As they pass the $4 million mark on their campaign, the Lennar Corporation has blown away every spending record posted in election history here in San Francisco. Lennar believes that San Francisco is for sale. It’s time for San Franciscans to send them a strong message that we are not!

This election cycle is full of big political fights. Certainly vote Yes on Proposition F to ensure that at least half of the new housing built in Hunters Point and Candlestick is affordable to everyday San Franciscans. Also vote No on 98 to protect rent control and our ability to preserve the environment in California. Don’t buy PG&E’s lies- make sure to vote Yes on Proposition E for greater accountability at our PUC. All Democrats should vote for a progressive Democratic County Central Committee, so that we can rebuild the Democratic Party up from the grassroots. Finally, vote for the progressive who’s been there for me and for progressive candidates and issues since I first was elected, Carole Migden for State Senate. The Bay Guardian may have endorsed the other guy- this is the one they got wrong this cycle.

Here’s the complete CHANGE Slate that you can print out and take with you to the polls. Happy voting!

I am proud of the CHANGE Slate and our program to elect progressive candidates and measures on Tuesday.

We all know how important this election is with the fate of rent control, development in the Bayview Hunters Point, and the Democratic Party in the balance. That is why I am appalled that Tim Redmond would take precious attention away from the issues that matter.

It is outright slanderous for Tim Redmond to call the CHANGE Slate card “fraudulent” in his latest blog headline. If you read Tim’s post, even he admits that the card does not boast a Guardian endorsement of Migden, although he claims that you have to read “the fine print.” What Tim doesn’t tell you is that “the fine print” is in 13 point font — much larger than the 8 point font required by ethics laws.

You can check out our card here.

Meanwhile, looking at the Bay Guardian slate, you could assume that I endorsed Mark Leno, as we both appear prominently on it. However, if you read the disclaimer you would find that appearance “does not necessarily imply endorsement of others” on the card. This is the way it’s done, and you don’t see me complaining about it.

On to what matters… This weekend through Election Day, progressives’ strongest coalition of tenant activists, affordable housing organizers, environmentalists, teachers, and City workers are being joined by the campaigns of progressive candidates including Carole Migden to turn out the vote to change San Francisco. Volunteer mobilizations with lots of shoe leather is how progressives win elections.

Unfortunately, the SF Bay Guardian slate does not represent this progressive coalition, because Mark Leno has sold out to Lennar and is recommending a Yes vote on Lennar’s Proposition G and a No on the community plan for affordable housing, Proposition F. It would be unfair to ask activists who have been working for months to qualify and pass Prop F to carry literature for Mark Leno. It is a mystery to me why the Guardian doesn’t get this.

Progressives need some big wins in the next two elections, in order to stay in play in local politics. These times call for greater levels of activism and discipline in the progressive community, including from our newspaper the San Francisco Bay Guardian.

I hope folks can get out to participate in our GOTV efforts in the next 4 days.

Progressives rarely spend as much money as our opponents and we usually don’t have the mainstream press with us. When we win elections, it is usually with shoe leather.

Right now, progressive campaigns for the DCCC are joining in coalition with tenant activists, affordable housing organizers, environmentalists, teachers, and City workers to change San Francisco. This turnout effort very well could decide the fate of both the local Democratic Party and even the future of the Bayview Hunters Point.

We will be delivering our message of change, with our CHANGE Slate, to progressive voters and getting out the vote. Please join us.

We are in the final stretch and will need lots of volunteers from now through Tuesday. Come to our headquarters at 2797 16th Street at Folsom, under the All Star Hotel, for these activities:

Friday 11 am - 7 pm: we need help all day to preparing materials and in the evening commute we will do street visibility.
Saturday 11 am: distributing literature in tenants neighborhoods the Haight, Mission and Castro, street visibility.
Sunday 11 am: distributing literature in tenants neighborhoods the Haight, Mission and Castro, street visibility
Monday 4 pm - 8:30 pm: distributing literature in tenants neighborhoods and at muni stops, street visibility

ELECTION DAY Tuesday, June 3rd: come at 11 am or 4 pm till 8:30 pm
Take Election Day off to help get out the vote! We will be going door to door to get out the vote and doing street visibility. If you can’t get off work, come after work.

With the the June 3rd election just a week and a half away, the final push to defend the future of working class families in San Francisco is here.

We have been battling Lennar’s $3 million campaign and WINNING with the strength of our unity and commitment! They have their capital, so we have to use our labor!

If you have any time in the next 12 days – an hour, 2 hours… whatever you have, please drop in, pick up materials, make some calls, and help us get the word out all across the city.

This Weekend May 24th & 25th
Saturday 11am - Yes on F City-Wide Visibility and Grocery Store Outreach Blitz with t-shirts, buttons, window signs and leaflets
Meet at POWER 32 – 7th Street (between Market and Mission)

Sunday 10am - Yes on F CARNIVAL Outreach
Meet at the Eric Quezada for Supervisor/No on 98/Yes on F House, 2710 Harrison Street (between 23rd & 24th)

We Shall Not Be Moved * Yes on F Rally *
Tuesday May 27th 3-6pm
3rd Street and Palou
with speakers, djs, performers, dance groups and more!

GOTV (Get Out the Vote)
Saturday May 31 – Tuesday June 3rd
(location TBA, near 16th Street)
Precinct walking, visibility outreach, door hanger outreach, poll watching… and much, much more!

