Earlier this week, the Mayor announced legislation to impose a curfew on Tenderloin businesses, forcing any business that sells “pre-packaged food items and/or produce” to close from midnight to 5:00 am for the next two years. The Mayor’s office did not discuss the ordinance with our office. We learned about it from media coverage. We immediately requested a copy of the legislation and a list of all impacted businesses. Yesterday, I visited Tenderloin shop owners, including corner stores that have served the community for decades. Most are immigrant-owned businesses. None we spoke with had been consulted about the legislation and they were understandably alarmed. Small businesses in the Tenderloin are struggling and deserve to be at the table for decisions impacting them.

Black History Month is an opportunity to celebrate, acknowledge, and reflect on the immeasurable contributions of Black Americans, while also honoring the legacies and achievements of generations past, acknowledging centuries of injustice, and confronting both the past and ongoing injustices that continue to exist today. As we celebrate, we must also continue to support the ongoing struggle to achieve and ensure racial and economic justice.

Our office received your email on Thursday, January 4, 2023, that Safeway intends to close the Webster Street grocery store “on or around early March. “ We are extremely concerned with the potential loss of this grocery store in the heart of the Fillmore, and especially the possibility of losing it as soon as March. This is an essential site for neighbors to buy groceries, and to access a pharmacy and banking services. Closure, especially on less than 60 days notice, would impose severe hardship, particularly on seniors who rely on this store.

Yesterday, my office welcomed the news that the Mayor’s office has selected an applicant to reopen and operate the Fillmore Heritage Center, located at Fillmore and Eddy in the Western Addition. This is a crucial institution in the heart of the Fillmore, and its preservation and activation has been a top priority for our office. The announcement marks a major step forward toward reactivation and ensuring that the building will be maintained for the benefit of the community for generations to come.

I’m writing to register my objection to the SFMTA staff recommendation to eliminate two days of the three-day weekend closure to private vehicle traffic on Hayes Street, item 10.2.A on the agenda for the SFMTA Board meeting of Tuesday, October 17, 2023.

I wanted to provide some additional clarity on my views on the violence escalating in the Middle East.

I’m heartbroken by the recent violence and mourn the hundreds of Israelis and Palestinians killed this weekend. I reject the targeting of unarmed people, apartment buildings, and other nonmilitary targets, which are clear violations of international law.

Today is the final day of our Covid-related eviction ban in San Francisco. What changes now is that the pandemic era eviction ban will not cover rent payments that become due after August 29, 2023. If you cannot pay rent, or if you have received any type of eviction notice, you should get help from a tenant counselor or tenant attorney immediately.

We can and should seize the opportunity of Magistrate Ryu’s ruling to honestly address the problem of homelessness in San Francisco. Instead of political rallies and judicial appeals, we believe that the Mayor, who administers and controls San Francisco’s homeless services, should be doing everything possible to do outreach and make available adequate shelter and housing.

Last week, the Budget and Appropriations Committee approved a budget that improves the Mayor’s budget, especially in the areas of tenant outreach, housing for families and transitional age youth, early education, domestic violence services, reparations, trans initiatives, homelessness, overdose prevention, and living wages for workers. 

Letter to Director McSpadden Regarding the Acquisition of Permanent Supportive Housing in District 5