Duboce Triangle Neighborhood Getting Scary With Drugs, Violence

A pleasant, vibrant neighborhood of trees, painted Victorians and parents pushing strollers, it has abruptly taken a turn to violence and drugs. Supervisor Scott Wiener, who represents the district, says the Duboce area is as bad as I have seen it, adding in a statement that Higgins' death is another example of the very real public safety challenges we are facing in the Castro/Upper Market area. Critics will cue up the "criminalize the homeless" rhetoric and sneer at how this is another case of "gentrification," where new people move in, annex the neighborhood and demand that the undesirables move away. Ian McCauley says he has lived in the Triangle for six years with his wife and twin, 5-year-old daughters, who go to kindergarten at a public school in the neighborhood. Thinking that it would help if they cleared out some of the vegetation around the steps, McCauley says they "hit the neighborhood trifecta: a hypodermic needle, a vodka bottle and a crack pipe." Locals walk their dogs up the street to Duboce Park, and there's a nice sprinkling of retail shops and restaurants. There is a hypodermic needle exchange program that sets up once a week on the bike path behind Safeway, and while clean needles are essential to stop the spread of disease, users may toss used needles carelessly. [...] while everyone wants a greater police presence, Wiener says a quirk in the police district boundaries adds a layer of confusion. "The area is literally at the outer edge of three police districts - Northern, Mission and Park stations," he says. There are calls for Safeway to do a better job of managing its property and increased police presence in the troublesome city bike route behind the store.