Navigating Homelessness: Which Way Home?

When Mayor Ed Lee launched the city’s “pioneering” navigation centers in 2015, he envisioned that homeless people would move from the streets to long-term housing in 10 days or less. But reality quickly crushed that idea, in large part because housing was scarce.

By now, the navigation centers have fundamentally changed. City teams offer brief stays at the facilities to tent encampments’ occupants, who have increasingly gone back to the streets, a Public Press analysis of data shows. It turns out that, since opening, fewer than one-quarter of the centers’ “guests” have ended up in permanent housing in San Francisco. Most of the rest have received one-way bus tickets out of town.

There are few housing options, even temporary ones, for those who do not pass through the center. The traditional shelter system is overtaxed; demand and wait times for 90-day emergency beds have hit record highs. Middle-aged adults and seniors — some in their 80s and 90s — account for the biggest share of the waiting list.

Out on the streets, police have eased up on enforcing “quality of life” violations. Citations are at records lows, as city officials move to decriminalize homelessness in their quest for solutions — permanent or otherwise.

ABOUT THIS PROJECT

San Francisco does not have enough subsidized housing for all the homeless people living here. The Public Press examined the city’s paths for getting people off the streets, giving special attention to the new navigation centers. Reporters also tracked trends showing a decline in SFPD citations for behavior that homeless people have trouble avoiding.

REPORTING: Noah Arroyo, Hannah Kaplan, Sara Bloomberg, Zachary Benjamin, Liz Enochs | EDITING: Michael Winter and Michael Stoll | PRINT DESIGN: HyunJu Chappell/Magna Citizen Studio | CARTOGRAPHY: Marcea Ennamorato | PHOTOGRAPHY: Judith Calson| ILLUSTRATIONS: Anna Vignet| GRAPHICS: Sara Bloomberg and Reid Brown | ONLINE: John Angelico

From the Newsroom

From the Editors: A City in Flux

06.27.2017

By Lila LaHood, Publisher and Michael Stoll, Executive director

In the Summer 2017 issue of the San Francico Public Press, we examine the city’s efforts to help homeless people through initiatives in place for years and ones that are expanding under the new Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing. Some are experimental, which can be challenging for the people seeking services and for those trying to administer them while working out policy kinks.

City Hall

More Homeless Returning to Streets From Navigation Centers

06.27.2017

By Noah Arroyo, Assistant Editor and Hannah Kaplan, Reporter

Two years after the city launched its navigation centers, fewer than a quarter of the nearly 1,200 people who have passed through have been placed in verified long-term housing, and more are returning to the streets, an analysis of city records shows. The most common outcome is a one-way bus ticket to another city.

Aging

As Shelter Wait Times Soar, Older Homeless in Limbo Daily

06.28.2017

By Sara Bloomberg, Reporter

The wait time for an emergency shelter bed for homeless San Franciscans has hit a record high, as growing demand outstrips availability, city records show. Among those waiting weeks on the list recently were someone 97 years old and three people in their 80s.

News

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‘Quality of Life’ Citations at Record Lows

06.29.2017

By Sara Bloomberg, Reporter

As San Francico police respond to more calls for “quality of life” volations, citations have declined sharply in recent years, and the courts have been throwing out warrants for violations, quietly decriminalizing homelessness citywide, an analysis of city records shows.

News

A Legacy of Criminalizing Transience and Homelessness

06.30.2017

By Sara Bloomberg, Reporter

The California Legislature enacted the state’s first anti-vagrant statutes in the mid-19th century, targeting Native Americans and Mexican-Americans. Since then, policymakers and voters have regularly acted to rid city streets of people who are homeless or indigent. This brief timeline highlights some key years and actions.

City Hall

Nomads by the Bay: Homeless Camp Faces Cycle of Displacement

07.05.2017

By Hannah Kaplan, Reporter

The story of Box City reflects the city’s shifting approach to homeless encampments and the impact on their residents. Many believed the navigation centers — touted as a model of moving people from “street to home” — would lead to long-term housing. But they were left demoralized and jaded about the government’s ability to help them.

City Hall

After City Clears Homeless Camps, Team Works to Prevent Return

07.06.2017

By Zachary Benjamin, Reporting intern

City officials quickly learned that not long after a homeless encampment was cleared, a new one would often take hold in the same area. So they quietly added a team to keep encampments from re-emerging.