Supervisor Melgar 03172022 Newsletter

I am excited to announce that the 2022 Participatory Budgeting process is now open.

What is Participatory Budget?

Participatory Budgeting (PB) is a democratic process in which community members propose projects and collectively decide how to spend part of a public budget. I am committed to building strong communities and increasing civic participation through this long-standing initiative. We appreciate how engaged and invested District 7 residents have been in improving our neighborhoods and increasing the quality of life for all who live and visit our District. Last year because of COVID-19, we had to pause the District 7 Participatory Budgeting program and adopted our one-time Community Grants Initiative.

What is Participatory Budgeting? (Click link for short video)

This year, Participatory Budgeting is back and improved! In an ongoing commitment and consideration of everyone's safety during COVID-19, our process will be 100% virtual (proposal submission, community input, proposal review, and voting). Community input is integral, and we will share our process, deadlines, and ballots through multiple channels. Please help us spread the word to your neighbors as we hope to expand community participation through this virtual process - everyone's vote counts! Visit our website here: bit.ly/MelgarPB2022-2023 and submit your proposal here: https://bit.ly/PB-2022-2023

BASIC GUIDELINES

We are looking for bold and innovative ideas, and to support projects that will improve the quality of life in our neighborhoods. Our goal is to get as many different project ideas as possible, so be creative and tell us what your concerns, priorities, and ideas are. We hope to fund projects across different neighborhoods to ensure funding is distributed fairly.

TIMELINE

Project Proposal Period: March 15th - April 15th

We will host a PB Question & Answer Virtual Session on March 23 at 6:00 pm, where you can learn more about the improvements to this year's PB cycle and have all your questions answered. Register here to attend our community meeting!

Review Period: April 18th - June 1st

A committee of District 7 leaders and residents who are not submitting a proposal and have subject-matter expertise will review and score all proposals submitted. The selected proposals will be those that meet all eligibility criteria and can be successfully completed with the one-time funding allocated, following City contracting procedures. Subsequently, city staff will review and assess the budget and determine its overall feasibility. New PB Community Review Committee members are selected each year. If you are interested in being a part of the PB Community Review Committee, please contact Megan Imperial at: Megan.Imperial@sfgov.org.

Voting Period: June 13th - June 27th

In June, a ballot with the best proposals will be shared widely with all District 7 residents. All residents of District 7, age 16 or older, are eligible to vote. The ballot will be online, to increase accessibility and participation. Proposals must receive a minimum of 400 votes to be eligible for funding.

Announcement of Selected Proposals: June 27th - July 1st

Authors / organizations of selected project proposals will receive an email from our office and the final proposal list will be shared on social media and our newsletter.

Funds released to Departments and Department Project Manager assigned (this will vary by Department): Fall - Winter 2022

During this period, the funds will be dispersed to the appropriate Departments. Authors of selected proposals will be connected with their Department Project Manager to work with moving forward.

PRIORITY AREAS

Successful project proposals will focus on activities responding to critical needs in the following areas:

Community Resiliency: e.g. community capacity building, volunteer training, etc.
Public Safety Activities: e.g. cameras (one-time equipment expense), whistles, safety kits, signs, etc.
Neighborhood Disaster Preparedness: e.g. new equipment, training, program expansion into new neighborhoods, etc.
Community Recovery: e.g. neighborhood beautification projects activate play space, open space repair, improvements, etc.
Vision Zero: e.g. pedestrian safety, improved safety for all road users, traffic calming and engineering improvements, pedestrian or bicycle safety, safety education programs, etc.

CRITERIA | ELIGIBILITY

Successful project proposals will meet all of the following criteria for eligibility. [NOTE: Proposal authors not located in District 7 will be ineligible.]

Proposals must be submitted by neighborhood associations, non-profits, merchant groups, institutions, school organizations, faith-based organizations) located in District 7. Authoring entities not located in District 7 will be ineligible (Individual D7 residents must work with a District 7 organization or entity to submit proposals.)
Proposals seeking new funding for previous Participatory Budget projects are ineligible.
Only one proposal per author/group can be funded (All proposals submitted by an organization will be reviewed for consideration. However, only one eligible project can be placed on the ballot for final selection).
Proposals must align with at least one of the five priority area categories listed below.
Proposals must be a one-time expenditure.
Proposals must benefit District 7 residents.
Proposals must receive a minimum of 400 votes to be eligible for funding.

FUNDING

In order to have successful community projects, we have increased the amounts to be allocated to projects. The maximum funding amount this year will be $50,000 per project, doubling the maximum funded amount in the previous years. A total of $687,772 will be awarded for general projects and a total of $250,000 will be awarded for the category of Vision Zero.

SUBMITTAL PROCESS

All proposals must be submitted through https://bit.ly/PB-2022-2023. Proposals must include all of the following to be considered:

Lead contact for your Organization or Entity that is submitting a proposal: full contact information (e-mail and phone, or organization name)
Detailed description of the proposed project (including need(s) addressed, vision, and project goals)
Detailed Budget (including estimated cost and expenses)
Priority Area(s) addressed
Neighborhood(s)/ Communities served
Description of community support for proposed project

DEADLINE

Proposals must be submitted no later than 11:59 p.m. on April 15, 2022. Proposals submitted after the deadline shall be considered late and will not be accepted. If you experience issues with submission, please reach out to Megan Imperial via email: Megan.Imperial@sfgov.org.

QUESTIONS? Megan.Imperial@sfgov.org | 415.554.6517

Board of Supervisors | District 7 | Myrna Melgar

1 Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Place, Room 260
San Francisco, CA 94102
(415) 554-6516 | Fax: (415) 554-6516

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