The center, located at 1172 Market St., is equipped to serve up to 100 people at a time who are suffering from drug use and mental health issues, connecting with long-term and short-term services like health care and housing.
The center is part of the mayor's Tenderloin Emergency Intervention plan, introduced by Breed to address public drug use, overdose deaths, and crime in the neighborhood. The plan was approved by the city's Board of Supervisors late last month.
In a statement, Breed said,"Our work in the Tenderloin requires all of our city departments and community partners working together to address the major challenges we know exist."
Because of staff shortages, for now the center will operate seven days-a-week between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m., with limited staff. However, the center will ramp up to serve 100 people and stay open 24-hours daily in the near future.
In addition to connecting people with services, the center will also help people living on the streets with access to basic things like food, water, bathrooms, showers, and laundry, city officials said.
The center is being overseen by both the San Francisco Department of Public Health and the San Francisco Department of Emergency management, with collaboration from other city departments as well as several community organizations.
Because part of the effort also includes an increased police presence, the plan has been met with criticism from community groups, homeless advocates, and some city officials.
