SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS) -- City officials in San Francisco are beginning to comment on this weekend's vandalism at the historic fire chief's residence. The episode has prompted debate over future uses of 870 Bush Street.
The historic landmark was built in 1923 and has been home to fire chiefs ever since.
Friday night the boyfriend of the city's new Planning Director John Rahaim is alleged to have set a bed on fire, broken furniture and splashed the stately structure with crushed tomatoes.
”The mayor is disappointed, but is fully supportive of John Rahaim, and knows this is a difficult time for him,” said the Mayor's spokesman Nathan Ballard.
KCBS and Chronicle insider Phil Matier says the damage, estimated at $10,000, may prompt changes to how the Nob Hill house is used in the future.
”One person who’s really not happy about this is the chief herself, Joanne Hayes White. She doesn’t live at the house, she lives out in the Sunset District with her kids who are still in school, but you have to understand that this isn’t just a house; it’s sort of a mini-museum for the San Francisco Fire Department. There’s a lot of history, a lot of antiques, a lot of memorabilia in there, and some of it was damaged,” said Matier.
Supervisor Bevan Dufty told KCBS that he doesn't support continuing to use the structure as temporary housing for new city department heads.
Suspect Lance Farber was jailed on various charges including drunk driving. Rahaim wasn't home at the time of the vandalism.
(MGO)
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KCBS' Tim Ryan reports
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