Supervisor Wiener's July & August 2012 Newsletter

July & August 2012 Newsletter

Office Phone: 415-554-6968

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My Policy Work

2 Pieces of My Legislation Passed Yesterday

At yesterday's Board of Supervisors meeting - the last before our August recess - the Board passed two pieces of legislation I authored. This legislative package will help expand and preserve our City's housing stock.

Student Housing Legislation

For years, the City has been trying to grapple with the need to house our large and growing student population, while preserving our existing housing stock. We need to house students without cannibalizing the housing stock on which San Francisco as a whole relies. Rents are through the roof, and losing additional rental stock for exclusive use as student housing isn't tenable. I therefore sponsored legislation that will provide educational institutions with incentives to create more student housing while restricting their ability to convert apartment buildings into exclusive student housing. The legislation garnered broad support and passed the Board.

Tax Incentives for Historic Properties

San Francisco has thousands of historic homes, including individual landmarks and homes in historic districts. We expect much of the owners of these homes, which can be costly to property owners. The state Mills Act allows local jurisdictions to enter into 10-year maintenance agreements with historic property owners in exchange for property tax reductions. Other cities have made good use of the Mills Act, but San Francisco has never implemented it effectively, particularly for small property owners. Our process is cumbersome, lengthy, expensive, and unpredictable. As a result, we have almost no Mills Act contracts. My legislation streamlines the process for Mills Act contracts, making the process simpler and more predictable. For the first time, owners of historic properties will realistically be able to access Mills Act benefits. As with all Mills Act contracts, each contract will be subject to approval or disapproval by the Board of Supervisors.

Member of Scott's contingent get ready to march in the 2012 Pride Parade.

Ballot Measures this November

Here's an overview of three ballot measures that I authored or co-sponsored at the Board of Supervisors:

Housing Trust Fund

Housing affordability has been a priority for me. With the demise of the Redevelopment Agency - due to changes in state law - we lost one of our major sources of funding for affordable development. I participated in a lengthy process, led by Mayor Lee, to recapture the lost Redevelopment funding and dedicate it to creating affordable housing for low and moderate income San Franciscans. This "Housing Trust Fund," which will appear on the November ballot, will help create housing and provide down payment assistance. The measure also creates incentives for market-rate development, given that increasing the supply of housing is a key element of addressing our affordability crisis.

Consolidating Elections and Saving Millions

I authored a charter amendment, which the Board unanimously placed on the November ballot, to eliminate the low-turnout odd-year election for City Attorney and Treasurer, by having those two offices stand for election at the same time as Mayor. A high-turnout election for City Attorney and Treasurer is lower than a low-turnout election for Mayor. It's important to have good turnout for all elections, and this amendment will move us in that direction. It will also save the City's General Fund approximately $4.3 million each time the election doesn't happen.

Parks Bond

I also co-sponsored the Parks Bond, which will dedicate $195 million in capital funding to our parks. In District 8, the bond will fund the total renovation of the Glen Canyon Rec Center, which is in awful shape, and the replacement of the failing George Christopher Playground in Diamond Heights. It will also fund the Community Opportunity Fund, which allows community groups to plan and build projects within their neighborhood parks. District 8 received several Community Opportunity Fund grants from the last parks bond, including funding for the Duboce Park Youth Play Area, the Upper Douglass Dog Park, and Noe Courts.

Budget Passed and Signed, with Key Priorities Funded

Last week, Mayor Lee signed the City's 2-year budget. As a member of the Budget Committee, I worked hard to protect key funding priorities. I fought to backfill the $7 million in federal HIV funding cuts as well as to fund additional park gardeners, park patrol, and DPW cleaning crews. These basic services are key for our quality of life. The budget also includes funding for three police academy classes over the next few years, which will help reverse the declining number of officers in our department.

Transportation Update

As Vice Chair of the San Francisco County Transportation Authority and one of San Francisco's two members of the regional Metropolitan Transportation Commission, I work regularly on the transportation issues facing the City. Although Muni continues to have its challenges, things are gradually (yes, way too slowly) starting to move in the right direction. The Transportation Effectiveness Project - designed to speed Muni up - will be implemented in the near future. The streets bond that I led last year will provide funding for signal capital upgrades. And, Muni's recently adopted budget provides significant new investment in basic maintenance. Muni continues to struggle, but I do believe management is making smart decisions that will have long-term benefits.

Board President Chiu, Senator Leno, Congresswoman Pelosi,
Treasurer Cisneros, Mayor Lee and Scott celebrate
the Pink Triangle installation at Twin Peaks.

Health Care Equity and Access for Transgender San Franciscans

San Francisco has long been a pioneer in health care and also in fair and equal treatment for all residents. Last decade, the City created Healthy San Francisco, our program for uninsured people. Under Healthy San Francisco, any resident can get medical care in local facilities. After Healthy San Francisco was created the Department of Public Health administratively adopted an exclusion for some medically necessary procedures for transgender people. For years, folks in the community have been working with the Department to eliminate the exclusion. I got involved, worked with the Department and the community, and helped finalize the agreement to remove the exclusion and make health care for our transgender community more accessible. More information here.

Nightlife Update

I continue to advocate for a vibrant nightlife in San Francisco. Our nightlife is part of the City's cultural lifeblood. In addition, according to an economic impact study that I requested and that was issued earlier this year, nightlife contributes $4.2 billion to our economy. I recently participated on a panel on the subject and was interviewed by Nark Magazine.

