San Francisco touts fewer tent encampments

SAN FRANCISCO - San Francisco city leaders have released new data on the number of tents and structures on city streets, showing a drop in tents and homeless encampments in the city. 

Mayor London Breed's office says the city's Department of Homelessness did a count of tents in the city just last month and reports a 41 percent drop in tents and encampments.

The agency counted 360 tents and structures - down from the 609 it counted in July 2023.

Breed's office says the decline is because of the city's outreach efforts and additional shelter beds, as well as San Francisco's ability to clear tents and structures off the street.

Earlier this year, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals said San Francisco could enforce the city's laws against lying and camping out in public areas if they offered a shelter bed.

Early Tuesday morning near the San Francisco Public Library and Civic Auditorium, there was only one person in a tent, but still dozens of people standing around and sleeping in blankets and sleeping bags near the buildings.

Just before 5 a.m., police and Department of Public Works crews came to tell the unhoused people to leave.  

Several people told KTVU this happens regularly. 

They can pitch a tent overnight but then have to pack things up and move on in the morning.

"A reduction in tents does not necessarily mean a reduction in homelessness,"  said Jennifer Friedenbach of the Coalition on Homelessness. "Homelessness only decreases when more housing is available."

She said that right now, there are more housing placements due to the roll-out of Prop C funds, noting that Breed opposed that initiative.

"There is still great unmet need with long waitlists for shelter and housing," she said. "Touting a reduction in tents  as a result of sweeps is mere political theater."