How San Francisco can fix a glaring loophole in California tenants rights legislation

by Quiver Watts

State law gives new protections, but there’s still more to be done

By Sasha Perigo

originally published by the SF Examiner, reprinted with permission

Starting this January, San Francisco renters will see an unprecedented expansion in their rights thanks to statewide legislation.

Well, some of us will.

Thankfully, our Board of Supervisors has the power to fill in some gaps.

On Wednesday housing justice organization ACCE celebrated the legislature’s passage of AB 1482 on Twitter:

“We still can’t believe it.

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Facts on Fentanyl

by Quiver Watts

GLIDE Harm Reduction Services director Paul Harkin demystifies fentanyl and shares the known solutions to the opioid crisis

Reprinted from Glide, https://www.glide.org/facts-on-fentanyl/

Friday, August 30, is Overdose Awareness Day, dedicated to remembering lives lost and lives saved in the opioid crisis, as well as to informing the public about humane and evidence-based ways to mitigate the risks and fatalities associated with drug use. Here in the TL, we’ll be gathering from 1:00 to 3:00 pm at the Tenderloin National Forest (511 Ellis Street) to honor the lives lost,

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OVER 50 AND HOMELESS

by Quiver Watts

by Darnell Boyd

I heard that 50% of the homeless population is over 50 years of age. 

How could this be? You mean to tell me that the seventh-largest economy on Earth will allow elderly people to sleep under a bridge in dirt with rats running around?

I’ve even witnessed amputees sleeping in their wheelchairs. We have marathons for this disease and walkathons for that disease, but for homeless people with mental health issues and elderly,

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City Planning Commission votes to update Jobs-Housing Linkage Fee

by Quiver Watts

by Amanda Wheelock 

The San Francisco City Planning Commission voted in favor of increasing the city’s Jobs Housing Linkage Fee following a hearing on September 19, where members of the community voiced their support for updating the fee during public comment.

The Jobs-Housing Linkage Fee, enacted by the city in 1996, is placed on businesses and corporations developing new facilities in San Francisco that increase the city’s overall commercial office space by 25,000 or more total square feet.

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Violence Against Homeless People

by Quiver Watts
Pink background, black text reading "Hate Has No Home Here"

by Tracey Mixon

Recently, San Francisco has decided to add two new navigation centers, scheduled to open up later this year, in the Embarcadero and the Bayview. Both of these sites have strong opposition. The Embarcadero SAFE Navigation Center has been at the center of controversy since its inception. It was approved by the San Francisco Port Commission in April of this year, despite an appeal by Embarcadero residents that was denied. These residents have now gone on to file a lawsuit and temporary restraining order to block it from being built.

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UNSOLVED: HIT AND RUN ON BAYVIEW HOMELESS WOMAN

by Quiver Watts

By TJ Johnston

A woman who is probably experiencing homelessness was struck by a driver in the Bayview District, an eyewitness said.

Kyle Borland, a freelance publicist who lives in the neighborhood, recounted an apparent road-rage incident near Third Street and Wallace Avenue last month on Twitter.

“Holy shit! This driver just TURNED AROUND to hit a homeless woman twice in front of our apartment,” he posted on August 18.

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The “Wheeled Conveyance” Problem

by Contributing Author

By J de Salvo

I have Bipolar I Disorder, which means I go through long periods of mania and depression; as opposed to BP II or Rapid-Cycling BPD, which present as extreme mood swings, my depressive and manic periods can continue for months at a time. When I’m manic, it can be almost impossible to sleep sometimes, and if I go long enough without sleep I start hallucinating and hearing voices. My illness has gotten worse over time,

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Neoliberal Governance, Business Improvement Districts, and the Privatization of San Francisco

by Quiver Watts

by Ian James

8.28.19

On July 26, 2019, ten district supervisors voted to establish the Downtown Community Benefit District. It became San Francisco’s newest Business Improvement District (BID), and it will receive over $83,000,000 in property assessments from the City and County of San Francisco over the next 15 years. The money will not be spent according to any city budget. Instead, it will be spent according to a district management plan that was proposed by just 30 property owners,

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SFPD, DPW GRILLED ON RESPONSE TO HOMELESSNESS

by TJ Johnston

The group of San Francisco city departments tasked with tackling street homelessness has been blasted by two city panels in the last month.

The Healthy Streets Operation Center (HSOC) gave progress reports at the request of the Police Commission and the Local Homeless Coordinating Board at the bodies’ meetings on August 7 and August 20, respectively.

After HSOC representatives gave presentations to both boards, the lead agencies of HSOC — the Police Department and Department of Public Works — were scrupulously questioned on just how successful they’ve been on their mission. 

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