The spike in mental illness, drug addiction, and street-dwelling among the city’s homeless population demonstrates the limits of the strategy.

Progressives in San Francisco know what they want, and, borrowing from Mencken, new reporting suggests they’re getting it good and hard.

Michael Shellenberger, journalist and author of San Francisco, published a Substack piece Monday summarizing a conversation he had with a social-services provider in San Francisco. The anonymous official said that San Francisco’s “Housing First” policy of providing permanent and unconditional housing to the homeless has failed to reduce the size of the city’s massive homeless population. He said:

“San Francisco has more permanent supportive housing units per capita than any other city, and we doubled spending on homelessness, but the homeless population rose 13%, even as it went down in the US And so we doubled our spending and the problem got worse . But if you say that, you get attacked.”

According to Point-in-Time (PIT) counts from the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), San Francisco’s homeless population ballooned from roughly 5,400 in 2005 to more than 8,100 in 2020–a 60 percent surge that occurred amid a nationwide decline in homelessness.

Proponents argue the surge in vagrancy is unrelated to the city’s embrace of Housing First policies. The changing composition of San Francisco’s homeless population testifies to the opposite conclusion. In 2005, HUD found that eight percent of San Francisco’s homeless population had a serious mental illness, and 13 percent had a chronic substance-abuse issue. All of the homeless people with serious mental illness and/or substance abuse issues counted by HUD in 2005 were found in the city’s homeless shelters.

Compare that to the results of HUD’s 2020 PIT count. Of the 8,124 homeless people HUD officials counted in the city, 23 percent had a serious mental illness, and 24 percent had chronic substance-abuse issues. More than 85 percent of the seriously mentally ill and substance abusers counted by HUD officials in 2020 were found unsheltered on the street.

The spike in mental illness, drug addiction, and street-dwelling among the city’s homeless population demonstrates the limits of Housing First policies. People with untreated psychotic disorders and those addicted to drugs are particularly likely to slip through the cracks of any system. When they do, Shellenberger writes, Housing First advocates have left them few shelters to fall back on.

The main reason San Francisco lacks sufficient homeless shelters is because [activist Jennifer] Friedenbach and other Housing First advocates have long opposed them. They have demanded that money go to providing people with their own apartment units. The reason Friedenbach explained to me is that “if you ask unhoused people, they’re not screaming for shelter. They’re screaming for housing.”

Proponents of Housing First wish to upend the delivery of all social services in the United States. As then-deputy director Richard Cho wrote in a post on the US Interagency Council on Homelessness’s website in 2014, Housing First grew out of the deinstitutionalization movement and quickly became a “whole-system orientation and response” meant to “change mainstream systems” of care.

Housing First is, and always has been, about changing mainstream systems. The approach emerged as a reaction to traditional mental health treatment modality, which thought that the way to address the needs of people with psychiatric symptoms on the street was to get them into psychiatric treatment, typically at an inpatient facility…Housing First’s role in changing mainstream systems should not stop with the mental health system. Housing is just as foundational to addiction recovery and psychological well-being as it is to mental health. The new frontiers of systems change are to engage the substance abuse treatment system and the mainstream health care system around housing.

The feces, used heroin needles, and Dickensian scenes of human misery are a small price to pay for many wine-track radicals in San Francisco who relish the chance to change “mainstream systems.”

The post ‘Housing First’ Fails in San Francisco appeared first on Los Gatos News And Events.

When a building’s HVAC system fails, timing is everything.

The sooner a system is up and running again, the better, and every minute with a system down is a minute where a building’s occupants are uncomfortable, office appointments may need to be canceled, and, in some cases, landlords may have to offer rent Abatements to make up for the inconvenience.

One way building owners can ensure they don’t experience the long-term ramifications of an HVAC outage is to partner with the right HVAC team that can not only quickly diagnose and fix the problem, but can implement solutions to keep it from happening again.

“When you’re facing an HVAC outage, every second counts,” said Brendan Dowd, service team leader at Boland, a Washington, DC-based provider of commercial HVAC systems, services and building energy solutions. “It’s important to work with a knowledgeable team that knows how to work fast.”

Dowd shared a story about a medical office building in Chevy Chase, Maryland, that experienced an outage to both of its chillers — shutting down cooling to the entire facility. The building had gone through a repositioning a few years earlier, and while some of the air handling systems had been replaced, the old chillers had remained untouched. At this point, he said, these chillers had reached the end of their life expectancy and as a result, when one failed, they both shut down, creating a serious issue for the facility.

Boland was able to install a rental chiller within hours to resume medical services and keep the building’s occupants comfortable. Later on, the team replaced the failed chillers with high-efficiency water-cooled Trane chillers.

“Luckily, we had two brand-new machines, which were in stock in our factory,” Dowd said. “So the owner executed a contract and 30 days later, the old machines were out of the building, the new machines were operating and the temporary rental chiller was removed.”

