Residents in San Francisco’s South of Market (SoMa) neighborhood are taking matters into their own hands, spending more than $800,000 on private security to patrol their streets.
Locals say homelessness services are heavily concentrated in the area, leaving streets littered and unsafe, and forcing them to look for solutions beyond city intervention.
Private Security Steps In Where City Services Struggle
The nonprofit SOMA West Community Benefit District, funded by local property owners, now hires guards to patrol 109 blocks around the clock.
Their main mission has traditionally been keeping streets clean and picking up litter, but escalating problems with open-air drug markets and street encampments pushed the organization to beef up security.
Alex Ludlum, SOMA West’s executive director, told ABC7 News: “We have spent $820,000 in the last 12 months.
We need more security because of the population of street addicts, and the reason they are here is because the city has concentrated all the facilities and services that enable their lifestyle in this area.”
On the Ground: Guards Patrol Streets and Sidewalks
Unarmed security guard Erin Kametani described his team’s work: patrolling the streets on bicycles and vehicles, asking homeless individuals to move if they block sidewalks, garages, or building entrances.
SOMA West even created a map highlighting the concentration of city services in the neighborhood, showing why locals feel the area has been disproportionately affected.
Resident Reese Isbell told ABC7 that neighbors feel trapped by public drug markets right outside their homes.
“We now call SOMA West security instead of the police because they respond faster and actually help,” he said.
Garbage and Safety Concerns Rise
The surge in street homelessness has also meant more trash for the nonprofit to clean.
Ludlum explained: “Our organization picks up 700,000 pounds of trash a year because addicts empty trash cans all over the streets. 700,000 pounds of trash is not litter.”
Many residents fear the situation could worsen with the city’s plan to open a new law enforcement sobering center in SoMa, aimed at helping homeless individuals with addiction enter treatment.
City Response: Sobering Center and Partnerships
Mayor Daniel Laurie told ABC7, “We’re trying to address the problem.
This new center is all about making sure our streets are safe and clean.”
When asked about the reliance on private security, he added, “Many CBDs are working around the city to do that, and that’s why we continue to partner with them, with DPW.
But also I want to increase the number of police officers walking the beat.”
San Francisco’s Homelessness and Supportive Housing department has increased funding to SOMA West to help them expand services in preparation for the new sobering center.
SOMA West confirmed the city has already covered $600,000 of the $850,000 spent over the past year.
Residents Call for a Long-Term Solution
Despite the city’s funding, locals say the root of the problem remains the heavy concentration of homelessness services in SoMa.
They are calling for a more balanced distribution of facilities across San Francisco, arguing that the city should address the source rather than just the symptoms.
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