THE Tenderloin Pavilion dream isdead. The cash cow for thecommunity has gone belly up.

NOMPC began dreaming of theeconomic development project 10years ago. The Lower Eddy/Leaven-worth Task Force started planning forit six years ago. And the nonprofitGlide Economic Development Corp.formed five years ago to get it off theground.

By 2003, GEDC had purchasedfour of 12 lots between Ellis and Eddy,Mason and Taylor. Planned for thosesites were a 144,000-square-foot con-vention center, 10,000 square feet ofretail space, 400 housing units, parkingfor 500 cars and 10,000 square feet ofbelow-market rental space for non-profits. Latest estimated project costsran to $250 million.

At a March 9 Tenderloin FuturesCollaborative meeting, Don Falk,

TNDC’s director ofhousing develop-m e n t , t o l d astunned assemblagethat the 12-lot Pavil-ion project ap-peared to be deadin the water andwould be reconfig-ured as a four-lothousing develop-ment with, perhaps,some ground-floorretail space.

Falk had littlemore information to

report about the demise of the project,whose partners included TNDC,Mayor’s Office of Housing, SanFrancisco Hilton, Glide Church, Evelynand Walter Haas Jr. Fund, and S.F.Convention Facilities Department andThe City Parking Authority.

The Extra had heard rumors that“something” was up with the Pavilionseven weeks before Falk’s bombshell,but had been unable to reach any staffor board members for details.

“I’m in denial,” Debbie Larkin,public relation director for the Hiltonand a GEDC board member, told TheExtra when we reached her after Falk’sannouncement. “It’s hard to say it’sreally over. It came down to financingand obstacles we couldn’t overcome.”

The original plan called for nearbyhotels, like the Hilton, to help subsi-dize the project because having asmall convention center within walk-ing distance would benefit them.

On the plus side, Larkin said shefeels the block that the Pavilion projectwould have encompassed is still keyin providing economic benefits. “Andof course the Hilton will stay involvedwith GEDC — we’re committed toimproving the neighborhood and wewon’t pull out.”

Thinking positively, too, is long-time Tenderloin housing advocateBrad Paul. He staffed the LowerEddy/Leavenworth Task Force andnow is a senior program officer atHaas Jr. Fund, which put $100,000 forpredevelopment into the Pavilion proj-ect.

“This is still viable,” Paul said. “Justbecause it can’t be done as one proj-ect, it doesn’t mean it can’t be done asseveral, maybe even on the same

Ahot health issue in the Bay Areathat hasn’t hit San Francisco yetinvolves nail salons, a cottageindustry that is licensed by thestate but has little oversight and is

largely self-policing. Nail salons pose healthrisks to the public, and hidden long-term risksto the workers.

It started in December, when state healthinspectors cracked down on salons in San Jose

after scores of customers broke out with skinrashes that wouldn’t heal and oozing sores thathad baffled doctors. Then, in January inOakland, instances of mold cropped up aftermanicures and pedicures. And in February,health inspectors were sent to check salons inMartinez after six patrons who’d had pedicurescontracted mycobacterial furunculosis, whichcauses boils on the lower legs.

These hygiene-related problems aren’t thepotentially biggest health risks at nail salons.We didn’t find or hear of any cases of toxicinjuries caused by the chemical-laden work-place that is a nail salon or beauty shop. Yetthere is plenty of concern that the pleasant rit-ual of providing manicures and pedicures maypose hidden health risks that a single ethnicpopulation would bear the brunt of – theVietnamese, especially women.

It’s a business that is dominated by women,a preponderance of them VietnameseAmerican, who comprise upward of 82% ofCalifornia’s 42,000 licensed manicurists, accord-ing to Tin Nguyen, the founder of a new organ-ization, Vietnamese Nail Care ProfessionalAssociation based in Modesto. (see sidebar.)And it’s a business that is easy and inexpensiveto to get into. Shops seem to be proliferatingeverywhere but in the Tenderloin.

Surprisingly, there aren’t many nail salonshere – The Extra located six – though there areas many as 5,000 Vietnamese in the neighbor-hood, and some work in nail salons, says PhilipNguyen, CEO of Southeast Asian CommunityCenter. In an e-mail interview he explains whythe Vietnamese have gravitated to the salonbusiness:

“Most if not all Vietnamese are refugeesand they want to work desperately for their liv-ing, to get themselves out of public assistance,

Glide pullsplug onPavilionB Y M A R J O R I E B E G G S

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Unseen peril

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SAN FRANCISCO STUDY CENTER

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Manicurists,most of themVietnamese,face health risk

TNDC’SHOUSINGPRIORITYDiscourage

gentrificationPAGE 2

FIVE WHODIED

Tenderloinobituaries

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FOODSTAMPS’NEW USE

For homelessin restaurants

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“It came downto financing and

obstacles wecouldn’t

overcome.”Debbie LarkinGEDC BOARD MEMBER

BY LORRAINE SANDERS AND TOM CARTER

CHEMICAL WORKPLACE

I L L U S T R A T I O N B Y C A R L A N G E L

The desire for arty fingernails keeps the jobmarket rosy for manicurists.

FUTURES COLLABORAT IVE

L E N N Y L I M J O C O

FUTURES COLLABORAT IVE

block. There’s still a need for a convention center.”He didn’t rule out Haas putting more predevelop-

ment money into the scaled-down housing project.Falk told The Extra that the next steps will involve

TNDC and GEDC putting together a proposal for theMayor’s Office of Housing to help fund what he esti-mates would be 150 housing units.

“There’s a strong push from the mayor for homelesshousing, so the plan will probably reflect that, plusTNDC’s and GEDC’s priorities,” Falk said.

GEDC still has made no official announcementabout the plug being pulled from the Pavilion project.Asked at the TFC meeting if there was to be one, Falksaid, “I guess this is it.”

The Extra’s repeated calls to GEDC President MelCarriere and GEDC Project Manager Paula Collins werenot returned.

BULLDOG BATHS MAY BECOME HOUSINGOther land use issues grabbed the TFC spotlight. For starters, a Tenderloin eyesore — the old Bulldog

Baths at 130 Turk — soon may be renovated into hous-ing, announced project architect Suheil Shatara.

Shatara showed draft elevations of plans to create 21residential units, seven per floor, each 300 square feet.He said he couldn’t share the name of the current ownerbecause the sale was in escrow. “I was just hired to dothese preliminary drawings,” he said, “and was asked tocome here to make a presentation. ”

But he did explain that a transfer of ownership wasimminent. “If the potential buyer gets what he needs,the project will go forward.”

That buyer was Turq Development Corp.Retirement Trust, he said, and yes, T-u-r-q. City Planningwas scheduled to review the preliminary design in lateMarch.

The Extra checked with the assessor’s office later

and found that the owner of record for the past fiveyears is RLM Development LLC, located at 870 InnesAve., in Bayview-Hunters Point.

In the fast and loose 1980s, before the Public Healthdirector shut down bathhouses, trying to stem the AIDSepidemic, the Bulldog was a wild place, complete withraunchy murals and an entire S & M sex cellblock on thetop floor.

“The building’s been empty since the mid-1980s,”said Jim Thompson, longtime property manager at theAspen Tenderloin Apartments across the street at 165Turk. “Even vacant, it’s been a community problem.”

The Extra was unable to reach Shatara at the end ofMarch to get an update on the project.

