District
Five Candidates Questionnaire
Subject: PROSF - District
Five Candidates Questionnaire
Links: http://www.sf5.info
/ http://www.csfn.net
/ http://www.csrsf.com
DAN KALB
Please take time
to fill out this...
CANDIDATE QUESTIONNAIRE FROM PROSF (Panhandle/Haight)
Boundaries of PROSF
(Panhandle Residents Organization Stanyan Fulton) are roughly Stanyon,
Masonic, Fulton and Fell Streets. Within, bordering or close by
are the John Adams Campus of City College, University of San Francisco
and UCSF: St. Mary's Hospital and UCSF Hospital; Golden Gate Park
and the Panhandle; and the business communities of Hayes Street,
Haight-Ashbury and the Fulton Market Plaza complex that includes
Albertson's.
These businesses
and institutions provide a substantial percentage of the City's
jobs (UCSF alone has more than 10,000 employees). Like most of District
5, this area has roughly 30% home owners and 60% renters. It also
has one of the City's highest densities of Residential Care Facilities.
It is directly served by the Hayes, Fulton, Masonic and Stanyan
bus lines. It is also convenient to the Haight Street bus lines
and the N Judah Light Rail Vehicle Line.
The greatest concern
of voters within this rectangle can be summed up as a decreasing
quality of life in the neighborhood. This is embodied by environmental
deterioration (noise and light pollution, litter, trash and graffiti).
It is also embodied by an increase of small crimes including drug
dealing and "quality of life" crimes such as public urination
and defecation, sleeping on the streets and public drunkenness.
Neighborhood businesses
have been closing, to be replaced by chains and businesses catering
to the tourist market. Neighborhood restaurants have a low rate
of survival. Neighborhood services such as drug stores, banks, cleaners
and book stores have decreased. Erratic and infrequent public transportation
coupled with a severe shortage of parking and obstruction by delivery
vehicles makes getting around increasingly difficult.
PROSF would like
to know your vision for our district. We will post your answers
on our email board. Thank you!
DAN KALB
PLEASE RESPOND:
1.
Do I have a clear, written plan for improving the quality of life
in the 5th District? What do I consider Quality of Life issues to
be and how do I prioritize them?
I am developing a set of forward-thinking policy briefs that deal
with specific, mostly "quality of life" issues. These
will include briefs on (a) pedestrian safety and livable communities,
(b) affordable housing, (c) access to quality health care, (d) MUNI
infrastructure and services, (e) public safety, (f) helping the
homeless, (g) civil rights, (h) environmental protection, (i) neighborhood
care, and (j) better government.
The over-arching theme of my campaign is to genuinely improve the
public's trust and confidence in our local government. I have a
four-point plan to help accomplish this. My plan includes improving
customer service at city departments, engaging all elected officials
in City Hall in meaningful community service projects, creating
and following public procedures for solving neighborhood-based problems
within the City's jurisdiction, and having well-publicized town-hall
listening sessions on a regular basis with district residents. I
also support strict adherence to our local "Sunshine"
laws.
Additionally, I have real-world experience in getting a stop sign
put in, organizing the removal of graffiti off a beautiful mural,
planting trees in various neighborhoods. and other neighborhood
quality of life issues and community service projects. I was the
founding chair of the Democratic County Central Committee's Community
Service committee.
I want to require the City to create a Pedestrian Master Plan that
is not jsut a wish list, but an implementation guide on making our
city more friendly to pedestrians (and bicyclists).
All my plans will be up on my website <www.dankalb.net> later
this month.
2.
Does my plan address public transportation and parking? Reducing
delivery truck obstruction of streets?
Yes, of course. MUNI infrastructure is one of my top priority issue
areas.
I would increase selected parking fees and earmark most of those
funds to MUNI in order to improve/expand service (or at least avoid
service cutbacks). I will support the establishment of a Transit
Assessment District to create a dedicated source of funding for
MUNI operations.
I strongly support the institution of Bus Rapid Transit and the
creation of additional transit-only lanes along key corridors. Moreover,
I support the expansion of a regional express bus system to make
it more inviting to commute by means other than private automobiles.
I am a 10-year member of the S.F. Bicycle Coalition. The biggest
reason why more people don't ride their bikes within San Francisco
is that they don't feel safe. We need to expand bike lanes, create
bike paths where feasible, and fine drivers for driving unsafely
when cyclists are present. I support requiring large private employers
and large office building owners to provide amenities for cyclists
as a way to make it more inviting for some people to bike to work.
Making it more inviting to ride a bicycle will help get some people
out of their cars.
Work with MTC, BAAQMD and private employers to implement a private
employer 'parking cash-out' program that would incentivize people
to not take their car to work.
The issue of delivery trucks double parking for extended periods
of time must also be addressed. Stricter enforcement of existing
double parking laws would be a good start. Identifying existing
parking spaces that can be designated loading zones during business
hours would also improve the situation.
3. Does my plan address relationship
with the Police regarding broader neighborhood outreach, drug dealing
and "quality of life" crimes?
