San Francisco settles lawsuit over homeless camps, agrees to remove tents
SAN FRANCISCO _ Potentially ending a legal battle over the explosion of homeless camps taking over the sidewalks of San Francisco's Tenderloin neighborhood, city leaders on Friday agreed to remove 70% of tents in the area by next month.
If approved by the city's board of supervisors, the settlement will resolve a lawsuit filed in May by a group of Tenderloin residents and business owners, including UC Hastings College of the Law. The number of tents in the neighborhood increased 285% between January and April, as the city reduced its homeless shelter capacity by as much as 75% to allow space for social distancing during the coronavirus pandemic.
The results, plaintiffs said, are impassible sidewalks, drug dealers selling their wares with impunity and unsanitary, crowded conditions that pose a health risk for everyone in the neighborhood.
In Friday's settlement, the city promised to remove 70% of the tents _ about 300 tents _ from the Tenderloin by July 20, after which it will work to eliminate all tents in the neighborhood.
But Jennifer Friedenbach, executive director of the Coalition on Homelessness, argues the agreement flies in the face of federal health guidelines that say cities should not dismantle homeless encampments during the pandemic. She's not convinced that everyone forced out of a tent under the terms of the settlement will be given access to shelter.
_ The Mercury News
