San Franciscans are tired of stepping over people using drugs on our sidewalks. Turning the empty Marina Inn at 3110 Octavia Street into transitional recovery-focused housing is a smart step forward. Families and business owners deserve clean, safe streets.
The Salvation Army operates strict, drug-free transitional housing. This means The Salvation Army requires participants to work and have drug tests. Only people who finish intensive residential treatment programs can move in. The proposed program at the Marina Inn is part of The Salvation Army’s The Way Out initiative — a recovery system of care.
This is a proven path to success.
Right now, many who finish residential treatment programs have nowhere safe to go. Some end up in shelters that tolerate drug use. Others join the ranks of tens of thousands of San Francisco residents in “permanent supportive housing” where illicit drug use is protected by law. This puts them back in harmful environments. We should not send people who are trying to stay sober into drug dens. This restarts the cycle of addiction.
Some neighbors are worried about safety. As a father, grandfather, and former elected official, I understand that concern. At a May 20 community meeting, Daniel Tsai from the Department of Public Health said sex offenders, arsonists, and people who committed crimes against children will not be allowed. The Salvation Army will also run third-party background checks on all Marina Inn participants. This program at the Marina Inn does not risk our children’s safety — it protects it.
This program at the Marina Inn does not risk our children’s safety — it protects it.
The Salvation Army already runs a similar transitional housing program at the Joseph McFee Center on Cesar Chavez and Valencia. I visited it myself. It was clean and peaceful. No loitering outside. One resident told me they can’t have visitors and must follow a nightly curfew.
Marina Inn participants will follow similar rules. They’ll have a work requirement and save money. That money is returned to them when they move into their own place. Participants must also commit to keeping their rooms and the common spaces clean, fostering a “therapeutic community.” To keep the housing drug-free, participants will take drug tests. In the 2023–24 fiscal year, The Way Out ran 1,794 drug tests. Less than 1 percent were positive. If someone relapses, The Salvation Army will redirect that person to a more appropriate level of care. For example, they might end up back at The Salvation Army’s Harbor Light detox center in SOMA or at a residential treatment program.
Transitional recovery-focused housing is the last step before full independence. It helps people reunite with family, rebuild, and adjust to living a sober life. Without this type of drug-free housing, more people will be using fentanyl on our sidewalks. More kids will have to step over addicts on their way to school.
I used to be addicted to heroin. I’ve been drug-free for over 50 years because of groups like The Salvation Army and people who cared enough to hold me accountable.
Recovery takes structure, support, and consequences. That’s what the Marina Inn will offer. It’s how we get people off the street for good — and how we take our city back.