Sat May 31st - 11am - all day
Sun June 1st - 11am - all day
Mon June 2nd - 3pm til 8pm
Tues June 3rd - 5am til 8pm
*take election day off and join us in making history in this Grassroots vs Golaith struggle for the future of San Francisco

for more info or to RSVP contact Jaron Browne, jaron@peopleorganized.org, (415) 864-8372 ext 303

Big Labor Sells Out

”
District 6 Supervisor Chris Daly
Photos by Luke Thomas

By Chris Daly

May 22, 2008

Lennar Deal Stinks

Details of a back room deal between Miami-based Lennar Corporation (LEN) and the San Francisco Labor Council (Big Labor), ACORN, and SFOP were finally released Tuesday in the San Francisco Chronicle. Top Big Labor Boss, Tim Paulson lauded the deal saying, “We negotiated extremely aggressively to make sure this deal provides the greatest amount of affordable housing in the history of San Francisco if not the state.”

San Francisco Labor Council Executive Director Tim Paulson

But the details of Lennar’s latest promises does not bring much, if any, added value and the political implications of the deal could spell disaster for San Francisco’s most vulnerable neighborhoods.

Lennar certainly got what they want out of the smoke-filled room — headlines lauding their “historic” levels of “affordability” and political support from some big time political players. But what did the people of San Francisco and Bayview Hunters Point receive?

The Caveat

Before answering, it should be noted that, as of the posting of this article, there is no legally binding agreement between Lennar and the San Francisco Labor Council; only a statement of principles and a non-binding commitment between the parties to work toward a community benefits agreement “as soon as possible” — a wink and a nod, if you will.

Given that the development has received no approvals, Big Labor’s deal with Lennar is not enforceable and would have to be ratified at several levels of government. In fact, the mechanism used in Proposition F may be the only way to make specific community benefits enforceable at this point.

It Really Does Stink

Let’s take a look at the terms of the “deal.” While Lennar is now “committing” that 31.86 percent of the units they build will be “affordable”, only 15.66 percent would be rental units affordable to households earning less than 60 percent of the area median income (AMI), even though most Bayview Hunters Point residents earn much less than this amount. This percentage includes the 256 replacement units at Alice Griffith Public Housing. 3.45 percent will be for-sale units affordable to households earning 80-100 percent AMI. 4.25 percent of the units will be “affordable” to an average AMI percentage of 120 percent, and another 4.25 percent at 140 percent AMI. The last 4.25 percent would be “affordable” to households up to 160 percent of AMI.

These “affordable” units would sell for a half-million dollars and would be available to households (families of four) earning over $150,000!

Interestingly, 160 percent AMI is very close to market rate in the Bayview. A quick search for new condos in the Bayview yields a 3 bedroom, 2-bath condo in the Bayview listed at $539,000. (Fun random factoid — former Planning liaison to the Board of Supervisor, Jean-Paul Samaha, is the listing agent.)

The Conceptual Framework for development that Lennar agreed to with the City in 2007 pledged to build upto 25 percent of the 8500 to 10,000 total housing units to be affordable in addition to replacement units at Alice Griffith. While no affordability levels were set in the document, Lennar and administration officials indicated that the units would be offered at an average of 80 percent of AMI.

If one assumes 10,000 new housing units in the development (as now seems to be the case), the Conceptual Framework would provide 2,756 affordable units. Lennar’s deal with Big Labor would net only 1,911 units affordable to households below median income. That means Big Labor negotiated for 845 fewer truly affordable units! The other 1,275 “affordable” units would be for households with incomes between 120 and 160 percent of AMI.

We’ve Dealt With This Already

The City’s inclusionary ordinance defines affordable housing as rental units targeted to households at 60 percent of San Francisco Median Income (SFMI) and ownership units at 100 percent of SFMI. (SFMI is less than AMI.)

Calling housing at 160 percent AMI “affordable” is outrageous, and the San Francisco Labor Council, ACORN, and SFOP should know better. Back in 2004, when Gavin Newsom and the Chamber of Commerce placed their “workforce” housing measure for downtown and the central waterfront on the ballot, Progressive and neighborhood organizations were joined by Labor (before they sold out) to defeat it. Even Supervisor Sophie Maxwell panned the proposal to create housing in her district at 120 percent AMI.

“When I think of workforce housing, I think of bus drivers and schoolteachers,” Maxwell said. “This initiative does not get to them.”

Great quote, Sophie, but 160 percent is even higher than 120 percent the last time I checked.

More Promises

Big Labor has also touted the $35.5 million community benefits package that they negotiated for job training and home purchase assistance for Bayview residents. Sounds pretty good until you consider Lennar’s original promise of a $30 million “Legacy Fund” related to their development of just the Shipyard (which they later reduced to $14 million for Parcel A.)

So what gives with Big Labor?

The answer may lie in the card check agreement that will facilitate labor union organizing at new restaurants, grocery stores and retail shops. While card check has consistently been a labor priority, this provision would most certainly have been included in any agreement passed at the Board of Supervisors. The ultimate irony is that because of Big Labor’s deal, far fewer of the workers in the new development will be able to afford to actually live in the new development.

Trinity is Better

Meanwhile, on the campaign trail, Gavin Newsom and Lennar have been trashing me for calling the Development Agreement at Trinity Plaza “historic.” They claim that only 15 percent of the housing at the new Trinity will be “affordable.” However, they fail to mention that the reason I called the Trinity agreement historic was because it is the only development in California’s history to include one-to-one replacement of rent-controlled units.

Interestingly, if you add the standard affordable units to the replacement rent-control units, you get 591 units — over 31 percent of the entire project. And this is being done without gifting huge swaths of public land and without the benefit of public funds or tax increment financing.

The San Francisco Labor Council has been hoodwinked. Vote NO on Proposition G, YES on Proposition F.