The city is continuing its phased reopening, and we are excited to announce that the front-facing services at City Hall will reopen on June 7, 2021 with conditions, including the Assessor-Recorder, the Treasurer Tax Collectorand the County Clerk for those who have been patiently waiting to get married! Also, starting June 8, 2021, City Hall front-facing services will be open with conditions to the general public. District Supervisor offices will be open on an appointment-only basis, so please email our Administrative Aide, Sarah Souza, to schedule an in-person appointment for constituent issues. If the issue is something that can be resolved via phone or email, our team will do their best to address it remotely.

Starting June 15, 2021, the Board of Supervisors will be back in the Chamber for in-person meetings, although public comment will continue to be remote, pending updated health and safety guidance from the Chief Health Officer regarding large indoor public gatherings. Members of the public may continue to participate and provide public comment remotely via remote meeting call-in and/or by submitting comments regarding current legislative matters electronically via email to bos.legislation@sfgov.org. As always, public meetings held by the Board of Supervisors and its committees will continue to be publicly cable casted through SFGovTV and SFGovTV’s online Video on Demand service at https://sfgovtv.org/.  

This is definitely a milestone in our fight against COVID-19. We’ve gotten this far with your cooperation and support, along with the incredible emergency response from our Disaster Service Workers at Moscone South. I join my colleagues in thanking the City team for their tireless work addressing logistical, safety, and technological considerations and resources to ensure a safe and seamless return to the City Hall Chamber, including the City Administrator, Sheriffs, Department of Technology and the staff at the Clerk of the Board. 

For general inquiries, the Office of the Clerk of the Board will have in-person services available at City Hall, Room 244, during regular business hours, from Monday to Friday, 8:00am to 5:00pm. Welcome back!

See you in the neighborhood,

Aaron 

Vaccine & Face Coverings

As we continue to encourage the community to get vaccinated and reach herd immunity, CDC recently announced that people 12-17 years old can now receive the Pfizer vaccine as long as their parent or guardian permits. Perfect timing – especially as families and students are getting ready for a summer of fun and supplemental learning.  

If you are interested in getting your kids vaccinated, check out one of the Family Vaccination Events organized by the Covid Command Center, or book an appointment on the City’s website here: sf.gov/getvaccinated   

WHEN/WHERE:     

Friday, May 21, 9:00am - 4:00pm  
Festival Friday at SF Market, 901 Rankin Street  
 
Saturday, May 22, 11:30am - 5:30pm  
Mission - 18th and Shotwell Street  
  
Friday, May 28, 9:30am - 5:00pm  
Bayview - 90 Kiska Road  
 
Saturday, May 29, 9:00am - 2:00pm  
Lakeview/OMI - 50 Broad Street  
  
Saturday, May 29 & Saturday, June 5, 9:00am - 4:00pm  
Zuckerberg SF General Hospital, 1001 Potrero Avenue, 4E, Building 5  
 
Friday, June 4, 9:00am - 4:00pm  
First Union Missionary Baptist Church - 1001 Webster St  
 
Saturday, June 5, 9:00am - 4:00pm  
Southeast Health Center, 2401 Keith Street  

The CDC recently updated their guidance on masking when in public. If fully vaccinated, some activities without a mask on are permitted including exercise alone outdoors, or gathering with small groups of vaccinated friends. For more information, click here.

Small Business Month

On May 5, I held a small business hearing on OEWD direct relief for local businesses joined by my colleague Matt Haney. We heard from many frustrated small business owners who were unable to access grants and other types of funding with much explanation or further guidance on what approach might be. If you missed the hearing, you can still see the presentations and discussion- BOS Budget and Appropriations Committee - Regular Meeting - May 5th, 2021. I will continue to advocate for additional resources and ensure monolingual small business owners have access to funds and assistance in their language. 

In addition to the OEWD hearing, we also co-hosted a listening session with Chinese community members on an economic and health recovery for Chinatown. I encourage you to contact my office at peskinstaff@sfgov.org to learn how you can get involved.

Don't Miss Out on These Small Business Grants

The Restaurant Revitalization Fund will provide grants to help restaurants, bars, and other eating and drinking businesses keep their doors open. This $28.6 billion program will provide eligible businesses with funding equal to their pandemic-related revenue loss in 2020. Recipients are not required to repay the funding as long as funds are used for eligible uses by March 11, 2023. For more information, click here.

The Shuttered Venue Operators Grant provides grants to support live entertainment, theatrical, and other arts and culture businesses. The Small Business Administration is still accepting applications. Read SBA’s FAQ document and watch their video tutorials.
Apply here.

Featuring District 3 Legacy Businesses

Starting this month, we will be featuring legacy businesses across District 3. Legacy Businesses are long standing community-serving businesses and play a significant role in preserving San Francisco’s history and culture.

Sam Wo was founded over 100 years ago and remains as an enduring symbol of San Francisco’s Chinatown. Authentic Cantonese barbecue-pork rice-noodle bowls have been served for more than a century at Sam Wo, where a father, daughter and son rule the restaurant and continue to draw in crowds of loyal customers.

