Bond targets dirty blocks
By: Joshua Sabatini
Examiner Staff Writer
April 3, 2009
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| A $309 million bond being considered for the November ballot would be used for The City’s 65 streetscape projects. (Cindy Chew/The Examiner) |
SAN FRANCISCO — Sprucing up The City’s streetscapes does not come cheap.
San Francisco voters may be asked this November to approve a $309 million bond for street, curb and sidewalk improvements.
Most of the money, $139 million, would be spent on road resurfacing or rebuilding. Another $40 million would fund “full streetscape improvements,” averaging $2 million per block. Another 16.25 million would be allocated to “corridor improvements, and $30 million would fund smaller streetscape and corridor improvements.
The $70 million for the range of streetscape improvements is expected to fund 65 different projects, according to the Department of Public Works’ draft Road Repair and Safety Improvements Bond report.
As the bond proposal makes its way through the approval process, the spending priorities could change, however.
Improving The City’s streetscapes is part of a larger nationwide trend and an effective way to revitalize an area, Public Works Director Ed Reiskin said.
“A lot of [the streets] are dreary and run down,” he said.
Mayor Gavin Newsom, who has supported efforts to upgrade streetscapes, said in his 2008 inaugural address that improving streetscapes will ensure “this city is a place where we can walk, bike and simply enjoy a streetscape that is the cleanest, greenest and safest in the world.”
On Thursday, during a breakfast meeting with local business leaders, the mayor called for support for the streets bond, should it make it onto the November ballot.
The bond proposal comes as The City is facing a $438 million budget deficit for the fiscal year beginning July 1.
“Besides the funding from the proposed bond, [Public Works] does not have any identified sources to fund future streetscape improvement projects,” the report said.
Streetscape improvement can include a host of changes, such as sidewalk widening, sidewalk bulb-outs, lighting, widening medians, planting trees and installing public artwork.
The upgrades “can help revitalize distressed commercial areas,” Reiskin said.
This year, The City is moving forward with significant streetscape improvements funded by money already in hand.
Projects include four blocks of Valencia Street between 15th and 19th streets, which is expected to undergo a $6 million improvement this summer. Fourteen blocks of Divisadero Street will benefit from $3.4 million worth of improvements.
“While San Francisco is renowned for its quality of life, commitment to social equity and growing concern for environmental sustainability, the streets and public rights of way remain vastly underutilized resources,” the report said. “Streets make up approximately 25 percent of San Francisco’s land area, more space than is found in the city’s parks.”
Paving the future
A $309 million bond being considered for the November ballot would be used for The City’s 65 streetscape projects.
Full Streetscape Improvements
$2 million Average cost per block
4 Approximate number of blocks per year
5 Approximate number of projects
$40 million Total cost
Corridor Improvements
$325,000 Average cost per block
10 Approximate number of blocks per year
5 Approximate total number of projects
$16.25 million Total cost
Partnering Opportunities or Spot Streetscape Improvements
$250,000 Average cost per block
55 Approximate number of total projects
$13.75 million Total cost
Source: Department of Public Works draft 2009 Road Repair and Safety Improvements Bond report
