Dear neighbors,

I hope you’re staying cool while enjoying our late San Francisco summer. September has been a jam-packed month both in the neighborhood and inside City Hall.

In the Neighborhood

In September, I attended the Autumn Moon Festival in Chinatown and hosted our third annual Richmond Autumn Moon Festival. This event was a huge success thanks to our partners: Assemblymember Phil Ting; The Richmond Neighborhood Center; Community Youth Center (CYC); and the Clement Street Merchants Association. We had more than 1,000 people come out to enjoy the delicious food and amazing performances. I also want to recognize our amazing sponsors and dozens of wonderful vendors; thank you all for your support and collaboration. 

It was fun rolling with the San Francisco Transit Riders group from the Richmond to City Hall on the 5R-Fulton bus to kick off Transit Week. At the press conference I stressed the need to bring underground transit to the Richmond so we can be better connected to Mission Bay and the other eastern neighborhoods. I also had fun hosting office hours at the Art Bistro Cafe, which is beloved by the neighborhood.

I hosted our annual Public Safety Town Hall at the Golden Gate Park Senior Center along with SF Police Chief Bill Scott and Capt. Michelle Jean where we heard from neighbors about their public safety needs and priorities in the Richmond District. I also attended a community meeting with neighbors at the Internet Archive to discuss positive solutions to the increase in homelessness along the Park Presidio Greenbelt. Last year I held community meetings with neighbors to come up with ways to revitalize the Greenbelt and this year the Richmond Neighborhood Center and the Recreation Park Department have been hosting monthly cleanups and gardening days on the Greenbelt. Thank you to those of you who have done your One Richmond thing by coming out to volunteer!

Golden Gate Park is turning 150 years old next year and I was happy to join many friends and advocates to kick off the planning for the wonderful celebration. Save the date for a community celebration on April 4, 2020. Thank you to Friends of Oak Woodlands and Rec. and Park for a wonderful tour and discussion regarding the needs and opportunities for trail maintenance. 

Inside City Hall

My colleagues and I celebrated the swearing in of the San Francisco Youth Commission along with their deep well of mentors, friends, family and community who supported their journey here. I can’t wait to see the fierce policies and advocacy this cohort will spearhead and I’m looking forward to working with our new D1 Youth Commissioner Sarah Cheung!

San Francisco Mayor London Breed, Supervisor Rafael Mandelman and I announced a plan to save our residential treatment homes that support our elders and those in need of behavioral health services. These board and care facilities are critical to caring for our seniors and play a vital role in ensuring that vulnerable residents receive the services they need while remaining housed – immediate action must be taken to stop the loss of these beds.

I authored and passed a resolution urging Gov. Gavin Newsom to sign AB-857, the Public Bank Bill, which passed the Assembly and the Senate in September. A public bank would allow us to invest more in affordable housing and other public needs without having to pay millions of dollars in interest to big banks like Wells Fargo.

I was proud to join the action to #CloseTheCamps outside City Hall, alongside hundreds of young people, families and everyday San Franciscans calling on our federal government to take immediate action for our immigrant and refugee children and families.

I had the opportunity to honor and highlight San Francisco Peer Resources for its decades of phenomenal leadership development and empowering students as fierce changemakers, including my very own Legislative Aide Chelsea when she was a high school student. I also had the honor of recognizing my good friend and advocate, Yadira, for Latinx Heritage Month at the Board of Supervisors. She is a dreamer in so many senses of the word as she dreams for justice and dignity for immigrants and all people. 

Community Announcements

One Hard Thing: 

The Richmond Senior Center is looking for volunteers to help seniors and people with disabilities in the Richmond to accomplish “One Hard Thing” that they have requested at its home on Saturday, Oct. 19, at 9:45 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Contact Lgeren@ggsenior.org to sign up. 

Family Summit: 

Join me and SF Department of Children, Youth & Their Families (DCYF) for the upcoming D1 Family Summit on Saturday, Oct. 26, 1-3 p.m., at the Richmond Recreation Center (251 18th Ave.). Visit dcyf.org/family-summits for more info.

Bikeshare Community: 

Join me for a community meeting on Monday, Oct. 28, 6-7:30 p.m. at the Richmond Rec. Center to discuss Bikeshare in our neighborhood and to provide questions and feedback regarding proposed station locations. 

Hardly Strictly Bluegrass:

The free Hardly Strictly Bluegrass music festival also returns the weekend of Oct. 4-6 at Hellman Hollow and Lindley/Marx meadows with more than 80 artists and six stages!

Have a nice fall season, neighbors. Have you done your One Richmond thing today?

San Francisco Supervisor Sandra Lee Fewer represents District 1.