VOTE ON JUNE 3!

 

MEASURE G

LEJ is NOT taking a public stance advocating for or against Measure G.
We do, however, have grave concerns about the difference between how the initiative is being promoted by its advocates, and what it actually says.



1. This is the whole substance of what is mandated in Measure G:

a) The initiative repeals Propositions D and F (1997), which were bond measures enabling the City to finance a new stadium, mall, and residential development at Candlestick Point.


b) The initiative requires that any park property transferred by the City (such as the land at Candlestick Point) be replaced with "other park and open space property of at least the same size" within the Shipyard and Candlestick Point.



2. Measure G allows but does not require:

By repealing Propositions D and F, Measure G will "permit" the City's park property at Candlestick Point to be transferred for development "consistent with the objectives described" in the rest of the initiative. It does not require that this property be transferred--and if the property is transferred, it does not require that the development adhere to the objectives of community benefit, mixed use housing, green building, open space, new stadium, etc. as described in the rest of the initiative and widely publicized in the media and Measure G promotion.



3. Everything else in Measure G is non-binding in any way, shape, or form. In fact, the measure specifically says the entire project is up for grabs according to "variables including, for example and without limitation, market changes, economic feasibility and the timing of the 49ers departure from Monster Park." Depending on any of those conditions--or any others not mentioned--the entire project design and even the project boundaries "may be materially different" from how they are described in Measure G. Measure G provides no requirement for what direction things should go in the event of any changes, it just "encourages" final development plans to be "generally consistent" with community benefit, mixed use housing, green building, open space, new stadium, etc.



5. Measure G acknowledges that even the title of the initiative--"Bayview Jobs, Parks, and Housing Initiative" is "for convenience of reference only" and "shall not define or limit the scope or purpose of any provision" of the initiative beyond the "broadest possible scope."



Under these circumstances, LEJ has no position because the Measure itself is almost completely empty of content.




MEASURE F

LEJ supports Measure F.



This Proposition requires that any Integrated Development Plan for Candlestick Point and the Shipyard include the following:

a) A requirement that at least ½ of all new housing units be affordable according to a formula laid out in the initiative;

b) The affordable housing must be made available in priority order to Alice Griffith residents, people with right to residential relocation assistance, rent burdened and assisted housing residents, SF residents, and finally the general public;

c) Any rebuilding of Alice Griffith Housing must provide at least 1:1 replacement units targeted to the same income levels as existing residents, and must be phased to preclude displacement.



In addition, Measure F forbids any transfer of City-owned land at Candlestick unless following public review the Board of Supervisors finds the Integrated Development Plan is consistent with and incorporates the above 3 requirements.



LEJ defines environmental justice as including healthy social as well as natural ecosystems. Bayview Hunters Point is one of the precious few affordable neighborhoods remaining in San Francisco, and has the highest proportion of children in the city. The proposed redevelopment plans at Candlestick Point and the Shipyard will present enormous gentrification pressure to drive the community's current residents out, much as many who live in BVHP now experienced in the Fillmore. Measure F will act to protect critical housing resources, and unlike Measure G puts some teeth into promoting a healthy and diverse San Francisco.

 

 

SUPPORT CANDLESTICK POINT -- IT'S NOT OVER!

Contact Mark Leno and Carole Migden 

 

We celebrated in May when the budget revisions came out and we knew that Candlestick's gates would stay open--thank you to everyone who signed petitions, wrote to your legislators, and came with us to Sacramento.  

 

But even though the Governor has "saved" the parks and Candlestick is no longer threatened with closure, the restoration project still needs $5 million in Proposition 84 funds, which were earmarked by the taxpayers for the state parks.  This funding got derailed while Candlestick languished on the closure list, and now we need to make sure it gets into the final budget.

 

LEJ Youth have been propagating literally tens of thousands of plants at our Candlestick nursery to ramp up for this vital shoreline project, addressing acute contamination from industrial and military pollution.  Without the promised state funding--which has already been matched by $11.5 million in pledges from public and private sources--the work cannot even begin and years of effort at the nursery will remain fruitless. 

 

If you live in Mark Leno's Assembly district or Carole Migden's Senate district, please contact them to say thank you for taking a leadership role in closing the gap, and encourage both legislators to continue their efforts to make our dream of a healthy shoreline into a reality.

 

 

JUNE 10
COMMUNITY WORKDAY
HERON'S HEAD PARK
Cargo Way & Jennings
9 AM - 12 noon

Discover a jewel on the southeast shoreline while helping create wildlife habitat at Heron's Head Park!  We will be planting hundreds of seedlings that the LEJ youth and community volunteers have been propagating at the Native Plants Nursery.  
 
Wear appropriate clothing; gloves, boots, and tools are provided. Heavy rain cancels the workday.  All ages welcome. For more information, contact HHP Steward Myla Ablog.  LEJ's community stewardship and environmental education programs at Heron's Head Park are a partnership with the Port of San Francisco.

 

SATURDAY, JUNE 21

GOOD NEIGHBOR FRESH FOODS COOKING DEMONSTRATION

SURFSIDE MARKET
950 Innes Ave.
Noon - 2 PM

Come sample Chef Gwendolyn's healthy cuisine alongside Community Hero Bob Pinkard's world-famous BBQ!  The LEJ Youth will be cooking up delicious recipes from the Good Neighbor Fresh Foods Cookbook--bring your appetite!  

For more information or to purchase a copy of the cookbook, contact Good Neighbor Manager Gwendolyn Smith.

Celebrating our 10th anniversary in 2008, Literacy for Environmental Justice addresses the ecological and health concerns of Bayview Hunters Point and the surrounding communities of southeast San Francisco.  Please make a tax-deductible contribution today.