A week after what San Francisco Mayor London Breed called “very aggressive” action to clean up homeless encampments across San Francisco, a key question looms: What will happen to the people living in these tents? Where to go?
In recent days, outreach workers, backed by law enforcement officers, have split up and targeted some of San Francisco’s most visible encampments, confiscating personal belongings and telling homeowners it’s time to pack up and leave.
They cleared an unsanctioned tent city under a highway and a stretch of sidewalk in the drug-infested Tenderloin district in an effort to force people off the streets. On Monday, city workers visited a long-standing encampment along the sidewalk outside San Francisco’s only DMV office that has been cleared a dozen times this year, only to be reinstated days later.
By Monday evening, the sidewalks were clear.
Breed’s efforts are bolstered by a key U.S. Supreme Court ruling on June 28 that empowers local communities to more forcefully restrict homeless encampments on sidewalks and other public property.
In response, Breed said the city, which has become the right’s favorite punching bag for its spreading homelessness crisis, will take firmer steps to clear out encampments. It’s time to “address this problem differently than we have in the past,” she said.
Despite years of efforts to move people into shelters or housing, street encampments remain a glaring problem in San Francisco.
(Taifon Coskun/Getty Images)
An estimated 8,300 people are homeless in San Francisco, with about half sleeping in temporary shelters in parks and sidewalks. Despite years of efforts to move people into temporary or permanent housing, tent encampments remain a prominent problem, often accompanied by trash, theft and open drug use.
For years, Breed and other city officials said they were hamstrung by decisions by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that found it cruel and unfair to punish people for sleeping on the streets without legal shelter. Unusual punishment. Now, backed by a Supreme Court ruling, city staff can take a tougher stance if people refuse help.
But San Francisco, like many other West Coast cities looking to crack down on encampments, still hasn’t figured out where people should go after tents are taken down: The city’s shelters — which have about 3,600 beds — are at 94% utilization. Homelessness and Supportive Housing Department Data.
“Unfortunately, San Francisco does not have enough shelters or housing for everyone experiencing homelessness, but we do have a number of beds available daily to support the work of our outreach teams and we will continue to grow our system,” the report said. Emily Cohen, a spokesperson for the department, wrote in an email.
Jeff Cretan, a spokesman for the mayor, said the city won’t necessarily see an influx of new people into shelters. After years of trying to move people indoors, those still living on the streets are often the most reluctant to accept shelter, often because they are struggling with mental illness and substance abuse disorders.
Crete said only about 10% of people had accepted shelter in the first three days of camp clearing this week.
Instead, Breed is turning to strategies other than adding more shelter beds amid a tough re-election campaign. She said the city could impose criminal penalties on people who repeatedly refuse asylum. But the prospect of local jails housing hundreds more homeless people also raises capacity issues.
On Thursday, Breed highlighted another approach. She issued an executive order requiring outreach workers to provide non-San Francisco homeless people with free transportation out of the city — to cities where they have family, friends or other connections. Crete said the city will cover bus, plane or train costs.
The city has had similar programs for years but lost traction during the pandemic. Under the new directive, workers must choose a relocation option before any other city services, including housing and shelter, can be provided.
About 40% of people living on the streets said they were not from San Francisco, according to the city’s 2024 annual homeless survey.
“This directive will ensure that relocation services are the first response to our homelessness and substance use crises, giving individuals options before accessing other city services or facing the consequences of being denied care,” Breed wrote in the directive. Reunion with support network.
San Francisco Mayor London Breed faces a tough re-election bid, and the homeless population is a pressing issue. Board of Supervisors Chairman Aaron Peskin (right) is one of her challengers.
(Eric Riesberg/AP)
Breed’s hard-line approach has drawn sharp criticism from homeless advocates, who argue that clearing tents does not address the poverty and addiction that drive homelessness and that her efforts are politically motivated.
“Policies to address homelessness must be humane, legal and effective, not implemented just because someone’s job is at stake,” said Aaron Peskin, chairman of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors and one of Breed’s challengers to Mayor (Aaron Peskin) said.
Instead, Peskin called for stronger rent control and protections against evictions, and for the city to expand housing and affordable housing options.
Since Breed took office, the city has increased shelter capacity from about 2,500 beds to nearly 4,000 and increased permanent supportive housing slots to about 14,000, the mayor’s office said. Cohen of the Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing said those efforts are the reason the number of people living on city streets is “the lowest it’s been in at least a decade.”
Crete said the relocation proposal and threat of criminal penalties are just a starting point for the city to develop an effective strategy.
“The mayor really wants to make it clear [that] You must accept asylum. But obviously, not everyone agrees,” Crete said. “It’s not like you snap your fingers and everything changes overnight.”
