Maitri, the hospice in Duboce Triangle that serves the LGBT community by providing care to the dying, has put itself in the middle of a neighborhood battle. Ending a monthslong search for a ground floor tenant in its building, Maitri has entered into an agreement with a sex offender rehab facility. The controversy began when neighbors were surprised with the news.
Maitri Executive Director Michael Smithwick �" and presumably the agency's board �" began discussions with Sharper Future months ago. In October, Supervisor Scott Wiener's office advised Maitri to begin community outreach. Unfortunately, Maitri did not, and the resulting outcry should not surprise Smithwick or officials at Sharper Future, a division of Pacific Forensic Psychology Associates Inc. Sharper Future must vacate its current location at 1540 Market Street, because the site is being developed into condos. It's also important to note that this is not a residential program; sex offenders or sexual predators will not be staying the night. Parole agents or probation officers refer clients to Sharper Future, the agency says. Once they are accepted into the program, they enter a group-based, sequenced, psycho-educational curriculum, "which addresses the core issues related to the offense," Sharper Future states. "Intensive cognitive-behavioral interventions focused on relapse prevention address the distorted thinking, emotional disturbances, and maladaptive behaviors associated with re-offense risk." In short, the agency says, it adopts a "containment model" for sex offender management. Other programs include a dual diagnosis treatment for parolees.
Residents in the Duboce Triangle neighborhood should have been informed of the potential tenant as soon as Sharper Future expressed interest. By doing an end run around neighbors, Smithwick is setting the project up for failure. Sharper Future may be a good fit for the space, but that's lost in the back and forth between Maitri and neighbors, and the ensuing finger pointing. Neighbors were never asked for their support or given an opportunity to ask questions. As it happened, they found out about it via an online news site last week �" no wonder they're upset. If Smithwick thinks an online story is an acceptable form of community outreach, he's sadly mistaken. He should have expected that neighbors would be upset or have serious questions about the proposed use; but instead of dealing with it, he chose inaction.
Even as late as this week, Maitri's website still did not have an announcement of the plans �" another missed opportunity to communicate to the public. Likewise, the agency's December newsletter could have contained an update. The Bay Area Reporter also has been in regular contact with Smithwick about plans for the space, which has been vacant since AIDS Healthcare Foundation moved its thrift store and pharmacy, but were not informed by him about this Sharper Future project. So, count us surprised, too.
As it stands now, a meeting is scheduled for February 8 (the regular DTNA meeting), with Sharper Future set to open the following day, barring intervention by the planning department. Some neighbors are planning to file an appeal to the notice of determination granted by the planning department to buy more time. Maitri has been a leader in hospice care for decades. It's a shame that it's throwing away much of its goodwill because it chooses to act like a bad neighbor.