Data Provides Glimpse Into Belongings Taken From Unhoused People

San Francisco CA

26 February, 2022

2:16 PM

Description

By Will Jarrett, Mission Local February 24, 2022 A blue blanket. A skateboard. A Nintendo Switch. A speaker, a stroller, a gray suit. Art supplies and fishing poles, turntables and a guitar, a chalkboard on wheels. A teddy bear. These were among the personal belongings city workers removed from streets last year under the city's bag and tag policy, according to Public Works data obtained through a public records request. Many of the items belonged to unhoused people and were taken during street cleanings, police interventions, or "sweeps" of homeless encampments. Under the bag and tag policy, the city can remove unattended personal belongings from streets; people then have 90 days to reclaim those items before they are discarded. There is no record in the Public Works data that anyone reclaimed the skateboard, the Nintendo Switch, the guitar, or any of the other personal possessions listed above. To read the full article, click here. Mission Local covers San Francisco from the vantage point of the Mission, a neighborhood with all of the promise and problems of a major city. You can support Mission Local here.