Editor:
My first visit to Sunset Dunes was a remarkable experience. It doesn’t feel like a road anymore – it feels like an open-air community center. Kids riding bikes, couples walking hand in hand, seniors strolling with an ocean view. The energy is joyful and inviting. Sunset Dunes offers something rare – a shared public space that fosters togetherness and well-being.
We have this park today because a southern stretch of the Great Highway, just past Sloat, is rapidly eroding into the ocean. The state ordered its closure for safety reasons. That meant drivers were going to lose that direct route to Daly City and would need to reroute inland regardless.
So what should happen to the middle section of the highway, the part with no direct car access into the Sunset? That’s what Proposition K addressed, and it allowed this stretch to be reimagined as a park.
The northern portion of the Upper Great Highway, connecting the Sunset and Richmond districts, remains open to cars 24/7. No one is being cut off from schools, hospitals or family.
Yes, traffic is a concern. But the early congestion is easing. Drivers are adjusting, and engineers at City Hall have made improvements – like better routing around Golden Gate Park. Lincoln Way and Sunset Boulevard have received upgrades that make them more efficient arterials. And traffic levels in the area are still below pre-pandemic levels.
That’s not to say there haven’t been growing pains. But Supervisor Joel Engardio has worked hard to improve traffic circulation and pedestrian safety. One example: The traffic light at 41st Avenue and Lincoln was installed in just a few months, a process that typically takes years. He’s also actively relaying community feedback to city agencies to fine-tune this signal and others to maximize traffic flow.
Some critics have launched a recall against Supervisor Engardio because of his support for Prop. K. I understand that people feel strongly about this issue, but one disagreement shouldn’t justify a recall.
Engardio has delivered real results for District 4. He led the ballot initiative to bring Algebra back to middle schools. He helped launch the popular night markets. He holds workshops to protect seniors from financial scams. He has strengthened public safety by bringing foot patrols to the Sunset that didn’t exist before his term. And most recently, he introduced legislation to help lower-income families in the Sunset build and sell backyard units, giving seniors a way to age in place and young people a path to homeownership.
If you’re unsure about the park, I encourage you to visit. You’ll see kids laughing, families gathering, artists sketching. Black Bird Bookstore reports a 20% sales boost since the park opened. Andytown Coffee had its best sales day ever in April.
Sunset Dunes is a park in progress. Instead of relitigating the past through a costly recall, let’s build a stronger future for the west side.
Jason Chan, a San Francisco resident who previously served as senior policy advisor to the late Mayor Ed Lee.
Categories: letter to the editor
Richmond Review/Sunset Beacon 
To quote Janet Mills, Governor of Maine: “See you in court”. CEQA applies here and was wrongly ignored
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“a San Francisco resident who previously served as senior policy advisor to the late Mayor Ed Lee.”
I think I speak for a lot of SF locals when I say Ed Lee’s corruption remains ALMOST ENTIRELY UNINIVESTIGATED.
That’s all.
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You’ve got the Sunset Dunes Kool-Aid in one hand and a “Joel Delivers” brochure in the other. But let’s look at what’s really in the fine print, shall we?
