Public Works warns of surging clean-street calls, asks for more pit stops and staff

Summary

Public Works told the Budget Committee that street-cleaning requests, needle-related calls and abandoned-waste pickups have risen sharply; the bureau proposed about $58 million in direct street-facing funding for FY18–19 to shorten response times, expand pit stops and bolster night/swing staffing.

Bruce Robertson, finance manager for San Francisco Public Works, and Deputy Director Larry Stringer told the Board’s budget committee that requests for street cleaning have climbed sharply and that the bureau is seeking more street-facing staffing and infrastructure to respond.

Stringer said the bureau estimated it could see more than 150,000 street-cleaning service requests in the current fiscal year and that, for the first time, it is tracking "encampment service orders," which totaled about 12,000 through February and often require Police Department assistance. "We are tracking encampment service orders," Stringer said during the presentation, noting those calls are now a visible and growing share of the work.

The bureau reported roughly 1,600 full-time equivalent positions across its bureaus and described a FY18–19 direct-services proposal to the mayor of about…

Public Works warns of surging clean-street calls, asks for more pit stops and staff

Summary

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