All but one of the Silveras' apartments rent for around $500 a month, she said.

Mrs. Silvera said she doesn't harbor

ill feelings toward Leong.

"Like all tenants, he doesn't want to move," she said. "You can't blame him. [North Beach] is an ideal place to live."

Protesting Evictions

While the case of the Silveras and Leong has been settled and is along the way to an amicable solution, evictions have become a particular problem in the San Francisco area.

The Asian Law Caucus and three other advocacy organizations sponsored a press conference and rally on Oct. 20 to highlight what they see as a glut of owner move-in evictions which primarily affect elderly residents.

A study released by Americore-VISTA shows that, while senior citizens comprise 15 percent of those renting, they are nearly 30 percent of those evicted.

"The seniors who move will not be able to live in the city right now," said Kate H. Gordon, senior program director for the Housing Rights Committee of San Francisco.

That's because the evictions also increase the rigidity of the housing market, the tenant advocates said.

The Housing Rights Committee and other organizations are actively lobbying San Francisco city supervisors for permanent change.

"The entire time, what we've been doing is not saying stop owner move-in eviction; we've been saying they need to be regulated," Gordon said.

A major problem now is "there's no requirements for relocation benefits for the tenants,"Gordon said.

Two San Francisco supervisors have proposed moratoriums on senior evictions.

But political machinations in San Francisco have stalled those proposals, Gordon said.

Meanwhile, Alvin Leong has still not found a new place to live.

"It's too bad that this has to happen to people who are elderly," his daughter said. "They are the people who are least capable of defending themselves.