SFist Interviews: District 8 Candidate Alix Rosenthal

If you're elected, what are some specific ways in which your constituents’ lives will be different after one year of your leadership? After two years? After four?

In my first year, I will work hard to reinvigorate the City’s solar roofs initiative – the City will do more to help homeowners switch to solar power. With my vote, the Board will approve Jake McGoldrick’s Healthy Saturdays legislation to open portions of Golden Gate Park to bicyclists, rollerskaters and pedestrians on Saturdays. I will also vote to expand police foot patrols to District 8.

In the first few years of my term, I plan to bring City leaders together to develop a comprehensive violence prevention plan, including community policing and funding for more community-based programs. With my leadership, the City will provide incentives for the development of new rental housing.

By the end of my term, MUNI will be substantially improved because I will have worked to find and dedicate the funding necessary to get MUNI back on track. The Citywide Bike Network will be completed, and the City will be safer for bicyclists and pedestrians.

Let's say someone just moved to San Francisco and doesn't know anything about the city -- how would you sell them on moving to your district?

No matter who you are, you can find a neighborhood in District 8 that suits you. District 8 has several vibrant commercial districts, including the Valencia corridor, 24th Street in Noe Valley, the village of Glen Park, and the fabulous Castro district. It has some of the best parks of any district, including many playgrounds and dog runs, nature trails, tennis courts and athletic fields. And since it is in the heart of the City, it is easy to get anywhere you want to go.

What's something about your district that you hope never changes?

I hope the Castro stays the predominantly gay neighborhood that it is. I see the Castro changing, as it becomes less tolerant of renters and our LGBTQ homeless youth. I will work hard to protect the Castro’s character, with projects like gay-themed historical markers, entertainment venues and public art, and by preserving affordable housing in the neighborhood.

Let's say you win. Would you work with the losing candidates so that the district could benefit from the contributions that they could make?

Bevan has worked in city government for ten years, and has a vast knowledge of the city’s bureaucracy. In the first year of my term, I would like to call on his expertise for specific neighborhood issues that I know he has worked on. I’d like to involve Starchild in the sex worker issues that are coming before the Board in the coming year, specifically regarding legislation written by the Commission on the Status of Women that would ban private rooms in strip clubs.

Let's say you lose. How would you go about working with the winner to affect the sort of change that you want to see?

I’ve been delighted to see that we have already affected the way that Bevan has approached his own campaign. In the last several months, he has changed his positions on tenant issues, affordable housing, the environment and public safety in response criticism from the left. If Bevan wins reelection, I pledge to pressure Bevan to be a more progressive vote on the Board, and I plan to be a vocal advocate for the issues that I’m running on.

Regarding the environment: your advocacy of "Living Roofs" -- that is, rooftop gardens -- is really interesting, but won't it take a lot of work to adapt rooftops, and to get homeowners on board, and to teach people how to make it work? How would you implement that sort of a program without the effort outweighing the benefit?

The most common living roofs are not complicated rooftop gardens, but a single layer of dirt and plants over a waterproof material and a drainage system. They can require relatively little effort to install and maintain. Chicago, Toronto, Portland, and many cities in Europe have successful green roof initiatives in place that San Francisco could model. Rather than starting with private homeowners, SF should demonstrate the feasibility of living roofs by starting with public buildings, just as Chicago did – by installing 20,000 square feet of green roof on its City Hall. Chicago also has a grants program in place to incentivize the installation of living roofs on private buildings.

The economic, ecological, and aesthetic benefits of green roofs are enormous. They can help the owner save on heating and cooling costs, and they can help reverse global warming. Green roofs can improve our air quality and our water quality by reducing the amount of pollution delivered to the Bay. Green roofs are the next big thing in environmental city planning – I look forward to working on this issue once elected.

What are the first five changes would you implement to try to fix Muni? Have you read SPUR's reports on Muni's budget shortfall? What are your thoughts on the methods they propose for increasing ridership and revenue?

I read SPUR’s report called “MUNI’s Billion Dollar Problem” before writing my transportation policy. I support its recommendations, and I look forward to implementing them after I’m elected. SPUR is right – MUNI will continue to spiral downward until we dedicate the funds necessary to get it back on track. I am supporting the parking tax measure on the ballot this fall, and if it passes, the City must dedicate all of its revenues to improving MUNI.

I would want to see lower bus floors and a smartcard program to speed up the boarding process. I’d like to install transponders in every bus that will keep traffic lights green when buses approach, so as to get them through traffic faster. Transit-only lanes also make buses faster by removing them from traffic – we should build more of these, and better enforce the ones already in place. I’m looking forward to learning the results of the Controller’s Transit Efficiency Study and implementing its recommendations to make MUNI’s routes more efficient.

