Attached are excerpts of an interview with San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan who explains why she is not a supporter of Car Free JFK Drive.
I could barely restrain myself and had to force myself to listen to Connie’s attempt at appearing open minded. She is not.
She is really awful and disingenuous in the extreme.
Connie Chan pitches “Compromise”. She does not want compromise. She wants cars on JFK Drive now. Make no mistake.
Listen carefully.
She agrees that 70 percent of Recreation and Park Department poll respondents want permanently car free JFK Drive . Then she proceeds to question the validity of the Survey by questioning which ethnic groups responded.
Most alarming Connie Chan thinks the park should be open to cars until the issue is resolved.
Connie conveniently ignores the Poll results, the fact the Recreation and Park Commission, the Metropolitan Transit Authority have approved the Car Free designation.
Connie knows that Mayor London Breed wants a Car Free JFK Drive and has introduced legislation to make it San Francisco law.
Connie knows that disgruntled residents sued the City. Their Motion for an Injunction was rejected in San Francisco Superior Court.
For the life of me I don’t understand why the leading advocates continue to treat Connie with such deference and kid gloves.
This is a Supervisor who gained her Supervisorial seat by 123 votes. She snookered environmental groups such as Sunrise Bay Area pretending to be a Progressive.
From Day One Connie Chan has been the biggest elected FOE of car free areas in San Francisco.
I am going to continue calling out Connie again and again.
All those who have been advocating the past two years for Car Free JFK Drive and The Great Walkway need to take a similar tactic.
The City has gone to extremes to accommodate Connie Chan. It’s time to call a halt to her stonewalling obstructionist tactics.
San Francisco Standard 3.17.2022
Supervisor Connie Chan will advocate for a “compromise” on JFK Drive to balance access concerns with safety in Golden Gate Park and expects she has enough colleagues on her side to reach a compromise with Mayor London Breed.
“I’m cautiously optimistic that we will come to a compromise,” Chan said in an exclusive interview with The Standard. “When? I don’t know.”
Since Mayor London Breed introduced legislation to keep JFK Drive car-free, it’s now on the Board of Supervisors to decide the fate of the road. At the center of the debate is Chan, who represents San Francisco’s District 1, which encompasses the park. With several supervisors looking to Chan for guidance on how to vote, she is hopeful that she has the support to pass significant amendments to the current proposal.
Breed’s proposal would keep JFK Drive closed to cars permanently while committing to key improvements to the park, like added bike and bus transit options within the park and more Americans with Disabilities Act-compliant parking spaces.
The Standard sat down with Chan to learn the specifics of her alternative plan.
Lee's Perspective 