According to the San Francisco Chronicle, small business owners in San Francisco's Little Saigon neighborhood expressed concern that the homeless clinic would attract more homeless people and worsen the safety situation.
According to the San Francisco Chronicle, city officials announced plans in February to open a health and information center in conjunction with the San Francisco Community Health Clinic in the space of a recently closed Vietnamese restaurant. report. Small business owners have expressed concern that opening the city's homeless clinic, which is expected to help 100 people a day with everything from social services to laundry and meals, could lead to customers losing customers. did. (Related article: 'Why do we need police?': Watters says America's 'crime wave' has finally reached Pelosi's home)
“If I had a choice, I would say no,” Piño Charoensuk, owner of Lapat Thai Noodle Bar, told the Chronicle when asked about the clinic. “This neighborhood is really bad.”
Charonsuk said delivery orders have kept his business afloat, as neighborhood conditions such as open drug use and homelessness have prevented people from eating and drinking at the restaurant, which was damaged by an explosion in 2021. he said. The restaurant echoed Charoensk's concerns.
People and their belongings seen on Jones Street in San Francisco on November 13, 2023. San Francisco is struggling to clean up its city ahead of hosting world and business leaders. (Photo by JASON HENRY/AFP) (Photo by JASON HENRY/AFP via Getty Images)
“Business is already very bad because of the street conditions,” Hyun said, according to the Chronicle. Reviews of “I hope they put it somewhere else.” Website That's because Larkin Restaurant praised the food but noted that the location was “sketchy” and “unsafe for parking.”
In San Francisco, several incidents involving homeless people have made headlines, including one in which a former fire chief was allegedly assaulted by a homeless man who was later acquitted. Another homeless person camped out in front of a school with a sign offering fentanyl and methamphetamine.
“I felt there was really good potential in this area,” Hyun told the Chronicle, adding that families visited on weekends and crowds from government offices gathered during lunch hours. “Not anymore. Parents don't want to bring their children here.”
California retailers are supporting a ballot initiative to repeal California's Proposition 47, which reduces penalties for shoplifting and grand theft. According to one study, commercial robberies in the state have increased by 13.3% since 2019. study The Public Policy Institute of California also noted a 28.2% increase in shoplifting, especially in the San Francisco area.
According to the report, homicides in the Tenderloin area in 2023 increased by 71.4% compared to the previous year, and robberies and auto thefts both increased by more than 11%. data From the San Francisco Police Department.
the goal announced The company closed three stores in the San Francisco area in September due to theft, including organized retail crime.
Charonsuk echoed Hyun's assessment of the situation in the neighborhood. “People love my cooking, but they don't want to come to the Tenderloin. They don't feel safe walking around here,” Charonsuk told the Chronicle. “The city needs to make our streets safer and cleaner.”
The San Francisco Community Health Clinic did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Daily Caller News Foundation.
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