You've said that you want to develop a citywide violence prevention plan. What are some components that you think should be in such a plan? If it was up to you, would you have changed anything about Prop A, the homicide-prevention measure that voters recently rejected?

I supported Prop A, and I was very disappointed that it narrowly missed passing in June. I would like to bring similar community-based violence prevention programs to the Board for approval if I’m elected. I find it interesting that the Mayor – who opposed Prop A – is now promoting community-based violence prevention measures now that the homicide rate is climbing to new levels. The only thing I would have changed about Prop A is the election that we chose to present it to voters. Placing it on the November ballot may have resulted in a win, since November elections generally have higher turnouts.

Combating graffiti is high enough on Gavin's radar that he's offered a bounty for BNE. How would you combat vandalism in district 8?

I love the BNE story! Seriously, with our murder rate at an all-time high, with violent crime on the rise citywide, and with a police department that has limited resources and that is embattled over discrimination problems, graffiti is hardly the biggest crime issue in the City. I was surprised to see the Mayor staking his political future on it.

It is very difficult to catch taggers because they act so quickly. However, I would support the idea of a reward system wherein citizens who report taggers and litter law violations are awarded a part of the monetary penalty imposed on the violators after they are caught.

You advocate programs such as community land trusts and cooperative housing -- programs in which the residents share control of their building -- as methods for attracting middle-class residents who can't afford to buy a whole house. For which people would these programs work best? Is there anyone for whom they're not such a great deal? It sounds like these programs have fewer advantages than outright home ownership; how would you encourage people to pursue housing that may carry more financial risk?

CLTs and limited-equity coops aren’t for everyone. They are primarily designed for folks for whom traditional homeownership is not a realistic option; those who want the security of homeownership, but need assistance with the down payment. That being said, CLTs and coops usually carry less – not more – financial risk, which is why this form of homeownership results in less financial reward on the back end. CLTs and limited-equity coops are not for folks who are able to come up with their own down payment to purchase their home, or real estate speculators.

It looks like the Castro is poised on a small construction boom, particularly in lots that for the last few years have held low-density buildings, gas stations, or nothing at all. What sort of planning and zoning would you like to see happen in those areas?

I would like to ensure that the new developments in the Castro are context-appropriate, so that they fit in with the surrounding blocks, and don’t adversely affect the appearance of the neighborhood. Several empty lots along Market are ripe for infill development, particularly since Market is a transit corridor. I would like to make sure that the developers provide adequate community benefits in exchange for the right to develop, including parking and traffic mitigations, with a high ask for open space and inclusionary housing. I would also insist that the new development includes office, studio and performance space for community-based nonprofits and arts organizations.

How would you work with property owners to make your vision a reality?

As a homeowner and real estate owner, I know that when it comes to regulating property, certainty is key. It is important that city government refrain from changing the rules without providing ample notice. With my background in real estate, I am confident that I will be able to bring property owners, city planners and neighbors to a fair agreement.

What's your favorite place in the city outside of your district? Fort Funston

And now, of course, the SFist getting-to-know yous:

Favorite place to spend time online (website/blog/RSS feeds): Besides SFist? www.sfusualsuspects.com

Favorite local business: Yoga Flow

What I'm currently reading: the Glen Park Community Plan, and all of the local news sources. After November 7, I look forward to finishing Assassination Vacation by Sarah Vowell.

Best Deal in San Francisco: the Tamale Lady

Favorite mode of transportation/favorite MUNI line: My favorite modes of transportation are my scooter, my bicycle, and BART.

Best Band or Musician to come out of the Bay Area: Carlos Santana

Favorite Bay Area Stereotype, and whether or not you buy into it: That we live in a bubble. It’s not true – it is the rest of the US that’s in a bubble, out of touch with the rest of the world.

Favorite local hangout: Café Flore

SF has the best...underground dance scene

You've never lived in SF until you've...been to the Folsom Street Fair.

Favorite Bay area politician of past or present: Harvey Milk

Now that Mayor Gavin is single, who are you going to set him up with? I would like to see him date a woman who is his equal.

You can tell someone is a local here if... they are happy with the effects of global warming.

SF would be soooo much better if only...we dedicated more funding to public art.

Best Burrito: Taqueria Zapata at 18th and Castro.

Any questions you'd ask if you were doing this interview? Did Steven T. Jones edit your responses?