The GrowSF Report: What "Grant's Pass" means for SF homelessness
PLUS: Self-driving Waymo taxis are now available to all
What You Need To Know
Here’s what happened around the city for the week of June 23, 2024:
- What "Grant's Pass" means for SF homelessness
- Waymo opens robotaxi service to all of SF
- Bay Bridge taken over by sideshow
- FBI raids Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao’s home
- New lawsuit challenges Dean Preston’s housing record
Recent & upcoming openings:
- FiDi gay bar Ginger’s reopens for Pride
What "Grant's Pass" means for SF homelessness
The Supreme Court ruled yesterday that cities can enforce “anti-camping” rules that limit or prohibit when and where someone may pitch a tent or otherwise obstruct public spaces. In practical terms, it won’t change anything about how San Francisco deals with homeless encampments. But if the ruling had gone the other way, San Francisco would have been blocked from clearing any encampments, so this is definitely a win for the City.
San Francisco already has the power to clear encampments, it just needs to offer the homeless people living there a shelter bed first (editor’s note: this was temporarily blocked due to a lawsuit brought by the Coalition on Homelessness, but that was already resolved in SF’s favor). Section 169(d) of the San Francisco Police Code states that “Prior to ordering a person to remove an Encampment or prior to removing the Encampment, the City officer or employee enforcing subsection (c) shall offer Housing or Shelter to all residents of the Encampment […] The City shall not enforce the prohibition of subsection (c) unless there is available Housing or Shelter for the person or persons residing in the Encampment.”
The Grants Pass ruling does not change our laws. San Francisco will still take the compassionate path of connecting the homeless with services before cleaning up an encampment. And encampments will remain until City Hall builds more shelters.
So if the City already has the authority to clear encampments and move people indoors, why is it not doing it? Yes, our shortage of shelter beds is a problem — we only have about 3,500 beds for 8,000+ homeless. But the real problem is that City Hall isn’t building more shelters.
You’ll likely read a lot of spin about this ruling, so here’s the very simple summary from the Supreme Court ruling itself:
Held: The enforcement of generally applicable laws regulating camping on public property does not constitute “cruel and unusual punishment” prohibited by the Eighth Amendment.
Waymo opens robotaxi service to all of SF
The wait is over! Waymo's robotaxi service is now open to everyone in San Francisco, ditching the old waitlist system. Just download the app, request a ride, and you’re set to go—just like folks have been doing in Phoenix since 2020.
This is a big deal for the city and for Waymo. Despite some bumps along the road, like regulatory hurdles and public skepticism, Waymo has successfully demonstrated that they are now the safest car on the road — about twice as safe as a human driver. This expansion is a bold step forward for safer streets. It’s all about bringing the future of driverless travel into the everyday, turning what was once a novel concept into a new normal for urban commuting.
“The fact that it’s now opening up its service to all residents of San Francisco — population 808,437 — is a sign of growing confidence from the Google spinoff,” said Andrew J. Hawkins in The Verge.
Bay Bridge taken over by sideshow
Over the weekend, an illegal sideshow on the Bay Bridge caused chaos as hundreds watched cars doing donuts and setting off fireworks, leading to a 30-minute traffic standstill. But at least some arrests were made. When will this stop?
This is just the latest in a series of disruptive sideshows across the Bay Area, including recent incidents in San Francisco's Mission District, Oakland, and San Jose. The police need to step up their efforts to control these dangerous events that continue to disrupt and endanger the community.
FBI raids Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao’s home
Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao is in trouble. The FBI raided her home last week, stemming from a rumored corruption probe involving California Waste Solutions, the Duong family’s recycling empire that handles Oakland’s curbside pickup.
To make matters worse for Thao, her defense attorney quit after she hosted a wild press conference where she blamed “radical rightwing forces” and a “handful of billionaires” from San Francisco for the FBI corruption investigation.
And if that wasn’t enough, she’s also facing a voter-led recall this November.
Thao should do the responsible thing and resign.
New lawsuit challenges Dean Preston’s housing record
Dean Preston is accused of lying on his candidate information statement to voters. San Francisco housing advocate Corey Smith has filed a lawsuit accusing Preston of fabricating his housing achievements on his reelection application. Smith demands the San Francisco Department of Elections correct what he calls misinformation, particularly Preston’s claim of approving 30,000 new homes.
