ERIC MAR DISTRICT 1 SUPERVISOR Spring 2012
Dear Neighbors,
Happy Lunar New Year! And Happy Year of the Dragon, which is considered the luckiest of all years!
This year, I am continuing as Chair of the Land Use and Economic Development Committee. I will also be a new member of the Public Safety Committee, where I will be able to address many issues that are important to District 1 residents.
In response to various public safety concerns that have arisen in the past several months,
my focus is to strengthen community relations SUPERVISOR ERIC MAR. with local merchants, the San Francisco Police Department, and community groups to keep the lines of communication open. The CONTENT safety of our community is of utmost importance. Introduction 1 In this auspicious Year of the Dragon, I will continue to focus on the well-being of children, Announcement 2 seniors, and families to ensure that seniors My Committee Assignments 2 can remain active, our children thrive in school, and our entire community is healthy. Community Work 3
Achievement 4 Community Calendar/Events 6 Staff Change 7
Community Resources 7 -Eric Credits 7
Supervisor Eric Mar | San Francisco City Hall, Room 284, San Francisco, CA 94102 | phone 415.554.7410| fax 415.554.7415 ERIC MAR DISTRICT 1 SUPERVISOR Spring 2012
ANNOUNCEMENT OF HEARING ON BIG EVENTS IN GOLDEN GATE PARK SPRING 2012
On Monday, February 13 at 1:00pm, the Land Use and Economic Development Committee of the Board of Supervisors will be holding a hearing on the community impacts of large events in Golden Gate Park.
The purpose of this hearing is to allow residents to speak out on issues of concern with the City Recreation and Park Department and the Police Department and staff regarding future plans for large events in the park, such as „Outside Lands‟ held in August and „Hardly Strictly Bluegrass‟ held in October.
We will discuss how these events impact our community and, most importantly, it is an ERIC MAR IN GOLDEN GATE PARK opportunity for you to raise concerns and offer suggestions for how our City can best address any problems that may arise from these My Committee Assignments events. I also hold the following positions:
Chair of the Land Use Committee Member of the Public Safety Committee Board Member of the Bay Area Air Quality Management District Authority Commissioner on the San Francisco County Transport Authority Board Member of the Golden Gate For more information, please contact my Bridge District Committee Legislative Aide, Nick Pagoulatos, at Board Member of California State (415) 554-7412 or Association of Counties [email protected]. Chair of the First 5 Commission Finance Committee Board Member of the San Francisco County Transit Authority
Supervisor Eric Mar | San Francisco City Hall, Room 284, San Francisco, CA 94102 | phone 415.554.7410| fax 415.554.7415
ENTER MONTH/YEAR Community Work Spring 2012
New Housing for Homeless Families
In December, I, along with the rest of the Board of Supervisors heard the heart wrenching testimonies and stories of hundreds of homeless families and children from across the City at a Neighborhood Services Committee hearing. The testimonies and official reports clearly showed the number of families waiting for shelter in San Francisco has reached crisis proportions. According to the San Francisco Chronicle, there are 2,200 homeless children Above: Bedroom at the new in San Francisco schools, “some in shelters, others in cars, or on Star Community Home. couches, or in long-term hotel rooms,” which is 400 more homeless children than a year ago.
Mayor Ed Lee announced that the City would find housing as soon as possible for homeless families in shelters and on the shelter wait list. In response, Marc Benioff, the founder of Salesforce.com, and his wife, Lynne, donated $1.5 million to assist with efforts to help homeless families in shelters and Mayor Ed Lee said that the City would match the Benioffs' gift. “Nearly 2,200 of San Francisco's public school I have also been working on assisting homeless families. In the last students are homeless, weeks of December, I helped convene community meetings with enough to fill five or six Catholic Charities, our neighborhood Star of the Sea Church‟s elementary schools or an Father Brian Costello, the San Francisco Organizing Project Local entire high school. Organizing Committee, and local merchant and neighborhood That's nearly 400 more leaders to discuss the need and give feedback on a proposal by homeless schoolchildren Catholic Charities for a „Star Community Home‟ for „clean and than a year ago” sober‟ formerly homeless mothers with children. Mayor Ed Lee, his staff, and our Richmond Station Police leadership have been (San Francisco instrumental in working with relevant City departments to ensure Chronicle) that this critically needed project is open as soon as possible.