LAND USE PANEL LAYS ITS FOUNDATIONThe Collaborative’s new land use subcommittee met

for the first time in January, its goal to monitor and ana-lyze central city parcels for demolitions, rehabs, newconstruction, use changes, license and permit applica-tions, denials, and more. Members are Glenda Hope,executive director of S.F. Network Ministries; MarkAaronson, director of Hastings Civil Justice Clinic; andPeter Cohen, Urban Solutions’ planning manager.

“We’re still organizing,” Aaronson reported to TFC.“Urban Solutions will track uses, and two of my studentswill put together a manual for systematically reviewingdevelopments as they come up.”

Meetings are the first Friday of the month, 11 a.m.,at Hastings Civil Justice Clinic, 100 McAllister, room 300,and are open to the public, especially to those withplanning expertise. Call ahead so your name can be leftwith security: 557-7887.

TNDC SETS PRIORITIESBesides announcing the Pavilion shocker, TNDC’s

Falk ran down the organization’s eight projects for thenext couple of years. Two are under construction; theothers range from the dreamin’ stage to the designphase. In three of the six, the homeless are the target

population for all units.TNDC’s newest projects made the cut based on

what the organization thinks is most important, Falksaid. The first criterion is that a project be located not inthe heart of the Tenderloin but on its perimeter, “to dis-courage gentrification,” he said.

Falk later explained what he meant. “The realTenderloin is shrinking,” he said. “The areas most vul-nerable to being developed for higher rentals are on theedges of the Tenderloin. If we build equitable develop-ments there, it should stop the shrinkage and make fora healthier neighborhood.”

TNDC also prefers projects that feature family unitswith two or more bedrooms; new construction and sub-stantial rehabilitation; units for extremely low-incomepopulations that include supportive services; long-termfinancial viability; community support; and renovationsto TNDC’s existing portfolio.

“We bought many of our buildings in the 1980s,”Falk said of the last criterion. “They need to be renovat-ed.”

David Baker, NOMPC acting president, asked himhow many units TNDC manages today.

“We own 1,716 solely or jointly,” he answered, “andthat doesn’t include the ones in development”— 67 atCurran House, scheduled to be ready this August, and110 at 990 Polk, which won’t be ready until 2008.

“Is TNDC interested in the YMCA?” someone asked. Falk grinned widely, paused a half-beat and

answered, “Yes!” But he’d say no more. At the last TFC meeting, Central Y Executive

Director Carmela Gold announced that the Y was put-ting its main building and two parking lots up for sale,and hoped they’d be developed as housing. Realtor forthe sale Monica Finnegan told the Chronicle March 31that the building alone, without the lots, might be worth$9 million to $25 million.

“By the way,” Gold said at meeting’s end, “we’reclosing the bids April 18.” �

MEN Free prostate cancer screenings for men over45 who live in SROs will be available on ProstateCancer Awareness Day, Tuesday, April 22, noon-2p.m., at the Tenderloin Police Station CommunityRoom. Davy Jones, who is promoting the testing, saysany “poor” man residing in the TL or the Sixth Streetcorridor can get the screening. A screening conductedin February at The Rose on Sixth Street attracted 26men but 10 were turned away after arriving too late.Jones hopes they’ll return for the blood test that takesless than two minutes to administer.

MUSIC LOVERS Summer’ll be here before youknow it, and that means free music at Boeddeker Parkevery Tuesday in July through September from noonto 1 p.m. Lynn Valente, associate director of theMarket Street Association and coordinator of thePeople in Plazas program, wants TL nonprofits to tellher what kind of tunes their constituents would like tohear. “If you want to bring seniors, I’ll make surethere’s swing,” Valente said, “and if you want to bringteens, I can get a benign rap group up there on thestage. We should get as much bang for our buck aspossible.” The bucks for the People in Plaza program— this is its 29th season — come courtesy of the KoretFoundation and Grants for the Arts/S.F. Hotel TaxFund. To plug the music you want to hear: 362-2500.

LOW-INCOME TAXPAYERS It’s tax time, and adizzying array of tax credits and refunds are availableto help offset the high costs of — well — of living.Besides the federal earned income tax credit (EITC),which gives up to $4,300 to families with incomesbelow $35,458, there’s the regular child tax credit, anadditional-child tax credit, a saver’s credit and a newhealth coverage tax credit. The state offers credits torenters and elderly, low-income homeowners, and forchild care. And San Francisco came on board this year

with its working families tax credit that will match aportion of the feds’ EITC. At no cost, H & R Block willhelp anyone eligible to apply for the city’s tax break:You must live in S.F., claim at least one child on yourtax return, claim the EITC and have earned less than$35,458 in 2004. The S.F. treasurer’s office said that bymid-March it had received 4,000 Working FamiliesCredit applications and wants to double that numberby April 15. For info: 554-5678. Free tax-preparationsites: 1-800-358-8832.

LET THERE BE LIGHTS You know those lights thatgo on automatically when someone approaches andstay on only as long as they detect movement? Wanta couple to discourage breakins at your business orresidence, or to light up a dingy hallway indoors?Want them for free? Just call S.F. Community PowerCooperative. Its motion sensor program, funded byrate-payers through the state PUC, will install up tothree of these energy-efficient devices and will throwin the long-lasting bulbs. Any building owner, manag-er or resident in ZIP codes 94102, -03, -07, -10, -24 and–34 can call for an appointment. That includes theTenderloin and the Sixth Street corridor. One require-ment: A sensor can only be attached to a working lightfixture. If it isn’t, says Paul Liotsakis, the Power Co-op’sassociate director, he’ll refer the caller to an electrician.They’d charge about $175, he estimated. Last year, hesays, the sensor program saved folks in Potrero andBayview-Hunters Point 700,000 kilowatt hours of elec-tricity — worth more than $100,000 — because lightsdon’t have to be on all night. In the central city, sen-sors already are lighting up the dark at 201 Turk, at theDudley Apartments at 172 Sixth St., and at the CecilWilliams Building. Appointments and info: 626-8723.

MARLTON RESIDENCE Residents are compilinguseful neighborhood information for the Jones Streethotel’s first welcome package for new tenants. “WhenI came here six years ago all I got was, ‘Here’s yourroom,’” says Allen Harven. Rose Riggs says shereceived just a key and a copy of the lease. They aremembers of a new five-member meet-and-greet com-mittee formed by manager Linda Rochelle to helpbuild community in the hotel. “I like the idea of mak-ing them (newcomers) feel this is their home, not justa hotel,” says Riggs. One volunteer speaks Mandarinand another Vietnamese. Rochelle asked St. Anthony’scommunity liaison Daniel O’Connor to help the com-mittee create a project. The handbook is the result. Itis divided into three sections: Seniors, Neighborhoodand In House. “I use a wheelchair 90% of the time,”says Riggs, “so I researched Muni and found they give

a free training program for the disabled on how to useMuni.” Bruce Logan drew a welcome mouse for thepacket covers, which neighborhood school kids andseniors will color. To defray production costs, WillDempsey wants to sell advertising and says he hasalready found some interested restaurants. “Maybe thiswill grow,” says O’Connor.

