New map shows the SF neighborhoods with the most street poop

GALLERY: The SF neighborhoods with the most poop complaints GALLERY: The SF neighborhoods with the most poop complaints Photo: Michael Macor / The Chronicle Buy photo Photo: Michael Macor / The Chronicle Image 1 of / 30 Caption Close The SF neighborhoods with the most poop complaints 1 / 30 Back to Gallery

San Francisco, a new study declares, is the "doo-doo capital" of the nation.

The esteemed honor was bestowed upon the city by folks at the real estate listing site RealtyHop, which probed publicly available 311 data to determine how many "poop sightings" were recorded in San Francisco over the past few years.

Unsurprisingly to anyone who's ever braved a San Francisco sidewalk, the city had the highest incidents of feces complaints in 2017 compared to New York and Chicago. Nearly 21,000 poop sightings were reported in San Francisco in 2017 — about 10 times New York City's poop-sighting total and more than 20 times that of Chicago. On average, there are 455.89 complaints filed for each of San Francisco's 47 square miles.

To help visualize the vast landscape of street poop, RealtyHop created an interactive map — cheekily coded in shades of brown and yellow — that shows the San Francisco neighborhoods with the highest volumes of reported feces.

Neighborhoods in the center of the city had the highest incidences of poop complaints in 2017. SoMa snags first place for most poop complaints; in 2017, 311 received 4,436 reports — about 2,493 sightings per 10,000 households. The Mission, Tenderloin, Portrero Hill and Hayes Valley followed behind SoMa. See the number of complaints for other San Francisco neighborhoods in the above gallery.

ALSO: Life on the dirtiest block of San Francisco

Of course, this report takes into account only complaints called into 311, which means the actual number of street poop is probably much higher. The study also takes into consideration the population size of each neighborhood by reporting the number of reports per 10,000 households. This helps correct the fact that districts with higher populations could be the source of a higher volume of calls (the more people in a neighborhood, the more eyes on the sidewalk).

The number of poop complaints in San Francisco compared to Chicago and New York City. The number of poop complaints in San Francisco compared to Chicago and New York City. Photo: RealtyHop Photo: RealtyHop Image 1 of / 5 Caption Close New map shows the SF neighborhoods with the most street poop 1 / 5 Back to Gallery

2017 was the worst year for poop complaints on record in San Francisco, but 2018 is on track to surpass that.

The city is taking some steps to address its sticky sidewalk situation. It recently launched a "Poop Patrol" — a team of five Public Works staffers, equipped with a steam cleaner, who patrol the alleys around San Francisco's poop-prone hotspots.

"We're trying to be proactive," Public Works director Mohammed Nuru told The Chronicle. "We're actually out there looking for it."

Nuru said much of the waste comes from dogs, despite a city ordinance that makes it illegal for pet owners to not pick up after their pets.

ALSO: 'SnapCrap' app invites SF residents to report poop on city streets

What doesn't come from animals can mostly be attributed to people without homes. With this in mind, Mayor London Breed has committed $1.05 million to construct fie Pit Stop public toilets and expand operating hours at five existing locations. Currently, the city operates 22 toilets around the city, most of which are open only until the evening or late afternoon, leaving few options for those who must use the restroom overnight.

Read Michelle Robertson's latest stories and send her news tips at mrobertson@sfchronicle.com.

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