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Supervisor presses for replacement of closing Tenderloin drug treatment center

The edge of San Francisco's Tenderloin neighborhood
Allah Ferguson
/
Flickr / Creative Commons
The edge of San Francisco's Tenderloin neighborhood

On Tuesday, he requested a hearing on San Francisco's overdose prevention plan to go before the Government Audit and Oversight Committee, which he also chairs.

The Tenderloin Center - previously titled the Tenderloin Linkage Center in hopes of "linking" those with drug addiction to resources - opened January as a part of Breed's emergency initiative for the neighborhood. It has since had more than 50-thousand visitors hoping to access its shelter, housing and substance abuse treatment, including 109 overdose reversals, according to city data.

The center ran into controversy shortly after it opened -- local media reported that people are allowed to use illegal drugs on the premises, which the city did not publicly disclose. With its status as a de-facto safe consumption site, the center can also be a legal liability for the city, both on the state and federal level.

Preston said that the city needs to come up with a plan to replace the center to address the drug addiction problem in the Tenderloin, and quickly.

Sunni M. Khalid is a veteran of more than 40 years in journalism, having worked in print, radio, television, and web journalism.