THE COMMUNITY Hospitality House annuallyhonors TenderChamps — people and organizationswith long records of improving the conditions of thehomeless in the Tenderloin. Awards at the March 9event went to: Laura Guzman, Coalition onHomelessness board president, a homeless and immi-grant rights advocate and a trainer for the HarmReduction Training Institute; Community HousingPartnership, the 15-year-old nonprofit exclusively ded-icated to providing supportive housing for homelesspeople; Kym Valadez, a veterans’ advocate who hasserved on numerous homeless boards and task forcesfor 20 years and was an original member of the S.F.Homeless Service Providers Network in 1986; andPaul Boden, for 30 years an advocate for local, stateand national policies on homelessness, founder in1987 of the Coalition on Homelessness (run by and forthe homeless), and a drafter of the Bringing AmericaHome Act introduced in Congress that aims to endhomelessness in America.

— M A R J O R I E B E G G S A N D T O M C A R T E R

This column needs regular infusions. If you havesome good news (no events, please), send it to mar-jorie@studycenter.org. or tom@studycenter.org

GOOD NEWSfor...

Will Dempsey, Rose Riggs, Allen Harven, BrueLogan and Daniel O’Connor are producing theMarlton’s guide for newcomers.

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T O M C A R T E R

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TNDC’s top priority – discourage gentrification

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ATTENTION SENIORS

If you have a Section 8 housingvoucher and want to move to a new location, we can help you.FULL 1-BEDROOMS available.We have several vacancies

in a very quiet neighborhood in a building designed especially for seniors. Wall-to-wall carpets, elevator, excellent management. If you are thinking of moving,

call us.We will pay your moving costs.

Free transportation to see our apartments, there and back.

No obligation.

Call (415) 205-8113

Homeless dine and pay with food stamps

SAN Francisco — the city andcounty that knows how —still holds its title as the first

and only California countywhose homeless food stamprecipients can pay their restau-rant tabs with food stamps.

They can get a green burritoat Carl’s Jr. at U.N. Plaza, a plateof pot stickers from OrientalRestaurant on Market Street, apiece of pizza from Chico’s onSixth Street, or hot chow from 14other restaurants, most in or nearthe city center. And they do itwith a swipe of their EBT card.

EBTs, electronic benefitstransfer cards, replaced paperfood stamps in 2003 and operateexactly like the more ubiquitousand upscale ATM debit cards. The costof the food is automatically subtractedfrom the card-holder’s monthly foodstamp allotment, which in San Franciscoaverages $98.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture,which runs the food stamp program, hasallowed seniors and the disabled nation-wide to use their food stamps when din-ing out since the early 1980s, and 15years ago gave states the option ofexpanding the Restaurant MealsProgram to the homeless.

But the expansion has been a hardsell: Eateries in most locations simplydon’t want to encourage the patronageof homeless people.

Today, only 19 states are participat-ing in the restaurant program and ofthose, only five are implementing thehomeless option — Illinois, Michigan,Minnesota, Oregon, and California, thelast to sign on, in May 2004.

The four states besides Californiahave just a handful of restaurants partic-ipating among them. According toDennis Stewart, Western regional direc-tor of USDA’s Food and NutritionService, only 27 restaurants nationwideaccept food stamps from the homeless.Two-thirds of those are here in the city,Stewart said, the legacy of a mayorwho’s made a priority of homeless serv-ices.

SAN FRANSCISCO THE STARSan Francisco got a special waiver

to try out the homeless restaurantoption in March 2003, more than ayear before the state gave its blessingto statewide implementation of theprogram.

S.F.’s pilot project flew. High.“It’s definitely a success here,” said

Leo O’Farrell, director of HumanServices’ nonassistance food stamp pro-gram (stamps for those ineligible forpublic assistance but who meet incomeguidelines). “This February, food stamprecipients bought 8,000 meals, and in itsfirst year, restaurant program sales weremore than half a million.” That’s half ofthe program’s $1 million sales nation-wide.

O’Farrell estimates that of the city’s28,487 people who received foodstamps last year, about 4,000 homelessand 2,000 seniors or disabled were eligi-ble for the restaurant bonus. But rightnow there’s no way to know how manyare using their EBTs at restaurants.

“When they get their EBTs, we alsoissue them a yellow ID card for the pro-gram, if they’re eligible,” said YlondaCalloway, support analyst for the city’sfood stamp program and the only out-reach staffer for the restaurant program.“But we have no idea if they use them.Probably by next month, that informa-tion will be automated, embedded inthe EBT, so we can stop issuing IDs byhand and we’ll know how many peopleare out there buying meals.”

CARL’S JR. ON BOARDMohammed Safdar has been the

manager at Carl’s Jr. at 10 UnitedNations Plaza for six years.

“We’ve been in the restaurant pro-gram for just over a year,” he said, “andI’d say about 10% of our customers usetheir EBTs here. In January, we took in$13,700, just from this program.”

Safdar said joining the program washis idea. “I was at a grocery store onSeventh Street and the owner told meabout Subway Sandwich being part ofthe program and suggested that I findout about it. So I told my district manag-er and he told me to go ahead.” Sincethen, two other Carl’s Jr.s have joined.

It took about a month to implementthe program at the U.N. Plaza franchisesite and was smooth from start to finish,thanks, Safdar said, to Calloway’s help atevery step. The only confusion cameshortly after the EBT reader wasinstalled.

“At first I thought anyone with anEBT card could use it here,” Safdar said.“We were getting up to $1,300 to $1,400a day. Then we got a letter saying wewere violating the law — we could onlyserve seniors, disabled or homeless withEBTs and they had to have an ID cardsaying they were part of the program.The sales dropped way down when webegan doing it right.”

Most of the Carl’s Jr. customers inthe program are homeless people,rather than seniors or disabled, Safdarsaid. “You have to have a lot of patiencedealing with customers like ours, but I’mused to it. And this is a really good pro-gram. If another restaurant asked aboutjoining, I’d say to do it. I also tell my cus-tomers to tell their family and friendsabout the program, if they’re eligible.”

Restaurants begin by signing anMOU with S.F. Department of HumanServices in which they agree to serve

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DHS workers, right, check eligibility at St.Anthony's Jan. 12 Food Stamps in a Day.

S.F.’s pioneering programfor restaurants goes begging

B Y M A R J O R I E B E G G S

and to support their loved ones still in Vietnam. Only a verysmall percentage can speak fluent English. They will jump intoany businesses which do not require much English, have shorttraining and or training in Vietnamese and low capital for open-ing the business: Nail salons fit in very well with their expecta-tion.”

They are taught about the toxic dangers hidden inside theglitzy packaging of the glamour products they use in their work.Sections of the manicurist curriculum in beauty schools stress thepotential peril and offer safety tips and procedures. But, unlikethe hygiene problems, the toxic risks are likely long-term.

Nail salons use products with names like Pink Champagneand Dewy Fawn that, environmental specialists say, containcountless untested chemicals, posing toxic risks.

The bottles and vials, cans and tubes of beauty productsubiquitous in nail salons also can sicken and, potentially, evenkill you. This assortment of containers and dispensers holdschemicals that are volatile, toxic and at the very least irritating ifthey come in contact with skin or are breathed in over a periodof time.

According to Danette Schmidt, a former nail technician whoheads the nail technology program at San Francisco Institute ofEsthetics and Cosmetology on Folsom Street: “If you do it foreight or 10 years, you can get really sick from it.”

One especially loathsome, illegal product that is sometimesused when applying acrylic nails is methyl methacrylate, orMMA, an adhesive developed for dentistry. MMA was bannedby the federal Food and Drug Administration in 1974. The insti-tute has a brochure warning consumers about it. MMA hasexcessive and unusual odor, toxic vapors, eternal grippingpower and it’s cheap.