I am a supporter of Community Policing. This needs to become a stronger
component of our City's public safety system.
I support the Sheriff Department's Resolve to Stop Violence Project
(RSVP), High School Education in the Jail program, and the Post-Release
Education Program (PREP) as smart, innovative programs to reduce
violence in our community.
All crimes are subject to consequences; however, the Police Department
must focus on the most serious and violent crimes as it's top priority.
Nevertheless, in order to increase their effectiveness, the Police
must do substantial neighborhood outreach to gain the on-going respect
of city residents.
4. Does my plan address the problem
of homelessness particularly in Golden Gate Park and the Panhandle?
Homelessness is a city-wide and region-wide problem and needs to
be addressed accordingly. I strongly support the effort by Angela
AliotoÕs Ten-Year Homelessness Planning Council. They have
come up with a number of very positive steps that the City could
and should take to end long-term homelessness in our City. While
implementation of that plan won't solve the entire problem, it will
go along way to help many of those who have been living on the streets
(including along the Panhandle) for a long time.
First-and-foremost, any effective program to address homelessness
must include the creation of supportive housing that includes sufficient
hands-on services for the residents. I support the bond measure
on this fall's ballot that includes $90 million for supportive housing.
I want to work with the Mayor and local businesses and other interested
parties in coming up with a source of dedicated funding to make
sure that present and future supportive housing facilities have
enough staffing to offer the necessary services that will help move
people away from homelessness and into a more comfortable role in
society.
As a Supervisor, I will strongly support making sure that any set
of proposals to help the homeless include the institution of 24-hour
availability of psychiatric services. These services must be accessible
in different parts of the City and over the phone. This will be
one of my priorities as a Supervisor vis-a-vis the homeless population.
I do not support efforts to demonize homeless individuals. The homeless
problem is not merely a problem of visual discomfort or intermittent
annoyance. It must be seen as a problem of how to help these individuals
who are living extremely difficult lives on a day-to-day basis.
I will be coming out with a more detailed homeless plan later in
the summer.
5. Does my plan address environmental
issues such as street noise, loud concerts in the parks (presently
part of continuing negotiations with the Recreation and Park Department),
litter and trash in streets and parks, inadequate street and sidewalk
cleaning in the Haight? Will I support City and private agencies
dedicated to improving the local environment?
Yes - Excessive noise is a very real quality-of-life problem in
some neighborhoods. I look forward to working with Rec and Park,
local businesses and active neighborhood associations in addressing
noise issues in a fair and balanced manner.
I am and will continue to be a very strong supporter of regular
street sweeping and sidewalk cleaning. In addition to stepping up
sidewalk cleaning by the City along Haight street, I would support
some type of realistic, cost-effective incentive system for all
local businesses to keep the sidewalks in front of their business
free from litter/trash.
I have participated in community clean-ups in the Western Addition,
Panhandle, and Inner Sunset neighborhoods.
I want to make sure that nonprofit groups such as Friends of the
Urban Forest receive the necessary support from the City to be effective
in beautifying our streetscapes.
6. Does my plan include strict Environmental Impact Statements for
all proposed City and individual Development Programs and projects?
Strict requirements for adequate parking facilities in all new development?
Maintenance of neighborhood character regarding height and density?
I have read and analyzed dozens of EIRs during my career as a Sierra
Club staffer and environmental advocate. Proposed projects of significant
size generally require an EIR. If a Negative Declaration, or Mitigated
Neg Dec is requested, it must be evaluated with a heavy burden of
proof on the party wishing to avoid a full-blown EIR. EIRs must
be used to genuinely address environmental concerns by identifying
real impacts and requiring substantial mitigation and modifications
of the project to lessen or eliminate those harmful impacts.
I am committed to looking at parking requirements for new projects
on a case-by-case basis. I don't want to willy-nilly remove all
parking requirements all over town. However, parking spaces do add
to the cost of new housing and not every renter in our City owns
an automobile.
I want to create, support and then evaluate a pilot program that
might have reduced parking requirements in a couple neighborhoods
that are sufficiently served my MUNI. I believe that substantial
increases in housing should be planned in proportion to and concurrent
with increases in transit services and improvements in other necessary
infrastructure.
Retaining neighborhood character is something I support. I have
always opposed new chain stores in the Haight and Inner Sunset neighborhoods,
and will continue to oppose out-of-city chains in our neighborhoods.
We must support our locally-owned businesses whenever possible.
I support Supervisor Gonzalez's formula retail legislation that
applies to the Hayes Valley and Cole Valley neighborhood business
districts.
I believe that additional housing is needed in most areas of the
City and throughout much of the urbanized areas of the Bay Area.
Accordingly, I believe that modest increases in density are inevitable
in most parts of town. The question is how do we "plan"
for them. We must make sure that sufficient services (including
transit) and infrastructure are planned and put into place in proportion
to and concurrent with new housing developments.
