San Francisco supervisors approve lease for new SAFE Navigation Center
The SAFE Navigation Center for the homeless has cleared legal hurdles and is set to open by the end of the year along San Francisco's waterfront.
SAN FRANCISCO - San Francisco supervisors Tuesday approved the lease on an approximately 200-bed SAFE Navigation Center in the Upper Market area of the city, the mayor's office said.
A SAFE Navigation Center is a 24/7-access shelter that provides services and allows people to bring in their partners, pets and possessions.
The approval was unanimous for the center, which will be located at 33 Gough St. and help people experiencing homelessness.
Mayor London Breed is working to add 1,000 new shelter beds to the city's existing stock by the end of the year, and the 200 are part of that plan.
"The location of this new Upper Market SAFE Navigation Center will help us meet people where they are, and more easily connect people who are suffering on our streets with the help they need," Mayor London Breed said.
Supervisor Matt Haney said, "This is a neighborhood that will benefit tremendously from opportunities to get unhoused people off the street and transitioned into housing and services."
The center will be located between Gough and McCoppin streets, close to the McCoppin Hub, a cul-de-sac and meeting space for people. The center will focus on providing services to people in that immediate area.
The location of the center was previously occupied by City College of San Francisco and is available for three years before affordable and middle-income housing is built there, according to the mayor's office.
Supervisors voted to approve a 3-year lease at an annual cost of $1.26 million. Officials with the city's real estate division negotiated the cost with the property developer Integral Group.