As a result of these meetings, I am proud to announce that the Richmond District will now have a home located at the former convent at Star of the Sea Parish located at 4350 Geary Boulevard at 8th Avenue, which will initially house 12 families. As families are able to transition to permanent housing, new families will move in, allowing Catholic Charities to serve many more families over the entire length of the project. The home aims to provide a safe place to live for some of San Francisco‟s most vulnerable homeless families while stabilizing their living situation, developing a plan for how to secure family stability and providing intensive support to facilitate their move to permanent housing.
Supervisor Eric Mar | San Francisco City Hall, Room 284, San Francisco, CA 94102 | phone 415.554.7410| fax 415.554.7415
Achievements Spring 2012
Jack in the Box As many of you know, on I am working on a comprehensive Thanksgiving Day last year a man safety strategy with SF SAFE, “The Commission was hit by a car after an altercation merchants, residents and the also adopted my at the Jack in the Box on Geary Richmond Police Station. In stronger safety Boulevard at 11th Avenue. addition, SF SAFE through their recommendations, Because of repeated incidents and director Cindy Brandon has agreed including issues arising from Jack in the Box to do workshops with neighbors increasing security and other late night businesses, I and residents surrounding the Jack presence to 7 days have been working hard to create in the Box to help develop block a week from 10 a proactive community plan to groups to raise the safety level of p.m. to 4 a.m.” make our neighborhood safer. the neighborhood. (Public Safety) After meeting with Richmond Thank you to the neighbors that residents to hear their concerns have participated in efforts to and working with various groups, promote a safer community in the including the Police Department, Richmond, to the Richmond Police “In the coming the San Francisco Entertainment Station and to SF SAFE, for months I will be Commission, and SF SAFE, I helping to develop a looking into how advocated for the restaurant to comprehensive community safety to deal with the close during early morning hours. I plan for our neighborhood. am pleased that the Entertainment impacts caused Supporting the Arts by the large Commission is requiring Jack in the Box to close between 4 to One of my points of focus is to number of tour 6am. The Commission also ensure that our vibrant local arts buses in our adopted my stronger safety community is strongly supported by District.” recommendations, including (Transportation) increasing security presence to 7 the City. To that end, in November I days a week from 10 p.m. to 4 held a hearing examining how the a.m., adding a second guard for Americas Cup cultural program will Friday and Saturday evenings, and be inclusive of local artists from preventing customers from eating throughout all of our Districts and outside in the outdoor seating area looking at how revenue generated after midnight. from the event will support our arts community.
I am also in the process of drafting legislation that will allow our City‟s
Cultural Equity Grants Program to
better support San Francisco‟s small
arts organizations. Finally, in January I introduced a call for a hearing focusing on the critical role that the music industry plays as an economic driver in San Francisco and what the City can do to support Supervisor Mar and Captain Vintero walking in local artists, producers, venue District 1 promoting SF Safe. owners, and festival promoters.
Supervisor Eric Mar | San Francisco City Hall, Room 284, San Francisco, CA 94102 | phone 415.554.7410| fax 415.554.7415
Achievements Spring 2012
Making Transportation Work
Over the past months I th successfully worked with 8 Avenue residents who were concerned that an abrupt and unannounced MUNI rerouting of the 44 O‟Shaughnessy bus from 7th Avenue over to 8th Avenue was creating a safety hazard for school children from the Star of the Sea and Peabody schools who walk to school along the route. I worked with the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) staff to devise a more appropriate route. After directives from my office and advocacy from community members, the SFMTA rerouted the bus line so that it Above: the map of the rerouted 44 O‟Shaughnessy bus would go down Clement, up Park Presidio, and down California, thus, avoiding residential streets Neighborhood Economic Development altogether. This solution was presented at a community meeting I am proud to have worked closely with the greater Geary and embraced as a sensible new Merchant Association, Clement Street Merchants, and the route. Planning Association for the Richmond over the past year to make our commercial corridors visibly cleaner and more vibrant. “In the coming months I will be looking into how to deal with the After several weeks of conversation with the Director of the impacts caused by the large Department of Public Works (DPW), I am happy to announce number of tour buses in our that DPW has agreed to include the Geary corridor from 14th District.” to 27th Avenues in the city‟s Corridors Project. This means that additional resources will be devoted to keeping that section of the corridor clean. Thanks to the groups I mentioned above for helping achieve this significant community victory.
