โTenderloin Buzzโ is a recurring column on changes, tidbits and other news from the Tenderloin. Check out our Tenderloin web page for more.
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A longstanding Tenderloin event, First Thursdays Art Walk, now gives attendees the option to sign up for a guided tour and experience the neighborhoodโs many art galleries through the eyes of a knowledgeable artist.ย
This monthโs tour is Thursday, Oct. 1. The walk begins at Hotel Emblem at 562 Sutter St. with a โhappy half hourโ before ambling down through lower Nob Hill and into the Tenderloin, popping into art galleries and exhibitions at Bob Mizer Museum, Emperor Nortonโs Boozeland and TNT Artlab, to name a few, along the way.
And because itโs officially (and finally) Halloween season, a few of the participating storefronts will display artwork that leans into the macabre.ย
The guided tour takes about an hour and 15 minutes. People can RSVP online.
Officers with the San Francisco Police Departmentโs Tenderloin station say they are cracking down on unpermitted vendors, particularly those who illegally sell cigarettes and fresh produce on the streets.ย
Tenderloin Station Chief Matthew Sullivan said the department has cited four people in September and will continue doing so in the coming months in a coordinated response to community complaints about the illegal vending.
Sullivan said many of the complaints stem from the presence of these vendors along the neighborhoodโs designated Safe Passage routes, where Tenderloin children are walked to and from school every day.
โWe are not going to let cigarettes be sold where our kids are walking to school,โ Sullivan said.
After a violent dog attack on Sept. 8 that sent a Tenderloin woman to the hospital, Supervisor Bilal Mahmood introduced a new resolution to the Board of Supervisors that aims to strengthen dog safety protocols, specifically at city funded sites like shelters, transitional housing and supportive housing sites.ย
The resolution, introduced in mid-September, would require city housing sites to keep registration and vaccination records for its tenantsโ pets, and would require them to report all dog bites or attacks to the San Francisco Police Departmentโs Vicious and Dangerous Dog Unit.
The resolution also asks that the city sustain the funding that goes into that police unit.ย
The resolution passed unanimously at the last board of supervisors meeting.
On the topic of furry companions, this Saturday, Oct. 3, St. Anthonyโs is hosting a โBlessing of the Animalsโ where FullBellyBus (a mobile pet-care team) and SF SPCA will be giving out free pet food, supplies and free pet care, including free collars, leashes and flea and tick prevention for cats and dogs.ย
The event follows in the footsteps of a neighborhood group on Ellis Street that gave out 30 leashes alongside the cityโs animal control department earlier this month.
On Sunday, Oct. 11, head over to Bodekker Park, where jazz band Signless will perform instrumental jazz from 1 to 2 p.m. as part of Tenderloin Community Benefit Districtโs Live at Bodekker Park series. The free, monthly events started nearly a year ago and are funded through the Helman Foundation.ย
On Sunday, Oct. 4, the Healing WELL is hosting a showing of the film “Figaro Up, Figaro Down,” a documentary about Tim Blevins.
The movie screening is part of the organizationโs annual fundraiser, and all proceeds go toward the organizationโs mission in supporting programs that foster wellness, belonging, and stability of residents of supportive housing and others experiencing homelessness in San Francisco.
You may have seen Blevins busking on the corner of Eighth and Market streets over the years. His story is one that resonates with the Tenderloin community, said Kathy Curran, director of the Healing WELL.ย
โTim is a Juilliard-trained baritone, and the film shares his journey from the height of international acclaim, to the depths of addiction on the streets of the Tenderloin, and into the power of his recovery,โ the hosts say.
The film will be shown at the Roxie Theater at 5 p.m. Tickets can be purchased online.
On Friday, Oct. 9, the Salvation Army Kroc Center is hosting a free event for kids, teens and their families called โPress Play.โ From 5 to 7 p.m., the center will open its doors for games, arts and crafts, a screening of “Toy Story 5” and a soccer tournament.ย
There will be food, prizes and clothes given out at the event, located at 240 Turk St.