The Boland team went even further than just replacing the failed chillers; it also upgraded the facility’s building automation system, implementing new controls and technology that allow for optimized heating, cooling, lighting schedules and sequencing. It also upgraded the lighting system by replacing 660 T8 fixtures with LED fixtures throughout the building and the garage.

“Now we have a connected building, where we’re monitoring the energy usage and utility usage in real time, with 24/7/365 monitoring,” said Mechelle Munn, an energy performance engineer at Boland. “We’re watching that building every minute of every day to ensure it is operating optimally.”

Munn and her colleagues on Boland’s Applied Building Insights team work to provide clients with data-backed insights for continuous building energy and sustainability improvements.

As a result of these upgrades, the client not only has a reliable HVAC system that fosters a safe, comfortable and healthy indoor environment, it saw a 34% reduction in electric consumption, which led to $168K in electricity bill savings. As for the cost to the client, Dowd said the lighting system paid for itself within 10 months, while the building automation system paid for itself in just six months.

To ensure that things continue to run smoothly, Dowd said, the Boland team is not content with simply monitoring the building automation system and waiting for a problem to present itself. Instead, it meets with the client on an annual basis to discuss the client’s long-term plans for the asset and develop strategies to keep the building and its equipment operational and efficient for years to come.

“It’s all about having an experienced team by your side who can work fast,” Dowd said. “When a catastrophic failure occurs, you don’t want to waste time searching for the right people. You need a reliable team you can count on who can provide an immediate solution, and then work with you on a long-term basis to ensure this never happens again.”

This article was produced in collaboration between Studio B and Boland. Bisnow news staff was not involved in the production of this content.

Studio B is Bisnow’s in-house branded content studio. To learn more about how Studio B can help your team, reach out to studio@bisnow.com.

The post When An HVAC System Fails, Buildings Want A Companion Who Can Ship An Rapid Answer And A Lengthy-Time period Repair appeared first on Los Gatos News And Events.

GILROY (KPIX) – After an examiner failed a teenager who was driving a Tesla because of its unique braking system, the California Department of Motor Vehicles instructed its employees to treat electric vehicles the same way as traditional gasoline vehicles while they are behind the car driving -cycling tests.

Notice to agency staff will follow a driving test on November 23 at the Gilroy office, 6984 Automall Parkway.

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Bryce Rosenblum, 16, began his driving test with the DMV instructor in a Tesla Model 3 with regenerative braking activated in standard mode.

“She warns me immediately that the car will slow down by itself, like a stop sign. And she told me that happened twice before we even left the parking lot. And then the test continues. We did everything a test should have. And then she pulled me in and told me I had failed, ”said Bryce Rosenblum.

The Model 3’s regenerative braking system, like most electric vehicles, is activated when the driver releases the accelerator. The system then recovers the vehicle’s kinetic energy, charges the battery and slows the vehicle down without using the brakes.

According to the teenager, the DMV instructor did not order him to disable the regenerative braking system.

In the comments section of the driving test results sheet, the driving instructor wrote: “The applicant did not slow down the car. Do not put your foot on the brake until the car has slowed down and stopped. “

“And so I asked her what I could do next time to pass the exam. And she told me not to take a Tesla and just borrow someone else’s car. Bring that from someone else who has an engine instead of a real electric car, ”said Bryce Rosenblum.

Bryce’s father, Neal Rosenblum, filed a complaint with the local office and escalated matters to the supervisor and regional manager.

Neal remembered talking to the teacher immediately after the failed test.

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“This is a broken process,” said Neal Rosenblum. “In essence, what she said was that the car brakes on its own. And I said, ‘Okay, but that’s how the car works.’ And she said, ‘But he has to show me that he can actually move his foot from the accelerator to the brake.’ And I said, ‘Ma’am, the car wasn’t set up like that. If he takes his foot off the accelerator and starts to hit the brakes, the car will stop in the middle of the road. ‘”

Apparently, during driving tests, the agency was aware of problems with regenerative braking in electric vehicles for several months.

In August 2021, Teslarati released a report of a similar failed test.

According to the report, “the DMV inspector informed the Tesla owner that the ‘automatic activation’ of the Model 3 had failed. The examiner further explained that she could feel the brakes even if the physical brake pedal was not pressed. ”

The Teslarati report states that at this point the agency is “working to ensure that inspectors have an understanding of the function and its implications for driving”.

KPIX made a query to the agency’s Public Affairs Office regarding Bryce Rosenblum’s complaint and received a response a few hours later:

Thank you for your inquiry about the behind the wheel driving test from Bryce Rosenblum. DMV’s Field Operations Division has reviewed the driving test score sheet and determined that the driving test score will be revised as passed. The customer’s attention is drawn to the fact that his license should arrive soon by post.

