San Francisco Looks At Preserving Character Of Mission District
SAN FRANCISCO (KPIX 5) -- An influx of new people may permanently change the face of San Francisco's Mission District. One city leader is looking at creating a cultural district to preserve the area's Latino character.
City Hall is talking about setting up a special Latino district in part of the Mission. It would be similar to the city's Japantown, which seems to have helped keep Japanese culture and local businesses alive. A similar attempt to preserve the predominantly African-American Fillmore District has not been as successful.
The proposed "Calle 24" district would stretch along 24th Street from Mission Street to Potrero Avenue.
"I think that preserving the cultural identity of a neighborhood is very important," said Supervisor David Campos, who introduced the measure at a Board of Supervisors meeting on Tuesday.
If approved, the district could eventually help change zoning laws, give local business loans to make sure they survive and mandate more affordable housing.
"We're hoping that by doing this, the city acknowledges and recognizes there's a lot of history there," said neighborhood activist Erik Arguello.
