Membership Meetings: 2nd Thursdays ~ 7-9pm
Park Branch Library, 1833 Page St, SF, CA 94117 (except August)
By Tes Welborn, HANC Board
Community members have been fighting UCSF's unilateral decision to break the Space Ceiling limits agreement of a maximum of 3.55 million square feet, established in 1976 and written into state law. The coalition, of which Calvin Welch and I are members, supports retaining the Space Ceiling and the 2014 Long Range Development Plan's smaller new hospital.
By Calvin Welch, HANC Board
In a surprise move, Mayor Breed ordered a halt to the community planning process being done by the non-profit developers the city selected for the 100 % affordable housing development at 730 Stanyan Street.
Chinatown Community Development Center (CCDC) and the Tenderloin Neighborhood Development Corporation (TNDC) had conducted a pre-application meeting and a series of community planning meetings since June 2020, and were poised to hold their fifth and seemingly last meeting with the community which was to present the modifications to the design gathered from the community.
But Mayor Breed seems to have other plans for the site. While no official announcement has yet been made to the community in over a month since the April 29 meeting was cancelled, the Mayor's Office of Housing and Community Development (MOHCD) did respond to an Examiner op-ed drafted by the co-chairs of the Coalition for a Complete Community (CCC) which called upon the Mayor not to delay the development of the proposed 120 unit development (The op-ed piece can be found at: https://www.sfexaminer.com/opinion/city-should-stop-foot-dragging-on-critically-needed-affordable-housing-in-haight-ashbury/).
By Christin Evans, HANC Board
“How do we make our community safer for all?” was the opening question for our panelists at HANC’s May meeting. Police Commissioner John Hamasaki kicked off the discussion, “Last year, before George Floyd, the Police Commission adopted a resolution to transfer homeless related calls away from SFPD. That’s something we all should agree about because police should be reserved for serious criminal activity, danger [and] violence…. Across the country and San Francisco, for too long we’ve relied on the police to fill in all the gaps in social services, in mental health and substance abuse. And that has been an abysmal failure putting a burden on police they don’t have the training for and the negative implications of that for the community.”
Last year, the city launched a pilot initiative of Street Crisis Response teams (SCRTs). Each team includes a Fire Department paramedic, a behavioral health clinician, and a peer counselor. The SCRTs have primarily responded to 911 calls (rated Priority B or C) where a person is experiencing a mental health crisis. The teams have already alleviated call volumes from police response. Recently Mayor Breed announced an expansion of the concept and said she would propose in her 2021-22 budget that the city add Street Wellness Response teams (SWRTs) who would respond to priority B and C “wellness check” calls.
The Mayor’s Office of Housing and Community Development (MOHCD) has announced a delay in the community planning process for 730 Stanyan (see accompanying article, “Status Update on 730 Stanyan.” It is now projected that the project won’t break ground until some time in 2023. CAMP, the safe sleeping site, is scheduled to leave by June 30, 2021.
HANC is concerned that the soon-to-be vacant lot could remain a vacant lot for the next two years or more. There is already a well-developed plan for an interim use for the site, which addresses needs of three target communities—families, transition-age youth, and seniors, and also provides for activities for the general neighborhood community. This plan is the Community Proposal for Interim Use, developed by the Coalition for a Complete Community. It can be downloaded at https://www.hanc-sf.org/the-voice-and-docs/730-Stanyan/Submitted-CCC-Interim-Use-Proposal/.
HANC will continue to advocate for this plan, and encourages you to download the plan, review it, and join us in supporting this interim use for the 730 Stanyan site. We believe this will be the best use for the site while MOHCD, the development team, and the community continue to develop long-term plans for the site.
By David Woo, HANC Board
Joe Eskenazi with Mission Local joined the April meeting and discussed the ongoing and continually unfolding corruption scandals that have come to light in San Francisco. Eskanazi discussed how the corruption cases in San Francisco are likely broadening and expanding, though it is hard to know definitively.
Those currently cooperating with the investigation and to keep an eye on include Sandra Zuniga, who was working in the mayor’s office, and Walter Wong who worked as a permit expediter.
By Lisa Awbrey, HANC President
At HANC’s April meeting, paralegal and tenant counsellor Renee Curran gave updates on the state of tenant protections, evictions and strategies in the time of COVID-19. Current information is available at hrcsf.org.
The current “ban on evictions” is not a ban at all, and without further action, will end on June 30, 2021. Previously, when HRCSF counseled tenants on the local rent moratorium, it was harrowing because the local eviction ban could only be extended on a monthly basis. People grew increasingly worried about unpaid rent piling up with the knowledge that the pandemic wouldn’t last just a few months. SB3038 changed that, giving more stability, but the tenants still had to pay 25% instead of no rent.
By Bruce Wolfe, HANC Board
At the April HANC Membership Meeting, Eric Albrecht (W2GMD) introduced us to the SF Amateur Radio Club (SFRC) (he is President) and to the Auxiliary Communications Service (ACS) (he is the Radio Operations Lead), which operates under the San Francisco Department of Emergency Management. Because amateur radio operators, or HAMS, are members of both SFRC and ACS, the two entities are frequently mistaken to be the same.
From their website, "The San Francisco Radio Club (SFRC) was formed in 1909 by a handful of radio enthusiasts with the objective of exchanging messages over the air. In 1916 the president at time, Henry W. Dickow (6HD), founded the club and published the first Yearbook. In the early days the club enjoyed a membership of as many as 300 radio amateurs!
By Christin Evans, HANC Treasurer
PG&E and the City of San Francisco’s dispute over electricity contracts has delayed the powering of traffic signals and pedestrian light poles installed last year. As part of the Haight Ashbury Public Realm plan which started its implementation in 2017, SFMTA planned new traffic lights at intersections along upper Haight Street between Shrader and Central streets. Those traffic lights were installed where stop signs now control the traffic flow. The city’s plan was to use traffic lights instead to speed the Muni buses and reduce the hazards of pedestrian-involved accidents. But while those poles have been in place since Fall, 2020, the DPW project manager says contracts disputes with PG&E have delayed both the traffic signals and pedestrian light poles from being powered on.