Community Updates

National Night Out

The San Francisco Police Department and the Safety Network Program will again this year sponsor National Night Out events on Tuesday, August 2nd in ten SFPD districts with officers from the district stations participating. "National Night Out: America's Night Out Against Crime" is held annually on the first Tuesday of August across the country to promote neighborhood involvement to help stem crime through strengthening police-community relations and encouraging neighborhood camaraderie by hosting a number of neighborhood events. The District 8 locations are:

Park District Station

Boys & Girls Club, 1950 Page Street
2:00-5:00pm

Northern District Station

Ella Hill Hutch Community Center, 1050 McAllister Street

5:30-8:30pm

Ingleside District Station

Upper Noe Valley Playground, 299 Day Street
5:00-8:00pm

Mission District Station

Boys and Girls Club, 450 Guerrero Street

4:00-7:00pm

Scott presents Commander Lea Militello with a Certificate of Honor celebrating her years of service with the San Francisco Police Department.

Church & Duboce Construction Update

The SFMTA has provided a transit alert in light of the continuing construction for the Church & Duboce Track and Street Improvement Project. This project will provide new track for a smoother, faster ride on Muni, bulbouts to enhance safety and boarding at N Judah Line stops, curb and ramp upgrades, water & sewer improvements and street light pole replacements. Construction will begin on Friday, August 3rd at 7:00pm and end on Monday, August 6th at 5:00am. Please see below for further details:

Muni Service Adjustments:

-J Church rail service will only operate between Balboa Park and Market at Church Street.
-22 Fillmore and N Owl service will be rerouted around the construction area.

What to Expect During Construction Shutdown:

Church Street will be closed between Market Street and Hermann Street.

Driveways to Safeway plaza will be accessible from Market Street, but not from Church Street.

-Traffic-control officers as well as police officers will direct traffic at critical intersections.

-Noise and dust will be controlled in adherence with City Codes.

Street parking will not be available in and around the construction sites.

-Electronic messaging boards will be used in affected areas to alert motorists and cyclists of detours.

-Local business will remain open during construction.

Major Bicycle Reroutes

The bike routes affected include the Wiggle, the Steiner/Sanchez route, and the connector route from the Wiggle to Market Street from Duboce Avenue.

We encourage cyclists to use Market Street, 14th Street and Sanchez Street as an alternative.

For questions and/or comments, please contact Jay Lu, SFMTA Public Relations Officer at 415.701.4387 or jay.lu@sfmta.com.
Click here for more information

Traffic Calming Update

The SFMTA has begun revising the process for selecting and delivering Traffic Calming projects, by soliciting feedback from stakeholders, reviewing past project delivery, and examining program priorities. They recently sent a survey about the traffic calming program to San Francisco residents who have been involved in our program over the past several years. Click here to access the survey.

The SFMTA encourages you to complete the survey, as well as review additional information on the Traffic Calming Program Revision by clicking here.

Scott with Olga Miranda and members of the Janitors Union, SEIU Local 87.

On Street Bike Corral Applications Due October 1st
On-street bicycle parking corrals are bicycle racks placed in the parking lane on the roadway where demand for bike parking is higher than can be accommodated on the sidewalk. Approximately 8-12 bikes can be parked in one car space, making bike corrals a comparatively efficient use of roadway space. Click here for more information on how to apply to have a corral installed in your neighborhood. The application deadline for this round is October 1st, and every three months moving forward.

Give Go Charity

Give Go is a website that allows you to raise money for a charity of your choosing every time you walk, run, or bike. People want to exercise, but often need a push. With Give Go, users can ask their family, friends and/or employers to sponsor their exercise by the mile, turning daily exercise into a micro-fundraiser. At the end of each month, Give Go will collect the money and send it to the users' designated charities.
Click here for more information

San Francisco Police Foundation

The SFPD is involved in many types of community events, and actively participates in a variety of philanthropies. Groups are always asking the department for donations of money or to provide some level of involvement in their activities. We recently started the San Francisco Police Foundation to help with the funding of many of these requests. If you would like to donate to the Department's philanthropic endeavors please make checks payable to the SF Police Foundation: Checks can be mailed directly to the following address: San Francisco Police Foundation, C/O Markun, Zusman, & Compton LLP. 465 California Street, SF, CA, 94104. With your help, the Foundation can, and will, make a difference for our City and in the lives of everyone touched by its police officers.
Click here for more information

Community Spotlight

Andre Le Blanc, Esteban Rodriguea, Jackson Bownman, J.M. Jaffe,
Karlyn Lotney, Kathryn Steuerman and Tee Tagor

Project HEALTH

At the July 24th Board of Supervisors meeting, I had the honor of commending the members of Project HEALTH for their hard work and tireless advocacy in improving access to health care for transgender San Franciscans. San Francisco has long championed equal access to health care for all its residents, and I'm proud to have worked with them to make this a reaity for the transgender community.

Scott commends the members of Project HEALTH for their work on improving access to Healthy San Francisco for transgender San Francisco residents.

Upcoming Events to Remember

Free Neighborhood Emergency Response Team (NERT) Training

Wednesday, August 1st: Class 1, 2 and 3
Wednesday, August 8th: Class 4, 5 and 6

8:30am-5:30pm

Spear Tower, One Market Plaza, 55 Spear Street

The goal of this program is to help the citizens of San Francisco to be self sufficient in a major disaster situation by developing multi-functional teams, cross trained in basic emergency skills. Through this program, individuals will learn how to help themselves and their loved ones prepare for and better respond in a disaster. The training includes preparedness training as well as hands-on disaster skills.