The scary situation was on the last day of the three-day concert held at the Polo Field in Golden Gate Park in early August. Some 60,000 music fans were packed onto a field designed for polo ponies and mallet-wielding contestants to hear Dead & Company, an offshoot of the Grateful Dead.
As summer fades, I’m reminded that the ideal summer resort is where the fish bite and mosquitos don’t!
As a former supervisor for the district and an elected member of the San Francisco Democratic Party County Central Committee, I believe the Party made the right choice on Aug. 27th in voting to take a No Endorsement position.
As longtime residents of District 4, I and my neighbors feel compelled to speak out in defense of our current Supervisor, Joel Engardio, whose contributions to our community have been significant, responsible and visionary.
The lived experience of D-4 residents is peppered with impacts. Where we go, how we get there and what we do have become a complicated process of considering safety, transportation constraints, time and family well-being. We have reached a point where enough is enough.
In response to a looming budget shortfall (over $300 million), the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency has cut service from our western neighborhoods to Market Street – the 21 has been eliminated, and the 5 Fulton, the new 6 Hayes/Parnassus, and 31 Balboa no longer operate on Market Street.
Sunset District Supervisors Joel Engardio (D4) and Myrna Melgar (D7) were responsible for placing Proposition K on the ballot last year, which asked voters citywide whether they wished to have a new park out at the beach, thus rendering the permanent closure of the Upper Great Highway fait accompli. They did this even though the residents of District 4 and 7 overwhelmingly opposed the closure, which would massively disrupt many of their daily lives.
As one of the plaintiffs who sued SFUSD to bring Algebra back, I feel compelled to speak out because I can’t stand by while people erase the truth. That truth is this: Supervisor Joel Engardio played a critical role in finally pushing the district to act after years of delay.
Said an old lady to the Internal Revenue Service: “I do hope you will give my money to a nice country.”
Providing government-subsidized, drug-free supportive housing for those who want it is a common-sense step we can take right now to improve outcomes, save lives and better serve people who are trying to make a change.
I support Joel because I’ve experienced the kind of leader he is – inclusive, accessible, responsive, and above all, visionary. He genuinely listens, seeks collaboration and brings people together around shared goals for our neighborhood.
Joel Engardio’s tenure as supervisor of District 4 has been marked by a pattern of betrayal.
“Politics ought to be the part-time profession of every citizen who would protect the rights and privileges of free people and who would preserve what is good and fruitful in our national heritage,” thus spoke President Dwight D. Eisenhower on Jan. 28, 1954, for the Republican Lincoln Day dinner across our country.
James Madison expressed it best, meaning governmental power, in a Dec. 2, 1829, speech, to wit, “The essence of government is power, and power, lodged as it must be in human hands, will ever be liable to abuse.” (Incidentally, such words are inscribed in the Madison Memorial Hall, Library of Congress James Madison Memorial Building, Washington, D.C. )
This recall is about restoring honest leadership and respect for community input. We deserve a supervisor who listens, engages and unites, rather than one who divides and deceives.
Richmond Review/Sunset Beacon 