I support increases in the Impact Development fees charged to developers
in order to better fund transit services as well as park maintenance,
school renovations, etc.
I also will insist upon better coordination among the various departments
responsible for planning and servicing our neighborhoods.
7. Does my plan support small businesses
and include Ombudsman services for dealing with City agencies? Ombudsman
services for residents to guide them through the Planning Department,
Recreation and Park Department, Board of Permit Appeals, Departments
of Public Health, Inspections and Traffic?
Absolutely yes! I supported the Small Business Commission Charter
Amendment and want to work with the Commission to make sure we develop
and implement a program to provide zero-interest loans to locally-owned
businesses that meet certain social and environmental responsibility
criteria.
I very much support having an ombudsperson in key departments to
help guide people through our permitting processes. This is a necessary
component of improving the relationship between the public and City
Hall.
I have opposed and will continue to oppose new chain stores in district
5 neighborhoods--especially chain stores that directly compete with
existing locally-owned retail businesses.
8. Does my plan include City efforts to promote and facilitate an
increase in home ownership in the 5th District (one of the areas
of lowest home ownership in the City)? Does my plan include City
efforts to reduce conflict between tenants and landlords and provide
mediation services to avoid expensive lawsuits?
Affordable housing is one of my very top priorities. As an active
member of the San Francisco Housing Action Coalition (representing
San Francisco Tomorrow), I have been involved in promoting the construction
of new housing to facilitate some additional ownership opportunities.
I am a very strong proponent of creating new "limited equity"
housing opportunities throughout our City. I support the proposed
Community Land Trust model and I will make it a top priority as
a Supervisor to provide funding and create incentives to construct
new limited equity housing (i.e. Limited Equity coops) in our City.
We need to provide new ownership opportunities without substantially
reducing the affordable rental housing stock in our City. I strongly
support the Affordable and Supportive Housing Bond measure slated
for the November ballot.
I have ten years experience as a neighborhood mediator through Community
Boards--and a number of the disputes that I dealt with directly
were conflicts between landlords and tenants. I've found that many
conflicts can be resolved with better communication and understanding.
As a Supervisor, I will take a leadership role in providing funding
for city and nonprofit dispute resolution services.
9. Finally, if I am elected 5th District Supervisor, will you be
able to contact me and will I pledge to respond to local 5th District
needs? Will I attend neighborhood association meeting, 5-Together
and Coalition for San Francisco Neighborhoods meetings? Will I be
accessible to all your constituents?
Yes! In fact, I have a four-point plan to help improve the public's
confidence and trust in City Hall. One of my points is to have ten
"town hall" listening sessions per year in the district.
These will not be ordinary town hall community meetings. These will
be co-sponsored by key nonprofit or neighborhood groups and will
seek to engage the district 5 public in a sincere, meaningful fashion.
I am making a commitment to spend at least 75% of the time at these
meetings genuinely listening and taking notes on people's ideas
and concerns.
I will certainly meet with my district constituents as much as needed,
and I will attend SF5 Together meetings on a frequent basis. I hope
to be invited to a number of various neighborhood association meetings--especially
neighborhood groups that are particularly active in their respective
neighborhood.
10. Tell you all about myself:
How long have I lived in District 5?
I have lived in district 5 for 16 years (20+ years in S.F.)
I also worked in the district for over 5 years as a staff supervisor
at the City College John Adams Campus.
Why
do I want to be Supervisor?
I feel that I am on a mission to improve the public's confidence
and trust in our local government. Not just as a feel good, academic
exercise, but because improving people's sense of what our local
government can accomplish will lead to support of bigger ideas to
addresses the many challengers we face as a city. We need the public
to support big efforts in city hall--new ideas that might mean significant
changes in how we plan our neighborhoods, or new revenue to fund
key programs such as our public health care system.
I also intend to be an environmental leader on the Board on a variety
of local and regional environmental issues. Other priorities include
(but are not limited to) pedestrian safety, affordable housing,
MUNI, and health care.
What
do I like most about District 5?
It's a diverse district with many activists who care about their
community. It also has several parks. I am a huge fan of parks and
I will strive to make sure they are protected and well-maintained.
What
areas would I focus on for improvement in District 5 and how?
One example is preserving the character of the Fillmore district
while revitalizing it at the same time is an important challenge
that I will take on in cooperation with the residents and business
owners in that neighborhood.
Also, most everything mentioned in previous questions (above).
What
do I think about neighborhood groups?
This is grassroots democracy in action. I want to use the existing
neighborhood association structure as my district 5 advisory council.
Genuinely empowering people is one of the keys to being able to
do bigger things in City Hall.
Please return questionnaires
to PROSF - 250 Ashbury Street, San Francisco CA 94117
or email questionnaire to <home@PROSF.org>.
Mary Helen Briscoe
MHBriscoe@PacBell.net
DAN
KALB
The Experienced Leader We Need to Make
City Government Work Better for
District 5 Residents and All San Franciscans
DAN KALB for Supervisor 5
fppc #1265026
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