The GrowSF Report: School Board to Focus on Outcomes
Plus: Monkeypox cases rising, and how water gets to SF
What You Need To Know
Here’s what happened around the city for the week of July 11, 2022:
- SF School District commits to focus on student outcomes
- Monkeypox cases rising in SF, vaccines in short supply
- How water gets to San Francisco
- JFK Promenade on the ballot in November
SF School District commits to focusing on student outcomes
Before the historic recall, San Francisco’s school board seemed to focus on performative equity initiatives, micromanaging staff, and political infighting. The new school board, under the leadership of President Jenny Lam, has so far put that aside and is committing to focus on what matters most: improving student outcomes. It’s a welcome change.
Monkeypox cases rising in SF, vaccines in short supply
State Senator Scott Wiener sounds the alarm about another impending public crisis. San Francisco is extremely low on monkeypox vaccine doses just as cases are beginning to rise, creating a perfect storm that could see the outbreak spiral out of control.
San Francisco currently has the highest case rate in the country. 4,163 vaccines will arrive in SF next week, but that’s about 10% of what we need. What can you do to help? Attend this event on Monday to demand more vaccines be made available now.
How water gets to San Francisco
The San Francisco Standard is out with an interactive explainer showing how San Francisco gets its water. The bottom line is that the water itself comes from the Sierra Nevada mountains, and the complicated transportation system of reservoirs and pipelines allows the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission to control most of the water that sustains the entire Bay Area.
JFK Promenade on the ballot in November
The ink has barely dried on the bill that made the JFK Promenade permanent, and already a measure to kill it has qualified for the November ballot. If it passes, it would return car traffic to the JFK Promenade. And sadly, it would prevent the long-planned closure of the Great Highway Extension which is required for climate change adaptation.
GrowSF strongly opposes this measure. It’s a mistake to end these beautiful new safe spaces in Golden Gate Park. In addition, keeping the Great Highway Extension open indefinitely would be fiscally irresponsible: sea-level rise will soon make it expensive and dangerous to maintain alongside the vital wastewater treatment plant nearby. The closure of the Great Highway Extension has been in the works for almost a decade, and this ballot measure would force the city to spend untold amounts maintaining this infrastructure indefinitely.
Watch for our November Voter Guide and vote NO on this measure.
Your Action Plan
Now that you know what’s happening, help us shape what happens next:
Rec & Parks Summer Play Day at KC Jones Playground
Enjoy some fun and FREE activities for kids at the annual summer Play Day, held on July 20th at the KC Jones Playground in Bayview. There will be live entertainment, carnival rides, sports, a rock wall and much more! More info, including opportunities to volunteer, can be found here.
GrowSF happy hour July 20
GrowSF is hosting its monthly happy hour at the Orbit Room on Market Street, this coming Wednesday (July 20th) at 6:30 PM. Meet the volunteers and leaders that have made the organization successful, and that will be instrumental in making SF an even more amazing city.
GrowSF summer picnic on July 24
If a bar is not your preferred scene, enjoy a picnic with the GrowSF team instead! GrowSF is hosting a family-friendly picnic in Dolores Park on Sunday, July 24th at 11 AM PST. Come meet other folks who love San Francisco and want to see the city grow. We will provide drinks and pizza.
Celebrate San Francisco
There’s a lot to love about our city. Here’s what makes it great:
Tunnel Top Park opens tomorrow in the Presidio
After 8 years and over $100M, a new park is open to visitors starting tomorrow. At 14-acres, this park is larger than Dolores, and boasts places to congregate, educational exhibits and areas where you can just pause and take in the gorgeous views.
Places to enjoy outdoor dining this week
One silver lining for the pandemic was the creation of outdoor dining options, which GrowSF fought to keep once the threat of COVID receded. SF travel has a list of restaurants where you can continue to enjoy dining al fresco - check it out and go have a bite! But remember: this is still SF, so it’s probably a good idea to bring a light jacket!
The best boba in San Francisco
Boba is the best! And the best boba is a study in contrasts: warm boba in a cool tea. A chewy texture within a smooth, silky liquid. A pleasant flavor that is sweet, but not exceptionally so. With so many excellent boba places, don’t settle for mediocre. Check out this list of the best boba shops in the Bay Area, and get your boba on!
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Topical Tweets
Yes, there is good stuff on Twitter. Here’s some of it:
Peter Hartlaub highlights the resistance to change that has historically been a feature of the SF psyche. Even our beloved Transamerica Pyramid, which is now synonymous with SF, was protested prior to construction. Growth requires change, and while that may be hard at the moment, the results are almost always worth it.
