The current bail out of the sub-prime mortgages is unfair to the rest of the population, who are having to suffer because of the ignorance of a few.  Instead, we should allow all individuals to write off all financial losses on our taxes.  This would be fair to everyone.  Today, we can only write off losses against gains.  But allowing all losses to be written off even without gains, would allow the sub-prime mortgages losses to be written off by individuals but not the mortgage companies.  Mortgage companies took the risks and approved the sub-prime losses.  Hence, the mortgage companies Read This Posty »

Congratulations on your re-election, Mayor Newsom!   Please make your second-term priority to revisit the issue of enforcing and funding Laura's Law. You have cited "institutional resistance" for holding back on your promise to do so.  You overcame social forces against supporting equal marriage rights for gay couples because it was the right thing to do.  I applaud that decision.   Funding and enforcing Laura's Law is right in keeping with your commitment to reduce homelessness and match our destitute and severely mentally ill residents with the services they need.  Please do not allow any more psych bed reductions at SFGH.  Please support Assertive Read This Posty »

I would like voters and possibly the City Attorney to have choices as to whom is selected for the Rent Board. The Mayor's Office would continue to be included as well. As the rules now exist, there is a substantial conflict of interest when landlords have exponential decision making influence over the tenant population. Name Withheld Read This Posty »

According to the SF Chronicle, we are "down to 280 encampments..." in Golden Gate Park.   Hello?  Shouldn't this be ZERO?  Get out a fire tanker truck and go in and hose out each encampment.  I don't care if they think of themselves as "harmless eccentrics," there is nothing harmless about living in a camper, RV, car, tent or tarp unless you are in a campground and San Francisco's parks are NOT campgrounds.  Maybe it's time to forget the homeless "shelters" and go outside the city and build a "homeless campground."  Get GGNRA to donate some land, add porta potties, install Read This Posty »

Why not build "affordable" housing for low-income and working-class people, like me? Modest little condos that don't cost $1 Million dollars!  You tore down all those low-income welfare hotels, and now we have this seemingly endless homeless problem. WHY ? Peter White Read This Posty »

Housing First is a great initiative to get homeless people off the streets. It seems to me, however, that a more comprehensive plan involving housing AND employment, with the transition to permanent employment possible. To start, the city clearly has a need for public works employees to clean, paint, rebuild, repair, etc., and it seems like these manual labor type jobs would be a great fit in such a program. Matthew Hirschey Read This Posty »

It's time to rethink condominium conversion policies. As a very recent buyer of a TIC in Nob Hill I must say this was the most difficult transaction I have ever experienced. And now that I own my percent of this building I dread facing the challenge of condo-conversion. Why convert? Because TICs are risky in so much as you share a deed (and often a loan) with other owners. If a co-owner goes into default it can jeopardize the property. A subdivided condominium releases you from the liability of other owners and is a more desirable property status to have Read This Posty »

San Francisco touts itself as a green city. But if green success means using -- and reusing available resources = then the city policies fail the test. Nowhere is this more true than housing. Everyone agrees that SF needs more middle class housing. Yet there are hundreds -- if not thousands -- of vacant units owned by senior landlords. Most of these landlords live in these buildings and keep units vacant out of fear. They know that city rent control policies  -- and all buildings constructed before 1978 are under rent control -- has eroded their rights to the point Read This Posty »

1.  If you can't get the Supervisors to approve a city-wide Deal with Google for free WiFi, how about proposing a pilot program to bring in to the Bayview NOW!  Give them a year or two to perform, and then go for a city-wide deal. 2.  No one would live in public housing given a chance.  They breed gangs and violence.  Do not re-build public housing.  Better to tear them down, build individual houses, and give them away to the occupants.  At least this would give them the opportunity to share in the American Dream. 3.  Please go after owners of houses Read This Posty »

Exempt people in certain occupations like teacher and police officer from the rent control ordinance in properties they own, to incentivize local home ownership and local civil service work. Name Withheld Read This Posty »

Provide a local version of section 8 (maybe section 9) which supplimented the rents of people who are elderly, poor or disabled rather than expecting individual people to support complete strangers. Name Withheld Read This Posty »

Exempt small property owners (10 unit buildings or less) from rent control as it makes it impossible for them to clear enough to maintain their buildings. This would allow us to maintain the cities beautiful old Victorians it is known for. Name Withheld Read This Posty »

Recognize rent control as the temporary measure it was supposed to be and abolish it. Name Withheld Read This Posty »

In response to your letter I would like to submit the following suggestions for improvements to make San Francisco better in the future. First I want to start with the problem the drug addicts and the homeless. According to my knowledge San Francisco have not enough treatment facilities to get people off drugs and for this reason I would suggest that the City of San Francisco and  organizations working with this problem already open up an additional two or three treatment centers for people looking for help.The homeless people who are not addicted to drugs and get welfare money for Read This Posty »

Here's another idea to collect some due revenue ....  Every time the DBI finds a property owner that has started construction without a permit, the Assessors office should be notified, and if proper, a new assessment should be made on the property. Shaun Hughes Read This Posty »

Clean house at DBI and come to the realization that we don't live to serve these bureaucrats who love holding life and death power over our property.  You didn't do it in your first term and for that reason I will vote against you and recommend to all my friends that they do the same. Here's to a change at City Hall in '08! Name Withheld Read This Posty »

Construction of the Bay Bridge approach has been ongoing for years.  I own an SRO building adjacent to the construction.  Very little attempt is made to mitigate the huge amount of dust generated by construction.  Much of which flows in our doors and windows.  If I ran a construction project like that, I would be redtagged in a heartbeat.  CalTrans is being given a free pass at the expense of everybody in this neighborhood.  Enforce the rules! Luis Belmonte Read This Posty »

Limited equity housing cooperatives; a method of providing home ownership to working people (especially folks that work as teachers, police, and other civil service or employees of non profits) that provides the tax benefits of ownership but limits the amount of profit (equity) they can keep when the property is sold.  It is a very successful method of providng moderately priced housing not just now, but into the future.  Gavin, I spoke with you about this on several occasions (I'm with Alice B. Toklas) and have an expert in the field who is ready to sit and talk with you Read This Posty »

Hello Mayor Newsom, I am single mother of a wonderful four year old. I would like to take this opportunity to thank you so much for your family appreciation day. We had such a great time visiting three major attractions which would have been out of our financial reach had it not been for your program. My son to this day still talks about our "big adventure" especially our visit to the Aquarium of the Bay. Thank you so much! Now for my pet peeve: We live in the Chinatown public housing and I feel very fortunate to have been given Read This Posty »

Because we have an affordable housing shortage, you should make all IN-Law apartments Legal in San Francisco.  Mayor Brown tried to do this, but did not finish.  People who have In-Law apartments can afford to rent them at a reasonable price.  I have several friends who have them, but are afraid to say anything. Name Withheld Read This Posty »

Why not have the ugly freeways that cut through neighborhoods covered? On top of the freeways we could gain room for additional housing, linear parks and reconnect the cut off hoods with each other. Name Withheld Read This Posty »