Supervisor Tang's April 2013 Newsletter

Supervisor Katy Tang | April 2013

District 4 | Sunset | Parkside

MESSAGE FROM THE SUPERVISOR

I had the incredible honor of working for Supervisor Carmen Chu for the past five years as her Legislative Aide, and enjoyed meeting many

of you through our work together in the community. I am now honored to have the opportunity to continue and build upon our work in this new capacity as Supervisor for District 4.

Everyone always says: “Work is work” and that you have to separate your

personal life from your work life. For me, especially after five years working for District 4, work is very personal.

When I first started working for the District, a group of parents approached our office about wanting to rebuild West Sunset Playground. As we worked together on fundraising for the new playground, I remembered my own fond experiences at West Sunset and thought of how children of future generations should be able to enjoy it as much as I did with my brother.

When Sava Pool re-opened in 2009 with its beautiful modern design, I couldn’t help but feel a twinge of jealousy because that’s where I took my first swimming lessons and then later spent much time practicing on the swim team and teaching swimming lessons.

When I go to my parents’ house and I look outside their living room window – I think, wow – that’s the country’s largest municipal solar power project right there on the Sunset Reservoir! And our office worked on that with the SFPUC to make that happen!

Whenever I think of how I first learned to ride a bicycle, I remember how my parents supported our district’s small businesses way back then – they bought me and my brother our first bicycles from Nomad Cyclerly on Irving Street – where I now work very closely with the merchants association.

It has been so exciting to see new businesses bloom in our district, attracting people from all over the City to the Outer Sunset. At the same time, I am so glad that places that I went to as a child are still there. As we talk about job creation and economic stimulation for the City, I believe it’s important to engage small businesses in our local communities, and I look forward to continuing my work with our local merchants.

When I look outside my living room window at home, I see Ocean Beach. I think about how District 4 is so lucky to serve as the gateway to the beach, and I am excited to work with the various agencies to improve the infrastructure, amenities and

1 Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Place, Room 244, San Francisco, CA 94102 | (415) 554-7460 www.sfbos.org/tang | [email protected]

access to the gem in our district’s backyard.

When we talk about access to our district and public transportation, I think about my experience riding Muni growing up. At that time, there was no NextBus and no 3-1-1. Muni has indeed made improvements to its service. But more must be done for Muni to adequately serve our Outer Sunset residents, who have some of the longest commutes in the City.

And whenever parents call our office, distressed over their child’s school assignment, I think about how lucky I was to have gone through the public school system and got to attend schools near my home where I could walk to and from school with my friends. I am so proud to be a product of public education and especially, a product of the San Francisco Unified School District.

As you can see, it is difficult for me to separate my work life from my personal life.I had a great time growing up in the Sunset District, and that’s why my parents chose to raise us there in the first place.

I look forward to building upon the great work that we started five years ago, and

Making sure that our children and families have·adequate playgrounds and parks to enjoy;Making sure that our district residents are well-·represented when it comes to citywide budgetdiscussions, and that our City is well-positioned for long-term budget stability;Making sure that we have a thriving, local economy.·

People choose to live in the Outer Sunset for a certain quality of life, and I hope that I can contribute my part in making sure that people – whether you’re a single college student, whether you’re starting a new family, whether you’re a 3rd generation Sunset resident, or whether you’re part of a multi-generational family trying to support each other – I want to make sure that people still want to live in the Outer Sunset. I want to make sure that people still want to live in San Francisco.

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Katy and her brother, Leo, growing up in the Sunset.

