Some neighbors on San Francisco's Capp Street are celebrating a series of new concrete barriers that have been installed on the Mission District thoroughfare.
Residents said this past weekend was the first they were able to rest without a near constant stream of prostitutes and the traffic they attract. But members of the San Francisco Fire Department said the barricades create a whole new issue for the city's first responders.
The concrete barriers are a heavy duty installation for what some neighbors said has been a growing problem on Capp Street.
"It was like a night and day difference," resident Will Stone said. "Those went up and all the activity on the street at night really stopped."
Lulu, who did not want to disclose her last name, is a resident who has been organizing the effort to crack down on sex workers.
"Finally the city is listening," Lulu said. "And this isn't a long-term solution, but it has proven so helpful."
San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency recently installed other signs, but some were moving them out of the way, residents said. The Department of Public Works installed concrete barriers this past weekend.
Lulu and other neighbors were surprised to see a series of tweets by the San Francisco Fire Fighters Union saying the installation of the barriers was "selfish" and "we have to stop allowing people who don't understand public safety (to) make uninformed critical decisions."
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A representative from the union did not respond to NBC Bay Area's request for further comment.
A spokesperson for the San Francisco Fire Department issued the following statement about Capp Street:
"City departments and community groups are working together to address the issues raised on Capp Street that meet the needs and address the issues presented by all parties."
Residents on Capp Street, who have been trying to get the city to respond to their issues, said they hope the barriers are just the first step.
"To really figure out how to solve this issue for good," Stone said. "And not just push it to some other neighborhood or to where people don't care about it as much."
