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OEWD seeks extensions for ambassador grants as supervisors demand DEM oversight and metrics
Summary
OEWD requested $5.1M and $31M increases to extend Downtown Welcome and Mid‑Market/Tenderloin Safety Ambassador grants through June 30, 2025. Supervisors asked Department of Emergency Management for a timetable for unified coordination and clearer metrics; public testimony included both strong support from businesses and praise from ambassadors themselves.
The Office of Economic & Workforce Development asked the Budget and Appropriations Committee to approve amendments extending and increasing two grants that fund downtown welcome ambassadors and Mid‑Market/Tenderloin safety ambassadors. OEWD staff said the outlays would cover the full two‑year program budgets and extend the grant terms to June 30, 2025.
Kat Daniels of OEWD and representatives of Mid Market Foundation and the San Francisco Tourism Improvement District described program roles: the safety ambassadors (deployed by Urban Alchemy) provide a trauma‑informed, non‑police response to street conditions and link people to services; downtown welcome ambassadors provide visitor assistance at convention and tourism nodes. OEWD and DEM displayed deployment plans showing current posts (roughly 100 safety posts, ~40 welcome posts) and a planned phased reduction over the next two fiscal years while preserving core coverage of high‑priority nodes.
Supervisors pressed for clearer performance metrics, worker safety and training standards, and a timetable for DEM to standardize coordination across dozens of existing ambassador programs. Mary Ellen Carroll (DEM) told the committee DEM planned an initial assessment and early recommendations within approximately six months and committed to regular reporting and coordination with district supervisors.
The public comment period drew numerous ambassadors, business groups, and tourism stakeholders. Welcome ambassadors and business representatives described on‑the‑ground effects on tourism, event decisions, and visitor safety optics; several ambassadors testified they had performed life‑saving interventions (Narcan administrations were cited). Dissenting testimony raised questions about the limits of ambassadors' authority and concerns about enforcement and harassment.
No final contract approvals were completed on June 22; the committee continued the items to allow DEM and OEWD to provide additional oversight plans and to let supervisors weigh deployment and budget priorities as part of the ongoing budget deliberations.
