Category: Update

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Plans for a public bank could take a big step forward this week

By Tim Redmond : 48hills – excerpt
Plus: More taxpayer money going to settle police misconduct cases. That’s The Agenda for May 31 to June 6.
 

The Board of Supes is poised to take the next step toward creating a public bank in San Francisco.

The Government Audit and Oversight Committee will consider Thursday/3 a measure that would set up a committee with a mandate to develop a working municipal banking plan within one year…(more)

and… via email form SF Public Bank…

SFPBC Gearing Up for SF Reinvestment Hearing June 3rd!

Continue reading “Plans for a public bank could take a big step forward this week”

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CCSF Faculty May Trade Layoffs for Across the Board Salary Cuts

By Joe Fitzgerald Rodriguez : kqed – excerpt

A majority of the threatened layoffs at City College of San Francisco may soon be rescinded, but the deal came with a financial cost as faculty face the prospect of pay cuts across the board.

The agreement, announced in the early morning hours Saturday, comes after days of bargaining meetings between City College of San Francisco’s faculty union and administration.

Union members have until Monday afternoon to approve the deal. If approved, the Board of Trustees will vote on the proposal later that day.

‘This agreement allows the college to continue its mission as a community college by preserving classes that serve all our diverse communities.’Alan Wong, San Francisco City College Trustee…

‘This agreement allows the college to continue its mission as a community college by preserving classes that serve all our diverse communities.…(more)

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City Attorney Dennis Herrera to take over as head of SFPUC

By Joshua Sabatini : sfexaminer – excerpt

After serving as City Attorney since 2001, Dennis Herrera is expected to step down to become the next head of the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission.

Mayor London Breed announced Monday that she is nominating Herrera to serve as the next general manager of the SFPUC.

The news came as a surprise to many and has raised some concerns since it would allow Breed to appoint Herrera’s successor. Herrera’s office has been investigating public corruption at City Hall since shortly after the federal arrest of former Public Works head Mohammed Nuru became public in January last year.

Herrera would be stepping in to run the power and water agency after its former head, Harlan Kelly, resigned in November. Federal prosecutors have accused Kelly of accepting bribes from City Contractor Walter Wong in exchange for help with city business, as part of the unfolding investigation centered around Nuru…(more)

At least the SFPUC will have legal council and there will be fewer excuses for illegal actions and errors in judgement with an attorney running the commission.

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SFMTA Gives Updates on Subway, JFK, Transit Lanes

By Benjamin Schneider : sfweekly – excerpt

Major changes are headed for California, Lombard, and Park Presidio, while car-free JFK and the Great Highway are slated for extensive study.

How was your 4/20? Hopefully, you didn’t spend it the way the SFMTA Board of Directors did, in a meeting that stretched nearly to the 8-hour mark.

Of course, some things do require a great deal of planning, and this past Tuesday, the SFMTA staff provided the board with updates on transit service, presented plans for new transit-only lanes and “high occupancy vehicle” lanes on some of the city’s busiest streets, and provided a glimpse of their future plans…

Car-Free Streets

In recent weeks, there’s been a whole lot of drama surrounding the question of whether to keep JFK Drive in Golden Gate Park car-free in perpetuity. Supervisor Shamann Walton has described the car-free stretch of road as “recreational redlining,” making the park inaccessible to his Bayview-Hunters Point constituents arriving at the park by car. The De Young Museum has also been lobbying to bring cars back to JFK, arguing that it prevents visitors from accessing the museum. The nearby Academy of Sciences has been more equivocal, saying they support a “thoughtful planning process” before a decision is made on a permanent closure to cars.(more)

Not sure how much the people in San Francisco are willing to put up with, but it looks like SFMTA and SFCTA are going to continue to push drivers out of town, as they are doing all they can to close the streets to cars. Not sure how much longer the majority of the city voters will continue to support the financial demands of the those entities either, but, there is a plan to protest the closure of the Great Highway May 1 at noon. Corner of Lincoln and Great Highway.

If you can, and you care about the way the SFMTA and SFCTA have been managing the streets, you should show up with a personal sign that describes your case for re-opening the Great Highway and the many other streets that have been closed.
Petitions: https://www.discoveryink.net/wp/petitions/
Protests: https://www.discoveryink.net/wp/actions/

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Ceci n’est pas une ferris wheel — in which San Francisco is distracted by a literal shiny object

By Joe Eskenazi : missionlocal – excerpt

So, the ferris wheel. The Golden Gate Park ferris wheel. The goddamn Golden Gate Park ferris wheel.