On December 5th, at the Board of Supervisors‟ Land Use Committee meeting I convened a hearing on the impact that formula retail is having on our small business community. My goal is to protect our neighborhood small business sector and to develop legislation that will make formula retail businesses better neighbors and employers.
Supervisor Eric Mar | San Francisco City Hall, Room 284, San Francisco, CA 94102 | phone 415.554.7410| fax 415.554.7415
COMMUNITY CALENDAR/ EVENTS:
My monthly coffee hours will be:
Thursday, February 16, 2012 at 6 pm Toy Boat Dessert Café 401 Clement Street (Between 5th and 6th Avenues.)
-Support your local businesses! Above: SF Neighborhood Emergency Response Team in action. -Watch a movie at a theatre near you (Balboa Theater, 4 Star Theater).
-Visit your local library! SF Nert is hosting a variety of (SFPL Richmond Branch, 351 9th Ave.) Emergency Response events.
-Richmond Recreation Center has a For more information, please visit: variety of activities for everyone in the http://sf-fire.org/index.aspx?page=884 family. (251 18th Ave.)
Public Hearing on: Redistricting Task Force
Free Zumba/ Line Dancing Classes Date: Saturday February 11, Zumba: Tuesdays 8-9pm. 2012 Line Dancing: Thursdays 8-9pm Time: 2:00 p.m. Location: Richmond Village Beacon Location: Washington High (located on the George Washington High School School Campus near the entrance on (600 32nd Avenue) 30th Ave. and Anza)
More events hosted within the Richmond District can be found at: http://rdnc.org/home/index.php/involveme Many Events hosted in Golden nt/community-calendar.html Gate Park! Please visit: http://www.golden- gate-park.com/ to find out about Events held in GG park each month.
Supervisor Eric Mar | San Francisco City Hall, Room 284, San Francisco, CA 94102 | phone 415.554.7410| fax 415.554.7415
Spring 2012 Newsletter CREDITS:
Special Thanks to: Staff Changes
Introducing Victor Lim Catholic Charities CYO
I hope you will all join me in welcoming Victor Lim to the office of San Francisco Chronicle District One. Victor took up the Legislative Aide position for District
One on November 14 2011, taking over Lin Shao Chin‟s position. I Richmond District want to thank Lin Shao for her outstanding work and wish her the Neighborhood Center best in all her future endeavors.
Staff: Victor has taken on the responsibility of assisting me with ease. In Nickolas Pagoulatos particular, he is in charge of overseeing media relations, community Victor Lim relations, scheduling, and public committee work for District One. Keenith Chan
Shanti Prasad Victor is a native San Franciscan, born and raised in North Beach; Pavel Kniha he also spent two years living in the Richmond District. Victor Tony Chen attended Galileo Academy of Science and Technology, and holds a
double major degree in Asian Studies and Asian American Studies
from UC Berkeley. In addition, Victor is a talented linguist, who is
fluent in Mandarin, Cantonese and Toishan. Community Resources:
Victor comes to us from a rich background in public service: he - Richmond Public Library began his career at City Hall as a part time Legislative Aide for the
President of the Board of Supervisors, and prior to that, Victor - Richmond Recreation worked as a dedicated Community Law Advocate for the Asian Law Center Caucus on naturalization issues with low income migrants. I am
certain that Victor will serve the District One constituents with dedication and commitment. We welcome Victor to the team.
Our Russian Speaking Interns Pavel and Andrei
I am happy to announce that for this year we will have two Russian- speaking interns: Pavel Kniha and Andrei Jingan. Russian speaking constituents can call or drop into our office on Tuesdays afternoons to speak with Pavel. We will be glad to help you.
Уважаемые жители Ричмонда! В офисе Члена Совета Депутатов Эрика Мара есть русскоговорящие работники. Каждый вторник с 13.00 до 17.00 Вы можете обратиться в наш офис на русском языке, мы будем рады Вам помочь.
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If you have any questions or concerns, please call 415-554-7410 or send an email to [email protected]. Supervisor Eric Mar | San Francisco City Hall, Room 284, San Francisco, CA 94102 | phone 415.554.7410| fax 415.554.7415