Public Works signs Caltrans delegated‑maintenance agreement; conducts undercover Chinatown dumping sting

At its Sept. 11 meeting, the Public Works Department described two operational steps it says will help reduce illegal dumping and improve conditions along state highway property inside San Francisco.

Director Carla Short told the commission the city signed a delegated maintenance agreement with Caltrans that allows Public Works crews to address encampments, litter, debris and weeds on specified Caltrans parcels inside city limits without separate approvals for each action. “We signed a delegated maintenance agreement with Caltrans that allows us to address encampments, litter, debris, and weeds on specific parcels of the state right of way in San Francisco,” Short said.

Short said the agreement initially covers eight locations, including freeway ramps and a stretch of Van Ness Avenue (part of Highway 101), and allows the city’s multi‑department street team to engage encampment residents, offer services and then deploy cleaning crews. Short described an operation near the Bryant Street ramps between Ninth and Tenth streets where outreach staff provided three days’ notice to encampment residents before crews removed trash and soiled items under the city’s bag-and-tag policy.

Separately, Short described an undercover enforcement operation in Chinatown that documented shop employees dumping trash in the public right of way. “We had a member of our outreach and enforcement team and our Chinese language public information officer on the ground looking for the bad behavior. And sadly, it didn't take long,” she said. Short reported two citations were issued — one for $100 and one for $150 — and reminded the commission that fines can reach $1,000 for repeat or particularly egregious offenses.

Nut graf: The Caltrans agreement and undercover sting are presented as two tools — outreach and service offers for encampment residents, plus targeted enforcement — that Public Works says will help keep freeway ramps and other state parcels cleaner and reduce public health hazards.

Commissioners welcomed the agreement and urged publicity so residents understand which parcels are state property and which are city property. Short said the department is eligible for reimbursement by the state for work on the covered parcels and that the city limited the initial agreement to eight parcels because funding is limited. Staff said additional undercover operations are planned in Chinatown and elsewhere.

Ending: Short said the department had already received some media attention on the Caltrans agreement and the enforcement work, and that staff will continue to coordinate outreach, enforcement and cleanup under the delegated agreement.