San Francisco archdiocese removes controversial sprinkler system from cathedral
March 19, 2015
Amid polemical local news headlines such as “cathedral drenches homeless with water to keep them away” and a warning from city officials, the Archdiocese of San Francisco dismantled a sprinkler system at its cathedral.
Noting that St. Mary’s Cathedral “serves hundreds of homeless people, giving them food and shelter,” the archdiocese stated that sprinklers were installed in some cathedral alcoves two years ago “as a safety, security and cleanliness measure, to avoid the situation where needles, feces, and other dangerous items were regularly being left in these hidden doorways.”
“The people who were regularly sleeping in those doorways were informed in advance that the sprinklers were being installed,” the archdiocesan statement continued. “The idea was not to remove those persons, but to encourage them to relocate to other areas of the cathedral, which are protected and safer.”
Informed that “the system in the first place required a permit and may violate San Francisco water-use laws,” the archdiocese dismantled the sprinklers.
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Further information:
- San Francisco Saint Mary’s Cathedral Drenches Homeless With Water To Keep Them Away (KCBS-TV)
- SF Archdiocese Apologizes For Water System To Repel Homeless At Saint Mary’s Cathedral (KCBS-TV)
- Statement by archdiocese
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Posted by: geoffreysmith1 -
Mar. 20, 2015 10:41 AM ET USA
Perhaps if the mayor of San Francisco had been given the Lenten penance of cleaning up the mess that the derelicts leave lying around the cathedral, he would not have been so judgemental of the cathedral authorities.
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Posted by: unum -
Mar. 19, 2015 9:00 PM ET USA
In addition to removing the sprinklers, the diocese ought to remove the officials who approved this un-Christian idea and the explanation of why it was "necessary". Surely, the diocesan leadership is familiar with the Sermon on the Mount, but evidently overlooked the meaning!
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Posted by: lauriem5377 -
Mar. 19, 2015 8:38 PM ET USA
It would have been better to spend the money on showers and personal care and comfort items for the homeless rather than to use sprinklers to try to herd them into a different area. I hope there is some training in Christian love and about serving the homeless for whoever made this decision.
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Posted by: mhains8491 -
Mar. 19, 2015 6:48 PM ET USA
The homeless need to be helped, but they are also have some responsibilities. There is no excuse for throwing away needles, defecating and throwing food around. I have seen it at other Cathedrals, it is a public health issue, except it seems when the Catholic Church is involved.
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Posted by: ElizabethD -
Mar. 19, 2015 10:22 AM ET USA
Thank goodness! I SO cringed when I saw news stories about this yesterday... yikes... oh yikes.... I volunteer with the homeless in WI and... well, yikes. I understand why they would do this but maybe there was not an adequate regard for how this would make people feel, both the homeless and the rest of the public.
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Posted by: feedback -
Mar. 19, 2015 8:05 AM ET USA
The reasons for installing the sprinklers lacked charity (“not to remove the homeless, but to encourage them to relocate”), and so did the motivation for removing them (“the system required a permit and may violate SF water-use laws”).
