Our History

DISH was started in September 2006 by Directors Lauren Hall and Doug Gary initially to provide property management services for the Direct Access to Housing Program, a project of the San Francisco Department of Public Health.

DISH’s guiding principle is to be a small organization dedicated to serving adults with complex health, mental health, and substance use issues in supportive housing, and it is our goal to be a strong partner in the City’s effort to end homelessness in San Francisco. We believe in harm reduction as a vital approach to successful supportive housing — meeting our tenants where they are when they move into our buildings – without expectation or judgment, and helping them stay housed.

DISH initially assumed property management of 6 supportive housing programs: the Pacific Bay Inn and the Empress in October of 2006, and the Camelot, Le Nain, Star, and Windsor in July of 2007. In partnership with the Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing and Episcopal Community Services, DISH expanded in 2017 to serve Veterans experiencing homelessness at the Auburn through the Veteran’s Administration Supportive Housing Program.

In June 2018, we expanded our partnership with Episcopal Community Services and began management of the Minna Lee serving adults exiting the streets, shelters and navigation centers as part of the late Mayor Lee’s commitment to creating permanent exits from homelessness.

We currently provide housing for 570 very low-income, formerly homeless tenants and have over 75 employees