Great meeting: Save these numbers

Me, giving my speech!

Deepest thanks to all who attended the meeting on Friday at PG! We had a fabulous turnout of passionate and informed agency partners, and a lot of great questions from neighbors and volunteers.

Thank you to Randy Quezada of the San Francisco Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing, Larry Stringer of SF Public Works, Chris Balingit of Caltrans, SFPD Sgt Davin Cole,  Whit Bastian of the SF AIDS Foundation Needle Pick-up Crew, Claude Imbault of the San Francisco Parks Alliance, and Sophia Kittler, Senior Legislative Aide to District Supervisor Malia Cohen for all stepping up to speak about what their agencies are doing about these issues.

The team is going to discuss the best takeaways from the meeting so we can look into other ways to prevent damage to the gardens from homelessness.  Stay tuned.

In the meantime, below is the text of the handout I made, which Hilary passed out to everyone on the day. The key takeaway is don't be afraid to CALL 911 if you see illegal activities, before things get worse,  call 311 to get trash picked up and text the SF AIDS Foundation Needle Pick-up Crew if you see needles.

Help Us Keep This Garden Safe: Do Your Part
Damage to the gardens costs us many thousands of dollars each year, and encampments create an unsafe volunteering environment, as well as an unpleasant garden experience. We are volunteer run and cannot continue to bear this cost.


Please do your part to prevent the gardens being damaged: report illegal activities at Pennsylvania Garden and Pennsylvania Railroad Garden. Here’s how:


Illegal activities include:

• Damage to, of theft of, trees or plants
• Dumping, littering, graffiti
• Public urination/defecation. Dog feces
• Fires. Theft. Verbal or physical threats. Aggressive animals

Pennsylvania Garden:
Property is owned by Caltrans

• Report illegal activities/emergencies: Call CHP at 911
• Trash pickup: https://csr.dot.ca.gov/ or
• Caltrans Maintenance Dispatch: 650-358-4127

Pennsylvania Railroad Garden:
Property is owned by SF Public Works

• Report illegal activities: Call SFPD at 911
• Trash pick up etc.: Call 311 or use the 311 app.

Other useful numbers:
SFPD non-emergency: 415-553-0123
CHP non-emergency: 707-641-8300
SF Homeless Outreach Team: 415-355-7401
DPH/Crisis services - for acute mental health emergencies: 415-970-4000
SF Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing: 415-252-3232
SF AIDS Foundation Needle Pick-up Crew: 415-810-1337 - prefer text and pictures but calls welcome. 7am to 7pm, 7 days a week