COMMUNITY FIRST,
THERE IS A BETTER WAY

The City of San Francisco and Mayor Willie Brown realized today that rebuilding the Laguna Honda Hospital would not be business as usual. Five hundred people with disabilities shutdown the four streets around the San Francisco City Hall and the main east and west entrances to the building demanding "COMMUNITY FIRST, THERE IS A BETTER WAY."

ADAPT Activist

The ADAPT march around Laguna Honda on Sunday was a rehearsal for the ADAPT action at the San Francisco City Hall Building today. The long line of ADAPT marchers surrounded the city building like they had surrounded Laguna Honda Hospital yesterday. This time, however, ADAPT blocked the main east and west entrances and all four street intersections around the City Hall.

Traffic came to a standstill in the downtown area and about forty cars were trapped on Van Ness for about 45 minutes between the McAllister and Grove. At noon the line of ADAPT activists that marching around the City Hall simultaneously broke the traffic at all four intersections. San Francisco police directed traffic away from the City Hall area including the major state highway California 101 - Van Ness Avenue.

Mayor Willie Brown has supported the rebuilding of Laguna Honda despite the national trend to home and community services. The City and County of San Francisco spent $100,000.00 per person at Laguna Honda in 1999 and the rebuilding will cost over $400 million. San Francisco mirrors the national data, which shows that institutional services are the most expensive and least desirable. People prefer to live at home. 

ADAPT demanded that the Mayor meet with them concerning the variety of community options that can deliver necessary long-term care services as an alternative to rebuilding the monstrous institution. Mayor Brown negotiated with ADAPT through the San Francisco Police. ADAPT agreed to reopen City Hall and allow normal traffic on the four streets around the City Hall Building for a directed meeting on the Laguna Honda issue.

The wording of the Mayor's draft of the agreement was not clear and ADAPT members were not quick to accept the deal offered by a Mayor with the nickname "Slick Willie." Bob Kafka reportedly wrote the final draft that the Mayor's representative eventually signed.

TEXT OF THE AGREEMENT

I, Mayor Willie Brown, agree to meet with representatives of ADAPT on Wednesday, October 24th at 9:00 a.m. to discuss community alternatives to rebuilding Laguna Honda to allow people with disabilities and seniors to live in the most integrated setting. 

Signed Steve Kava for Mayor Willie Brown.

- Tim Wheat