The Weekly Digest (February 9, 2025)
Happy Sunday, Brionies! Kung Hei Fat Choi! Here’s what you need to know about local politics this week and beyond:
San Francisco City Hall
Tuesday, February 11 at 2pm – Regular meeting of the Board of Supervisors (agenda here):
Item 7: Ordinance to grant the mayor emergency powers to address homelessness, drug abuse, mental health, and related crises. This measure temporarily removes certain bureaucratic hurdles, including granting the mayor more contract authority if the Board doesn’t act within 45 days, skipping Board approval for leases related to emergency issues until 2026, and permitting the mayor to directly solicit donations for six months, overriding past city rules. In short, this item eliminates red tape to allow San Francisco’s chief executive to function. It’s a step in the right direction, although one wonders whether these powers should become permanent, as the City clearly is incapable of addressing crises in regular order.
Wednesday, February 12 at 10am – Regular meeting of the Budget and Finance Committee (agenda here):
Item 2: Resolution approving a contract amendment between the City and TEGSCO LLC for towing services. The City pays TEGSCO a lot of money to tow your car: up to $136 million over a five-year contract. Unsurprisingly, San Franciscans pay a lot more than anyone else to have their cars towed. A required service, of course, but perhaps the supes could focus on ways to make that painful experience a little less so for everyone.
Happenings around town
Briones Society events
Thursday, February 13, 5:30-7:30pm, location provided upon RSVP
Thursday, February 20, 5-5:30pm, online
What is the Briones Society? What is our mission and what are our core principles? How can you get involved? Who is Juana Briones? Join us for a 30-minute Zoom meeting to learn the answers to these questions and more. We look forward to meeting you! Sign up here.
Thursday, February 27, 6-8pm, location provided upon RSVP
Join us for a stimulating conversation with Debora Allen, former chair of the Contra Costa Republican Party, who recently completed an 8-year term on the BART Board of Directors.
Other events of interest
Northern District, Tuesday, February 11, 5-6pm
Saturday, February 15, 5pm, 2nd and Market Street
Attendance is free, but tickets must be purchased to sit in the bleacher sections
Stop Crime Action presents: Unmasking the San Francisco Police Commission
Monday, February 24, 7pm, SHARP Community Room (1736 9th Avenue)
Register here
AEI Panel Discussion, “Making Urban Transportation Work: Can Cars, Bikes and Pedestrians Get Along?”
Thursday, February 13, 6:15-7:30am, online
What we’re listening to
The latest episode of the Briones Society podcast, of course! This month, the Briones besties gab about Mayor Lurie's first month in office, chain retail on Van Ness, and the enduring problem of Sixth Street.
What we’re reading
Mayor Lurie announced he would seek the removal of Max Carter-Oberstone, a divisive member of San Francisco’s Police Commission. Carter-Oberstone is not a friend of public safety: he was the chief architect of the controversial Department General Order 9.07, which prohibits the San Francisco Police Department from enforcing certain moving violations (in the name of racial equity of course). He also clashed with former Mayor London Breed over safety policy, despite her appointing him. Carter-Oberstone once quipped that he did not have political ambitions: “I think I’ve destroyed my political career by managing to piss off so many people.” It’s like he had a crystal ball.
Muni has introduced the “Bike & Roll Plan” as a long-term vision to “reduce car dependency,” which means more bike lanes, smaller roads, fewer parking spaces, and more slow streets. In other words, the City wants to make driving more painful for you. Voice your concerns here.
San Francisco’s new speed cameras will automatically issue speeding tickets. Penalties scale based upon the offender’s speed, but we find it curious that it caps out at $500 for going 100 MPH over the limit (with, of course, reductions for low-income drivers). We have a suggestion for motorists going 100 MPH over the limit: prison.
Crime is illegal again in San Francisco, so the City is increasing jail capacity in anticipation of increased arrests. The Sheriff’s Office is opening two more dorms in a once-shuttered San Bruno jail annex and expects to open a third next month. As it stands, the City’s jail population increased from 800 in 2023 to over 1,200 today.
Quick hits
Apply here: SF Superior Court seeks applicants for 2025-26 Civil Grand Jury
Northern California police seize 14 pounds of fentanyl, heroin, during traffic stop
CA prosecutors must be “race blind” when charging. SF DA and others yet to comply.
Palate cleanser
This week in San Francisco history
On February 11, 1966 Willie Mays signed the most lucrative contract in baseball history to date with the San Francisco Giants – for a whopping $130 thousand per year (a little under $1.3 million in today’s dollars). Top MLBers in 2024 cleared between $35 and $70 million.