Supe Calls for Improved Security at Vacant San Francisco Police Station in Wake of Fire

SAN FRANCISCO, CA — Supervisor Malia Cohen Tuesday called for the city to look into better security measures for a vacant former police station in the city's Dogpatch neighborhood where a fire occurred on Monday. Cohen called for a hearing to get an update on the building's status and condition and also requested a cost estimate on what it would take for the city to adequately secure the building.

"The Potrero Police Station is a beautiful historic asset that deserves to be savored and protected," Cohen said today. "I am committed to ensuring the City provides the appropriate resources needed to secure this
facility."

The one-alarm fire on the building's second floor was reported at 1:26 p.m. Monday and brought under control seven minutes later, according to fire department spokesman Jonathan Baxter. There was no one found inside the building requiring evacuation and no injuries or displacements were reported, Baxter said.

The fire, the cause of which remains under investigation, is not the first to occur in the former Potrero Station, which dates back to 1915 and was vacated by the police department in the 1990s.

In May of 2012 a two-alarm fire caused around $200,000 in damage, according to fire officials. The Department of Building Inspection has three complaints dating to 2012 and 2014 listed as active for the building, and a new one filed Tuesday. A department spokesman was not immediately able to provide further
information on the status of those complaints this afternoon.

By Bay City News

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