“The biggest problem in the neighborhood, after crack, is bed bugs.” Those are the words of Joseph Jones, a 70-year old resident of a Single Room Occupancy apartment (SRO) in San Francisco’s Tenderloin district.  Jones is quoted this 2009 article from Race, Poverty and the Environment.

This week, Mission Loc@l reports that while a horrifying 73.4% of SRO residents in San Francisco’s Mission District have bed bugs, less than 12% surveyed have complained to the city about any SRO problem, apparently due to a lack of awareness that the option of calling 311 is there.

In order to counteract this lack of awareness,  there’s now legislation under consideration to require SRO building landlords to display a poster alerting residents to the availability of the 311 hotline, and informing them of some reasons they might call it.

According to Mission Loc@l,

If the ordinance passes, the fine for failing to put up the poster would be $170, said William Strawn, communications manager at the Department of Building Inspection.

The poster reads: “SRO Tenants: This is your number! If your manager has not responded to your complaints about: bugs, rodents, fire hazards, second hand smoke in common areas, electrical or plumbing problems, no heat, unsanitary conditions, broken windows, or floors, or mold or mildew…Call 3-1-1.”

[Emphasis added.]

The poster is trilingual, in English, Chinese, and Spanish, and also contains contact information for the four San Francisco SRO Collaboratives, non-profit organizations which support SRO tenants.

Josh Vining, a community organizer with the Mission group, said that up until now, the service has been promoted only by word of mouth. Building inspections are less random and more complaint driven nowadays, he said, which makes the calls all the more important.

You hear that, San Francisco?  Call 311 and use your complaint to drive some inspections.

In San Francisco, calls regarding bed bugs in apartments (SROs or otherwise) are routed to the Department of Environmental Health.

If you’re in an SRO and have bed bugs, please call 311.

If you’re renting in another type of multi-unit building in San Francisco, you can report bed bugs by calling Norma Castro at 415-252-3805.

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photo credit: mayorgavinnewsom on flickr / CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

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Ann Kenny was lying immobilized on the floor of her room at the Baxter Hotel in Far Rockaway, Queens for nearly a week before being found and taken to get medical assistance.

As if falling and not being found for nearly a week was not enough of a horror story,
this news article in the Sun focuses on the bed bug-infested state of her room.

EMS paramedics who responded were required to wear full-body suits to prevent contamination when they removed her from her room in the Baxter Hotel, a single-room occupancy hotel at 160 Beach 116th St.

It is highly likely that other units in the building are also infested.

[Building Superintendent Shawn] Reeder said he had not heard complaints of other infestations in the building. The owner of the building did not immediately return a call requesting comment.

I hope that Ms. Kenny is feeling better soon.

And I hope the Baxter Hotel gets a careful inspection–room by room. And careful treatment where needed. Bed bugs can happen anywhere, to anyone, of any age, but no one should have to live with them.Similar Posts:

• Virginia Beach hotel sued over alleged bed bug attack
• Depot Square in St. Johnsbury, VT: 39 of 47 units infested
• Bed bug complaints in Vancouver have doubled every year for the last five years
• 160-unit Richmond, California complex evacuated for tent fumigation of bed bugs
• Hawaiian hotel is largest structure ever fumigated for bed bugs