SF Black's political clout imperiled

From SFGate,

Malia Cohen, as the lone African American on the 11-member San Francisco Board of Supervisors, always keeps in the back of her mind that she could be the last.

The black population in San Francisco, which gained steam in the 1940s with the draw of war-related jobs in the shipbuilding industry, peaked in 1970, when 13.4 percent of the city's residents were African American. Since then, there has been a steady decline. The 2010 U.S. Census tallied the black population at 6.1 percent, and demographic projections by the California Department of Finance have that percentage shrinking to 4.6 percent by 2050.

And as long as identity politics, such as race and sexual orientation, continue to play a role in how some people vote, the dwindling number of African Americans living in San Francisco puts black representation on the Board of Supervisors at risk.

Read more at SFGate

Mayoral Question Time, Round The Second, Expected Tuesday

From SFAppeal,

San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee will return to the Board of Supervisors' chambers on Tuesday for his second voter-mandated monthly mayoral appearance.


The appearances are required after nearly 60 percent of city voters passed Proposition C in November in response to often contentious relations between the former board and then-Mayor Gavin Newsom.
But Newsom was elected the state's lieutenant governor in the same election, and Lee was chosen as interim mayor.

According to the rules set up by the board, Lee made his first appearance last month and answered questions submitted the previous week by supervisors in odd-numbered districts.
Some supervisors had argued for more spontaneity to be allowed in the proceedings; Lee's appearance was anything but.

He read scripted answers to questions on topics such as the city's budget and pension reform, and joked to reporters afterward that he would try to be more compelling the next time.

District 10 Supervisor Malia Cohen asked what the city is doing to clean up and reuse the site left vacant by the Potrero Power Plant, which ceased operations earlier this year.

San Francisco supervisor districts poised to change now that census data is released

From SF Examiner,

With new census data come new population counts. And with new population counts comes redistricting. And with redistricting comes politics.

Click on the photo to the right for more census data.

Let the line-drawing begin.

City elections chief John Arntz informed supervisors this week that he’ll be looking at population changes within their districts.

The City’s charter now gives him 60 days to decide whether populations have changed substantially. If they have, the board convenes a committee to redraw districts for the 2012 elections.

Observers are already eyeing the process, and considering how it could change The City’s balance of power.

Read more at the San Francisco Examiner

San Francisco, Waste, And Environmental Discrimination At Hunters Point

From SFGate,

Readers of this space know that I have been following the landfill contract process in San Francisco for some time now. Until a few weeks ago it was a battle between two companies. The winning bidder, a local employee-owned company, Recology, had a far more economical bid and a superior environmental transportation mode by taking the hauling of the trash out of trucks and putting it onto trains.

The losing bidder is the current service provider, Waste Management of Houston, Texas. Waste has worked tirelessly to keep the business after submitting a bid that was more than double Recology's and approaching ten times their current price.

It even bought off typical opponents like the Sierra Club, creating an environmental industrial complex in the process by creating an economic incentive for them to keep receiving waste at the Altamont landfill through a open space mitigation fee overseen by the club.

Somewhat expectedly, the City's Budget and Finance Committee rejected Waste's tactics agreeing that there is no disputing the facts that Recology is cheaper and more environmentally superior option.

Case closed, right?

No. We forgot that this is the San Francisco Board of Supervisors where closing simple matters is no simple task. Instead of moving forward with the clear winner of their competitive bidding process, the B of Supes took a big two-month time out.

Why, you ask?

Well, because a company named Waste Solutions - that makes a living hauling toxic waste out of San Francisco on Port property in the Bayview - had an idea.

So what is the big idea to warrant this delay?

What is the earth shattering revelation that disrupted a multi-year competitive bid process raised by a company that did not even put forward a bid in the process?

Geniuses really, move the dump to the Bayview and barge it to Pittsburgh. Huh? Move the dump to the Bayview, next to the sewage treatment facility. Move the dump next to the power point that the community worked to close for more than 20 years. Move the dump to the Bayview where Lennar is expected to invest billions of dollars into building out the shipyard.

I don't get it. The community will not get it. Apparently the City of Pitsburgh and the Port of San Francisco will get the trash and the revenue that comes with it.

Nice, right?

But what will the Bayview get? More environmental justice issues to deal with in a community that has struggled with every environmental impact the fair City of San Francisco has had to offer for the past 50 years.

One would hope that someone, somewhere, would actually bring this to the community for their discussion before derailing the rail option of the winning bidder that saved the City $130 million before they lose that offer in the City's continued pursuit of environmental terrorism residents of the Bayview.

SF Board Opposes Elimination of Redevelopment Agency

From the Epoch Times,

Governor Jerry Brown’s “hammered out” budget proposal for California prompted the San Francisco Board of Supervisors to oppose the elimination of the redevelopment agency.

“I think the board spoke unanimously today of our opposition to the elimination of redevelopment,” said Supervisor and San Francisco Board President David Chiu following the passage of the resolution.

“Redevelopment has had incalculable positive impacts in San Francisco and to lose the sources of funding, the opportunity to use redevelopment law to move forward various communities and neighborhoods would be catastrophic,” he added.

Read more at Epoch Times

S.F. supervisors prepare for redistricting battle - SFGate

From SFGate,

San Francisco moderates gained clout at City Hall with the recent selection of Ed Lee as interim mayor and David Chiu as Board of Supervisors president. But now political strategists are looking long term, anticipating that the city may redraw boundaries for supervisors' districts.

The opportunity comes once a decade, and the outcome can strongly influence the city's electoral landscape for years to come.

Read more at SFGate

Bidding adieu to Newsom, Harris, and four Supes

4 veterans' last week on S.F. Board of Supervisors - SFGate

Four veterans on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors will leave office this week, taking with them a collective 35 years of experience as lawmakers and leaving behind an eclectic legislative record.

Termed out of office, they lose their jobs at noon Saturday when their successors are scheduled to take the oath of office.

Two of the departing supervisors, Chris Daly and Sophie Maxwell, were swept into office with the rebirth of district elections in 2000 amid a call to embolden neighborhood power and loosen then-Mayor Willie Brown's strong grip on City Hall.

Read more at SFGate


Gavin Newsom lived on the political edge - SF Examiner

In a recent interview with The San Francisco Examiner, Newsom talked about both his achievements and missteps during his two terms as mayor.

Newsom cited the redevelopment of the Hunters Point Shipyard, which will be a major job generator for The City’s southeast neighborhood as one of his greatest legacies. He boasted about balancing the budget without raising taxes and repaving city streets. He even pointed out that Muni’s on-time performance is the best it has ever been.

Read more at the San Francisco Examiner

When 0.45% of Total Voters Can Translate to Victory - NY Times

Scott James of the New York Times/Bay Citizen writes,

If the new San Francisco Board of Supervisors sworn in Jan. 8 is anything like its predecessor, there will be a time when an unpopular decision will have citizens asking, “Who picked these people?”

The answer will be: hardly anyone. 

A record 8 of 11 supervisors on the new board have an interesting distinction: They were not the first choices of a majority of voters, but prevailed in the city’s ranked-choice voting system.

Read more at NY Times

Moderates make their move on BoS - SF Examiner

Moderates make their move on Board of Supes - SF Examiner 11/16/10