1,844 Homeless Died in San Francisco in past 15 years

SF Chronicle 21may02

Today is the third and final day of public remembrance in San Francisco for the 1,844 homeless people who have died in the city over the past 15 years. Since Sunday, a group called Religious Witness with Homeless People has stationed a band of supporters outside City Hall, where a long wooden wall bears the names of men, women and children who public health officials say have died on the city's streets in recent years.

The portable memorial has drawn the curious as well as people sitting in prayer or contemplation, accompanied by hourly prayer services that include readings of names and the ringing of a gong.

Representatives of the group said they wanted to call government's attention to what they see as a "social tragedy'' and to ask for continued funding to provide decent housing and health care for an estimated 12,500 people still without homes in San Francisco.

On Monday, the vigil continued while the Board of Supervisors heard two new ideas to better coordinate the city's budgeting for such services, which amounted to $104 million in the current fiscal year. Both stemmed from a recent City Controller's report finding that one policy body should set overall goals and review legislation so the city's well-intentioned efforts don't continually bounce one way and then another.

Supervisor Mark Leno introduced an ordinance that would require any proposed legislation from the board to be reviewed first by the Local Homeless Coordinating Board, as Controller Ed Harrington had recommended. Supervisor Chris Daly proposed a Charter Amendment that would further empower that board but reduce its size.