“Sure,” says Aaron Palm, the institute’s manager, “for 10bucks you can get a big bag of it. And it just doesn’t come off.You need a drill to get it off—which is legal—but that can leadto infections. If you are paying less than $20 for a full set (of plas-tic nails) you are getting MMA.”

Because legal adhesives smell almost as bad as MMA, thecolorless liquid may be hard for a consumer to distinguish whenit’s being applied. But women who later accidentally fall downdiscover it the hard way. They don’t break a nail, according toPalm, their whole nail peels back.

No one really knows what these products can do; they canonly offer educated guesses based on known characteristics of

the ingredients. There are more than 10,000 ingredients inuncounted products, according to a June 2004 report on nailproducts by the Environmental Working Group, a D.C. nonprof-it with an Oakland office. And the Food and DrugAdministration has no control over their use in cosmetics, thegroup reports in “Skin Deep,” its in-depth study of the problem.

Acetone, benzene, ethyl ether, fiberglass, formaldehyde,toluene are among the more familiar chemicals used in the vastassortment of polishes, glues, thickeners, hardeners and othercompounds that are employed by cosmetologists. A recent U.S.Environmental Protection Agency report lists 26 potentially dan-gerous chemicals found in nail products alone. Prolonged expo-sure to any of these chemicals could be harmful, the EPA says,potentially causing a range of health effects from minor rashesto cancer. But how much salon workers are at risk is largelyunknown.

In partnership with the University of California’s SanFrancisco Community Occupational Health Project (COHP) andSchool of Nursing, the Asian Law Caucus has visited more than100 Oakland nail salons to assess environmental and safetyissues and provide education about workers’ health and legalrights. But at this time the project will not go as far as offeringnail technicians clinical exams to test for illnesses, according toNan Lashuay, COHP’s director and an assistant professor at UC’sSchool of Nursing.

Small nail shops are notoriously tight-lipped about theiroperations. That’s because a large proportion of them are fami-ly-owned and operated by recent immigrants, said T. Van Do,a community advocate for the Asian Law Caucus.

Many Southeast Asian workers come to the United Stateswithout the English language skills necessary for most jobs, andthe nail technician licensing exam is available in Vietnamese.Once licensed, most people work for relatives or family friends,Do said. In talking with Oakland nail technicians, Do found fewwho understood their rights or the possible health hazards oftheir jobs. But even if they did, she is not sure they would actdifferently.

“The nonconventional employer-employee relationship real-ly complicates matters,” she said. “In many instances, it makes itreally difficult to assert their rights, even if the workers knowthey have rights.”

If workers do understand the health risks they face in salons,they are likely to consider them a necessary part of the job.

Nail salons are largely left to themselves to implement healthsafeguards, unless consumers complain to the state Board ofCosmetology and Barbering.

“We encourage people to file complaints,” said Patti Roberts,the board’s spokeswoman.

With only 18 inspectors statewide, consumer complaintsplay a role in how inspectors are deployed. In December, forexample, seven inspectors were sent to San Jose after skin infec-tions broke out at nail salons.

Jessica Easterling, a former nail technician, said: “The major-ity of nail salons I’ve seen barely clean up after the last customerbefore ushering the next customer into the ‘relaxing heat andmassage chair/foot bath,’” she said. “The prospect of disease

doesn’t relax me in the least.”The Asian Law Caucus, the COHP, and the newly created

Vietnamese Nail Care Professional Association (VNCPA) are try-ing to improve workers’ conditions. Tin Nguyen, a son of nailprofessionals and founder of the VNCPA in November, saidchange would only come from better communication, which hisorganization aims to improve by contacting salon owners, com-piling an industry newsletter, and assisting workers with every-thing from form completion to communication with the stateboard.

“They are really underserved, and the communication is justnot there,” he said. “Some chemicals are dangerous, and nailcare professionals just don’t know that.”

The demand for manicurists is rising rapidly in the beautyindustry, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.Employment of manicurists and pedicurists is expected toincrease by a third in five years, almost twice the rate as for hair-dressers, cosmetologists and skin care specialists, the departmentreports.

Vietnamese in California are responding in record numbers,too. Projecting from the first eight months of 2004-05 data, it’slikely that 3,000 more Vietnamese-Americans will have taken themanicurist test than last fiscal year’s 5,246, a 43% increase.

Results of the manicurist written test—given by a privatecompany under contract with the state both in English and, since1996, in Vietnamese—show a rise in the number taking theEnglish version, too. Last fiscal year, 2,333 took it in English. Inthe first eight months of 2004-05, that total had been bested by18.

How the test came to be offered in Vietnamese is a bit of amystery. According to one story, Tippi Hedren, the torturedfemale lead in Alfred Hitchcock’s film “The Birds,” was the influ-ence. Known more as an animal-rights advocate, Hendren wasmoved by the plight of refugees coming to America in the late1970s and visited a Vietnamese resettlement center in SouthernCalifornia. There, a Vietnamese woman gave her a manicure.Apparently charmed by the woman’s manner and concerned byher lack of English, Hedren pushed the state to offer the lan-guage option on the written test.

Tin Nguyen of the Vietnamese Nail Care ProfessionalAssociation doesn’t buy it. “The timing isn’t right,” he says.

All that state board spokeswoman Patti Roberts is certain ofis that the state responded in the 1990s to “many requests” forthe test in Vietnamese.

Regardless, the job was a natural fit for hardworkingrefugees.

Salary and tips for manicurists can bring as much as $50,000a year—depending on the salon site and the worker’s personal-ity. It’s cheaper and easier to become a manicurist than a cosme-tologist. To be licensed in California, the cosmetologist course ofstudy is 1,600 hours and can cost $10,000; manicurists need 400hours at a fraction of the cost. The Board of Barbering andCosmetology determines the minimum curriculum for schools.

“The occupation doesn’t require a lot of skills—more aboutlearning the tricks of the trade and you’re pretty set,” Tin Nguyenexplained. “Most either enter the business because they knowthere’s support, from family and friends. We’re a close-knit com-munity. Another reason is, we’ve established hui.”

Hui is a centuries-old Vietnamese practice much like theChinese mutual aid societies that provide credit and investmentopportunities. It’s an alternative to banks and loan sharks. �

Lorraine Sanders writes for the Neighborhood EnvironmentalNewswire, which provided critical support for this story. TomCarter is the Central City Extra’s staff reporter. Geoff Link andMarjorie Beggs of The Extra contributed to this piece.

“OH honey,”says AngelM a r t i n e z ,

glancing over hershoulder, “I can tell youthis is an excellentshop.” She is getting afull set of acrylic nailsand the Vietnamesewoman hunched overher hands sitting acrossfrom her is wearingglasses and a mask.

“Yes, I have beento all of them,”Martinez says in ahusky, authoritative sigh.“And the rest are rudeand rough. They don’tcare about the consumer. And they giggle and laughat you. But this woman—I call her sweetheart—isvery gentle and takes her time.”

The woman is Lan Chau, married and with twogrown children. Her husband, Wong, is sitting in theback of the unassuming shop at 409 Eddy they haveoperated for almost four years. When anyone comesin for a haircut, he’ll hop up and accommodate themin one of the two chairs in the middle of the room.

