It amazes me that in the year 2008 we still have this epidemic of homelessness, drug dealing and crime in an area so close to the tourist jewel that is San Francisco. Having been to many cities around the world it seems to be a bigger problem here than anywhere. Even New York City with its much larger population doesnt seem to have such a problem.

What is being done about this?

Hi manderson,

Someone suggested to me it has a lot to do with the weather, and that if they were to live in NY, they would cimply freeze in the Winter. SF has a much nicer climate so.

I do agree though it is a troubling problem, especially in the tenderloin area which is very scary at night time.

AJ

I have heard that many were victims of budget cuts during the Ronald Reagan administration, they closed down many of the cities mental facilities in the 1980's so you have lots of people out there who are not prepared to go into a shelter or seek support and would rather spend the night on the streets. Very sad indeed.

What amazes me is how close the Tenderloin district is to the main streets in San Francisco. It's kinda weird and almost a bit cruel to say, but more often then not in many towns and cities across America, the homeless and dodgy neighborhoods are a bit out of the way....not in San Francisco. Market Street is one of the major streets in the city, and runs just underneath the tenderloin.

I do have a problem with it, and I like to chat to others about it, especially in that i t always ruins my experience of San Francisco. Especially when parts of the city are soooo beautiful such as the hills and the down near the embarcadero (my fav)

I agree, when you see this level of homelessness in the major parts of the city it leaves a lasting image, one that I'm not sure Mayor Newsom is aware is affecting the tourist trade.

Then again, if the people dont want to leave the city the only option is forced removal, how would that look!

How would you fix it?

um excuse me....but what about the homeless people themselves?!?!? They aren't animals you know! Maybe I'm being a little defensive but a lot of the homeless people in the tenderloin are there because they have had a bad run of luck. It might surprise you to know that a lot of the people are actually mentally disabled and simply cannot take care of themselves.

Maybe instead of trying to "get rid of them" you should try to help them out once in a while.

I'm sick of hearing arguments that more should be done to help these people. There are plenty of shelters around the city which would be much better than being forced to sleep outside on the sidewalk.

This is a great thread, i always wonder about this. It seems so silly that they put all the homeless and less fortunate in such a bad area AND so close to the city.

mileykelly: I just posted another topic about how I actually get really nervous when walking around homeless people, and I want to give them some change, but get really worried that they might steal my wallet if I take it out of my pocket.

sanfranlife: I suspect living in shelter is not an easy thing, and is probably overcrowded. Have you seen the Will Smith movie The Pursuit of Happiness? I know it's only a hollywood movie, but i think that getting a bed at a shelter is not a guarantee.

I have to agree with what averyone has said, including MileyKelly. Sure it is a massive problem, I feel really bad for a lot of the people living in the tenderloin. On one hand it is a huge black spot on SF, but on the other hand we should be doing something to fix the problem.

I must admit, maybe I've been watching too much Star Trek or something, but I can't believe we still live in a world where poverty exists. It just seems like we should have conquered it by now....like flying cars.