Introducing Supervisor Tang’s Staff

Ashley Summers

Ashley is a San Francisco native Sunset District resident. She attended St. Gabriel School

and St. Ignatius and currently lives in the Outer Sunset with her husband. Ashley has her bachelor’s from UC Santa Cruz in environmental studies, and her master’s from UC Berkeley in Environmental Planning. In her spare time, Ashley enjoys thrifting, baking, and supporting her local businesses (favorites in the Sunset include Kingdom of Dumpling, Ristorante Marcello, Animal Connection, Java Beach, Noriega Produce, Establish, 3 Fish Studios and many others). Ashley represents District 4 on the Parks, Recreation and Open Space Advisory Committee and is on the board of the Friends of the Sunset Neighborhood Beacon Center. Most recently, Ashley was District Representative and Intern Coordinator for Assemblywoman Fiona Ma. Ashley implemented the office’s leadership program and hired and mentored over four hundred interns. Ashley organized many events including the Chili Cook-Off; the Urban Coyote Forum; a Holiday Pet Adoption; and the Intern Talent Show. Ashley’s projects included the monthly newsletter, an exhibit for the 2011 State Fair, and fundraising to save the Weaverville Joss House from closure through a short documentary. Previously, Ashley was Taraval Corridor Manager, and helped businesses take advantage of resources, organized local events, conducted outreach, and managed a capital grant project to improve five business’ facades. Ashley’s also worked for the San Francisco Controller’s Office, where she developed and implemented an emergency training plan. Additionally, she interned for the Board of Supervisors Office of Supervisor Carmen Chu and the Recreation and Park Department.

Dyanna Quizon

Dyanna Quizon grew up in the Sunset District and attended Holy Name and Lowell

High School before leaving her beloved city to attain her Bachelor of Arts in Sociology at UC Davis and her law degree at UC Berkeley.

Before coming to Supervisor Tang’s office, Dyanna

served in all levels of government. She was a legal intern with the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division; a Judicial Administration Fellow with the California Administrative Office of the Courts and assistant to the Asian Pacific Islander Legislative Caucus; and worked on criminal justice/public safety policy with Mayor Ed Lee’s Office and labor/employee relations with the Department of Human Resources.

Dyanna currently serves on the Board of Directors for HomeownershipSF - which supports the attainment and maintenance of homeownership for underrepresented populations – and the Filipino Bar Association of San Francisco. Her hobbies include cheering on Bay Area sports teams (Niners, Giants, Warriors and Sharks); going to garage sales with her Abuelita in the Sunset; meditating; and training to hopefully compete in her first figure competition in May.

Carol Mo

Carol worked as the Sunset Community Convener and the Taraval district Safety

Network community organizer for many years. Through her work, she brought together Sunset service providers and parents’ groups through establishing the Sunset Family Service Network and the Sunset Family Action grants. She was also actively involved in establishing the first Chinese-language Police Community Relations Forum in the Taraval district. Over the years, other Sunset projects or events that Carol either led or was involved in were the Sunset Community Court, the Sunset Community Festival, Sunset Playground clean-ups, parenting classes, pedestrian safety campaigns, the Big Rumble Earthquake Preparedness Party, the Sunset principals’ breakfast, community BBQs, movie nights and many other family friendly programming and events. Carol brings over ten years of direct service experience working with immigrants, families and children at various non-profits in San Francisco. She also has been a member of a Sunset church for over ten years. Carol pursued graduate studies to further her knowledge of social welfare in order to better serve communities diverse in ethnic and economic backgrounds. While obtaining her Master of Social Welfare degree at UC Berkeley, her study focus was in management and planning. She did hospital systems improvement and direct clinical practice work aiming to improve the health and mental health outcomes of vulnerable low-income populations. She was received her BA in Psychology at UC Berkeley. Carol is fluent in spoken and written Mandarin and Cantonese.

Small Business Permit Fee Waivers in May

In recognition of Small Business Month in May 2013, Supervisor Tang recently introduced legislation to the Board of Supervisors to provide assistance at small businesses seeking to replace their store awnings

and signs. Under the legislation, awning replacement permit fees for small businesses will be waived during Small Business Month in May 2013. It is our hope that this incentive will provide small businesses with the opportunity to contribute to vibrant merchant corridors throughout the city. For more information on how to apply for an awning replacement permit, please contact the Department of Building Inspection at (415) 558-6088 or visit www.sfdbi.org. For more information on the legislation, please contact Supervisor Tang’s Office at 415-554-7460.

