SF Daily Brief for October 23, 2026

It's Friday, October 23, 2026, and this is SF Daily Brief. The city Controller's Office has assigned the Mission Economic Development Agency its most serious risk designation for city-contracted nonprofits. The office cited alleged unauthorized employee expenses and self-dealing, according to the Chronicle. The designation could lead to stricter oversight and the loss of millions in city funding if MEDA does not address the concerns.

MEDA said the former employee no longer works there and that it believes it was the victim of a crime. In the Mission District, a 152-unit housing project at 321 Florida Street is set to break ground. Before winning approval in 2021, the developer promised $2 million, a free gallery space and other community benefits. Those agreements have expired, Mission Local reports.

The vacant San Francisco Centre may be sold again. Seven Equity Group, which specializes in repositioning distressed retail, has reportedly been selected to purchase the mall, the Standard reports. The report did not include terms of the sale. San Francisco County Transportation Authority chair Myrna Melgar has renewed calls for the California Public Utilities Commission to release information on collisions and assaults involving Uber and Lyft trips in the city.

The call follows a Public Press investigation into the agency's handling of company reports. The commission recently voted to further delay release of six years of trip data while it reconsiders Lyft's request to withhold it. The California Highway Patrol is searching for the driver of a Toyota Prius who fled after striking and killing a man on northbound Interstate 280 just south of Geneva Avenue. CHP dispatch received a call around 2:25 a.m. Thursday about a down pedestrian beside the median, and paramedics declared the person dead at 2:37 a.m.

The driver left the scene on foot, CHP Officer Mark Andrews said. San Francisco's 311 app has a new category that sends drug complaints to police for potential enforcement. Getting an officer to show up still requires a phone call, the Standard reports. San Francisco police own 500 AI-enhanced Flock Safety license plate cameras across the city.

Hunters Point alone has 17, according to a crowdsourced map from Deflock.org. Many residents in Bayview-Hunters Point do not know the cameras are there, the Bay View reports. Nancy Pelosi's San Francisco district office received a suspicious letter Wednesday. Her office said it was consistent with mailings sent to other congressional offices around the country.

Everyone in the office was safe, according to Pelosi's office. Other local members of Congress, including Representatives Mike Thompson, Mark DeSaulnier and Jimmy Panetta, reported similar letters in the past week. Bottom of the Hill will remain open under new ownership in 2027. Longtime patron Michele Bronson is taking over the Potrero Hill music venue.

The original owners will keep the building, and Bronson plans to retain staff and preserve the club's independent spirit, according to Coyote Media. The 247-capacity club will close for at least a month for kitchen and bar upgrades needed to meet city codes. San Francisco police drug investigators searched several smoke shops and seized kratom, 7-OH packets, flavored tobacco and drug paraphernalia. Two shops were raided in the Haight and Richmond districts.

The Department of Public Health also confirmed the city's first fatal overdose involving MGM-15, a semisynthetic opioid derived from kratom. The drug has been linked to deaths elsewhere and is temporarily listed as a Schedule I controlled substance. Caltrans will close all westbound lanes of Interstate 80 in San Francisco from Fifth Street to 15th Street starting Friday at 11 p.m. through Monday at 6 a.m. Crews will apply polyester concrete to the Bayshore Freeway deck as part of a larger project that began earlier this year. Caltrans recommends drivers avoid the Bay Bridge and use public transit or other bridges.

An underground power facility fire near Van Ness Avenue and Bush Street on Wednesday night cut power to nearly 2,800 homes and businesses, affecting parts of the Tenderloin and Civic Center. Firefighters responded, and PG&E restored most service that night. No injuries were reported. Outset Coffee, a popular cafe known for Asian-flavored coffee, matcha and fruit drinks, has closed both of its San Francisco locations.

Its downtown branch was evicted, and its Mission District branch was ordered to pay about $200,000 in unpaid rent and related fees, according to the World Journal. Golden State Valkyries fans who traveled to Atlanta said the Game 3 loss to the Dream would not stop the team, now down 2-1 in the best-of-seven WNBA Finals. Fans praised the team's effort and prepared for Game 4, KQED reports. Thanks for listening to SF Daily Brief.

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