6th and TL: Urban decay
Posted in tenderloin, urban decay on March 21st, 2007 by MarkBallewIt’s been a strange day. I went on a walk through the alleys around work to get some fresh air. I encountered a very old Italian woman who stopped me as I was examining an old an decrepit building. She spoke to me in very broken Italian about her feelings on the homeless, the police, and the blank, lifeless alley we were both walking down.
“No good!” she said, not allowing me to talk. Not that it would have mattered, I don’t think she spoke English.
“They sit here and they smoke,” she made a puffing gesture, “cops come and they…” she then motioned as though she was hiding her imaginary smoke.
“The police…”, she paused, looked at me with indirect contempt, “No good.”
“Tourists! No good.”
“Businesses, so few, No good!”
“…they sleep here, pee everywhere,” I noted her duct taped jacket and Muni Fast pass dangling from her neck with a big ‘S’ on it, “No GOOD!”.
She wondered off, continuing her conversation with herself.
“No good”.
But on to the topic at hand: the TL. I stumbled across this blog on TL & 6th street motels. It’s a great way to burn a night if you are into urban decay. Just spectacular.
Every day I come through Hallidie Plaza, often just known as the “Powell Bart” or “Powell Muni” station, on my way to my apartment in the Tenderloin. It isn’t the best part of my day, often I’m greeted by indigents begging for money, hordes of pigeons pecking away at trash, or someone, not even an indigents at times, urinating in the corner. On the way up and out of the plaza, I always see open air drug deals in broad day light, and if you come at 3am to the plaza… well, just don’t do it.
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