On Friday, July 21st, SF Examiner’s Joshua Sabatini broke news that the City’s Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing (DHSH) would abandon plans to house administrative offices at 440 Turk Street and instead convert the space to a 24-hour homeless resources facility. According to the article, DHSH would lease office space South of Market. Plans for leasing the offices in SoMa (on 9th between Mission and Howard Streets) were approved by the board of supervisors. News of the plans for a 24-hour homeless resources facility at 440 Turk drew criticism for a lack of community outreach and input process.
On July 25th, Tenderloin Housing Clinic Executive Director Randy Shaw reacted to the lack of community outreach for a project of this type, calling it a “betrayal” upon the neighborhood in Beyond Chron. Once news spread of the change, the Mayor’s Office and Supervisor Jane Kim stepped in to get a continuance on the vote, which would have happened Tuesday July 25th, in order to provide time for community input. For more information, you can read a follow up article at SF Examiner.
To be clear, the TLCBD and its board of directors have, as of yet, no position on whether the 24-hour Homeless Service Center would be a good or bad fit at 440 Turk Street. We know very little about the operations of the center other than what has been reported. However, as an organization, we whole-heartedly support the requirement of a community input process for any organization, business or development that potentially impacts the neighborhood. The mayor’s office, Supervisor Kim, and Shaw deserve credit for ensuring the community has a say in what happens here.
We encourage any and all community members interested in the proposed facility at 440 Turk Street to attend an upcoming community meeting to learn more.
Thursday August 3rd
5:00-6:30pm
Curry Senior Services, 333 Turk Street
2nd Floor – Dining Room
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