Some residents in San Francisco's Tenderloin say they see improvements with latest plan
San Francisco leaders are hopeful about the evidence of progress being noticed by residents of San Francisco's troubled Tenderloin since the implementation of the latest plan to make the neighborhood safer.
In January of 2022, the controversial Tenderloin Center opened at U.N. Plaza. It was supposed to link users with treatment programs. City staffers were able to reverse hundreds of overdoses, but virtually no one went on to treatment programs.
The center shut down less than a year later that December.
This past May, Governor Newsom dispatched CHP officers to the neighborhood's streets. His office said they seized more than 40 pounds of fentanyl between May and December.
More recently, the city has also spent the past several months implementing the so-called "Tenderloin Community Action Plan," a collaboration between city agencies, businesses and community organizations.
Some residents say they have notice changes for the better in the frequently problematic area.
"Seeing a lady digging through the trash and her appearance, I thought, 'What if that was my daughter?'" said Douglas Liu, a native of the district. He continues to raise his twin daughters in the place he calls home.
It's an experience shared by many in the Tenderloin.
"It broke my heart, because that's someone's child. And then I started understanding the cost and finding a way to heal people," he added.
Liu decided to take action by joining the Night Navigator Program. It is run by Code Tenderloin, one of the organizations benefiting from the Tenderloin Community Action Plan, a $4 million plan created to improve living conditions in the neighborhood.
"Into 2024, we're going to see a lot of these initiatives that have been developing in 2023, specifically around youth, support for small businesses," explained Mayor London Breed's spokesperson Noel Sánchez.
Sánchez tells KPIX that six months into the plan, at least 19 of 21 projects are in place, including the Night Navigator Program, the Golden Gate Greenway Project, youth services, and at least $380,000 to support small businesses, including new storefront grants and business training.
There's also an increased law enforcement presence to disrupt open-air drug markets.
But is it working? Jesus Kauil, who owns Los Yucatecos Restaurant, said he has seen a change.
"The drug sales, consumers, and homelessness have decreased. You can appreciate the change," said Kauil.
He says he likes the idea of the city improving other aspects beyond security. René Colorado, director of the Tenderloin Merchants Association, agrees.
"We want to keep the pressure on the City to continue these services here, because I truly believe we're headed in the right direction. But we gotta keep going," Colorado explained.
Sánchez said this is just the beginning of a new phase. Another new update will be presented in a few months. By then, Douglas expects fewer people digging into the trash and doing drugs on the streets.
"As a father, I treat everybody as if they were my children, because my children will be their neighbors. My children will be living in this community. And what kind of community do I want for my children?" Liu concluded.