SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) — The shooting of a homeless man by San Francisco police last week has touched a nerve, and KRON has learned the city tried to clean-up the homeless encampment, where the man lived, without much luck over the weekend.
KRON’s Justine Waldman has exclusive video of what San Francisco police were doing back at the scene on Monday. A memorial of flowers and candles now stands at the spot police shot and killed homeless man Luis Gongora near his Shotwell Street tent last week.
On Saturday night, public works crews came to take down the Mission District homeless encampment as shown in a video shared with KRON. Crews tore down the tents, piece-by-piece in an attempt to clean the streets. Nine homeless people were moved to shelters.
But by Monday, a few tents were back up, along with piles of trash.
For Anna, and her puppy, the take-down took away her home.
“Change is (not) always easy,” she said. “Some people fight it when really it should be welcome with open hands. It is just difficult. It is scary.”
Only on KRON, San Francisco police came back Monday afternoon, telling each homeless person that Shotwell and 18th is not a place they can stay right now.
It is an area police said they are watching.
People who live in the neighborhood are used to the sidewalk tents and said the homeless aren’t a bother, but it is time for them to leave.
“I don’t want someone sleeping on the street,” neighbor Colt Church said. “That is why I don’t want it. It is not that I think they are bad people or anything….They need somewhere safe to live.”