Sodini’s was established in the early 1990s and has remained a local neighborhood restaurant where people from near and far visit to experience delicious, authentic Italian food reflecting the flavors of the Tuscany region in Italy and to become part of the family that is Sodini’s.

Le Beau Market is a neighborhood artisanal grocery store that has been serving the Nob Hill community since 1984. They also serve as a neighborhood ambassador leading monthly cleanups and opportunities for neighbors to get involved. 

API Heritage Month Highlights

Safe To Visit the Stacks! Chinatown Public Library Reopens

Last week, we commemorated the safe re-opening of the beloved Chinatown “Him Mark Lai” Public Library branch, with the Department of Public Health on-site to provide public health educational materials in Chinese and English. Despite having deployed 75% of his workforce to emergency COVID-19 response, Library Director Michael Lambert kept his promise to reopen the Chinatown branch right after the Main Library re-opened. As we have seen in the pandemic, librarians play many essential public service roles, but we are glad to have them back! 


I was happy to promote local authors Andria Lo and Valerie Luu at the reopening. For the entire month of May, the authors of “Chinatown Pretty” are donating proceeds from their book to the youth programs at the Chinatown Community Development Center for API Heritage Month. If you missed their book launch at 41 Ross Gallery, you can also hear them speak at an online SF Public Library book talk on May 25th . Or just check out “Chinatown Pretty” online, their book capturing the street style of seniors across six North American Chinatowns. Hanging out together in San Francisco’s Chinatown, writer Valerie Luu and photographer Andria Lo became fascinated with the community style, and they set out to document and celebrate it.

Check out San Francisco’s Public Library curated book lists to help inspire and invigorate activism in a myriad of ways, and our program offerings. The featured  book for this month is “ A River of Stars”  by Vanessa Hua, a novel about motherhood, immigration and identity. Click here for more information.

Hanna Zhang is a passionate baker and owner of iCafe located in one of Chinatown’s most historic alleys, Waverly Place. Not only does she put her heart and soul into each piece of pastry, Hanna also cares deeply about carrying on the baton of Chinatown’s rich culinary history and tradition. After the passing of her life partner, she became the sole owner of a 30+ year old bakery - and then the pandemic hit. Her story represents the perseverance of many immigrant- and women-owned small businesses in Chinatown and San Francisco, especially during the pandemic, and is a reminder that mom-and-pop shops in San Francisco’s individual neighborhoods are truly the backbone of our communities. Read more about Hanna’s story on NBC here.

Transportation Updates

On May 15, we celebrated the long-awaited return of F Market & Wharves historic streetcars between the Fisherman’s Wharf, Castro, and market streets. The F Market & Wharves is popular with tourists and visitors and is a priority for small businesses along Market Street and the Embarcadero.  San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency is committing to implement Safe Passage for Tenderloin and Nob Hill families to Redding Elementary School as part of the Vision Zero initiative.

Van Ness BRT Community Advisory Committee Meeting

The Van Ness Bus Rapid Transit Community Advisory Committee (CAC) meeting is on Thursday, May 27 at 6:00pm. It is an opportunity for community members to provide their input and concerns regarding the construction impact. More information on how to participate in the meeting, here. For free interpretation services, please submit your request 48 hours in advance of meeting by calling 415-646-2310.

Neighborhood Events & Community Resources

Central Station Monthly Police Community Meeting

Join Captain Julian Ng & SF Safe for Central Station’s monthly virtual Community Meeting 5/20 at 3 p.m. on Zoom. Register for the meeting by clicking this link. The monthly meetings are an opportunity for residents to engage with their SFPD District Station Captain and tackle public safety issues together.

Virtual Taste of Tel Hi

BCNA/JSMA Public Safety Forum- Stop AAPI Hate

The Jackson Square Merchants Association and the Barbary Coast Neighborhood Association are co-hosting a forum discussing violence and crime directed at the AAPI community, and bystander intervention. Joining us will be Captain Julian Ng from the SFPD.

When: May 27, 2021 3:00 PM  
Topic: Stop AAPI Hate - Public Safety Forum

Register in advance for this webinar.

Emergency Rental Assistance Programs 

CalFresh 

Preservation of Water Supply

This is the second dry year in a row for California. We know San Franciscans use water wisely and have a commitment to conservation. We must continue to do what we can to make the most of our water supplies in case this dry trend continues. We are asking San Franciscans who are able, to please be more efficient with outdoor water use. The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission offers resources to help you use less water both indoors and out. Utilize the SFPUC’s free Water-Wise Evaluations , rebates and incentives, and free toilet program. Please feel free to contact the SFPUC’s Water Conservation Team at waterconservation@sfwater.org or by calling 415-551-4730. To read more about how you can conserve water, follow the links to the SFPUC’s Conservation Brochure [English] [Spanish] [Chinese], and Water Leak Guide [English] [Spanish] [Chinese]. 

FCC Emergency Broadband Benefit Program

Next Village Resources for Seniors

Standing with SEIU 87 Essential Workers