Bevan Dufty

Panhandlers Line Up to Get Puppies, Cash

Of course a panhandler is willing to leave their corner and go adopt a puppy if they know there's free cash involved. So it comes as no surprise to us that the city's latest experiment to get panhandlers off the street has been "very popular."Monday was the first day for WOOF (Wonderful Opportunitie ... More >>

PETA Bribes San Francisco to End Puppy Panhandling Program

The last time we remember San Francisco being scolded by PETA was when the animal-rights group asked Mayor Ed Lee to take the "loin" out of the Tenderloin and change the seedy district name to something a little more animal-friendly. But even as the city attempts to do something that benefits animal ... More >>

S.F. Gay Community to Hold Vigil for Lesbian Teens Shot in Texas

The San Francisco community will head down to the Harvey Milk Plaza tonight to mourn and honor the lesbian teen couple shot in the head in a South Texas park, killing one and critically injuring the other. Former Supervisor Bevan Dufty passed along information about tonight's vigil, which will begin ... More >>

Election Money -- Who Gave What in San Francisco

Invest, young man. Invest in politics! ​As of last night, San Francisco's election season is all over except for the shoutin' -- and recriminatin' and fulminatin' and tabulatin' who bought what. Assuming Mayor Ed Lee does pull it out, a number of observers will note he did so in spite of the actio ... More >>

Alex Tourk: Bevan Dufty Unconcerned With Investigation of New Hire

Ethics Commission, Shmethics Commission...​Bevan Dufty goes through campaign managers like Spinal Tap went through drummers -- though, to our knowledge, none of his three prior field generals has exploded. He has hired a rather explosive campaign manger No. 4: Alex Tourk. Tourk is a resp ... More >>

List: Checking In with the S.F. Mayoral Race

Will Ed Lee Run for Mayor?

Who Wants a Date with a Smokin' Hot Progressive?

How much would you pay for a date with him?​The question of whether mayoral candidates can technically be bought has been answered. Yes, they can. Some of San Francisco's mayoral candidates will be auctioning themselves off at a fundraiser for the New Leaders Council on Wednesday, April 27 -- and ... More >>

Mayoral Candidates: Who's Hot, Who's Not

Chris Daly -- would have been "hot"​After Supervisor John Avalos jumped into the mayor's race yesterday afternoon, we started thinking: with so many candidates now in the race, how will voters decide?To date, there are more than 30 potential candidates who want to be the city's chief executive. Of ... More >>

The Eagle Tavern Closure: Hundreds Protest at Meeting, But Future Looks Dim

S.F. Supervisor Bevan Dufty speaking at the Eagle last night.​Hundreds of supporters gathered at the Eagle Tavern last night to try to stop the closure of the beloved gay bar and live music venue later this month. But despite ambitious plans -- and lots of passion from patrons who said they'd trea ... More >>

Links: The Backstory on Britney in S.F., New Video of Sonny & the Sunsets, and Downer Party Release Show Tonight

Sonny & The Sunsets from Scott McDowell on Vimeo.How S.F. Supervisor Bevan Dufty brought Britney Spears to the city for Good Morning America. [SF Gate]Sonny & the Sunsets do a set for video project Chasing the Moon in advance of their new album. [The Bay Bridged]

Main Library Wheels In Food Carts

misocrazy/Flickr​Food Cart Smarts Where: San Francisco Public Library, Latino/Hispanic Meeting Room A and B, 100 Larkin (at Hyde), 557-4400 When: Thurs., Feb. 10, 5:30-7 p.m. Cost: Free The rundown: If you've never used the Internet or eaten a snack, maybe you haven't heard of the mobile ... More >>

Moderates are Winners, Progressives are Losers in Fight to Rule San Francisco

Progressive Loser​The last two weeks at City Hall has been much like a low-budget mini-series, as the city watched progressives and moderates hit all-time lows in order to wrestle power away from one another. But now that the political waters have calmed, it's time to look at who emerged on top: W ... More >>

Progressives Say Back Room Deals Selecting Interim Mayor Make Their Head Spin

Wizard Behind The Curtain​Upon being elected as lite gov, Mayor Gavin Newsom swore off any back room deals to ensure that his replacement was politically untainted.But that message seems to have been lost on him. As the Chronicle detailed this morning, Newsom, even before Tuesday's meeting, was ap ... More >>

Mayoral Madness to Continue Today?