A town where, in the midst of a human and fiscal calamity, so much time and energy is expended and scenery is chewed regarding a ride in a park appears to have transcended the bounds of self-parody.

So, that sounds normal enough for San Francisco.

But then Drew Becher, CEO of the San Francisco Parks Alliance, penned a letter to Supervisor Connie Chan. And, just like that, we transcended the bounds of transcending the bounds.

Punishing constituents to exact political vengeance or demand fealty from a political leader is nothing new. But you’re not supposed to do it in writing. Or, when called on it, confirm it to the newspaper of record...(more)

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A dummy’s guide to the Gavin Newsom recall

By Eric Ting : sfgate – excerpt

In case you haven’t heard, there’s an ongoing campaign to recall Gov. Gavin Newsom.

March 17 marked the deadline for recall organizers to submit signatures to county elections offices, and organizers are very confident they have the numbers to force a recall election later this year…

How we got here

Newsom has angered many across the state over his handling of the pandemic…

Newsom has also drawn charges of hypocrisy after violating his own guidelines while dining at the French Laundry, and has kept his kids in private, in-person schools while most of the state’s public schools remain shut down. In addition, there’s a massive unemployment fraud scandal…

In the unlikely event enough people who signed the petition withdraw, the election is called off. If enough valid signatures remain, counties have until July 6 to notify the secretary of state’s office of this fact…

How recall election day works

On the designated election day, voters will receive one ballot with just two questions on it.

The first question will be something along the lines of, “Should Gavin Newsom be recalled?”

The second question will then ask voters to pick a candidate to replace Newsom…(more)

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Former SF official agrees to plea deal, will cooperate with FBI in corruption investigation

By Andre Torrez : ktvu – excerpt

SAN FRANCISCO – A former San Francisco aide to Mayor London Breed has agreed to plead guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering and will cooperate with the FBI in their ongoing corruption investigation of San Francisco City Hall…

Federal officials made the announcement on Tuesday regarding the former Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Services Director, Sandra Zuniga…

“This investigation continues, but the window of time for cooperation is closing.  If you are involved in public corruption at any level, reach out to the FBI before the FBI reaches out to you. Early cooperation is always viewed favorably.”…(more)

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City suspends contractors involved in ongoing corruption scandal

By Michael Barba : sfexaminer – excerpt

San Francisco is suspending five individuals charged in the City Hall corruption scandal and their companies from receiving contracts under a new local law aimed at keeping government clean.

The defendants, Nick Bovis, Alan Varela, William Gilmartin, Florence Kong and Walter Wong, are the first to be temporarily barred from doing city business under the newly implemented legislation that allows local officials to block contractors from engaging in city business while their criminal cases are pending or while the debarment process against them is underway…(more)

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Bay Area cities want to end single-family home zoning, but will it create more housing?

By J.K. Dineen : sfchronicle – excerpt (via email)

The national movement to eliminate exclusionary single-family zoning is picking up steam in the Bay Area as cities explore the benefits of getting rid of a land use policy designed to keep people of color and working class families out of certain neighborhoods.

Last week, the city councils in Berkeley and South San Francisco took steps to end single-family zoning, with Berkeley promising to get rid of it within a year and South City initiating a study as part of its general plan update. After the Berkeley vote, Council Member Terry Taplin, one of the authors of the resolution, called it a “historical moment for us in Berkeley.”

But while the movement to allow multifamily buildings in zones previously limited to single-family homes is being embraced as a correction of past discriminatory policies — Sacramento, Oregon and Minneapolis have passed such laws — the question of whether it will actually increase housing production is a lot more complicated, according to builders and architects…(download.pdf)

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Governor Newsom’s Latest Executive Overreach – a “Housing Accountability Unit”

By Livable California :

Governor Newsom recently included a new Housing Accountability Unit (HAU) in his proposed budget. Livable California opposes this as major executive over-reach threatening the balance of power between the executive branch, the legislative branch, and local governments.

The governor said: ““Let me just make this clear to all my friends,” Newsom said, “this is to monitor city council meetings. This is to monitor board of supervisors meetings, planning commission meetings. We’re not going to wait for an article to be written to be proactive in terms of holding local government accountable to increasing housing production.”

Livable California strongly supports local government and the close participation of communities at that level. We believe that having an state executive “policeman” in our local meetings will have a chilling effect on communities’ dialogue with their local elected officials…(more)

Consider signing the opposition letter on the site or write your own.