Civic

NEW: Supervisors respond emotionally to possible overturning of Roe v. Wade; City College is laying off over 160 full and part time teachers; Great Highway weekend closure may be extended; U.S. Department of Justice microgrant will pay for more community policing in the Tenderloin. NEXT: Proposal for a ballot measure to create a Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing oversight commission; a hearing and report on racial equity in city department hiring patterns; presentation on the Southeast Rail Station Study’s new train station in the Bayview; ordinance requiring the city to add 20 housing units for homeless youth in the Haight-Ashbury.

When we look at the massive wealth gap between the rich and poor in this country, what stands out most is how differently it affects white and Black populations. In part two of this series on extreme income inequality, we dive into the federal programs that helped World War II veterans acquire housing, and the resulting maps with bright red lines around Black-populated areas deemed unsafe for federally backed mortgages. We also examine early union-busting practices and where they’ve led, and how Reagan-era policies created the billionaire class.

NEW: Redistricting Task Force approves a final map despite protests; BART reinstates a mask mandate; JFK Drive permanently closed to traffic; city-funded childcare workers getting pay raises; new pandemic recovery funding for small businesses and nonprofits NEXT: Rules Committee hearing to look into Board of Appeals president potential ethics violation; Van Ness Bus Rapid Transit performs better than expected; Budget and Appropriations Committee hearing on federal AIDS funding and services reduction.

NEW: Supervisor Matt Haney defeated former Supervisor David Campos for the 17th Assembly District seat; Redistricting Task Force approves a new supervisor districts draft map; Human Rights Commission says city is failing Asian American victims of violence; Street Crisis Response Teams divert calls to police, but more is needed; calls for a public hearing on bedraggled SFGH emergency psyche unit; plans are in for a $400M Transamerica Pyramid redesign NEXT: public hearing on JFK Drive shutdown to private vehicles; keeping track of sub-acute psyche patients discharged out of county; third try for a public hearing on lot subdivision hung up on address confusion.

"Income inequality is at a crisis point in America. But it’s not the first time the country has faced an extreme wealth gap. In part one of a two-part series, we explore the Depression-era policies and programs that were meant to address wealth inequality. And we talk to Bay Area residents who were stripped of generational wealth when their ancestors were barred from opportunities to capitalize on support programs."

NEW: Tuesday is voting day for Assembly District 17. Supervisors consider incentives to bolster lagging police ranks. Laguna Honda is again at risk of shutting down. The redistricting process could be settled in court. DA alleges bogus lawsuits are targeting hundreds of small businesses. NEXT: Proposed committee for unhoused residents locked out of shelters. Supervisors will consider a $1.5 million settlement over a homeless man’s police custody death. Supervisors will analyze whether Street Crisis Response Teams are making a difference.

In an episode from last Spring, “Civic” spoke with Tere Almaguer, an environmental justice organizer with PODER, which operates the Hummingbird farm in San Francisco’s Crocker Amazon neighborhood. As the state heads into another year of drought, we talked about how the drought already had an impact, and how the group has adapted to years of inconsistent rainfall.

NEW Another top city administrator resigns over dubious ethical conduct; a judge resurrects a lawsuit alleging ties between the mayor and a City Hall corruption scandal; school district deputy superintendent to resign over major payroll snafu; SF’s Ukrainian diaspora is angry and anxious; Ukrainian refugees coming to the Bay Area need homes. NEXT SF Election Commission will not remove redistricting task force members; ex-planning commissioner retaliation lawsuit settles for $1.8M; demolishing the private Kearney Street pedestrian bridge; a hearing on shelter access for unhoused BIPOC and pregnant residents; and new adult sex venue zoning in historically LGBTQ neighborhoods.

More than 4 million Ukrainians have fled the country as Russian forces destroy entire cities. A local aid agency is racing to get medical supplies into Ukraine and bringing refugees into the Bay Area. Meanwhile, in San Francisco, members of the Ukrainian diaspora are angry, anxious and desperate to connect with loved ones in their ancestral homeland. We caught up with a few during a sunny weekend afternoon in mid-March where hundreds gathered at the bandshell in Golden Gate Park music concourse for a show called "Slava Ukraini" — Glory to Ukraine.

First, what’s new? Laguna Honda hospital has two weeks to fix serious problems or risk closure. SF Public Press’s rent relief tracker found that requests exceed authorized funds by $116 million. New possible district boundaries are drawing furious backlash. And a new poll has uncovered a deep malaise among locals. What’s next? The Board of Supervisors urge the state and federal governments to help survivors of domestic violence. The Land Use and Transportation Committee weighs in on Car Free JFK, and on a controversial plan to end most single-family zoning in the city. And the Battery Bluff area of Presidio Tunnel Tops park opens on April 23rd.