Hello BOS,

I hope you had a amazing holiday, celebrating with family and friends. We are leaping into the new year with exciting projects that we have been  working on  for many months. Read on and check out a few things happening this January.

See you in the neighborhood,
Aaron

Improved Pedestrian Safety in North Beach Alleys

After hearing concerns from the neighborhood about pedestrian safety in the community, our office  worked with  SFMTA to install new STOP signs at various North Beach  intersections where cars exit alleys into the main streets. I am happy to share with you that your recommendations were recently approved and  the neighborhood can  expect to see these sign s  erected  at the following intersections: 

• Jasper Place at Green Street
• Jasper Place at Union Street
• Jasper Place at Filbert Street
• Bannam Place at Green Street
• Bannam Place at Union Street

Navigating Neighbors Out of Homelessness

Come Learn More at Upcoming D3 Navigation Center Community Meetings!

Back in 2017, our office hosted a Solutions to Homelessness Meeting in North Beach that attracted over 200 community members, the vast majority of which ultimately  agreed that District 3 was ready to host a Navigation Center. I was proud of our community then, and after many months of searching for a potential site, I continue to be proud of the willingness of District 3 residents to do our part to address the crisis on our streets. 

Last year, I  identified a site to construct a Navigation Center at the long vacant House of Fans site at 888 Post Street  in the Lower Nob Hill neighborhood, and conducted outreach to potential non-profit tenants to create a one-stop shop for homeless services and job opportunities.

While the Board of Supervisors  passed a resolution  last summer to expedite the City's  lease  negotiation s , there is still a long way to go to rehabilitate and   activate the building with positive community-serving programming. The proposal is for a 75-bed Navigation Center on the top floor of the building, serving Transitional Age Youth (TAY). Goodwill Industries, which just celebrated a jam-packed office and retail opening several blocks away, will be leasing the ground floor of 888 Post Street for workforce training. My office will be hosting a series of community meetings over the next couple of months to solicit your input and engagement on this project.

Join our office, along with the Department of Homelessness & Supportive Housing, the Healthy Streets Operations Center (HSOC), the Lower Polk Community Benefit District, Lower Polk Neighbors, SFPD and our local non-profit partners, at these upcoming meetings to learn more: 
 

D3 Navigation Center Community Meeting
 

Thursday, January 9, 2020

5:30 - 7:00pm
First Congregational Church of San Francisco, UCC | 1300 Polk St

Thursday, January 23, 2020
6:00 - 7:30pm
First Congregational Church of San Francisco, UCC | 1300 Polk St

At the end of the day, Navigation Centers are just one tool we can use to address the homeless crisis on our streets. Ultimately, we want to create more permanently affordable housing and preserve our precious rent-controlled housing stock to prevent homelessness in the first place. To that end, I've introduced a  settlement agreement to restore roughly 168 units of affordable housing illegally converted by the Academy of Art University back into the Lower Nob Hill neighborhood. We have also identified new sites for masterleasing permanent supportive housing in the District, and I'm excited to share more with you in the coming months. 

Join Us in Making District 3
Sparkling Clean 

This year marks the 20th Anniversary of Community Clean Team, San Francisco's largest and longest-running volunteer beautification event in the city! District 3 will be kicking off  the year-long event this Saturday, January 11, 2020.

Join  our office and community volunteers from across the District  in making  District 3 sparkle and shine . Volunteer, sweep the streets, and plant some trees. You can also take advantage of the Community Clean Team's Gigantic 3 program, so you can get rid of large and small unwanted household items.Call Recology Sunset Scavenger at (415) 330-130 and make an appointment today!

Community Clean Team - District 3
 

Saturday, January 11, 2020
9:00am - 1:00pm
Portsmouth Square
* Lunch provided after the event, so come hungry!
** Shuttles provided to transport you to various work sites around the district

Applications Now Open for Nonprofit Real Estate Assistance 

The Nonprofit Sustainability Initiative’s real estate assistance is administered in partnership with Community Vision Capital & Consulting. About $4.6M is dedicatd for SanFrancisco nonprofits for lease stabilization, expansion, & relocation.

Financial assistance includes:

• Up to $1 million or 25% of the acquisition price  for newly nonprofit-owned space. 
• Up to $75,000 for eligible expenses related to a lease of 5+ years
• Up to $50,000 for eligible expenses related to a lease of 3+ years
• Up to $500,000 for nonprofits moving into newly-constructed commercial spaced within 100% affordable housing sites

And, technical assistance (real estate readiness services) to help with site identification, evaluation, lease negotiation, fiscal due diligence and shared space planning.

The next listening session is  January 8th. Applications are due February 4th. Learn more at  http://communityvisionca.org/sfsustainability .

Parting Thoughts from 2019, New Beginnings for 2020

2019 came to a good close with the (early!) reopening of Washington Square Park. I’d like to thank the Rec & Park Department, the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission and the array of community stakeholders who helped craft the Washington Square Water Conservation project from the beginning and monitored its progress through completion. As I said at the reopening, Washington Square is the only one of the City’s three original circa 1850’s parks that is still terra firma and not the roof of a parking garage (like Union and Portsmouth Squares). I t was the first San Francisco Park to garner coveted landmark status.  It was clear at the reopening how much this unique slice of heaven means to the community, and press coverage afterwards highlighted the true success of the project: completing a major capital improvement that actually preserved and enhanced the park’s character and charm, rather than fundamentally altering it. 

Carl Nolte at the San Francisco Chronicle summed up why this neighborhood, its landmark park and its vibrant community still make it the most special village in the whole city with a lovely tribute to North Beach.
Finally, read my full District 3 end-of-year review in my  December 2019 Marina Times column for some highlights from the past year. 
 

Happy New Year! 

Not already on our newsletter mailing list? Subscribe NOW!