It’s a cozy place. His wife’s manicure table is upfront by the window, a display of nails and polishesnearby. Here and there are decorative touches oftheir Asian culture and hanging on the wall acrossfrom the table are a half dozen colored acrylic blan-kets in transparent plastic, more evidence of the for-mer refugees’ drive to supplement their income.

The shop is called “Lyn’s,” an Americanized ver-sion of Lan. There are at least six salons in theTenderloin doing nails and many more serving thehotels along the neighborhood’s northern and east-ern borders. Some are exclusively nails, others alsooffer hair cuts, or it’s barbering and nails. Seldom willanyone talk to a reporter. They are simply not inter-ested, can’t see the point of it and perhaps areoffended by the intrusion.

Martinez stumbled on Lyn’s a year ago afterTony’s nail shop at Eddy and Hyde closed, where-upon she drove herself crazy trying places on Polkand elsewhere, getting pushed out of shape byyoung Vietnamese girls who she thought were“vicious and ornery and prejudiced.” She could havetried Lyn’s first. It was right across the street from theJefferson Hotel where she lives. Now, she estimatesshe has been to Lyn’s 40 times.

“I refuse to go to other places,” Martinez contin-ues, “and I tell all my girlfriends that, too. I send themhere. How many? Oh, I dunno. Yes, more than twoor three.”

Lyn says very little as she works. She’s theantithesis of the gabby barber, and so the shop ispeaceful and unobtrusive. Her husband, who laughs

frequently in conversa-tion and isn’t renderedshy by his struggle withEnglish, is moreinclined to talk to areporter. But at somepoint he does not wantto be quoted in a news-paper. With his permis-sion, I move over to sitin the chair next to Lynand Martinez where thenail enhancementprocess has been goingon 25 minutes.

Lyn is coating thenails for polish to come.She does two to eight fullacrylic nail jobs a week.

The vapors from the materials are so strong andharsh it is almost dizzying. At least one shop in theneighborhood won’t do acrylic nails for that very rea-son (see sidebar). My eyes sting slightly and I men-tion it.

“Yes, it is strong,” says Martinez. “I don’t see howthey don’t get sick.”

Soon it’s done and Martinez is delighted with herfull set in bold pink. She fishes in her purse for $25and adds a $5 tip. Another customer is waiting.

The next week, concerned about the healthissue, I return to the shop, one of two in theTenderloin where someone was willing to talk to areporter. I invited along Philip Nguyen of theSoutheast Asian Community Center. He quicklyestablished a rapport speaking in Vietnamese withWong Chau whose wife was busy with a manicure.

Nguyen explained that the couple had beenreluctant to talk because some of the questions were“too personal” about the shop and their lives. He saidthey didn’t want to say anything “bad” about any-thing and only wanted to say “nice” things.

I said that I hadn’t meant to offend, and perhapswe could continue, now that they feel more comfort-able with Nguyen assisting.

“You know, these people were refugees and hadnothing, zero, and left a horrendous situation,”Nguyen said. “They’ve all worked very hard, someeven have taken three jobs.”

“We are boat people,” Wong said. “1980.” Wong said that good weather means good busi-

ness and people are freest with their money at thebeginning of the month. The Chaus’ goal is to make“a good living.”

I asked about Lyn’s health and if she was everaffected by the materials she used for the acrylic nails.

“Feel fine so far,” said Wong. “No, never dizzy.”Wong said his wife always follows the right proce-dures and she observes all the warnings on bottlelabels. �

— T O M C A R T E R

Toxic health risks for nail salon workers

Cozy shop in the Tenderloin

� CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

KATHY Thai has been in the hair and nail salon industrymore than 15 years but she won’t touch acrylic nails evenif they are popular and her shop’s business is down. “Too smelly,” she said one Saturday afternoon at the 800

Geary St. shop she leased two years ago. “People just don’tlike the smell, the chemicals.”

The 44-year-old single mother of two, a licensed cosme-tologist, was washing windows without a customer in sightfor the manicure table next to her and the four black andchrome salon chairs in back. She hadn’t a clue why businesshas been off recently, she said, but suggested there just maybe too many shops.

Hers is one of six hair and nail shops in the TenderloinThe Extra found. Although the industry is on the upswing, itis not as pronounced here as in Oakland where a Chroniclereporter found 11 in one two-block stretch.

Working two jobs, as a waitress and an electronic engi-neer, enabled Thai and a girlfriend to open a Larkin Streetsalon in the 1990s. But soon other shops popped up nearbyand after five years they sold it to the employees, most ofthem Vietnamese. Thai found this spot on Geary and her girl-friend found another in the Sunset.

“You can’t keep help,” Thai said, running a squeegeedown the front window. “The girls come work for experi-ence—they need the training—and after two or three yearsthey quit and start their own business. Everybody opens ashop.”

Thai is in the shop Fridays and Saturdays, times that fit herwaitress schedule at the Lucky Chances casino in Colma. �

— T O M C A R T E R

Geary Street salon turns upnose at acrylic nails

THE number of Vietnamese manicurists in thestate is inexact but it is probably four out of fiveof the licensed 42,000. California “does not take

any ethnicity information about licensees,” accord-ing to Patti Roberts, spokeswoman for theBarbering and Cosmetology board.

However, Tin Nguyen of VNCPA bought thestate’s list of 7,905 salon owners and countedVietnamese last names (among them, his parents)to arrive at an estimated 6,500. Nguyen further cal-culates that between “30,000 and 35,000,” or “80%to 82%,” of the licensed manicurists are VietnameseAmerican.

The figures roughly coincide with the ratio ofapplicants taking the written test in Vietnamese andEnglish, keeping in mind that some new genera-tion Vietnamese would take the test in English andothers can’t be identified by name because they’vemarried a non-Vietnamese. �

— T O M C A R T E R

Estimating ethnicity

A P R I L 2 0 0 5 / C E N T R A L C I T Y E X T R A 54 C E N T R A L C I T Y E X T R A / A P R I L 2 0 0 5

Amid the array of nail products at Lyn's is aBuddha, one of many touches of the Asian culture.

L E N N Y L I M J O C O

S . F . D E P T . O F H U M A N S E R V I C E S

GERALDINE FREGOSOCopy editor

Gerry Fregoso, whose 21/2-year stint as copy editorof Central City Extra capped a long journalistic career,died at home with her family on March 18. She was 70.

Mrs. Fregoso, born and raised in the Mission District,worked at the West County Times, the Oakland Tribuneand retired from the Chronicle in 2002. Soon after, shejoined The Extra staff as copy editor, bringing great skilland humor, a sharp wit and professional tone.

A year ago March she was diagnosed with kidneycancer. The first prognosis: three weeks to live. Mrs.Fregoso, a Newspaper Guild member, was back at workon The Extra for the May issue.

Every month we’d send her stories by e-mail to editand write headlines and captions, then she came intothe office from her home in Pinole for a day or two ofprepress proofreading and production. She workedright up through the February issue, No. 43.

“That Gerry chose to work with us during this timeis the greatest honor The Extra could receive,” saidGeoff Link, editor and publisher of The Extra.

She leaves Pete, her husband of 47 years, twodaughters, two sons and four grandchildren.

ROBERT MOORELoved Pier 39

Eight years ago, Robert Moore and Jack Hinkelmoved from a San Francisco apartment to the AlexanderResidence. It was there, on Feb. 28, that Hinkel

mourned the loss of his partner of21 years.