Supervisor Tang with Angela Ticker, owner of The Hard Wear Store (2401 Irving Street) and President of the Outer Sunset Merchant and Professionals Association.

South Sunset Playground Mosaic and Mural Project

Art in Every Classroom, Inc. and the San Francisco Recreation and Park Department will host a community “Buy a Tile/Paint a Tile Party” on Saturday, April 20, 2013 from 10am to 2pm

at the South Sunset Playground Clubhouse on Vicente@ 40th Ave to support the South Sunset Playground Mosaic and Mural Project. Community members of all ages are invited to purchase and paint a ceramic tile which will become a part of the “Nature Stream” mosaic planned for the two retaining walls at the back of the playground, just below the tennis and basketball courts. Tile prices are 2x2 for $20, 4x4 for $50 and 8x8 for $100.

More than 200 tiles featuring creatures and insects, which will “live” in the natural scene, have already been created by community members. Over 50 business and community sponsor tiles have also been sold to help fund the project. The sponsor tiles will be set into the walls behind the South Sunset Clubhouse, next to the larger mosaic.

Tile installation is planned for April and May. A community tile setting party will be held in early May for the final phase of the mosaic. If you would like to participate in the tile installation or volunteer to help set tile in studio this spring, please email [email protected].

You may have noticed the new painted mural “Play in Many Languages” on the west wall of the South Sunset Community Center. This mural, featuring the word “play” written in 29 languages, honors the diversity of the Outer Sunset/Parkside community. Local artist Renee McKenna painted the mural and designed the coming tile mosaic for Art in Every Classroom, Inc, the non-profit which has partnered with San Francisco Recreation and Park Dept. to sponsor the mosaic and mural project.

Great Highway Improvement Project Slated to be Completed Ahead of Schedule

Two months into the Great Highway Improvement Project, construction is moving along as planned and is making great progress. In fact, the target completion date has been moved up a few

months. Rather than the original October finishing point, an accelerated schedule puts the goal completion date closer to July. This is great news as the project objective is to bring this new roadway and streetscape to the public quickly with minimal impacts. The water main work on Point Lobos is complete. This was an essential part of the project and is an important milestone that has been accomplished. The sewer work from Lincoln to Balboa continues and that work is slated to be complete around the second week of April. Crews are currently working in the median section of the roadway west of Golden Gate Park, and traffic is down to two lanes in this area while this sewer work is being performed. Curb ramps are currently being constructed and you will see crews over the next couple of weeks installing those along the sidewalks. Crews will move from Point Lobos south to Sloat to build the dozens of curb ramps for the project. Once the sewer work is complete, the contractor will begin the curb and gutter work. The curbs will be demolished, formed and poured on both sides of the roadway in sections, starting at Point Lobos and 48th. This will mean some traffic lane closures and there will be flaggers and signage to help with the traffic flow. This project is a large portion of the work leading up to resurfacing the roadway, which will take up to four weeks to complete.

For more information, please contact the Department of Public Works at (415) 554-6930 or email [email protected] with any issues.

Women’s History Month Honoree: Laura Tam of SPUR

March was Women’s History Month and Supervisor Tang had the privilege of honoring Sunset District resident, Laura Tam, Sustainable Development Policy Director at

SPUR (San Francisco Planning & Urban Research). Laura Tam coordinates SPUR’s work in five major policy areas: green buildings, water supply, wastewater, energy and climate change.

Prior to joining SPUR, Laura worked for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Inspector General, where she conducted research and analysis that produced recommendations for the EPA to better manage environmental problems. In this position, she worked on a variety of policy issues, such as enforcing the Clean Water Act and managing electronic waste. She previously worked for the Northern Forest Center on rural development and conservation in the Northeast. She is the author of the book, At Home in the Northern Forest.

In addition to her many professional accomplishments, Laura has always been a very involved and engaged District 4 resident. She served as the District 4 representative on the SF PUC Citizens Advisory Board for three years. She spent two years on the advisory council of the Department of the Environment’s initiative called BC3 (the Business Council on Climate Change). She also currently serves on the Board of Friends of the Urban Forest.

