Economy & Business
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Dissecting the news media’s claim of anti-panhandling ‘clamor’

09.23.2011
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“Aggressive panhandling” made Page One of the San Francisco Chronicle again recently. But the report, like so many others before it in newspapers, magazines, TV and websites, left readers with more questions than answers about whether the trend indicated by the paper really existed. The Chronicle reported an increase in complaints from tourists and the local hospitality industry at the presence of panhandlers who won’t take no for an answer. While it quoted hoteliers and travelers opining on the city’s homelessness problem, some vital information was missing from the story: When they say aggressive panhandling, what activities precisely are they complaining about? How do they know the panhandling problem is growing — are there any statistics? If there is more desperate poverty on the street, what are the causes?

Environment

Legislature bans sale of shark fins

09.07.2011
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Shark fin soup soon will be off the menu in California. A law banning the sale, possession and distribution of shark fins passed in the state Senate on a 25-9 vote on Tuesday. A companion bill that makes exceptions for taxidermy and scientific research passed 28-8. The bill already passed the Assembly in May, and it is expected to be signed into law by Gov. Jerry Brown. California follows Washington, Hawaii and Oregon in passing similar legislation.

Aging
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Facing cuts, nonprofits forced to lobby City Hall to save immigration program

08.17.2011
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Year after year, private organizations strategize and line up clients to push for last-minute ‘add-backs’
For clients at Self-Help for the Elderly, the citizenship classes taught by volunteer instructor Joanne Lee are a perfect fit: Classes are held at a convenient Chinatown location, senior clientele are easily accommodated and the material is taught in both English and Chinese. It has worked out well for students Sammie Xu, 69, and Nancy Zhang, 64, Chinese immigrants who are studying for their naturalization exam. Before enrolling in classes at the social services agency, the married couple tried others in which teachers only provided instruction books without guidance or taught classes only in English.

News
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War of words over Fair Shelter Initiative

07.20.2011
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From the moment a measure to amend San Francisco’s Care Not Cash law was placed on the November ballot last month, the proposition has come under fire from politicians. Now the proposal has become a hot issue in the lead-up to this fall’s mayoral race. The measure, known as the Fair Shelter Initiative, alters the definition of housing for administering county welfare benefits. Specifically, it would remove beds at city-funded homeless shelters from the definition of “housing.” 

Homelessness
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2010 ‘sit-lie’ law could cost city thousands to jail repeat offenders

04.26.2011
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It took two cops to nab Charles Donovan outside Coffee to the People on the corner of Haight and Masonic streets. Dressed in camouflage and carrying a sign that read, “Need food,” Donovan was whisked away, ordered to remove his sunglasses and duly patted down. The officers told him he was being detained. A barista saw the scene and ran outside to intervene.  Donovan, eventually, was let go with a warning as the cops wrote down his name in their notebooks. His offense? Reclining on a large backpack against a tree outside the coffee house, an activity that stands in violation of San Francisco’s newly enacted “sit-lie” ordinance. Dozens of others haven’t gotten off as easily as Donovan since the city started enforcing the law in February. None, yet, have gone to jail for a repeat offense; but that could soon change in the coming months, eventually costing the city nearly $4,000 per arrest after the third offense.

City Hall

City tries lottery system for homeless shelter beds

04.08.2011
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One of San Francisco’s principal shelters is gambling on a new lottery system, operational as of today, that it says will more effectively allocate available beds for homeless people. The plan by Multi-Service Center-South, a 300-bed shelter at Fifth and Bryant streets, is aimed at ending competition among shelter seekers, who line up daily during the early morning hours in the hopes of obtaining one of 60 single-night bed reservations available across the city.

City Hall

Computer system shutdown hurts homeless at city shelters

03.21.2011
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A computer failure forced San Francisco homeless shelter residents to wait hours in the cold to gain admittance as staffers turned to pen and paper to register those who needed assistance.
The system, known as Coordinated Homeless Assistance through Guidance and Effective Services went offline on March 12 as the city’s Human Services Agency underwent seismic upgrades at its building on Otis Street.

Arts & Culture
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Proposal to ban shark fins in California heats up

02.14.2011
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Assemblymen Paul Fong (D-Cupertino) and Jared Huffman (D-San Rafael) have proposed legislation to ban all sales and distribution of shark fins in the state. Both assemblymen say the shark population has decreased dramatically due to the popular rise of a Chinese delicacy of shark fin soup served at many Chinese restaurants in the Bay Area.
Opponents of the legislation like State Sen. Leland Yee says this is an attack on the Chinese culture and heritage.

City Hall
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Supervisors choose City Administrator Edwin Lee for interim mayor

01.07.2011
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The San Francisco Board of Supervisors voted 10-1 on Friday for City Administrator Edwin Lee to fulfill the remaining term for outgoing Mayor Gavin Newsom. Lee will become the first Asian American mayor of San Francisco when the vote is ratified at next week’s board meeting on Tuesday. Sheriff Michael Hennesey, who was also considered for the position, was rejected by the board 9-2.