“He was like a little brother tome — I loved him dearly,” saidHinkel at Mr. Moore’s memorial.The Rev. Glenda Hope officiatedat the gathering of severalAlexander tenants and socialworkers.

Mr. Moore, who had cancer and had been serious-ly ill for six months, died Feb. 18 and was buried inOregon, where his mother, father, two sons and a

daughter live. He was 53.Hinkel’s eyes filled as he recalled happy times.

“Robert was a little homebody, but he loved Pier 39 andwe met my family there one afternoon,” he said.

He also shared a detail of Mr. Moore’s past as a vac-uum cleaner mechanic in Salem for 12 years.

There was not much else to say, Hinkel explained:“Robert’s death just broke my heart.”

— M A R J O R I E B E G G SPHIL BRUNNERVietnam veteran

Two dozen of Phil Brunner’s friends crowded intothe television room in the San Cristina Residence onMarket Street to bid farewell to their friend whosecheckered past didn’t diminish their love for him.

In front, symbolizing Mr. Brunner’s veteran status,an American flag hung from a green chalkboard onwhich his name and fatal statistic, 1965-2005, was writ-ten. The picture on the memorial program covershowed Mr. Brunner hugging his little son, Joseph. Bothare smiling.

Mr. Brunner had suffered medical complications forweeks before he died Feb. 21 after his wife, CollynneCook, took him off life-support at St. Francis MemorialHospital.

Ben Wynn, who knew Mr. Brunner nine years, saidthey were both Vietnam War veterans, Wynn serving inthe Navy. Although they talked often, he said, theyavoided the war as a topic.

“He’d do anything for anybody,” Wynn said. “Hewas a stand-up man, a brother. I think about him everyday and there’s a place in my heart for him. I know he’sin heaven and his spirit is with us.”

A man who lived on the fourth floor said Mr.Brunner was “a wonderful gentleman” who alwaysacknowledged him. Several women praised Mr.Brunner as sensitive and a kind-hearted friend. Othersnoted his dry wit, and his fondness for his cat, Panther,and for good old rock ’n’ roll. Tony Baldwin, a tenantsupervisor for nine months, described Mr. Brunner asthe “quiet, caring type who always asked how you weredoing.”

Cook saidMr. Brunner hada congenitalhearing impair-ment. After grad-uating from highschool in UnionCity, she said, hewanted to jointhe Marines sobadly he talkeda friend into tak-ing the hearingtest for him. “Buthe got his asskicked by thedrill sergeant be-cause he could-n’t hear,” shesaid.

Mr. Brunnerwas sent toVietnam, an ex-perience hewouldn’t talk a-bout unless sheprodded him.Then, she said,he’d get upsetand his reluctantstories were sographic andblood-curdlingthat she stoppedasking to hearmore.

“He did a lot

of time in federal and stateprison,” Cook said to thegathering. “We spent a lotof time together when hedidn’t get caught. He didheroin.”

She told The Extra pri-vately that she met Mr.Brunner 22 years ago. Afriend introduced themwith the hope that Cookwould leave the stepson of Hells Angels’ leader, SonnyBarger, for Mr. Brunner. They clicked, Cook said, as Mr.Brunner “wined and dined” her. They moved fromFremont to San Francisco in 1989 and into the SanCristina in 1997. She said their son, Joseph, now 12, wasborn with methadone and heroin dependency, plus ahearing problem. He lives in a foster home in the EastBay.

Cook said Mr. Brunner read the Bible every day.“Seventy-five percent of the time when I walked

into his room he was reading the Bible,” she said. “Heis the best thing that happened to me in my life. He wassuch a very, very giving person. I am surprised he did-n’t open a center for youth.”

As for the drug-dealing, Cook said it was “in hisblood. Phil said it was what he did best.”

Refreshments were available afterward. Many peo-ple stopped by to offer Cook their condolences.

— T O M C A R T E R

EDWARD CUTTINGAlexander resident 14 years

Edward Cutting was outgoing. He said hello toeveryone at the Alexander Residence, where he’d livedfor 14 years. He died March 4, in his room, at age 57.

Social worker Winnie Kwong recalled Mr. Cutting’scheerfulness, despite ailments that forced him to walk,painfully, with a cane. But she knew little about himexcept that he was a veteran and had a brother wholives in Los Angeles.

Among the few Alexander residents who came toMr. Cutting’s March 15 memorial was Jack Hinkel,who’d attended another memorial here just two weeksearlier, mourning the loss of his partner, Robert Moore,who died in February.

“I knew Ed for about a year, and we becamefriends,” Hinkel said. “He knew Robert was in the hos-pital and he talked to me about that. He was a niceyoung man.”

The Rev. Glenda Hope, officiating at the memorial,thanked Hinkel for sharing his thoughts, especially hard,she acknowledged, with his own grief so fresh.

Another resident said she knew Ed only “in passing”but wanted to say something in his memory. Sheopened a large Bible and read a few passages fromEcclesiastes, Chapter iii — “To everything there is a sea-son, and a time to every purpose under heaven . . .”

— M A R J O R I E B E G G S

CHRISTINE ZAMORAQuiet and reclusive

A second Alexander resident, Christine Zamora, wasremembered at the same March 15 memorial as EdwardCutting.

Ms. Zamora, who had lived at the AlexanderResidence for eight years, died in her room March 3. Shewas 62.

Ms. Zamora kept very much to herself, said socialworker Winnie Kwong. “She always walked fast anddidn’t talk much to anyone. And she seemed to nevergo out in the daytime — only in the evening.”

Two women at the memorial said they didn’t knowMs. Zamora or Mr. Cutting, but wanted to honor theirmemory by attending.

“We feel the loss of two members of this family,”said one.

“May their souls rest in peace,” said the other. — M A R J O R I E B E G G S

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low-cost or discounted meals to food stamp partici-pants, post a sign saying they are part of the program,agree to all USDA rules and regulations about foodstamps, including not accepting EBTs for alcoholicbeverages and not charging sales tax.

“After the MOU, there’s state and federal paper-work, and I help any restaurant that wants to join theprogram do it all,” Calloway said. “I know the ins andouts, and how to get applications into the right hands.It usually takes no more than a month.”

Restaurants have to pass a Department of PublicHealth inspection and submit bank information. Oncethe USDA authorizes them to accept food stamps, theyget free gear from the state — a point of sale devicefor swiping EBT cards, PIN pad, receipt printer andprinter supplies. Calloway trains staff on how to usethe equipment.

EBT purchases are deposited in the restaurant’sbank electronically every working day. The EBTmachine gives the owner or manager an accounting ofthe previous day’s transactions.

“I also have confidential access to dollar amountsand transactions for individual restaurants,” Callowaysaid. “That’s how I monitor the program.”

THE SIXTH ST. EXPERIENCE Lien Thai, owner and manager of Honey Donut &

Deli on Sixth Street, signed on for the program twoyears ago, just a few months after she bought therestaurant. Besides doughnuts, she sells bacon andeggs, oatmeal, hamburgers and other hot fare.

Thai says she’s had no problems with the EBTs,except that sometimes people don’t have their yellowID cards and get angry if she says she can’t serve them.Though she gets a daily report of how much she’staken in via the EBTs, she wasn’t sure how much thatamounted to monthly.

“Right after people get their food stamps, maybe 10to 15 people a day use the EBTs, but when they runout it’s maybe four a day,” Thai said. “Our business isvery slow now — I don’t know why. If I wasn’t in theprogram, there’d be even less business.”

