645 Larkin Street: Community Outreach, Participatory Planning Process, and Interim Use

645 Larkin Street: Community Outreach, Participatory Planning Process, and Interim Use 

We have been listening. We hear the concerns regarding San Francisco Community Health Center's purchase and future use of the space at 645 Larkin Street. The Tenderloin is our neighborhood. We are intimately familiar with the challenges facing the Tenderloin, and our work is dedicated to offering viable, sustainable, and long-term solutions. From its inception, it was an important part of our process to include the Tenderloin community in the design of 645 Larkin Street. We did not expect the overwhelming lack of support from members of the business community and the Mayor’s Office before we could begin our engagement plan. We recognize the interconnectedness of our work with the needs and vision of merchants in the Tenderloin as well as the broader Tenderloin community.

Updated Community Outreach & Participatory Plan

We continue to be committed to collaboration by involving local business, residents, and service providers in on-going dialogue regarding 645 Larkin Street. To underscore this commitment, all plans related to relocating the Community Living Room’s community drop-in services to 645 Larkin Street has been placed on indefinite pause. We plan to involve the community in a participatory planning process beginning in February through summer 2024. We hope to solicit feedback by meeting with various stakeholders, attending neighborhood meetings, hosting community meetings, and engaging directly with those who are impacted most by the complex issues surrounding homelessness and substance use in the Tenderloin.

Interim Use of 645 Larkin Street: API-centered Programs

In the interim, we plan to use 645 Larkin Street as administrative and staff offices for our community-based programs, particularly those serving the Asian and Pacific Islander (API) community and that address safety and wellness. Since our founding, we have worked hard to remain rooted in API communities while welcoming anyone who needs our services. Our presence in the Tenderloin and Little Saigon is significant to us and stems from our mission to meet our community’s needs, location accessibility, and its cultural relevance. In light of the number of closed storefronts on Larkin Street, we believe that beautifying our building and keeping it open is in the best interest of our neighborhood. The programs that will be housed at 645 Larkin Street during this interim period include:

• The Lotus Project (in partnership with the UCSF Alliance Health Project): The Lotus Project is a community health and social safe space for and by Asian and Pacific Islander gay, bi, trans, and queer men and trans women. The project aims to foster a strong, connected API community through health, wellness, and friendship. It includes projects like the Joy Luck Club, our historic support group for APls living with HIV.

• API Stop the Hate: In 2023, San Francisco Community Health Center was awarded a state grant to develop and implement the Stop the Hate program. We are proud to work on this program and grateful for the opportunity to address and develop resources for API LGBTQ individuals who may have experienced hate, violence, and crime. Through this program, the Stop the Hate team will work to develop a tool for clients to report incidents of violence or hate, implement an after-hours escort service for API LGBTQ elders, and provide educational self-defense, de-escalation, and preventive workshops.

• Project CIRCUIT: Project CIRCUIT is a research project and community needs assessment on the medical, behavioral, and subsistence needs of the unhoused community in the Tenderloin District. Participation in this project is not open to the public. The purpose of Project CIRCUIT is to gain a comprehensive understanding of the unmet health and subsistence needs of this community and the challenges they face in accessing appropriate medical and social services. The results of Project CIRCUIT will inform San Francisco Community Health Center in the development of more effective and relevant strategies to better serve our clients.

We are committed to inclusivity and transparency in our process, and we hope to collectively create a stronger and healthier Tenderloin community. As we are in the planning phase, we are committed to providing regular updates about our timeline, feedback received, and any future decisions we make related to our space at 645 Larkin Street.