SF SAFE, San Francisco nonprofit that has been accused of misspending city funds is today facing a new charge: It has purportedly stiffed a Mission District nonprofit of $625,000 for services already provided.
The Latino Task Force, which was contracted by the nonprofit SF SAFE to train Spanish-speaking staff as “community ambassadors,” sent a letter to the Mayor’s Office of Economic and Workforce Development on Tuesday, urging it to intervene and assure payment for work already completed.
“SF Safe has consistently deviated from proposed services and failed to reimburse our partner agencies,” the group wrote. “We urge the City to freeze the contract, review all expenses, and address the non-payment issue.”
The Office of Economic and Workforce Development said it was taking the complaint “seriously” and “conducting a review of this contract.”
SF SAFE was originally a project of the San Francisco Police Department and has since become its own nonprofit; the bulk of its funds still come from police department contracts for programs like neighborhood watches and community ambassadors.
The Latino Task Force, a group of more than three dozen community organizations, is a partner in SF SAFE’s contract to provide ambassadors in the Mission District — individuals trained to resolve conflicts on the streets, administer Narcan to people who are overdosing, and connect homeless individuals to city programs, among other services.
The letter comes less than a week after the city controller published an audit finding that SF SAFE had misspent some $79,655 in city funds on non-qualified expenses, such as luxury gift boxes, a trip to Lake Tahoe and ride-hailing services. The audit also found that the San Francisco Police Department had not monitored $3,822,228 of the $5,332,791 the nonprofit earned — 72 percent — and that further misspending was possible.
Today at the Board of Supervisors meeting, Board President Aaron Peskin asked for a hearing to investigate allegations against the nonprofit and “ensure that this kind of taxpayer abuse not only never happens again, but that the parties responsible are duly dealt with.”
The hearing, called before the Latino Task Force sent its letter, would invite members of SF SAFE, the police department and the Office of Economic and Workforce Development to testify, Peskin said.
The allegation by the Latino Task Force also comes shortly after Ripple CEO Chris Larsen reportedly called for an investigation into how SF SAFE spent up to $1 million of the $1.8 million he donated to the nonprofit to expand the use of security cameras.
According to the Latino Task Force, the problems extend beyond missing payments. SF SAFE also didn’t employee any Spanish-speaking staff who would be familiar with the local culture and community.
“SF Safe lacks the experience to serve the Mission community on its own,” the task force wrote.
SF SAFE did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the letter.
Susana Rojas, the executive director of Calle 24, which is part of the Latino Task Force, said that her organization was kept in the dark about SF SAFE’s plans for the neighborhood. “SF SAFE collaborated with the wealthiest of Mission residents, storefronts, to create meetings, and blocked the Latino Cultural District from being included or attending meetings,” said Rojas.
The task force had on several occasions attempted to mediate the situation directly with SF SAFE, to no avail, according to a member of the Latino Task Force who wished to remain anonymous. Fed up, they finally asked the city to weigh in. “We have to draw the line,” they said. “These are small nonprofits that really need their money.”
The best part of this is that those nonprofiteers who went to the mat to defend the sidewalk vendor fences and the gang enforcers were contracted by a cop affiliated nonprofit to keep the Mission safe.
Safe for what, fencing operations?
‘ “We have to draw the line,” they said. “These are small nonprofits that really need their money.” ‘
Who said this anonymously, accused rapist Jacobo demanding cop nonprofit money to water the bucket brigade?
So one non-profit scams another non-profit and I am supposed to care?
Yes. It was SF money paid all the way round.
I’m 67yrs young senior. I had interview w/Ambassador Program and was denied position. I’ve worked for sfusd/30yrs; I’ve been HIV/AIDS Case Manager at ResidentualWomens Program/ Lodestar. Haight Ashbury was my employer. I’ve worked at Ozanom Detox for years as part time, weekend counselor. I was not hired for position, and that’s been a year ago. Something I heard on news urged me to share this experience with you.Homelessness doesn’t have a particular age, sex,and no racial barriers. I experienced this last year when I applied for position as Community Ambassador. Matter of fact it was people that work already in position couldn’t understand why I wasn’t hired,I so qualified. Again Homelessness has no barriers, it’ hits all sets,male, females, all ethic groups, any and all of us. That day, last year I felt an unease in the interview. The reason I got interviewed was because I was persistent and called the office on Market Street/SF,CA. This happened a year ago, yet I so needed to share this important information. I felt an unease in interview also. I remember calling and showed enthusiasm of maybe being an Community Ambassador. It takes all ages,and every group when ur tackling social issues. Sincerely Michelle Camp…
PS: One senior to another works better sometimes. Homelessness has no barriers, so we all should be invited in. Again, thank you, Michelle Camp
I’m so sorry you had to go through this. I’m leaving the country and going to Spain as the USA hasn’t been there. I think I’ve saved enough money up. You might see me on a street curb with my two cats if I made a terrible mistake.
The incestuous nonprofit patronage network has doubled over on itself.
How about the LTF be audited to figure out why the covid response was to give Latinx working people the equivalent of an aspirin so that they could put themselves in harm’s way to keep the economy from cratering?
Contrast this to SF’s grassroots ACTUP response to the previous pandemic, and we can see how far activism has fallen now that it has been consigned to the city funded patronage nonprofit cartel.
“equivalent of an aspirin”. Well, better than nothing, like, when the City opened multiple vax centers in the Mission, Bayview, Tenderloin but none was to be found on the west side of town.