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Mission Terrace residents urge SFPUC to address repeated raw‑sewage floods
Summary
Residents from Mission Terrace and Cayuga Avenue told the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission that repeated sewer overflows have gutted homes, posed health risks to seniors and that SFPUC communications have downplayed hazards. Commissioners said staff will add a focused agenda item and work with neighborhoods.
Residents from Mission Terrace and Cayuga Avenue urged the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission on Friday to act after repeated raw‑sewage floods damaged homes and displaced vulnerable residents.
"My husband and I put our life savings into a home last year, and three months later it was flooded twice with raw sewage," said Blaine Bachelor, who identified himself as a Mission Terrace resident during general public comment. Bachelor accused the SFPUC of issuing "misleading statements and documents" that understated health and safety risks.
David Hooper, president of the New Mission Terrace Improvement Association, showed photos of hazmat crews and said community members were offered a range of costly permanent repairs for Folsom Street — plans he described as inconsistent across meetings. Hooper proposed exploring a gravity pipeline option west of I‑280 that would carry sewage to a treatment plant at the zoo as a potentially more durable long‑term fix.
Another longtime property owner described two major flooding events at family houses on Cayuga Avenue, reporting sewage as high as about six feet and ongoing displacement of seniors. "Most of the homes in this neighborhood are still deemed similar to a war zone," the speaker said.
Commissioners acknowledged the urgency. The General Manager said staff will place a dedicated agenda item on a future meeting to allow full public discussion and to work directly with affected communities — naming Cayuga, the Seventeenth and Folsom area, and Wawona as priority areas for interim and long‑term planning.
The commission did not take any formal regulatory action at Friday's meeting; it indicated staff will return with a staff‑level agenda item to explore mitigation steps and timelines.
