Tender Box

Jenkins hopes that until March 2000, the end of his term as board president, NOMPC will continue to grow, and that the Tenderloin will persist in its slow, steady march.

"Eventually this neighborhood will become safe. There are too many people now who are focusing their attention on that," he says. "It's a lot of joy, a lot of challenge, it's more stimulating than trying to sell office equipment. ... You get the challenge and either you meet it or you have to move on.