Two homeless women staged an occupation of a vacant single-family home Friday in the Castro in a move aimed at drawing more attention to their demand that the city move more quickly to shelter homeless people during the COVID-19 pandemic. They hung banners outside with messages such as “End homelessness, reclaim San Francisco” and “Housing is a human right” and attracted protesters and neighbors supporting the action before leaving several hours later after negotiations with police.
Category: Housing
Posted inCoronavirus, Homelessness, Housing
City Kills Plan for Mass Coronavirus Testing in S.F. Homeless Shelters
San Francisco turned down a research startup’s offer to test all of the city’s homeless shelter residents for COVID-19, urging the firm to divert its resources to other populations, according to emails. Shelter leaders and organizers had lined up doctors and volunteers to perform the testing, and the startup had drafted a letter of understanding, when the city pulled the plug on the plan.
Posted in“Civic” Podcast, Coronavirus, Government & Politics, Housing
Tenants and Landlords Alike Begin April Fearful of Coronavirus Fallout
Advocates for both groups say landlords and tenants should start open communication to negotiate an approach that works for both sides to keep everyone in place.
Posted inCoronavirus, Housing
S.F. Landlords Seeking to Lower Rents During Crisis Can Restore Them Later, Agency Says
Landlords of rent-controlled properties can temporarily lower rents and increase them to previous levels later — such as when the COVID-19 pandemic has subsided and the tenants can once again afford their original rates, according to city officials.
Posted inCoronavirus, Education, Housing
Facing Criticism, SFSU Offers Partial Refund for Students to Leave Housing During Pandemic
San Francisco State University students say they still don’t have clear guidance from the administration about whether they must leave university housing and take all of their belongings with them because of the coronavirus pandemic and statewide shelter-in-place order. With continued uncertainty, more students who had planned to keep their campus housing say they have changed course again and are heading home or to other locations for the rest of the spring semester. Over email, the university housing department confirmed that, “on a prorated basis, refunds for room and board and meal plans will be provided for residential students who have left housing.”
Posted inCoronavirus, Health, Homelessness, Housing
Hotel Rooms for Homeless, or Back to Streets? Coronavirus Proposals Split S.F. Leadership
Dueling narratives from San Francisco politicians reflect a divide over not just how the city should care for its homeless population during the COVID-19 crisis, but also what kind of policies and financial support it should commit to for the longer term.
Posted inCensus, Coronavirus, Homelessness, Housing
Coronavirus Pandemic Delays Census Count of Homeless
Before the coronavirus pandemic broke out, the United States was ramping up its biggest peacetime mobilization: the Census. A complete count of all people in the nation is taken every 10 years, but this year, the shelter-in-place and social distancing orders to curb the spread of COVID-19 have forced the Census Bureau to adapt its timeline for the count.
Posted in“Civic” Podcast, Coronavirus, Education, Housing
Amid COVID-19 Outbreak, SFSU Students Received Conflicting Messages About Student Housing
Students at San Francisco State University are grappling with conflicting directions from campus administrators about student housing during the coronavirus outbreak.
Posted in“Civic” Podcast, Housing, Law & Justice
Right to Counsel Helps Tenants Stay in Place, But Effort Is Short on Attorneys
Voters approved a measure in 2018 that guaranteed legal counsel to every tenant facing eviction in San Francisco. But six months after Proposition F was supposed to have been fully implemented, a third of tenants facing eviction have had access to only partial representation.
Posted in“Civic” Podcast, California, Elections, Environment, Government & Politics, Homelessness, Housing, News, San Francisco March 2020 Nonpartisan Election Guide
Assembly Member Phil Ting Advocates for Electric Cars, Criminal Record Reform, Housing Investment
Assembly member Phil Ting represents District 19, having been elected to that seat in 2012.