“I’m calling bullshit,” Smith said, arguing the figures are inflated. As Preston prepares for a tough reelection, his housing record is under intense scrutiny., with critics challenging the accuracy of his statements.
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Recent & upcoming openings
A great city is constantly changing and growing, let’s celebrate what’s new!
FiDi gay bar Ginger’s reopens for Pride
After four years in hibernation, Ginger’s is back and ready to shine for Pride Weekend! Reopening at 86 Hardie Place on Friday, June 28, the festivities kick off with a blessing from the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence and a party.
Ginger’s is said to be the only queer-identified bar in the Financial District. They aim to recapture its role as a safe haven for the community. The bar, which originally opened in 1978, has a rich history of serving San Francisco's LGBTQ+ community.
WHERE: 86 Hardie Place, San Francisco
WHEN: This weekend, with a ribbon cutting happening Friday
Your Action Plan
Now that you know what’s happening, help us shape what happens next:
GrowSF Happy Hour at Orbit Room
Join us for the July edition of our monthly happy hour. This is a great time to socialize and network with GrowSF members.
WHEN: June 9 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.
WHERE: Orbit Room, 1900 Market St., San Francisco
The Spirit of San Francisco
There’s a lot to love about our city and the Bay Area. Here’s what makes it great. Brought to you by The Bold Italic.
What we’re doing this week
Mrs. Doubtfire: The Musical
The beloved movie-turned-musical takes center stage at the Orpheum Theatre in San Francisco. Mrs. Doubtfire is the classic tale of Daniel Hillard, an out-of-work actor who transforms himself into the lovable Scottish nanny, Euphegenia Doubtfire. With unforgettable songs and show-stopping dance numbers, the musical captures the heart and humor that made the 1993 movie a timeless favorite.
WHEN: Opening night July 3. Runs through July 28th
WHERE: 1192 Market St, San Francisco, CA
San Francisco Pride Parade
The crown jewel of Pride Month, the SF Pride Parade will take over Market Street on Sunday, June 30th. Expect dazzling floats, lively music, and a sea of rainbow colors. The celebration at Civic Center Plaza continues the festivities with live performances, food vendors, and community booths. This year’s theme focuses on unity and resilience, promising an unforgettable experience.
When: June 30, 2024
Where: Market Street to Civic Center Plaza
What we’re writing about
Art and activism: Alok Vaid-Menon’s contributions to LGBTQ+ rights
Surprising connections link Alok Vaid-Menon — the nonbinary poet and comedian — to Urvashi Vaid, a prominent leader in the LGBTQ+ movement from the 1980s until her recent passing. Both members of the same Indian American family, they share a powerful approach to social change. Documentary shorts that profile each were featured at the Frameline Film Festival this week; This is our review of them.
Transgender showgirls pop up in the Marina
For 26 years, SOMA restaurant AsiaSF served up a unique take on “dinner and a show” by offering up Asian cuisine presented by transgender female servers who weren’t just your wait staff, but also your entertainment. Long before drag brunches became such a thing, AsiaSF popularized the concept, only not with drag queens, but actual transgender women.
Sadly though, when AsiaSF’s owners decided to retire in April, it left its showgirls in a lurch. But now only a couple months later, the ladies are back on stage, rebranding themselves as Dolls SF, and doing a pop-up version in the Marina on Friday and Saturday nights through August 10th.
Queer trans fashion show gave me life this Pride
We loved this evening that celebrated fashion, and featured queer and trans designers and models. We saw several collections, a Buffy-esque drag performance and one jaw-dropping vogue number that should have opened the show. Oh, and Mayor London Breed made an appearance.
People’s March celebrates its fifth year
It’s no secret that Pride has become a corporate spectacle, with rainbow logos, themed merchandise and big business strutting down Market Street each June. Now we have the People’s March, an event started five years ago to return Pride to its roots in San Francisco, where it began in 1970 as the Gay Liberation March. Back then it was a “tiny band of hippies” — so sayeth the GLBT Historical Society — and they marched to observe the first anniversary of the Stonewall Riots.
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