Hey, how about John Brown for mayor of San Francisco? His progressive credentials are to die for. ​The question of just what the hell to do about the pending mayoral vacancy in this here city comes up again at today's Board of Supervisors meeting. And while the supes last month voted to resume the ... More >>

Streamlined Rules for Street-Food Vendors Pass Another Hurdle

Curbside Coffee/FacebookThe legislation ― which eases the permitting process for vendors like Curbside Coffee ― now goes before the full Board of Supervisors.​At a public hearing earlier today, San Francisco's City Operations and Neighborhood Services Committee approved a new ordinance for ... More >>

Planning Commission Approves New Rules for Street-Food Vendors on Private Property

Luis Chong/YelpLe Truc at an Off the Grid street-food event.​The San Francisco Planning Commission yesterday approved unanimously Supervisor Bevan Dufty's legislation for new street-food rules for vendors on private property, with one slight change. The proposed ordinance ― which streamlines ... More >>

Is 'Giants Pride Week' the Best Choice of Words?

They're big fans...​Are you prideful yet? Mayor Gavin Newsom has decreed this to be "San Francisco Giants Pride Week," urging one and all to wear Giants colors, put pennants in windows, and root, root, root for the home team. While no one could find objection with good-natured boosterism of our Wo ... More >>

Where Were You When the Mayor Declared This To Be Arizmendi Day?

Mary LaddSay cheesy: The Valencia Street Arizmendi crew poses with Supes David Campos and Bevan Dufty.​Supervisors Bevan Dufty and David Campos presented a lunchtime proclamation from Mayor Newsom's office naming today Arizmendi Day across the city. The brand-new Valencia Street bakery marked ... More >>

Will San Francisco Ban Cigarettes at Pharmacies -- Again?

Your purchasing options at city pharmacies may be shrinking...​City may expand tobacco ban to all pharmacies It takes a mighty clumsy law to make clear-thinking people think like Big Tobacco's lawyers -- but San Francisco passed just such a law in 2008.The city forbade pharmacies such as Walgreen' ... More >>

Alcohol Fee on Supes' Menu Today

Luke ThomasDon't count on support for the 'Alcohol Mitigation Fee' from Mayor Gavin Newsom​After several weeks of vacation, one of the first items on the Board of Supervisors' schedule: a drink. The supes will today vote on Supervisor John Avalos' contentious alcohol fee, a charge placed on the ci ... More >>

Your Rundown on the Week in S.F. Government

Pride of the city​Over the weekend Your Correspondent was lucky enough to have one of those reality-check conversations with a reasonable layperson -- these sorts of chats come far too seldom for us poor hacks, who spend a lot of our time talking to the wonkish caste that includes legislative aide ... More >>

SF GovInAction: So Long, Farewell, Auf Weidersehen, Adieu

There's virtually no government happening this week, and the few meetings scheduled are so pointless that you'd be excused for calling them vanity government. David Chiu just likes to call stuff to order -- and can you blame him? But before I cover this week's vanity meetings to reveal once agai ... More >>

You Won't Be Watching Prop. 8 Trial on YouTube -- So Why Not Just Show Up at the Courthouse?

This Black Friday line is apparently way worse than anything Prop. 8 trial attendees are facing ​Supporters of same-sex marriage were dealt a blow by yesterday's Supreme Court ruling (5-4 -- get used to this...) keeping cameras out of the ongoing Proposition 8 trial. But, for San Franciscans, ther ... More >>

Committee Assignments are Here! Which Supes Got Screwed?

But that's a loser committee!​The day the board president hands out committee assignments to the city supervisors always feels just a bit like junior high school. Who's the new boy? Who got all his electives? Who's stuck taking woodshop in seventh period? Who'll sit at the cool kids' table? Who'll ... More >>

Report On Google Shuttles In the City: You May Hate 'Em, But the Environment Doesn't

Pipe down, Nimbys...​So maybe you've heard Mission and Noe Valley dwellers complaining about the huge shuttle buses huffing through their small residential streets to whisk 2,500 daily commuters away to their Silicon Valley cubicles. Well, turns out they're not so bad, Nimbys. Thus concluded a stu ... More >>

What Did SEIU Hope to Gain Via Quixotic Quest to Change Newsom's Mind?

​As SF Weekly and others reported yesterday, the SEIU convinced eight supervisors to borrow nearly $2 million -- from funds already earmarked for workers' salaries -- to stave off layoffs, pay cuts, and job reassignments in the Department of Public Health. And, because San Francisco's governmental ... More >>

Noe Valley and Mission residents say Google shuttles are evil

SF Gov InAction: Big money! Big money! Oh God, Make It Stop!

