By Jerold Chinn SF Public Press The San Francisco Municipal Transportation and the California Public Utilities Commission say they have settled 90 percent of the items in the commission’s investigation of safety issues regarding Muni’s Metro light-rail system. There were no specific details revealed as to what the transit agency and commission agreed upon. […]
Monthly Archives: October 2011
Posted inCity Hall, Elections, Law & Justice
Q&A: Candidates for San Francisco district attorney
Third interview is with Sharmin Bock
One of the more important and most overlooked races in San Francisco is the campaign to be the city’s next district attorney. When Kamala Harris left the post for state office last year, outgoing Mayor Gavin Newsom appointed then-Police Chief George Gascon to take her place. Now, Gascon is running for a full four-year term, but faces stiff competition from four other candidates. Previously, we spoke with Bill Fazio and David Onek. Today, we feature Sharmin Bock, a San Francisco native and longtime prosecutor in Alameda County, known especially for her work on child sex trafficking. Bock sat down with Jason Winshell and Hank Drew from the San Francisco Public Press.
Posted inCity Hall, Elections, Law & Justice
Q&A: Candidates for San Francisco district attorney
Second interview is with David Onek
One of the more important and most overlooked races in San Francisco is the campaign to be the city’s next district attorney. When Kamala Harris left the post for state office last year, outgoing Mayor Gavin Newsom appointed then-Police Chief George Gascon to take her place. Now, Gascon is running for a full four-year term, but faces stiff competition from four other candidates. Yesterday, we spoke with Bill Fazio. Today, we turn to David Onek, a longtime criminal justice reformer and founding director of the Center for Criminal Justice at U.C. Berkeley’s School of Law.
Posted inElections, News
Researchers use S.F. mayoral candidates’ positions to rethink their places on ideological spectrum
Political scientists are trying to measure the ideology of candidates for mayor of San Francisco in an effort to give voters a better guide as to who most closely shares their views. San Francisco’s crowded field of 16 candidates and a ranked-choice voting system, which some find baffling, seemed to be the ideal testing ground for a project that measures mayoral hopefuls positions by surveying them on past actions at the Board of Supervisors and on current policy debates. Voters aren’t always as well informed as they can be for city elections, which tend to attract less attention than national races and also lack the party labels that help distinguish each candidate, said Christopher S. Elmendorf, a professor of law at the University of California, Davis, and a visiting professor at U.C. Hastings College of the Law in San Francisco.
Posted inNews
Muni switchbacks on the decline but riders still waiting a long time for next train to arrive
By Jerold Chinn SF Public Press Switchbacks on Muni trains have been a common complaint from Muni riders as the San Francisco Public Press has previously reported. Muni trains occasionally turn around and have passengers leave the vehicle before arriving at the end terminal in order to get the transit system back on schedule. […]
Posted inBay Area, Food Systems, Media
New roots for green businesses
As the world economy increasingly collides with the limits of linear, “cradle-to-grave” production, more eyes are turning towards resource synergies, upcycling, and improved efficiencies to relieve some economic pressure and get more value with less waste. Take coffee. For every pound of coffee beans harvested (of which there were 17 billion in 2010, according to the International Coffee Organization), four pounds of pulp must be collected, and it is generally considered a waste product that is left in heaps to rot. But some companies, such as Equator Coffees & Teas and Thanksgiving Coffee, are supporting efforts to train farmers in Zimbabwe and Tanzania how to use coffee pulp as a substrate for growing oyster mushrooms.
Posted inCity Hall, Elections, Law & Justice
Q&A: Candidates for San Francisco district attorney
First interview is with Bill Fazio
One of the more important and most overlooked races in San Francisco is the campaign to be the city’s next district attorney. When Kamala Harris left the post for state office last year, outgoing Mayor Gavin Newsom appointed then-Police Chief George Gascon to take her place. Now, Gascon is running for a full four-year term, but faces stiff competition from four other candidates. We’ll be posting interviews with all five of the candidates for district attorney this week. First up: Bill Fazio, a longtime prosecutor and defense attorney who grew up in San Francisco.
Posted inNews
Youth environment prize winner feeds Richmond, employs neighbors
By Maureen Nandini Mitra From Public Press news partner Earth Island Journal Tania Pulido was a troubled teen back in high school. Her teachers labeled her an “at-risk” youth. But there was something about her that drew people. A local Richmond nonprofit called Urban Tilth, that works to build healthy and just food […]
Posted inCity Hall, Government & Politics, Immigration, Public Safety
A candidate for S.F. prosecutor makes human trafficking an issue in campaign, downplays federal help
The reorganization of the San Francisco Police Department’s Special Victims Unit has become an issue in the November vote for district attorney — at least for one contender in the race: Sharmin Bock, an Alameda County prosecutor. But in doing so, she clashed with police officials who said they need to rely more on federal investigators’ expertise. She said she has placed most of her emphasis on sex tafficking, but has little experience with labor trafficking.
Posted inPublic Safety
Oakland’s Claremont Canyon, 20 years after the fire
Standing above her home perched on the north slope of Claremont Canyon along the Berkeley-Oakland border, Marilyn Goldhaber points across the valley. Most of the houses on the other side were damaged or razed in the massive 1991 wildfire that burned 1,520 acres and torched 3,500 homes and apartments. Two decades later, residents are still trying to figure out how to deal with the reality of wildfire while also respecting and potentially restoring native habitats.