First Sober Shelter Opens

The Facts

San Francisco's first sober homeless shelter is now operational on Sixth Street, operated by the Salvation Army. Hope House opened with 58 beds, offering single adults a drug- and alcohol-free environment for up to one year, reports Maggie Angst at The Chronicle.

Gary Noakes, a 43-year-old recovering from fentanyl and methamphetamine addiction, called Hope House "the best experience thus far" compared to other shelters where he witnessed bunkmates smoking fentanyl, frequent brawls, and bathrooms "strewn with feces and discarded needles". The shelter sets clear expectations: residents must meet with case managers twice weekly, engage in daily activities, and maintain a 9 p.m. curfew, and recovery support groups are offered on-site.

The Context

Hope House is a significant departure from San Francisco's traditional "housing-first" philosophy, which focused only on providing shelter. People in recovery could not even opt in to sober housing, instead they were required to live alongside active drug or alcohol users and risk relapsing.

The facility is a key part of Mayor Lurie's Breaking the Cycle initiative, which also includes two other sober transitional housing sites.

The GrowSF Take

We're glad that people in recovery have a new option for shelter that supports their goals. For years, housing-first activists have ignored the reality that different people need different solutions, and that some people need a drug- and alcohol-free environment to rebuild their lives. We hope that Hope House is just the beginning of a broader shift in how we approach homelessness in San Francisco.