What an exciting week! Your Host Gaaaaaaavin Newson! will be giving away big money prizes! And how much would you pay for this PUC headquarters? Find out in our Showcase Showdown! That's not actually a joke. In fact, there is an awful lot of government happening this week, squeezing big money ... More >>

Just One Problem With Supes' Approved Plan To Defund $510K From Opera, Ballet, Theater -- It Wasn't Legal

While the supes voted to strip $510,000 from the opera, ballet and ACT, the person whose job it is to actually make such decisions says this won't happen On San Francisco's fiscally sinking ship, a majority of our supervisors voted Tuesday to toss the record player overboard via half a million ... More >>

SF Gov InAction: Peace Between Bloggers and Journalists for Our Time!

Print journalists and bloggers are feuding again. It's a quiet feud so far -- an incendiary article here, a subtle dig in a blog post there -- but it's real, it's between people I know and respect, and it makes me want to hide under the bed the way I did when the monsters attacked mommy and dad ... More >>

Sf Gov InAction: Special Faux-Guest Edition!

Do you ever get tired of doing the same thing every week? Me too. So this week I decided to imagine how SF Gov InAction would look if it were written by five of this city's most ... um ... noteworthy ... pundits. You say "parody," I say "homage." Either way: Enjoy. Monday, June 29 11 a.m. ... More >>

Queer Food Capital: Two Very Different Meals at Absinthe

Top photo by Laura T, Bottom by Manda Amanda Bear B, via Yelp In anticipation of Pride on Sunday, SFoodie is presenting daily features celebrating San Francisco's LGBT food and drink culture. Last year I went to City Hall to be a happy witness to my old college friend David's wedding ... More >>

Supes' Proposed $82M Cuts to Cops, Firefighters are 'Symbolic' -- But Portend Bare-Knuckle Budget Battle

The budget battle is under way...A shot across the bow. A brushback pitch. A dropping of the gauntlet. Call it what you will, but when the Board of Supervisors' Budget and Finance Committee yesterday approved $82 million in cuts from San Francisco's police, fire, and sheriffs' departments it was a s ... More >>

SF Gov InAction: These Are Not the Budget Numbers You're Looking For

The excitement stops here. I know ... I know ... that today's the day Gubernatorial Candidate Gavin Newsom releases his budget for San Francisco (a California city he occasionally resides in for campaign purposes). And I know that, when he does, we're all going to die a little. I know. But ... More >>

Someone's Getting Thrown Under the Bus on MTA Budget Battle. Who Will It Be?

Perhaps this graffiti artist was displeased with Muni's budget as well...When Supervisor David Chiu last month placed an item in the Budget and Finance committee's Wednesday agenda rejecting the Municipal Transportation Authority's controversial budget, he wasn't doing it to merely test out the butt ... More >>

Bevan Dufty Is Anti-American (Apparel): Store Opponents Tout Supe's Support

No American Apparel onesies for this kid!The folks over at Stop American Apparel are reporting that District 8 Supervisor Bevan Dufty has offered his support to the campaign. He hasn't issued an official statement yet, but the Planning Commission should be sitting by the phone -- because word on the ... More >>

SF Gov InAction: Peskin Settles Score with Alioto-Pier

By Benjamin Wachs There is one meeting happening this week. On Tuesday, at 10 a.m., the Rules Committee (which, at this point, is Chris Daly and Bevan Dufty) will be getting together to discuss proposed appointments to the Historical Preservation Commission and the Small Business Commission. T ... More >>

SF Gov InAction: Supes Divide the City Amongst Themselves, have Big Plans for 19th Avenue, Try to Ban Smoking in Small Steps

Public Power Grab

Why some "progressives" are putting energy into a bad idea.

SF Gov't InAction: This Week It's All About Troops ... and the Budget

LastNight: Halloween in Singapore: All Quiet on the Castro Front

Halloween in Fallujah: Dufty Stops Ducking Public, Schedules Bitch Fest

San Francisco Taxi Rates To Rise Pending Health Care Plan: SFGovernmentInAction

Kid Code

Pink Saturday Blackout, and Not the Good Kind

A Gift That Stands Out

John Trani got the graduation present no red-blooded frat boy could refuse: his own Hooters restaurant

Dog Bites

IKEA, Party of Five, heavenly coffee, and bumpin' Bernal Heights bus shelters

The Grid