims. we treat claims very seriously and have a well established process in place. however, after we got involved. helen did get another knock on the door. this time with welcome news. >> i got my full payment. i was so happy, it was unbelievable. >> bgsi did pay her the full

$4200. michael finney, "7 on your side". up next, san francisco building that was home to a secret playing before world war ii. one of the last survivors shares his story. plus the bay area hospital that can correct a birth defect and

west oakland has struggled with high crime as cecilia vega a lot of people are looking to an old train station to breathe new life into their community. >> when the train station opened in 1912, it was a bustling and grand gate way to the west. today it is a relic of bygone era. >> it's very important place in a lot of people's lives.

>> it was the end of the transcontinental railroad, the artery that linked the east coast with the west. trains would arrive on the lower level and passengers walked up to waiting trolleys that took them to san francisco and east bay. you had the great migration from the south into this area. you also had the japanese intern sfees coming back through the station. you had eastern europeans coming from the east coast. >> amtrak used station when it was damaged in the 1989 earthquake. we are couple blocks where the cypress freeway collapsed. so when the community demanded that a new freeway be built some else, now there is hope that they will find a new use. >> because it was a national landmark we have been thinking to reuse this magnificent building. >> when the plot was for sale

the community was sensitive to potential developers who wouldt make that building be a community resource in the long term. >> the station and land around it was purchased in 2005 by a housing developer. organization had promised to make the old station the centerpiece of a neighborhood of more than 1200 homes it plans to build. >> i think that we saw it was an opportunity to preserve at asset for the community. it's been a while in the making but we're ready to move to the next step. >> that sectors step includes coming potential uses for the station and the ground. thanks to a hollywood makeover people will be allowed into the building for limited use. hbo used the site for filming of a bio picture. restoration association for improving the landmark 16th station is mindful of the building's past but keeping an eye on the future.

>> from this point going forward i hope that the same sort of rhythm that you hear from trains trains buzz, same sort of energy when you go to a transit center, that energy that we'll have here. cecilia vega, "abc 7 news." >> presidio national park in san francisco is making plans to honor more than 6,000 people from world war ii. they were mostly japanese-americans. heather ishimaru reveals the secrets of building 640. >> this warehouse across from crissy field sits empty and neglected but it has a secret history that is about to be told. in 1941 it housed the first class of the u.s. army's secret intelligence service language school training 60 people in anticipation of the war with japan. 58 of them were second generation, born here.

>> the u.s. army knew that japan's war was coming, so collected the few second generation japanese that were bilingual. >> among those was 93-year-old tom sakamo who was 20 years old then. he had been drafted and found himself in desert anti-tank maneuvers when he was approached by the head of the school. >> they said s sakamoto, i would make you commissioned officer if you attend the secret school at presidio san francisco. that looked a hell of a lot better than being in the desert. >> the school was moved to minnesota after pearl harbor, while he graduated and went on to be macarthur's interpreter the family was ordered to a farm and sent to an arkansas

internment camp. now it will be a learning center as imagined in this drawing telling the story of japanese-americans like sakamoto. the story of patriotism and pain of prejudice. us >> some of us wanted to prove ourselves in combat of our loyalty on our country. that i think is a big lesson for future generations to see. >> a model of the future building 640 at the national japanese historical society who helped make the dream a reality. presidio trust also played a role. >> an incredible piece ofpropery property that i are looking at, actually very important piece of history. it's important to the national japanese-americans historical society but important to the country. >> he wound up staying in the army with a long and distinguished career and also served as president eisenhower's interpreter.

he is hoping that building 640 will keep the memories alive for future generations. a bay area hospital is now introducing a simple device that can transform the shape of a newborn's ear without surgery. >> if you are a newborn like lucas you are going to inherit a few traits, maybe your mother's eyes or uncle's chins or maybe your father's ears. >> he definitely seemed to inherited pop's and grandpa's ears a little bit. >> in lucas's case it was more of a flap, a condition that left the ears folded over. >> so i asked my husband. he said when i was young all my friends made fun of me. >> we see abnormalities of the ear cartilage when chin are born. >> they were referred to a doctor a plastic surgeon at

stanford. he recommended a new device called the ear well which he says can correct abnormalities. first, customizable fittings are arranged in this plastic housing which is then placed over the ear. what we're able to do, we're able to shape the cartilage and mold the cartilage to a much more normal appearance. >> he says the key is the device is placed in first few months of life. stage when the cartilage newborn's ear is still soft and malleable. what we learned we can do this effectively within the first two to three months of life. so it's very critical that we start the treatment on very early. >> as a child grows the cartilage thickens and change becomes permanent. this maps the eight weeks that he wore the ear well. >> it was easy. time goes fast. >> no surgery involved meaning no scars.

he may never notice his subtle transformation unless somebody pulls out his baby album. >> still ahead. latin flavor. ♪ ♪ >> the traveling exhibit celebrating the history and traditions of latinos in u.s. popular r r r r r

spanish word sabor means flavor and that flavor is in an exhibit at the san francisco library.

as don sanchez explains, it celebrates the influence of latinos in american popular music. ♪ >> that rhythm, the passion, traditions of latin music has been in american music forever. american sabor shows in influence from world war ii to today. latin sounds is probably the greatest crossover of rhythm of sound. it's the heart and soul of communities. it was put out in ways that are prosecute v profound. >> the show had originated in seattle. >> some made contract over like our own santana. he is joined by escovedo, linda

ronstadt. one of five regions where the music integrated into the culture. texas had selena and new york with ed pueente and also los lobos in los angeles. this is where they sell stories. >> we are a cultural institution as much as education so it promotes the resources we have. >> corporate sponsor is paying the bill and hopes it will be significant to a new generation. >> it might inspire one of them to say i can do this here. >> it's here through november 13th. don sanchez, "abc 7 news." >> that is all for this edition of assignment 7. i'm kristen sze. thank you so much for joining us. we'll see you back here next we'll see you back here next time.

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