Tenderloin Linkage Center temporarily closes for improvements

San Francisco city officials said the Tenderloin Linkage Center is temporarily closed Friday as crews makes improvements aimed at not only enhancing the experience for guests but also providing them with more privacy.

The center located at 1178 Market St. opened in mid-January under Mayor London Breed’s 90-day emergency declaration for the Tenderloin neighborhood, and aims to serve as a one-stop shop voluntarily connecting people living on the streets with services and resources, as well as providing basic necessities like food, clothing, and hygiene services.

The improvements being made Friday are in response to feedback from neighborhood residents and guests who requested more privacy.

Under the new improvements, laundry and shower facilities will be relocated from Market Street to an enclosed area. Other improvements will include upgraded furniture, more provided tents and a larger space allocated to better connect guests to social services, city officials said.

Once completed, the center is expected to reopen on Saturday at 8 a.m., at which point regular services will resume seven days a week between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. daily.

The center’s opening, as well as the 90-day emergency declaration, is part of Breed’s larger Tenderloin Emergency Initiative. Despite the 90-day emergency declaration ending this week, the initiative will remain ongoing and continue to address a variety of issues in the neighborhood, including homelessness, public drug use, open-air drug dealing and violent crime, according to Breed.

Earlier this week, city officials said the center had 15,612 visits between Jan. 18 and March 7, and of those, 3,268 people have been connected to resources such as housing or health care programs. During that timeframe, the center also helped reverse 35 drug overdoses.

More information about the Tenderloin Linkage Center can be found at https://sf.gov/location/tenderloin-linkage-center.