Thai said she’d recommend the program to otherrestaurants.

Just up the street, at Victory Restaurant, steamtables of fried chicken, rice, fish and other hot foodswere ready for the lunch crowd. Wendy Ho wassounding discouraged about the EBTs. She and herhusband have owned the Victory for four years andthey were among the first to join the restaurant pro-gram.

They make money from it — she estimates $200 to$300 a day early in the month and $100 daily the finalweek — but she cites problems.

“A lot want to cheat. They come without their yel-low IDs and lie about it,” she said, “or they swipe thecard when they know there’s nothing left in it (as withATMs, the sale is immediately rejected). Then they getvery angry and yell at me. Or they want to pay afterthey get their food, but they don’t have their card andwhen I say no, they get mad.”

It’s bad to have other customers see that, butthere’s worse. “I get a lot of people with cards who goand ask someone sitting in the restaurant for, say, $3.They say they’ll get them another meal. Then theyswipe their card, get the food and take the cash.”

She lowered her voice. “They’re doing it to getmoney for drugs. And they do it right in front of me.”

Ho and her husband are trying to sell their restau-rant. She talked fondly of the 13 years she spent as ahome health care worker for On Lok. It was a mucheasier life, she said.

EBB AND FLOW OF EATERIESCalloway hopes to keep adding more restaurants

to the 17 on the program roster; as of the end ofMarch, three more were in the hopper. “We’re proudof this program, and we definitely need to do moreoutreach, but staffing shortages keep us from doing thenecessary footwork,” she said.

In March, she made a presentation at theTenderloin Futures Collaborative and plans to do moreof the same in other neighborhoods, keeping the focuson recruiting restaurants that are already serving thehomeless.

Six months ago, there were 22 restaurants in theS.F. program, 14 of them Subway Sandwich shops. Thenumber of Subways has now dropped to nine.

“The Subway numbers constantly change,”Calloway said. “They’re often sold or transferred fromowner to owner. Just like with any retailer who acceptsfood stamps, if the ownership changes, the authoriza-

tion process has to start all over. Butbesides Subway, no one’s dropped outof the program.”

Elsewhere in the state, Los AngelesCounty is getting ready to add itshomeless to the restaurant program,according to USDA’s Stewart. He’spleased L.A.’s coming on board, buthe’s also concerned that the restaurantprogram, like the food stamp programin general, is underutilized.

“As few as half the people who areeligible for food stamps in Californiaare taking advantage of the program,”Stewart said.

In San Francisco, that figure maybe higher or lower, 66% or 44%,depending on whose statistics you use.

District 10 Supervisor SophieMaxwell held a hearing in February toexplore how aggressively — or not —the city is going after federal funding toimprove childhood nutrition. Sincethen, she’s asked the city attorney todraft a policy of nutrition standards andto check into the possibility of mandat-ing city agencies and CBOs to step uptheir efforts to bring in the bucks.

In question, at the top of the list, was DHS’ foodstamp program, which costs $23.5 million to adminis-ter and whose staff oversee the distribution of $33.5million worth of food stamps to 11,546 children and16,941 adults.

Harvey Rose, the supes’ budget analyst, prepareda fat report for the February hearing. It included nutri-tion staff estimates of the percentage of people eligiblefor that benefit who actually get it. Food stamps said56%. The other programs ranged from 17% of eligiblestudents getting school breakfasts to 122% getting WICbenefits.

The budget analyst also included data from a 2004report by California Food Policy Advocates, a nonprof-it headquartered in San Francisco. It said 86,585 SanFranciscans are eligible for food stamps but two-thirdsdon’t get them, a loss of $60 million in federal funds.

O’Farrell questions the nonprofit’s number of eligi-ble food stamp recipients.

“I think the advocates simply looked at annualincome from the 2000 census,” O’Farrell told The Extrawhen we asked about the budget analyst’s report.“They just didn’t factor in personal assets, resources,immigration status and SSI/SSP that can disqualify peo-ple. Here in the city we know there are people whoare eligible who aren’t getting food stamps. I supportthe 44% figure.”

FOOD STAMPS IN A DAYOn a rainy morning in late March, The Extra

caught up with O’Farrell at the Hamilton Family Centerin the Haight, a 24-hour shelter for homeless familiesthat also provides meals and support services to home-less people.

O’Farrell arrived at Hamilton with six eligibilityworkers and a few supervisors and IT people, wholugged in cardboard boxes of applications and infor-mational materials and computers. At long tables, theytalked with about 50 people, mostly homeless fromnearby Golden Gate Park and Haight Street. Homelessfamilies weren’t part of this outreach, O’Farrell said,because they are “mostly already wired for benefits”through other programs.

By midafternoon, he estimated that 40 people gotthe good news: Based on an interview, they appearedto be eligible for foodstamps, their name hadgone into the computerand their EBT cardwould be ready forthem the next day.

This was DHS’ thirdFood Stamps in a Dayoutreach effort, a pro-gram O’Farrell started inJanuary.

“Our first two dayswere at St. Anthony’s,”O’Farrell said, “and eachtime we talked to about50 people and got 40approved. We plan togo back again.”

While O’Farrell andhis crew set up upstairsfrom the dining room,St. Anthony’s volunteers

and staff had talked to people lined up outside waitingfor lunch, explained Lisa O’Neill, St. Anthony’s mediaassociate.

The St. Anthony’s folks used a one-page “screen-er,” a list of questions to eliminate those with nochance of getting food stamps: noncitizens and illegalresidents; SSI and SSP recipients; people with felonyconvictions for selling or trafficking drugs (as of Jan. 1this year, convictions for drug use and possession nolonger disqualified food stamp applicants); and month-ly income over $1,009 for a one-person household.

Those who appeared to be eligible went upstairsfor a formal interview. They didn’t even need paper-work to verify their identity or income; they could juststate their Social Security number. O’Farrell told TheExtra that in cases like that, his staff went so far as tocall relatives or friends of the person applying to checkthe veracity of the information.

FOOD STAMP STATS OVERSTATEDO’Neill said St. Anthony’s was delighted to collab-

orate with DHS and to have more of its clients get foodstamps and be able to eat at restaurants.

“We’re serving an average of 2,400 meals day, up20% from two years ago,” O’Neill said. “We want ourguests to be able to expand their resources for meals.”

A Feb. 15 press release from St. Anthony’sannouncing the second Food Stamps in a Day includ-ed some numbers to explain the need for more out-reach: “For every dollar in food stamp benefits enter-ing the city, there is an economic impact of about$1.84.” O’Farrell said that figure came from USDA’seconomic research services and that Stewart had citedit at the city’s February nutrition hearing. He had noquibbles with it.

Not so the other statistics in the release — that 66%of eligible people citywide weren’t getting foodstamps, that the city was losing $60 million a year, andthat 82% of people in the Tenderloin weren’t gettingthe food stamps they were entitled to.

“I don’t know where these numbers regardingTenderloin food stamp participation come from,”O’Farrell said in an e-mail.

As for the rest, he was emphatic: “Lies, damn liesand statistics!” �

A P R I L 2 0 0 5 / C E N T R A L C I T Y E X T R A 7

� CONTINUED FROM PAGE 5

S.F. leads U.S. in rare food stamp option

Central City Extra is a member of the SAN FRANCISCO NEIGHBORHOOD NEWSPAPER ASSOCIAT ION

CENTRAL CITY EXTRA is published monthly by SanFrancisco Study Center Inc., a private nonprofitserving the community since 1972. The Extrawas initiated through grants from the S.F. HotelTax Fund and the Richard and RhodaGoldman Fund. The contents are copyrightedby the San Francisco Study Center, 1095 MarketStreet, Suite 602, San Francisco, CA 94103.

