Parks94124 Kick-off next Saturday

From the San Francisco Examiner,

Lafayette Park has a neighborhood group that advocates for it. So does Glen Canyon Park. And Dolores Park has several.

But the 11 parks in the Bayview-Hunters Point area have not had a loud advocating voice, and local resident Geoffrea Morris wondered if that was why those other parks are getting renovated while the parks in her neighborhood seem to be in a state of perpetual disrepair.

Morris, who was a District 10 candidate in the last San Francisco Board of Supervisors election, and three other women from the Bayview decided to remedy that problem by forming the new group Parks 94124. The group aims to secure new funding to rehabilitate what the group describes as “the  many neglected and dilapidated parks in the 94124 ZIP code.”

In addition to advocating for The City to maintain the parks more, the group will take matters into their own hands and organize cleanup efforts, as well as conduct outreach on park stewardship.

The group will officially launch next Saturday, Feb. 26, in an event supported by themayor’s office, Supervisor Malia Cohen, among others. Then they will take up trash bags and scrub brushes for some community park cleanups in March and April.

The three highest priority parks will be Hilltop Park, Hunters Point Youth Park, and Gillman Park.
These parks are in such bad shape that they “really should have been in the 2008 bond measure” – but  in fact, none of the parks in the neighborhood were, outside of a handful of bathroom renovations.

“That’s why the group really started, is to push the agenda of the parks in the Bayview. Since we have the most kids in our neighborhood, we need our parks to be safe, clean and usable,” Morris said.

The community kickoff will take place at 1 p.m. on Feb. 26 at the Joseph Lee Recreation Center.

League of Women Voter Interviews

A couple of weeks ago, the League of Women Voters held a candidate forum at UCSF Mission Bay. After the forum, they asked the candidates to record a short video message. I was able to find videos for James Calloway, Malia Cohen, Kristine Enea, MJ Marie Franklin, Tony Kelly, Steve Moss, Geoffrea Morris, Eric Smith, Lynette Sweet, Marlene Tran, and Stephen Weber. I've also embedded the videos on their respective 'Why I'm Voting For...' pages. If I've missed one, please let me know so that I can link to it, too.

Chronicle Supervisor Candidate Questionnaires

Not sure how long this has been up, but SFGate has their questionnaires from some of the candidates up online (According to the Chronicle, they contacted all 21 District 10 supervisor candidates. The candidates not listed here have not responded to The Chronicle's questionnaire):

Maila Cohen
Candidate Malia Cohen asserts that District 10 has too often been the City's forgotten and last priority. Cohen wants District 10 to become a cornerstone of San Francisco, a home to a thriving job market, a healthy and growing community and a safe place for children and families.

Teresa Duqué
Particularly concerned with the issue of crime in San Francisco, Teresa Duque believes that the City needs to balance the Board of Supervisors in an effort to insure that real economic revival takes place.

Kristine Enea
Kristine Enea credits her knowledge of land use, waterfront development, redevelopment, public housing revitalization and fresh food resources to nearly six years of volunteering on the Bayview Project Area Committee, on the Shipyard Restoration Advisory Board, and as chair of the India Basin Neighborhood Association.

Chris Jackson
If elected District 10 supervisor, the biggest issue Chris Jackson wants to tackle is the flight of working and middle class families from San Francisco.

DeWitt Lacy
DeWitt Lacy has endured the same struggles as many of the working residents in D10, which he believes helps him better understand the needs and aspirations of the community. He also has a background in law, providing him the skills to work within bureaucratic systems.


Geoffrea Morris
Possessing a Master Degree in Social Work, Geoffrea Morris has spent her life in the social support field in advocating for people and families in San Francisco. If elected, Morris plan to make local hire her highest priority.

Eric Smith
Candidate Eric Smith hopes to make San Francisco run more efficiently, which includes creating sustainable policies in economic reform and establishing support for the green industry.

Lynette Sweet
With over 20 years experience as a fiscal manager and as BART director, Lynette Sweet promises job creation will be her number one priority as Supervisor.

Why I'm Voting For Geoffrea Morris

I'm voting for Geoffrea Morris because ...