Algebra? That wasn’t Joel’s crusade. As one longtime advocate wrote, many parents fought for years to bring Algebra back before Engardio even bothered to care. He didn’t lead; he tagged along after being nudged by SF Guardians. (https://richmondsunsetnews.com/2025/05/12/letter-to-the-editor-let-the-people-vote-on-the-recall-of-engardio/)
Night markets? You mean the performative pop-up with out-of-town vendors on the Great Highway? That had nothing to do with supporting local merchants and everything to do with boosting Prop K. Actual merchant groups from Taraval, Irving, and Noriega don’t trust him anymore. That’s why those night markets fizzled out. (souhttps://richmondsunsetnews.com/2025/05/08/letter-to-the-editor-open-letter-to-joel-engardio-2/rce)
Public safety? Another hollow promise. Look at the data: police ambassadors were around for only 3 days in April 2025. That’s not leadership that’s abandonment. (souhttps://richmondsunsetnews.com/2025/04/29/letter-to-the-editor-engardios-broken-safety-promise/rce)
And about those “affordable” backyard ADUs Joel keeps touting Who is he trying to kid? This is San Francisco! Building anything here costs a fortune. Permitting alone can take years and tens of thousands of dollars. Contractors are backed up. Insurance is high. And unless you’re sitting on a double lot (which most of us aren’t), these so-called “affordable units” are nothing but a pipe dream wrapped in YIMBY buzzwords. Most Sunset homes are attached, sharing walls and narrow lots. My own home, for example, doesn’t even have a side alley. Someone living in a backyard shack would literally have to walk through my house to get to their front door. Who feels safe or comfortable with that? It’s not housing it’s chaos waiting to happen. Joel’s vision here isn’t pragmatic it’s delusional.
So what if Andytown and Blackbird are booming? Good for them sincerely. But I’ve never even stepped foot in those places. Not because I don’t want to, but because I can’t. I’m a middle-aged single man who’s been taking care of my elderly, frail parents and relatives since my 30s. I’ve put my personal life on hold. I don’t have time for coffee dates or pop-up art walks. My days are spent shuttling between doctor’s appointments, physical therapy, senior activity drop-offs, grocery runs, rinse and repeat.
Life is hard out here for a lot of us. I’m not against parks or community joy. But let’s be honest: these glossy, idealized depictions don’t speak for working-class caregivers, seniors on fixed incomes, or families stuck in traffic just trying to make it through another exhausting day. We deserve real solutions not repackaged road closures disguised as “public space.”
Let’s be honest: every pro-Engardio letter has one thing in common none of these people speak for working-class, everyday families. You don’t see parents juggling two jobs, stuck in traffic on Sunset, or racing to get their kids to school writing glowing op-eds about “Sunset Dunes.”
Why? Because they don’t have energy / time to play cheerleader for a supervisor who’s made their lives harder. The average Sunset resident isn’t sipping lattes while sketching ocean views. They’re dealing with real consequences from Engardio’s policies. And they’re not being heard.
Also — let me just say this: This is the fourth article singing the praises of this fake park. Do you and the other Engardio shills really think that if you keep repeating the same glossy talking points, we’ll eventually go away? Wrong.
We’re not going anywhere. But thanks for giving us yet another opportunity to call out the spin and show how deeply disconnected you are from what’s actually happening in this neighborhood.
Sunset Dunes might be a park in progress, but this recall is a reckoning.
We’ll see you at the ballot box.
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Thank you, Jason Fong. Well said.
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I am not a resident of D4 so I can’t vote in the recall. I voted no on prop K because years ago my children went to schools in the area because of the SFUSD lottery. I used the highway a lot because Sunset and 19th were congested. I’m glad those days are long gone.
I am writing to address the Algebra I myth. This was a ten year fight.The district delayed it to 9th in the fall of 2014 and then spent years lying about its success.
I made public data requests for years until finally in June 2021 I received the data which showed the district was lying which was the start in bringing the house of cards down.
There was a lawsuit filed against the district in 2023 because they were violating the math placement act with their punitive math validation test ( MVT). This is what really forced the district to remove the delay.
In February 2024 the board of education voted to return Algebra I to 8th grade, admitting this was a boondoggle. https://go.boarddocs.com/ca/sfusd/Board.nsf/goto?open&id=D233NV07BDDC
The non binding ballot measure Prop G was in March 2024. A month after the district voted to return it.
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Well stated Jason Fong. Jason Chan is just echoing the PR stuff from Engardio that wasn’t persuasive in the past and continues to not be in the present nor will be in the future.
