Will Newsom Sink Muni Reform to Please Don Fisher?

Bankrolled by Gap C.E.O. Don Fisher, the Downtown Parking Initiative is the worst thing on the ballot this November – and Peskin should be commended for adding a provision that will preserve our City’s “transit-first” policy. At the July 24th meeting of the Board of Supervisors, Peskin said that he had always made it clear to everyone that the parking provision would be considered – and that he did not include it at a press conference promoting the revised measure because the Mayor had specifically asked him not to. For the very first time, the Mayor’s representatives said at the Board meeting that Newsom did not support the provision, but they did not indicate that its inclusion would be a “deal-breaker.” Now the Mayor may jeopardize the passage of the entire Charter Amendment, wasting everyone’s time in what was truly a work of compromise.

“You don’t reform a transit authority overnight,” said Peskin when he introduced the final package at the Board meeting. “This is part of an evolution of reform, and there are many parties at the table

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