PHONE: (415) 626-1650FAX : (415) 626-7276 E-MAIL: centralcityextra@studycenter.orgEDITOR AND PUBLISHER: Geoffrey LinkSENIOR WRITER/EDITOR: Marjorie BeggsCOPY EDITOR: Gerry FregosoREPORTERS: Tom Carter, Phil TracyDESIGN AND LAYOUT: Carl Angel DESIGN CONSULTANT: Don McCartneyEDITORIAL ASSISTANT: Rumi EtoCIRCULATION: Steve SurnceyPHOTOGRAPHERS: Lenny Limjoco, Mark EllingerCONTRIBUTORS: Adrian D. Varnedoe, DiamondDave, William Crain, Mark Hedin, John Burks, Eric RobertsonEDITORIAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE:David Baker, Michael Nulty, Debbie Larkin,Nicholas Rosenberg, Brad Paul, Tariq Alazraie

CENTRAL CITY

S A N F R A N C I S C O

St. Mary's College volunteer helps food stamp applicant at theJan. 12 St. Anthony's outreach effort, Food Stamps in a Day.

S . F . D E P T . O F H U M A N S E R V I C E S

COMMUNITY CALENDARSPECIAL EVENTS3rd Annual Cambodian (Khmer) New Year Festival, tradi-tional music, games, dancers, food. Sat. Apr. 3, 11a.m.-5 p.m., 570 Ellis, Tenderloin Recreation Center.Transportation Authority, the Tenderloin neighborhood pub-lic workshop on the Geary Corridor Bus Rapid Transit Study,Thursday, April 14, 6-8 p.m.,San Francisco Senior Center,481 O'Farrell at Jones. Contact: 552-4830.

REGULAR SCHEDULEHOUSINGConsumer Housing Group, 1st Thursday of the month, 6-7:30 p.m., Mental Health Association, 870 Market, Suite 928.Contact: 421-2926 x306.

Tenant Associations Coalition of San Francisco, 1stWednesday of the month, noon, 201 Turk Community Room.Contact Michael Nulty, 339-8327. Resident unity, leadershiptraining, facilitate communication.

Supportive Housing Network, 3rd Thursday of the month, 3-5 p.m., 111 Jones. Contact: Rob Wheeler, 421-2926 x302.

HEALTH AND MENTAL HEALTHMental Health Board, 2nd Wednesday of the month, 6:30-8:30 p.m., CMHS, 1380 Howard, Rm. 537. CMHS advisorycommittee, open to the public. Contact: 255-3474.

Hoarders and Clutterers Support Group, 2nd Monday and4th Wednesday of each month, 6-7 p.m. 870 Market, Suite928. Contact: 421-2926 x306.

CMHS Consumer Council, 3rd Monday of the month, 5:30-7:30, CMHS, 1380 Howard, Rm. 537. Contact: 255-3428.Advisory group of consumers from self-help organizationsand other mental health consumer advocates. Open to thepublic.

National Alliance for the Mentally Ill-S.F., 3rd Wednesdayof the month, 6:30-8:30 p.m., Family Service Agency, 1010Gough, 5th Fl. Contact 905-6264. Family member group,open to consumers and the public.

SAFETYSoMa Police Community Relations Forum, 4th Monday ofthe month, 6-7:30 p.m. Location changes monthly. Toreceive monthly information by e-mail, contact Lisa Block,538-8100 ext. 202 Lblock@iisf.org, or Jan Rasmussen, 553-1155

Tenderloin Police Station Community Meeting, lastTuesday of the month, 6 p.m., police station CommunityRoom, 301 Eddy. Note change: previously was lastWednesday of the month. Contact Susan Black, 345-7300.Neighborhood safety.

North of Market NERT, bimonthly meeting. Contact TimAgar, 674-6142, or Lt. Juanita Hodge, S.F. Fire Department,558-3456. Disaster preparedness training by the FireDepartment.

NEIGHBORHOOD IMPROVEMENTLand Use Subcommittee of the Tenderloin FuturesCollaborative, 1st Friday of the month, 11 a.m., 100McAllister, Room 325. Tracks new and continuing buildingprojects and other land use changes in the Tenderloin. Opento public, but call to confirm attendance, 557-7887.

Alliance for a Better District 6, 2nd Tuesday of the month,6 p.m., 301 Eddy. Contact Michael Nulty, 820-1560 or sf_dis-trict6@yahoo.com. Districtwide association, civic education.

Mid-Market Project Area Committee, 2nd Wednesday ofthe month, 5:30 p.m., Ramada Hotel, 1231 Market. ContactCarolyn Diamond, 362-2500. Market Street redevelopment onFifth to Eighth street.

Tenderloin Futures Collaborative, 2nd Wednesday of themonth, 10 a.m., Tenderloin Police community room, 301Eddy. Contact Jerry Jai at 358-3956 for information. Networkof residents, nonprofits and businesses sharing informationand taking on neighborhood development issues.

Friends of Boeddeker Park, 2nd Thursday of the month, 5-6:30 p.m., Boeddeker Rec Center, 240 Eddy. Plan parkevents, activities and improvements. Contact: 552-4866.

South of Market Project Area Committee, 3rd Monday ofthe month, 6 p.m., 1035 Folsom, between 6th & 7th. Contact:SOMPAC office, 487-2166.

North of Market Planning Coalition, 3rd Wednesday of themonth, 6 p.m., 301 Eddy. Contact: 820-1412. TL 2000,neighborhood planning.

Tenderloin Merchants Association, contact Jamie Cutlip,553-4433 ext. 22 or jamie@urbansolutionssf.org.

Boeddeker Park cleanup, 3rd Saturday of the month, 9-noon, organized by the Friends of Boeddeker Park. To RSVPto work or for information, contact Betty Traynor at theNeighborhood Parks Council, 621-3260.

Community Leadership Alliance, last Thursday of themonth, 5:30-6:30 p.m., Tenderloin Police Community Room,301 Eddy. Informational forum with monthly agenda of guestpresenters and speakers, sharing news of upcoming events,proposals, resources. Contact David Villa-Lobos: 921-4192or david_villalobos@sbcglobal.net

SENIORS AND DISABLEDMayor’s Disability Council, 3rd Friday of the month, 1-3p.m., City Hall, Rm. 400. Contact: 554-6789. Open to thepublic.

Senior Action Network, general meeting, second Thursday,10 a.m.-noon, St. Mary’s Cathedral. Monthly committeemeetings, 975 Mission #700. Fundraising, first Thursday, 2p.m.; Pedestrian Safety, second Friday, 10 a.m.; Sr. HousingAction, third Wednesday, 1:30; Health, last Thursday, 1:30.Information: 546-1333.

SUPERVISORS’ COMMITTEES City Hall, Room263Budget Committee Sandoval, Daly, McGoldrick, 2nd, 3rd,4th Thursday, 10 a.m.

City Services Committee Dufty, Ma, Elsbernd, Thursday,9:30 a.m.

Land Use Committee McGoldrick, Peskin, Maxwell,Monday, 1 p.m.

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