The GrowSF Report: Marjan Philhour files to run for District 1 Supervisor
The GrowSF Report: Marjan Philhour files to run for District 1 Supervisor
PLUS: Will dumping Progressives in 2024 fix SF’s problems?
What You Need To Know
Here’s what happened around the city for the week of October 30, 2023:
- Marjan Philhour files to run for District 1 Supervisor
- Will dumping Progressives in 2024 fix SF’s problems?
- Supervisor Mandelman proposes new authority for Mayor
- Supervisor Dorsey’s proposal to fully staff police faces pushback from Supervisor Safaí
PLUS:
- New 2-Day night market coming to SF Chinatown
- Free first Tuesday game night at The Detour
Marjan Philhour files to run for District 1 Supervisor
Marjan Philhour has thrown her hat into the ring for District 1 Supervisor. She’s running on a common sense platform “putting public safety at the heart of her campaign,” reports Annie Gaus at The Standard. Philhour “cited burglaries and break-ins at local businesses, along with high-profile incidents such as a registered sex offender camping outside a school while advertising fentanyl” as reasons for running against Chan a second time.
District 1 includes the Richmond, Seacliff, Presidio Terrace, Lone Mountain, parts of Golden Gate Park, and the University of San Francisco (among other neighborhoods), and is currently represented by Connie Chan. GrowSF supported Philhour in the 2020 election, which she lost by a slim 125 votes.
Will dumping Progressives in 2024 fix SF’s problems?
Emily Hoeven at The Chronicle asks: “Will dumping progressives in 2024 fix S.F.’s problems?” We certainly think it’s a necessary first step.
Few problems can be solved overnight, especially given the inertia San Francisco’s bad governance has, but dumping progressives for common-sense leaders is sure to make a difference.
Aaron Peskin, the longest serving Progressive in SF government, says that voters will judge elected officials on their record, not their ideology. Unfortunately for Peskin, his record has been one of utter dysfunction and rapidly declining quality of life. But luckily for the rest of us, a growing chorus of San Francisco voters say the city is off track, but we can fix it by electing common sense people.
In Emily’s own words, voters “want public officials who prioritize results over rhetoric, who focus on the basics before abstract ideals & who work together on commonsense solutions instead of decrying the concept of compromise.”
Supervisor Mandelman proposes new authority for Mayor
As we reported a few weeks ago, San Francisco is not a “Strong Mayor” city. And we’re already starting to see progress to fix this. Enter: Rafael Mandelman’s proposed charter amendment to restore some of the Mayor’s power.
“These common-sense reforms will help city government act more like a unified whole rather than a collection of loosely affiliated departments,” said Supervisor Mandelman, as reported in The Standard.
The measure attempts to address government inefficiencies and expand executive authority to get stuff done.
It would:
allow the Mayor to hire Deputy Mayors–who could then help streamline complementary areas of government function
restore the ability for the Mayor to fire and hire department heads, a power currently held by many unelected commissions
grant veto power to the Mayor over Board appointees to commissions, when the Board has the same authority to reject mayoral appointees (though we think neither body should have a veto over the other’s nominees)
allow the Mayor to invoke emergency powers–just like at the onset of the pandemic–for hiring and contracting to address crises (such as homelessness)
We are intrigued by Mandelman’s proposal and are looking forward to learning more. If you’re curious, you can read Mandelman’s full announcement.
Supervisor Dorsey’s proposal to fully staff police faces pushback from Supervisor Safaí
A fully funded police department means nothing if we can’t actually recruit and retain good officers, so Supervisor Dorsey introduced a measure to achieve just that. His measure increases San Francisco’s uncompetitive (and laughably small) hiring bonuses so we can tempt new officers away from other Bay Area cities.
But Supervisor Safaí seems to think hiring cops is a bad idea and introduced a poison-pill amendment, writes Mike Ege at the Standard, at the behest of the SEIU union (where Safaí served as their political director before being elected). The union’s contract is up for renewal next year and the union reps think more money to cops means less money for them.
We’re disappointed that Supervisor Safaí would hold public safety hostage like this.
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Your Action Plan
Now that you know what’s happening, help us shape what happens next:
Tell Aaron Peskin: We don’t want you to run for Mayor
There are rumors that Aaron Peskin is considering a run for Mayor, and we think that there could be no worse outcome than the architect of San Francisco’s dysfunction failing upward. If you think the longest serving elected official should just retire and let better people step up, sign our petition calling for Peskin to not run for mayor!
Hear how the Board of Ed has been making progress
Learn more about District 1 candidate Marjan Philhour
Interested in learning more about Marjan Philhour? You can attend her launch party to hear more and ask her questions about her policies.
The Spirit of San Francisco
There’s a lot to love about our city and the Bay Area. Here’s what makes it great. Brought to you by The Bold Italic.
What we’re doing this week
New 2-Day night market coming to SF Chinatown
WHERE: Two-block stretch of Grant Avenue between Pine and Sacramento streets.
WHEN: Nov. 10 and Nov. 11, 5 p.m. - 9 p.m.
After the smashing success of the Sunset’s night market on Irving Street in September, we can’t get enough of them! Next Saturday and Sunday, November 11 & 12, a night market is coming to Chinatown.
BeChinatown has organized the event along Grant Avenue between Bush and Sacramento Streets from 5-9 pm. Visitors can expect to be dazzled under the signature red lanterns.
Lily Lo, the founder of BeChinatown, said that visitors can feast on “...egg tart, pork bun and other pre-made Chinese favorites along a two-block stretch of Grant Avenue,” reports George Kelly and Han Li in The Standard.
In addition, another night market is being held every Friday evening in the Fillmore District through December 15. Patrons can enjoy live music, games, and good food, including smoked barbecue. Yum! The night market will take place on O'Farrell Street between Fillmore and Steiner streets.
With all this activity and yummy food in store for us, San Francisco is slowly transforming into a city with a nightlife. Finally!
Free first Tuesday game night at The Detour
Paid rent in SF? Hella Broke? Then first Tuesdays are the night for you. The Detour hosts “Free Play Tuesday” with all arcade games on free play with purchase from the bar. Come enjoy all the video game glory from today and yesteryear while enjoying delicious craft beer & cocktails.
WHEN: Tuesday, Nov. 7th all day
WHERE: The Detour 2200A Market St.
What we’re writing about
What I love about living in one of San Francisco’s worst neighborhoods
“Civic Center gets a bad rap, and since I’m about to say lots of nice things about it, let’s just get the negativity out of the way: yes, I’ve seen unhoused people, drug sales, and dirty streets in my neighborhood, in fact right at my doorstep. I even live across from Elon Musk’s short-lived experiment attempting to give us all seizures, and I walk this neighborhood every day.
My head is not in the sand, okay? I’ve lived here since 2020, and I think San Francisco’s collective groaning about this neighborhood greatly overshadows its bright spots. Civic Center is a bustling neighborhood full of young professionals, families and — in my premium Grindr-based opinion — more gay people these days than The Castro.”
Castro Halloween’s triumphant and low-key return made us smile
We expected huge crowds, street closures, and barricades, but the family-friendly Halloween as promised by organizers is mostly what we got on Saturday. Obviously we still saw lots of people. To our eyes though, it felt like a regular Halloween weekend in our city’s queerest neighborhood.
Michelin-starred Korean cuisine on Polk Street gets a facelift
Their swoon-worthy fried chicken and uni boxes were a lifeline in pandemic, and their pivot since reopening to modern Korean tasting menu format has swiftly earned them a Michelin star in December 2022. But what is the reinvented SSAL like in its remodeled, more refined, soothing space?
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