By Richard Ivanhoe, with help from Christin Evans, HANC Board

San Francisco could see as many as four elections in 2022.  The first is on February 15, 2002.  Joaquin Torres, who was appointed by Mayor Breed to replace Carmen Chu as assessor-recorder, is running unopposed to continue as assessor-recorder for the remainder of his term (through January, 2023).  The measures to recall school board members Alison Collins, Gabriela Lopez, and Faauuga Molina also appear on this ballot.  February 15 is also the date for the special primary election for Assembly District 17, for a replacement for David Chiu, who was appointed as City Attorney by Mayor Breed.  This is a special election for the remainder of the term, which ends in January, 2023.

If no candidate for Assembly District 17 receives a majority of the vote, there will be a special general election for the seat on April 19.  Only the top two vote-getters will appear on the ballot.

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By James Sword, HANC Board

On December 14, 2021, District 3 Supervisor Aaron Peskin tweeted “We're putting Recall Reform on the June 2022 ballot. Taxpayers should not be forced to spend millions to recall officials who were just elected or are up for re-election in the same year. Thx to co-sponsors @shamannwalton @HillaryRonen @DeanPreston @conniechansf @myrnamelgar!” This tweet was soon followed by a Chronicle story about the various measures up for the June 2022 election – one of four we get to participate in this year!

As the Chronicle reported, “Supervisor Aaron Peskin wants to change how vacancies on the Board of Supervisors, Board of Education, and Community College District Board of Trustees are filled. Currently, the mayor appoints replacements in the middle of an election cycle. Peskin wants to instead have a majority of each board’s members appoint a replacement to fill a vacant seat — for example, leaving the power to pick a temporary new colleague up to supervisors.”

The amendment will also limit recalls to officials who have served in office for at least 12 months, up from the current six months. It will prohibit the submission of recall petitions within 18 months of a regularly scheduled election for the official – the Board of Education members being recalled are up for election in November 2022. Supervisors Shamann Walton, Connie Chan, Hillary Ronen, Dean Preston and Myrna Melgar support the measure.

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By Alec Hawley

My daughters Talulah and Tomasina (TnT) recently made a new sign for the Page Slow Street at the intersection of Stanyan. We ride and walk along Page daily. We love to go slow, to breathe and to appreciate our city and the community that makes it so joyful. That’s why we were sad when the old Page Slow Street sign that greeted us every day disappeared. TnT) loved the sign, and were always curious to see what would be added or changed each time we visited, and who we might encounter on our slow treks across the city for work, school, playdates and shopping trips.

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By Richard Ivanhoe, HANC Board

We began 2021 with a note of optimism—a new Federal administration and the arrival of vaccines would speed our recovery from Covid.  As we look back on the year, we find the usual mix of frustration from unfulfilled promises and some progress.  HANC did meet every month in 2021 (except for our tradition of skipping August), although we could only meet online.

In January, we discussed affordable housing—how funds from 2018, 2019, and 2020 ballot measures could be used to bolster the City’s affordable housing by purchasing permanent affordable housing and shelter in place hotels, and by helping renters remain housed.  At our February meeting, we discussed UCSF’s plans to expand its Parnassus campus.  We also discussed CART, a community alternative to policing.  For our March meeting, we discussed plans to make permanent the closure of JFK Drive and slow Page Street, suggestions for improvements to the Panhandle, and the investigation of Parks Alliance.  Jen Snyder, from Dean Preston’s office, also gave a primer explaining the City’s budget process.

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By Tes Welborn, HANC Board

This will be the largest change in San Francisco district maps and potentially, the largest change in San Francisco politics.  We've known for years that all the development on the east side of town would mean major shifts in district maps and the pool of supervisor candidates.  And now a nine-member appointed task force will be the final decision-makers on a new map, based on the 2020 Census. The task force has three members appointed directly by the Mayor, three by the Dept. of Elections, and three by the Board of Supervisors. That's only three progressives.

Another factor is that the Mayor has mandated NO public meetings until at least March 2022.  The final map is due by April 15, 2022. This limits public access and discussion.  The taskforce meetings have been running about 6 hours each, and are expected to run longer. And recall elections may further distract residents and voters from this important issue.

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by Jaime Michaels, HANC Board

In April 2020, a month into the City’s mandatory shutdown due to COVID-19, select corridors in Golden Gate Park were closed to private vehicles while remaining open to recreational use and limited commercial traffic. The closures were intended as a temporary measure to meet the growing demand of residents seeking relief from their quarantined-like existence indoors in a manner that also allowed adequate social distance.

Included in the closures was a 1.5-mile-long section of John F. Kennedy Dr. (from Kezar Dr. to Transverse Dr.) previously closed to vehicles on weekends and holidays only. Since taking effect, the full-time closure of this section of JFK has garnered supporters (e.g., recreational visitors) and detractors (e.g., museum goers and operators) whose positions have been rooted in seemingly conflicting needs for vehicle and mobility access, street parking, and facility operations and management. People with disabilities also have spoken up about access.

Stakeholder Working Group and Action Framework

In an attempt to achieve consensus over opposing views, the San Francisco County Transportation Authority convened a group of stakeholders (“The Golden Gate Park Stakeholder Working Group and Action Framework”) who worked to develop a set of initial findings to be used in the formal planning process for JFK Dr. under the direction of the San Francisco Municipal Transit Agency (SFMTA) and Recreation and Park Department (RPD).

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26 November, 2021

The Board of HANC would first  like to commend staff for its acceptance of the overwhelming majority of MUNI riders preference for the restoration of full service (called by SFMTA staff  the "Familiar Alternative") to MUNI .  Specifically,  we would like to commend staff for the partial restoration of the 21 Hayes and the full restoration of the 6 Parnassus and the 43 Masonic lines.  These are crucial services to the over 20,000 residents of the Haight-Ashbury and we welcome their return.

We, however, are disappointed with the proposals dramatic increase in headways for the 6 Parnassus (an increase from 12 minutes pre-pandemic to the proposed 20 minutes) and the 21 Hayes to 15 minutes (from the pre-pandemic 12 minutes).  We understand that in some measure these unacceptable increases in headways are due to the unavailability of drivers and that MUNI staff are hard at work to recruit and  train new drivers. We are disappointed that SFMTA does not set a timeline on when the 6 and 21 will return to their pre-pandemic level of service.

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San Francisco’s Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing (HSH) supported putting bathrooms, showers, handwashing stations, and referral services at 730 Stanyan as an interim use pending construction of affordable housing on the site starting in mid-2023, and issued solicitations for a service provider on September 7.  The Homeless Youth Alliance was chosen, and the services were scheduled to open by the end of October.

Approximately two weeks before the site was set to open, it was squelched.  Who actually squelched it and why remains a mystery.  Supervisor Dean Preston asked the Mayor at the November 9 Board of Supervisor’s meeting.  The Mayor claimed that there were insufficient funds and that “Not everyone in this community supports this project.”

The issue was addressed again at a meeting of the Government Audit and Oversight Committee on November 18.  Included in those in attendance were Shireen McSpadden and Emily Cohen from HSH and Eric Shaw from the Mayor’s Office of Housing and Community Development.  Supervisor Preston asked if the interim use could go forward if he found additional funds, and was told that it would not go forward.  He asked if there were any issues with the Homeless Youth Alliance, and there were none.

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