HSH unveils weapons policy for site-based supportive housing, highlights new dashboard and Restore pilot

Shereen McSpadden, executive director of the San Francisco Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing, told the Homelessness Oversight Commission on Feb. 14 that the department will require city-funded site-based permanent supportive housing providers to adopt a site-specific weapons policy and incorporate it into tenant leases through a lease addendum.

McSpadden said the template lease addendum will specify that possessing a weapon in violation of California law, failing to securely store a weapon ("especially in the presence of minors"), threatening someone with a weapon, selling weapons on site, or failing to report stolen weapons or ammunition can constitute a lease breach. She said HSH and the City Attorney worked on the policy and that the rollout will focus on site-based supportive housing where tenants hold leases; shelter weapons policies will remain in place for congregate shelter programs.

The new policy is one of several items McSpadden highlighted in a comprehensive directors report. The department on Tuesday also announced a new homelessness trends dashboard that tracks inflow, outflow and the population homeless at the start of a reporting period. McSpadden said the dashboard went live on the HSH website the morning of the meeting and is intended to help staff and the public understand movements into and out of the homelessness response system.

Why it matters: HSH officials said stronger site-level weapons policies are intended to improve safety for residents, staff and visitors while remaining constrained by…