San Francisco Chronicle - (Sunday)
Breed’s efforts aren’t making S.F. streets safer or cleaner
To Mayor London Breed: There has been a lot of positive discussion around how you’ve been addressing crime and the cleanliness of San Francisco, specifically Union Square and downtown over the last year.
You’ve created a city ambassador program, placing ambassadors strategically on our streets to be a friendly faces to visitors and provide directions. And you’ve placed police on the streets and increased cleaning efforts in these areas.
While all this is positive and a step in the right direction, I’m sad to say that these efforts are still not fixing the problems we face as businesses in the area. We are still experiencing high crime and dirty streets.
We have about 2,000 police officers in San Francisco. We should revisit their placements on the streets and ask them to partner with our local merchants. Businesses should be able to have a relationship with an assigned officer, who should be nearby in case they need to respond quickly.
Nearby, place a cleaning crew that can work with the officer and businesses to address any cleanups quickly.
We have a beautiful city. Please let’s take care of her.
Hans Hansson, San Francisco
Modernize solar
Regarding “State wants to make it harder to expand solar power” (Insight, Nov. 13): The proposal by the California Public Utilities Commission will certainly kill the rooftop solar market, but what I found more alarming was the attitude.
When I got my system in 2018, I did so with the misbelief that in bright blue California, what I was doing was encouraged by the state and it would help me.
That was before I learned how hostile the Legislature, the governor and regulators are to independent energy generation.
The commission’s version of reality relies on customers shelling out huge sums and then not caring if they ever see their money again. The political risk would have certainly discouraged me from making the investment.
One of the cost drivers the proposal fails to mention is the guaranteed profit. The utilities have a disincentive to become more efficient.
The Insight article said it clearly. The state Public Utilities Commission has chosen to prop up an expensive, 19th century alternative to distributed power.
Robert Hawley, San Jose
Kudos to Pelosi
On Oct. 9, 1987, fate put me in a seat behind Nancy Pelosi at a San Francisco Giants playoff game.
She was in a tight race in her first run for office. I leaned forward and told her how proud I’d be to tell my wife that I’d sat behind a future Congresswoman, rare at the time.
Since then, she’s become, as a Washington Post column’s headline said Thursday, “the most consequential speaker of our time.”
As she steps down as speaker but continues to serve in Congress, her advice will be a treasured asset by House Democrats, including Rep. Hakeem Jeffries if he takes the gavel as the new speaker in 2024.
Let us now praise a woman of history and thank her for representing us so ably and so well.