Sam Spade's San Francisco

From today's San Francisco Business Times:

For the second time this year, is taking a major chunk of office space off of Gap Inc.'s hands as the retailer struggles with weak sales and cuts workers.

Having laid off 2,050 employees in fiscal year 2007, San Francisco-based Gap has agreed to sublet a 180,000-square-foot office at 901 Cherry Ave. in San Bruno to Google, according to real estate brokers familiar with the deal. The sublease, which is still being negotiated, comes six months after Gap also agreed to lease another big chunk of space to Google, 210,000 square feet at Hills Plaza on the San Francisco's waterfront. In total, between the two campuses, the Mountain View-based Google will be able to accommodate nearly 1,600 workers in the castoff Gap space.

From the San Francisco Police Department:

The SFPD is continuously hiring qualified applicants. Applicants must be 21 years old, have a valid driver's license, must be US citizens, must have a high School diploma or equivalent, and must not have been convicted of a felony or a misdemeanor which would prohibit possession of a firearm. For more information or to apply, Contact the Department of Human Resources at 44 Gough St, San Francisco. Additionally, applications are available on-line at www.sfgov.org/police or at governmentjobs.com.



Sunday, August 19: 40th Anniversary of Summer of Love-Global Cultures Music Festival

Time: 10:00am to 6:00pm
Location: Golden Gate Park
A free concert featuring world music & 60's rock & 21st century sound. Rumored to appear: Narada Michael Walden & Friends, Big Brother & The Holding Company, Melvin Seals & JGB and many more. For more details visit contact http://www.hopeandbeyond.org/



From SPUR: Parking measure moves city in the wrong direction

SPUR took an early position to oppose the so-called Parking for Neighborhoods initiative in order to educate voters about its effects as soon as possible. Contrary to its misleading title, the measure emphasizes increasing parking in San Francisco's congested, transit-friendly downtown district. It could increase the amount of parking in a typical office building from 150 spaces to nearly 700. It has a loophole to allow unlimited parking for "low-emission vehicles," but defines them to include Hummers, Cadillac Escalades, and Ford Expeditions! It allows property owners to destroy transit stops and mature street trees without the possibility of appeal. For more detailed information on this measure, click here


Can the waterfront be saved?

San Francisco is blessed with a waterfront that holds the potential to be an unparalleled asset for the city and its visitors. But today, a tangle of red tape and debt holds back that potential, and instead the waterfront slips deeper and deeper into disrepair. We can create a waterfront that is well-loved and well-used, but it will require substantial changes to the way we think about the waterfront, the way it is regulated and the way the Port of San Francisco is funded. Read the full report and other news online in the Urbanist, SPUR's monthly publication about San Francisco and urban life.



S.F. Unified School District plans for the future

San Francisco Unified School District is the highest-performing urban school district in the state, according to the California Department of Education. Some of its schools rank among the best in the country. However, this overall progress masks a failure of the district to serve some groups, whose children are not showing improvements in academic performance.

While the district needs more resources to better serve all of its students, it must also make the most efficient use of existing assets, including facilities for 90,000 schoolchildren while only 57,000 are enrolled. Should the district close more schools? If so, how? Should the district emphasize recruitment and retention to increase enrollment? These issues are the centerpiece of the district's Student Enrollment, Recruitment and Retention Plan, which is the highlight of a SPUR presentation at a noontime forum on Aug. 22.



Record Ten EQCA-Sponsored Measures Set for Final Legislative Hurdles

As lawmakers return from summer break next Monday to finalize the state budget and complete legislative work for the year, a record number of Equality California-sponsored measures are poised to pass their final legislative hurdles on their way to Governor Schwarzenegger for consideration.

EQCA is the sponsor of a record 10 pieces of legislation in 2007 – more than the organization has ever carried in a single calendar year. This comprehensive agenda will help build a better future for all Californians by protecting youth, strengthening families and empowering communities.

Each of the 10 measures has passed the first chamber and is now working its way through the second house. The full Legislature must send approved bills to the governor by September 14.

This year’s measures have received unprecedented bipartisan support, earning significant votes from Democrats and Republicans in both the Assembly and the Senate. Just last month a record 70 assemblymembers, including 24 Republicans, cast an “aye” vote for EQCA’s hate crimes resolution, authored by Assemblymember Mike Eng, D-Monterey Park. Three other measures, including a bill to give domestic partners the ability to adopt a family name of their choice, legislation to protect LGBT youth in public schools and a bill that simplifies income tax filing for domestic partners, also received bipartisan support.

Marriage Equality Update:

Legislation that would give same-sex couples the freedom to marry in California is working its way through the California State Senate.

The Religious Freedom and Civil Marriage Protection Act, authored by Assemblymember Mark Leno, D-San Francisco, is in the Senate Appropriations Committee. If it passes Appropriations, it would be eligible for a full vote on the Senate floor, the last stop before going to the governor's desk.

Briefs are being finalized this month in the marriage litigation by NCLR, Lambda Legal, ACLU, Heller Ehrman and David C. Codell, who represent EQCA and numerous couples seeking an end to the ban on marriage for same-sex couples.

In the meantime, opponents of equality are working hard to prevent the Legislature or the California Supreme Court from ever granting same-sex couples the ability to marry. A total of five ballot measures have been filed with the Attorney General's office by two different organizations seeking to amend the California Constitution to permanently exclude same-sex couples from marriage. Read more about these ballot measures.

Sign Up Today for The Neighborhood Empowerment Summit!

Join the Neighborhood Parks Council on September 8th for a free one-day conference to learn about ways to clean, green and make our neighborhoods safer! http://www.empowersf.org/

Over the last few months, a group of representatives from city agencies, non profits, and neighborhoods have been working together to create a new initiative called the Neighborhood Empowerment Network (NEN).

The goal of NEN is to make it easier for communities to partner with city agencies and non profits to improve the neighborhoods they call home. By featuring examples of how real people took on real challenges and won, the Network will be an invaluable resource to communities that want to make their neighborhoods safer, greener, cleaner, stronger and better prepared for natural disasters.

The first major NEN event will be the Neighborhood Empowerment Summit on Saturday, September 8th at Bill Graham Civic Auditorium from 9am to 4pm. This all day resource fair will feature dozens of agencies and non profits committed to working with anyone who wants to improve their neighborhood. Additionally, the summit will include break out sessions through out the day featuring real people and partner agencies explaining how they worked together to improve their neighborhood.

This is just the beginning for NEN and we hope you'll visit the link below to sign up for the Summit today. On September 8th, we'll provide more details on the NEN and how it will help empower neighborhoods to accomplish their goals. http://www.empowersf.org/



Thom Lynch Resigns from LGBT Community Center

Thom Lynch, who was hired in 2003 amid the financial chaos of the early operation of San Francisco's LGBT Community Center and turned it around, announced his resignation Tuesday, August 14. His last day was Wednesday. Read the full story in the Bay Area Reporter