Mission Local reporter Laura Waxmann was interviewed by KALW’s News Director Ben Trefny. This story was produced by KALW – you can listen to the full broadcast here. The city has three active Navigation Centers now. The first opened in 2015 in the Mission District. Soon, the Mission will get a temporary second one that will cost two-and-a-half million dollars to operate for about half-a-year. Laura...
San Francisco’s bi-annual Homeless Point-In-Time Count and Survey vastly underrepresents the scope of family homelessness in the city, according to data gathered by Compass SF, an organization dedicated to providing family services for the homeless. “I can tell you without a doubt that the count for homeless families is often hugely under-represented,” Compass Program Director Kristin Keller said. After a...
Some 40 nearby neighbors made it clear on Monday night that they are unhappy about plans for a temporary homeless shelter at the site of former McMillan Electric building at 26th and South Van Ness streets. The lot is slated for 157 units of market-rate housing and the new Navigation Center would be a temporary use of the land. “We oppose...
When the city arrives at an encampment, it often means the homeless residents will be moved on. But on Wednesday, city cleaning crews cleaned up the sidewalks on 14th and Mission streets and –although the encampment was visibly scaled down – the workers allowed most of the half-dozen or so tents and their residents to remain. The day’s interactions at the...
A fifth Navigation Center for the homeless, with a focus on helping those with mental illness and addiction, is planned for the San Francisco General Hospital campus and may open its doors as early as June. The proposed 15-bed center, called Hummingbird Place, is intended to serve homeless clients struggling with mental illness and substance abuse issues, said Rachael Kagan,...
A homeless man is without shelter as rain storms sweep the Bay Area, after his tent caught fire early Tuesday morning in a possible case of arson. Amos Howard, a U.S. Army veteran who has been living in a tent outside a church at 18th Street and South Van Ness Avenue, said he suspects two men set fire to his...
Traduccion en español aquí. A homeless encampment around 15th and Treat streets in the Mission District has been partially cleared despite the fact that the city is short on beds in which to place them. The area, which was scheduled to be cleared by today, has been split into two smaller areas to work on piece by piece, said a...
Clenching his dog’s leash in one hand, Ortega Flowers’ voice trembled with frustration as he recounted an interaction he had with a police officer shortly before his tent was removed during a city cleanup of a homeless encampment on Shotwell Street. “They just took my tent. My dog’s food is in there, and his brush,” said Flowers, alleging that he had...
The city’s newest front against an infamously pervasive homelessness problem, an eight- to 18-month pilot project known as the Navigation Center, was slated to open Monday but will instead be delayed until March 30, according to officials. Episcopal Community Services, a nonprofit that operates several shelters and service centers throughout the city, was awarded the contract to run the Navigation Center just...