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…Spot on, thank you; and I add that Joel Engardio deliberately went to great lengths not to hear, not even attempt to hear, from thousands of his own constituents and to deliberately mislead others. This is one form of disenfranchisement, of denying representation, to his own constituents. Not even an opportunity given to re-visit the compromise in any way. Perhaps a supporter might like the outcome this particular time, but what about the next time representation is denied, that’s sure to come, and likely already in the works, which won’t be liked? I am not willing to trade my right to representation to this Engardio or other Engardios of this world who wish to rule by deceit and disenfranchisement, no matter what political flavor they happen to claim supports their “I-know-what’s-best-for-you” behavior. RECALL Engardio; get true representation for the Sunset.
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Jason Chan — how does adding 14,000 to 20,000 cars to SF Sunset streets improve pedestrian and cyclist safety? The new volume of stop-and-go traffic along Sunset Blvd. passes St. Ignatius and AP Giannini every school day, as one example.
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I am a D4 resident who has lived along the beach for multiple decades, and I have a public service announcement :
The author is a delusional paid mouthpeice for a roasted weasel being skewered on a pitchfork because they lied.
That is all.
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The Permanent Closure of the Great Highway Is a Mistake
The decision to permanently close the Great Highway has created far more harm than good for Sunset residents and Westside commuters. What was promised as a win for recreation and climate has turned into longer commutes, more accidents, increased pollution, and growing public frustration.
The Great Highway was never just a road—it was a vital north-south artery connecting the Sunset District, Richmond District, Daly City, and South San Francisco to the rest of the city. Its abrupt closure forced thousands of drivers onto Sunset Boulevard and residential streets, many of which were never designed to handle that volume of traffic. This shift has increased collisions and made key intersections more dangerous, while the city has failed to release traffic data from recently installed counters or explain the rapid rollout of speed bumps across the district.
Now, things are about to get worse. Starting in June 2025, the city will launch a 27-month sewer construction project on 19th Avenue, with lane closures and diversions between Lincoln and Ortega. With the Great Highway already closed, one of the last major north-south corridors on the Westside will be under construction. More cars will be pushed onto Sunset Boulevard and residential streets, creating more congestion, confusion, and accidents—especially for commuters from Daly City and South San Francisco.
Supporters of the closure, including Supervisor Joel Engardio, claim it was necessary due to coastal erosion and to promote a car-free lifestyle. But this logic ignores practical solutions, like storm infrastructure upgrades or the previous compromise of weekend closures. It also assumes that driving is a luxury—when in reality, most drivers depend on their cars to get to jobs, school, or medical appointments. They don’t drive by choice—they drive out of necessity.
Environmental benefits haven’t materialized. Instead of cleaner air, we now have more emissions from gridlock and longer detours—right through the middle of our neighborhoods. The pollution once buffered by the coastline now lingers in front of homes and schools.
Financially, the city hasn’t saved money—it’s spent more. Speed bumps, traffic studies, and ongoing infrastructure repairs are all reactionary costs that could have been avoided had the Great Highway stayed open during weekday commutes.
Finally, we must talk about the broken promises. Voters were told before the November 2024 election that the existing compromise would be honored through the end of 2025. But after Prop K passed, Joel Engardio fast-tracked the permanent closure without fulfilling that promise. It was a bait-and-switch that has deeply eroded public trust.
This isn’t just about closing a road—it’s about removing vital infrastructure without a clear plan, while ignoring the voices of the communities most affected. We deserve transparency, data, and real input. The city must revisit its decision before even more damage is done.
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What a joke! The Great Highway is barely being used unless it’s a sunny Saturday or Sunday. During commute hours Monday through Friday it’s almost empty while Sunset Blvd., 19th Ave & a lot of the lower Sunset are packed with traffic. This was one of the lamest ideas the City has ever pushed.
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“The City” didn’t push it – developer gentrification Billionaires pushed it, under the premise and test case of removing all environmental review from construction.
These *stards know where their bread comes pre-buttered and care about nothing else. Engardio is just the latest in a line of increasingly willing sellouts.
But we defeated Breed. We will defeat them too.
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I sincerely hope we do.
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Absolutely. Thank you.
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