Are autonomous vehicles and San Francisco development on a collision course?
Robotaxi companies want to park their fleets close to their riders, and some of the lots they use are sites the city has designated for housing. As autonomous vehicle fleets grow, the two uses of the same land can collide.
Housing & Land Use
2 stories, 2 outletsDeveloper wants an office-only tower at 536 Mission Street, and the city has other ideas
Lincoln Properties approached Golden Gate University about buying 536 Mission Street for a high-rise and offered two options: a 650-foot tower with offices and apartments, or a slightly taller one with 1.2 million square feet of offices, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. City officials have raised concerns about an all-office building.
City official said OpenGov software was ‘exceeding’ goals. Data said otherwise
San Francisco's permit overhaul under Mayor Daniel Lurie runs on OpenGov software, and a city official said the system was exceeding its goals. The Standard's review of the data found otherwise, and supporters of the overhaul acknowledge delays while saying the new system beats the old one.
City Hall
1 story, 1 outlet‘They do not speak for me:’ After $500K gift from crypto exec, Theo Ellington looks to show independence from tech
Supervisor candidate Theo Ellington says a $500,000 donation to a committee supporting him from crypto billionaire Chris Larsen does not mean the tech industry speaks for him. Larsen, whose donation was the largest to any San Francisco supervisor race, said he was impressed with Ellington's pragmatism.
Transportation
1 story, 1 outletMuni is too broke to use more eco-friendly buses
The SFMTA board voted to seek a state exemption so Muni can buy diesel-hybrid buses instead of more expensive electric models, because of the agency's budget problems. Muni is facing a fiscal crisis.
Public Safety
2 stories, 2 outletsJudge tosses all charges against Stud Alley partygoers ‘in the interest of justice’
A San Francisco judge dismissed charges against 18 people accused of failing to leave an unpermitted party at Stud Alley during Pride weekend. The judge threw the cases out in the interest of justice.
San Francisco police seize 20,000 cychlorphine pills, a drug more potent than fentanyl
San Francisco police said Monday they broke up a ring selling counterfeit prescription pills, arresting four people and seizing more than 20,000 pills, other drugs and guns. The investigation began after a 16-year-old San Francisco boy died of an overdose in April; the medical examiner found cychlorphine, a synthetic opioid that can be 10 times as potent as fentanyl.
Arts & Culture
1 story, 1 outletChinatown's Queen building to become a community-run cultural district
The Chinatown Media and Arts Collaborative bought the landmark Queen building at 838 Grant Ave. in April and plans a community-run Chinatown cultural district along with its nearby Edge on the Square property. The group held a free open house at the building on Sept. 12 and is working on a master plan and fundraising, with former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi attending.