A tit-for-tat online fundraising spree is putting into question a proposal to build a new San Francisco homeless shelter.
At the center of the debate is Mayor London Breed’s proposal to build a 225-bed navigation center on Seawall Lot 330, land along the Embarcadero that is owned by the Port of San Francisco.
In a statement, the mayor says the shelter would allow “guests to bring their partners, pets, and belongings with them” and provide “support to connect residents with services and permanent housing.”
But its location has some saying the scenic Embarcadero isn’t the right place for a shelter.
One opposed neighbor told KCBS Radio that she feared "it's a resource that attracts people to it."
It's turned into a neighborhood debate that has sparked a fundraising battle between NIMBYs and YIMBYs.
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A GoFundMe fundraiser called “Safe Embarcadero for All” was started earlier this month by San Francisco real estate attorney Andrew Zacks. As of Friday evening, it’s raised more than $71,000 of its $100,000 goal in nine days, or almost $8,000 per day, with the largest single donation $10,000 coming from an anonymous source.
The fundraising campaign says “residents, businesses and other interested parties are organizing to oppose” the navigation center.
In response, a “SAFER Embarcadero for ALL” GoFundMe was set up Thursday. In one day, more than 1,000 donors have raised more than $83,000. GoFundMe, itself, donated $5,000 to the SAFER campaign and is currently its biggest donor.
That campaign says the money will go to oppose the shelter’s opposition and “will be used exclusively to support the amazing work the Coalition on Homelessness does to support our unhoused neighbors.”
The Port Commission is scheduled to discuss a lease agreement in April.