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Mark Farrell

San Francisco supervisors dole out money to various community projects

By: Joshua Sabatini 12/25/12 10:52 AM
Starting in July, each member of the board was allocated $100,000 in city funds to spend as they chose. Halfway through the fiscal year, some supervisors have spent all or a portion of their allocations, others none at all. The spending varies from community events to rebuilding playgrounds, and provides a glimpse of the respective supervisors’ priorities. Read More

If Santa runs out of lumps of coal, San Francisco Board of Supervisors deserve these under the tree

By: Melissa Griffin 12/19/12 7:33 PM
The holidays are upon us and City Hall is decorated beautifully, complete with an enormous tree. So far, there are no gifts for our supervisors under the tree, so here is my list of what each should receive: Read More

Leland Yee’s gun control measure should fare better this time around

By: Melissa Griffin 12/19/12 7:21 PM
state senator leland yee
After Friday’s tragic shootings in Connecticut, all eyes are on President Barack Obama and U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s efforts to introduce federal gun control legislation. But real action is happening on the local and state level, too. As a number of states have Democratic legislatures and governors — including Illinois, Colorado, Massachusetts, Connecticut and, of course, California — look for them to dust off previously shelved gun control laws. Read More

Proposed rates for CleanPowerSF green energy program rise again

By: Joshua Sabatini 12/05/12 5:00 AM
Customers who are automatically enrolled in San Francisco’s ambitious green energy program will have to pay significantly more than was expected when supervisors approved the program less than three months ago. The adjusted rates were released last week by the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, the agency charged with implementing CleanPowerSF, a program designed to offer 100 percent renewable energy to residential consumers at an additional cost. Read More

Embracing innovation and our sharing economy

By: Mark Farrell 11/29/12 5:00 AM
The recent class-action lawsuit and $20,000 in fines levied by the California Public Utilities Commission on Uber and other popular ride-sharing services was, in my opinion, the wrong course of action to address one of the most innovative and popular consumer services that has begun to prosper in our city. Read More

Free Muni for youth one step closer to reality following supervisors’ vote

By: Joshua Sabatini 11/20/12 10:22 PM
Making Muni free for low-income San Francisco youths could become a reality as soon as February after the Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday in favor of a proposed pilot program. Although the final decision lies with the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency, the supervisors’ 7-4 approval of a resolution backing the program sent the transit directors a strong message of support before their scheduled Dec. 4 vote. Mayor Ed Lee also backs the program. Read More

San Francisco supervisors vote to end most public nudity in The City

By: Dan Schreiber 11/20/12 9:15 PM
Angry nudists briefly disrobed and shouted their disapproval at City Hall on Tuesday, shortly after the Board of Supervisors narrowly voted to approve a citywide ban on public nakedness. Read More

Neighbor wages campaign against proposed Marina Green restaurant

By: Joshua Sabatini 11/18/12 7:36 PM
Seventy-year-old Arthur Scampa has lived on Marina Boulevard for about three decades and says he has never complained to City Hall. But he’s complaining now. Scampa and his wife, Fataneh, are fighting the Recreation and Park Department’s proposal to allow a seafood restaurant on Marina Green at the site of a building formerly owned by the U.S. Navy. “This is a major change of a public park,” Scampa said. “It’s just crazy.” Read More

131 votes make Yee winner in District 7 race

By: Joshua Sabatini 11/15/12 11:31 PM
Board of Education President Norman Yee declared victory Thursday in one of the closest recent contests for a seat on the Board of Supervisors, but the second-place finisher has not ruled out requesting a recount. After an arduous 10 days of vote counting, Yee emerged as the winner of the nine-candidate District 7 battle by 131 votes to serve as successor to termed-out Supervisor Sean Elsbernd. The district includes the neighborhoods west of Twin Peaks. Read More

San Francisco considering tax break on payrolls for small businesses

By: Joshua Sabatini 10/31/12 8:49 PM
Small businesses that are growing could benefit from a payroll-tax break during the next several years even if voters in The City do away with that tax on Election Day. While such a tax break had been previously approved, the Board of Supervisors is deciding today whether to award it even after the possible passage of Proposition E, which proposes to do away with San Francisco’s tax on what businesses pay their employees. Read More
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