San Francisco Mayor announces new housing options for homeless

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee announced some new housing for the homeless. This as the Chamber of Commerce released a study showing homelessness is the number one concern among residents.

The mayor has found an empty hotel that he can use to house the homeless. It's called the Civic Center Hotel and it is located at 12th and Market streets. It will offer a place to stay for 93 people and it will be a navigation center, the city's second. That means it is more than a shelter, it offers services and the clients can bring their pets.

The mayor says he realizes many people saw city crews three weeks ago tearing down a large homeless encampment on and around Division Street-- he called the camp unsafe and unsanitary. With today's announcement, he wants residents to know the city has not forgotten those people.

"We want to provide the public that we will have long term answers," Lee said. "We aren't just tearing down these encampments so they can pop up some place else else. "We are actually handling the lives of these people in a responsible way, get them into long term shelters through these transitional shelters."

The mayor made the announcement before Project Homeless Connect volunteers Wednesday morning. The hotel the city is taking over belongs to the Plumber's Union. The union has plans to development the hotel, but while they work on those plans and permits they have agreed to let the city run it for two or three years.

The mayor also announced 200 permanent housing units, also located in various hotels.

He put out a plea to landowners, property owners with vacant lots, or buildings to come forward and offer it up. The mayor says this has to be a city wide effort.