sean elsbernd

Supes voice concern about formation of a Civic Center benefit district

By: Joshua Sabatini 09/29/10 12:00 AM

A plan to create a Civic Center Benefit District to improve public safety, make those attending the city’s prized art venues more comfortable, and better maintain the area has drawn concerns that the government could outvote other property owners. It takes a weighted vote of 30 percent to initiate formation of a community benefit district, which, once formed, requires property owners in the district to a pay an annual fee. Read More

Elsbernd questions advertising restrictions

By: Joshua Sabatini 09/22/10 12:00 AM

A plan to increase advertising at the San Francisco International Airport has been put on hold following questions whether it would violate voter-approved ballot measures that imposed restrictions on increasing the amount of advertising spaces. Read More

Fatter checks for Muni drivers

By: Will Reisman 08/02/10 12:00 AM

Muni operators who have twice spurned concessions that would have saved the transit agency millions of dollars are poised to receive a nearly 6 percent raise. Unlike every other city union, wage requirements for the Transport Workers Union Local 250-A, which represents 2,200 Muni operators, are part of the City Charter, meaning its salaries are not subject to collective bargaining. Read More

1 SF tax measure on Nov. ballot after 2 abandoned

By: Joshua Sabatini 07/28/10 12:00 AM

Voters will decide this fall whether to increase the tax on the sale of high-end properties. Heading into Tuesday’s meeting, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors was considering placing three tax measures on the Nov. 2 ballot. They were a parking tax increase, an overhaul to how The City taxes businesses and an increase on the tax when multimillion-dollar properties are sold. Read More

Mayor appearances before supervisors back on the ballot

By: Joshua Sabatini 07/21/10 12:00 AM

Voters will have the opportunity this fall to require that the mayor show up during a San Francisco Board of Supervisors meeting every month to talk about city business. The charter amendment that would require the mayor “to appear personally at one regularly scheduled meeting of the Board of Supervisors each month to engage in formal policy discussions with the members of the Board” lost at the polls in November 2007. Read More

City Hall Watch: SFFD expects $626K after crash-cleanup fee OK’d

By: Joshua Sabatini 07/14/10 12:00 AM

The City will start charging a fee to cover the cost of the Fire Department’s cleanup of debris and fuel after vehicle accidents. The fee is part of Mayor Gavin Newsom’s budget proposal, which closed a $483 million budget deficit and is pending approval by the Board of Supervisors. On Tuesday, the Board of Supervisors approved the fee in an 11-0 vote. Read More

Muni charter makes the November ballot, officially

By: Joshua Sabatini 07/12/10 12:00 AM

Supervisor Sean Elsbernd’s signature gathering campaign to “fix Muni” was a success. Read More

Supes spar over Muni wages

By: Will Reisman 04/26/10 12:00 AM

A meeting that started with a discussion over a $7 million allocation for Muni operations turned into a heated debate on race relations, with Supervisor Chris Daly suggesting that colleague Sean Elsbernd’s petition to reform labor work rules was beset with “racial undertones.” Read More

Supervisors to vote on 10-year capital plan

By: Examiner Staff Writer 04/26/10 12:00 AM

The Board of Supervisors will vote Tuesday on whether to adopt the 10-year capital plan. Supervisor Sean Elsbernd was instrumental in ensuring the plan was created. Each year it is updated and then approved by the board. As The City faces another deficit year and is facing projections of more deficit years to follow the big challenge will be funding what’s in the plan. Read More

Transparency may suffer in quest for power program

By: Joshua Sabatini 04/22/10 12:00 AM

The City is racing against the clock to negotiate a deal with an energy provider, but that could mean less vetting, one city official has said. The proposal to establish a city energy program to compete with PG&E is under threat by Proposition 16. The statewide measure would require a two-thirds voter approval for municipalities to implement public power programs or spend public funds on community choice aggregation programs. Read More