Laura lives with her husband Darryl and children Liam and Ellery in the Outer Sunset/Ocean Beach neighborhood. She and her family are proud stewards of both a street tree and a sidewalk garden and want to see more of both in the Sunset.

Merchant Spotlight: Aqua Surf Shopby: sean egerton, district 4 intern

Aqua Surf shop is truly a unique experience in itself. Located at 2830 Sloat Boulevard, it is an ideal location for a local surf shop as it is across the street from Ocean Beach.

Aqua really adds to the local vibe and over all feel of the neighborhood. Surrounded by small cafés, restaurants, the San Francisco Zoo, and of course the beach, Aqua always has a lively, yet mellowed out type of feel.

Before the current owners Aleks and Devin took over Aqua, it was cleverly named “Aquaholics”, needless to say the name came from the love of the ocean. When Aleks and Devin took over the shop, they revised the name to simply “Aqua”.

I spoke for some time with Aaron Stewart, a very friendly and helpful employee at Aqua. Speaking with Aaron, it was easy to tell that the employees make the environment in the shop. From the second you walk through the tiki-framed doors, you are greeted with friendly smiles, and offered all the

help you may need. Aaron described the overall point of Aqua was to work for the community. Aaron further explained that the business aspect of Aqua, was more about helping the customer, and the community and less focused on the strict financial aspects of things. “Our goal is to get people into surfing, and encourage it… to bring the community together.” Aqua surf shop demonstrates a great balance of honesty, and business as Aaron mentioned. This I have witnessed myself when I rented a surfboard and wetsuit from Aqua, the ocean was particularly choppy that day and the employees knew that we would not be out in the water for long. Instead of charging us the full price, like most businesses would have done, Aqua only charged half the price. It is honesty like this that has me returning to Aqua.

San Francisco’s Anti-Litter Giant Sweep Campaign Poster Contest

The SF Giant Sweep anti-litter campaign showcases our student’s creativity and communicates the importance of keeping litter off the street. The Department of Public Works is looking for dynamic,

attention-grabbing posters, created by our students that convey the spirit of the Giant Sweep Campaign. The goal: Create a culture of clean in San Francisco.

One winner will be selected from each of the three following grade categories: elementary school (K-5), middle school (6-8), and high school (9-12). The prizes: $500 for the student artist, $500 for the sponsoring teacher, and $500 for the school!

The City, under the direction of the Mayor Ed Lee, is teaming up with the World Champion San Francisco Giants on the Giant Sweep anti-litter campaign. As the campaign grows and more people join the team, Giant Sweep will reach across the entire City. At its core, Giant Sweep is a hands-on educational program targeted at students -- encouraging them to join the citywide effort to keep San Francisco clean and beautiful and to help promote good public behavior.

The Giants showed us last year that winning the World Series took a team effort that went far beyond individual heroics. Giant Sweep embodies that same spirit. The poster contest is a great way for students to show off their artistic talents, get involved in their community, and help their schools!

Posters should be completely original and must incorporate “Giant Sweep” into the design. All posters need to be submitted by e-mail to [email protected]. The design size of the file must not exceed 5MB and must be in pdf format. Include your first and last name, e-mail address, home phone number, name of school, name of sponsoring teacher, grade, and title of submission. The deadline for submission is 4/29/13 at 11:59 PST.

Larsen Park Jet Project Update

The Friends of Larsen Playground were notified that they have been awarded $250,000 from the Community Opportunity Fund. Funded through the 2008 Clean and Safe Neighborhood Parks

General Obligation Bond, the Community Opportunity Fund is a Recreation & Parks Department Program that gives neighborhood groups the opportunity to make a difference in their favorite parks, build community, foster stewardship, and leverage resources to improve San Francisco’s vital public spaces.

Now is the time to get this plane and plan off the ground! The project requires $130,000 by June 1st to fully fund the Larsen Playground. The renovation plans include a large preschool-age play structure, swings and spinners, and a sculpted replica of the iconic and much beloved F-8 Crusader jet that so many people remember. Through the support of the community and with $850,000 of grant and other local funding secured, this project is well on its way.