The DMV has issued guidelines for staff on the use of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV) or electric vehicles (EV) equipped with a regenerative braking system and / or a single-pedal braking function for each driving test. If a customer is using a PHEV or EV with regenerative braking for their driving test, staff were advised not to postpone the test as the vehicle is equipped with a regenerative braking system and / or a single-pedal braking function. Follow the existing drive test criteria when evaluating the test and the application of the regenerative braking system must not be used as the sole reason for evaluating a driving error or a critical driving error.

The Rosenblum family praised the DMV for the prompt response.

“I mean, I have to take my hat off to make them move so fast because that was just amazing,” said Neal Rosenblum. “I think in the end I felt a little confirmed. So, yes, it felt good. “

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“It’s kind of cool how fast they move because they’re known to be slow,” said Neal Rosenblum. “I think it’s important to stand by something you believe in. So if you believe in something strongly enough, you should fight for it. “

The post San Jose Teen Fails Driving Check Due To Tesla Regenerative Braking System – CBS San Francisco appeared first on Los Gatos News And Events.

GILROY (KPIX) – After an examiner failed a teenager who was driving a Tesla because of its unique braking system, the California Department of Motor Vehicles instructed its employees to treat electric vehicles the same way as traditional gasoline vehicles while they are behind the car drive -cycling tests.

Notice to agency staff will follow a driving test on November 23 at the Gilroy office at 6984 Automall Parkway.

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Bryce Rosenblum, 16, began his driving test with the DMV instructor in a Tesla Model 3 with regenerative braking enabled in standard mode.

“It warns me straight away that the car will slow down by itself, like a stop sign. And she told me that happened twice before we even left the parking lot. And then the test continues. We did everything a test should have. And then she pulled me in and told me I had failed, ”said Bryce Rosenblum.

The Model 3’s regenerative braking system, like most EVs, is activated when the driver releases the accelerator. The system then recovers the vehicle’s kinetic energy, charges the battery and slows the vehicle down without using the brakes.

According to the teenager, the DMV instructor did not order him to disable the regenerative braking system.

In the comments section of the driving test results sheet, the driving instructor wrote: “The applicant did not slow down the car. Do not put your foot on the brake until the car has slowed down and stopped. “

“And so I asked her what I could do next time to pass the exam. And she told me not to take a Tesla and just borrow someone else’s car. Bring that from someone else who has an engine instead of a real electric car, ”said Bryce Rosenblum.

Bryce’s father, Neal Rosenblum, filed a complaint with the local office and escalated matters to the supervisor and regional manager.

Neal remembered talking to the teacher immediately after the failed test.

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“This is a broken process,” said Neal Rosenblum. “In essence, what she said was that the car brakes on its own. And I said, ‘Okay, that’s how the car works.’ And she said, ‘But he has to show me that he can actually move his foot from the accelerator to the brake.’ And I said, ‘Ma’am, the car wasn’t set up like that. If he takes his foot off the accelerator and starts to hit the brakes, the car will stop in the middle of the road. ‘”

Apparently, the authority had become aware of problems with regenerative braking in electric vehicles during driving tests for several months.

In August 2021, Teslarati released a report of a similar failed test.

According to the report, “the DMV inspector informed the Tesla owner that the Model 3 ‘automatic activation’ had failed. The examiner further explained that she could feel the brakes even if the physical brake pedal was not pressed. ”

The Teslarati report states that at this point the agency is “working to ensure that inspectors have an understanding of the function and its implications for driving”.

KPIX made a query to the agency’s Public Affairs Office regarding Bryce Rosenblum’s complaint and received a response a few hours later:

Thank you for your inquiry about the behind the wheel driving test from Bryce Rosenblum. DMV’s Field Operations Division has reviewed the driving test score sheet and determined that the driving test score will be revised as passed. The customer’s attention is drawn to the fact that his license should arrive soon by post.

The DMV has issued guidelines for staff on the use of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV) or electric vehicles (EV) equipped with a regenerative braking system and / or a single-pedal braking function for each driving test. If a customer is using a PHEV or EV with regenerative braking for their driving test, staff were advised not to postpone the test as the vehicle is equipped with a regenerative braking system and / or a single-pedal braking function. Follow the existing drive test criteria when evaluating the test and the application of the regenerative braking system must not be used as the sole reason for evaluating a driving error or a critical driving error.

The Rosenblum family praised the DMV for the prompt response.

“I mean, I have to take my hat off to make them move so fast because that was just amazing,” said Neal Rosenblum. “I think in the end I felt a little confirmed. So, yes, it felt good. “

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“It’s kind of cool how fast they move because they’re known to be slow,” said Neal Rosenblum. “I think it’s important to stand by something you believe in. So if you believe in something strongly enough, you should fight for it. “

The post Gilroy Teen Fails Driving Take a look at Due To Tesla Regenerative Braking System – CBS San Francisco appeared first on Los Gatos News And Events.