You can support the Larsen Park renovation by visiting www.larsenparkjet.org.

SF Youth Commission Applications for 2013-2014 Term

Do you have an opinion about how this City makes decisions that affect you and your friends? Join the San Francisco Youth Commission! Applications are due Friday, May

3, 2013 at 6:00pm. The Youth Commission is a body of 17 San Franciscans between the ages of 12 and 23. Created by the voters under a 1995 amendment to the City Charter, the commission is responsible for advising the Board of Supervisors and the Mayor on policies and laws related to young people. The Youth Commission is also charged with providing comment and recommendation on all proposed laws that would primarily affect youth before the Board takes final action. Visit www.sfbos.org/index.aspx?page=5585 to learn more about the Youth Commission and to download the application.

Upcoming EventsApril 4 | Thursday | 6:00pm – 7:30pm

Taraval Streetscape Improvement Project Community Meeting #3We will be discussing design options for the streetscape improvements in your neighborhood.

Please join us and let us know your thoughts. Light refreshments will be served. Congregation B’nai Emunah | 3595 Taraval Street

For more information: www.sfdpw.org/index.aspx?page=1648

April 10 | Outer Sunset Merchants and Professionals Association (OSMPA) | 7:00pmThe OSMPA fosters the trade and industrial interests of its membership, promotes the

advancement of the Irving Street District; and provides a place for the open exchange of ideas, discussions and adoption of methods and policies for the good of the neighborhood.

Hard Wear Store | 2401 Irving StreetFor more information: www.irvingstreetmerchants.com

April 16 | Taraval Station Community Meeting | 7:00pmCome listen to the Captain’s update and hear news from around the community. To sign up for

Taraval Station’s newsletter, email [email protected]. Taraval Police Station | 2435 Taraval Street

For more information: www.sf-police.org/index.aspx?page=858

April 19, 20 & 21 | Friday, Saturday & SundayAcademy of Sciences FREE Days (for zip codes 94116 & 94122)

Each visiting adult must show a valid photo ID with proof of residency—acceptable items or combinations can be found on www.calacademy.org/visit.

April 20 | Saturday | 10:00am – 2:00pmSouth Sunset Playground Mosaic and Mural Project: Buy a Tile / Paint a Tile Party

Community members are invited to purchase and paint a ceramic tile which will become a part of the “Nature Stream” mosaic planned for the two retaining walls at the back of the playground.

South Sunset Playground | Vicente Street @ 40th AvenueFor more information: www.artineveryclassroom.org

April 21 | Sunday | 3:00pm – 5:00pmCollege Seminars by Serena Chan

Ms. Serena Chan, education consultant who has served the Bay Area for 12 years, will be hosting college seminars. Cantonese seminars as well. Free admission, please RSVP.

Sharon Chinese Baptist Church | 1620 Irving StreetRSVP: [email protected], For more information: www.sfhistory.org

April 25 | Thursday | 7:00pm – 10:00pmSNBC’s 3rd Annual Sunset Soiree

Held each spring, this fun event is a great opportunity to show your support for SNBC while enjoying small bites, tasty treats, beer and wine, live music, a silent and live auction, and more!

The Historic Zellerbach Mansion | 1550 Fell StreetTickets: http://snbc.org/get-involved/events/sunset-soiree/

April 27 | Saturday | 12:00pm – 3:00pmSunset Elementary School’s Annual Spring Carnival

Join Sunset Elementary School for an afternoon of games, prizes, cake walk, raffle, food and fun! Everyone welcome!

Sunset Elementary School | 1920 41st AvenueContact: Kim Freudenberg, PTA President at (415) 902-1912

OUT AND ABOUT IN THE SUNSET

Cafe Antigua1131 Taraval St.

Tsunami Walk

with sfdem, nert and public safety

march 2013

Read Aloud Dayat sunset elementary

N-Judah Turnaround Meeting

BSA

rotherhoodisterhoodssembly

Lincoln’s 9th annual