Supervisor Jake McGoldrick: Trio of Important Issues

Greetings! My office is jumping into the autumn season with a number of projects, including the possibility of publicly owned Wi-Fi, getting rid of unlawful general advertising signs, and gauging public opinion about the Geary Bus Rapid Transit.

The following are the latest updates.

Wi-Fi Feasibility Study
The City has built, owns and operates a fiber optic network comprised of 43 linear miles. Given that the City has a communications network in place, we need to move one step further to create a publicly owned and operated wireless network.

If the City can run its own water and sewer system, we can manage our own information system. We can bring cheap and/or free Wi-Fi to our residents and a city-owned wireless Internet could actually make money for the City!

Before we sign any long-term contracts with private service providers, like Google or Earthlink, San Francisco needs to study the value of what it is signing over and decide whether or not we can make more money by running the service ourselves. Publicly owned Wi-Fi creates more opportunities to generate revenues for public benefits, including, but not limited to, greater competition, improved access to local service providers, and community influence on information technology.

With San Francisco's vast technical know-how and creative talent, we could become a model for cities around the nation.

I recently passed a motion directing the SF Board of Supervisors' Budget Analyst to conduct a fiscal feasibility study of a city-owned wireless network. The Board of Supervisors needs an analysis of the costs and benefits of such a network. The study will look at ways to ensure affordable Internet access, affordable hardware, and how to create community-sensitive training and support. Access to information should include both convenience and affordability.

Before commercial providers are allowed to bid and win exclusive rights to provide broadband access to the entire City, San Francisco residents need to know how much its assets are worth before giving away the keys to the "Internet kingdom." Publicly owned Wi-Fi can be a valuable public asset that belongs to the people of San Francisco.

Report Unlawful General Advertising Signs
In 2002 San Francisco voters overwhelmingly approved Prop. G, which prohibits the posting of any new general advertising signs in the City. Such signs are prohibited because they distract motorists and can cause a public safety hazard. They also contribute to blight and visual clutter while commercializing public spaces.

Unfortunately, these illegal signs continue to sprout up across our City, increasing visual pollution and damaging the character and dignity of our distinctive neighborhoods. You may have seen the walls of buildings and construction sites pasted with dozens of the same posters advertising the latest movie, a product or a commercial event.

My office is working with the SF Department of Public Works and the SF Planning Department to eliminate the signs. You can report illegal signs to my office, at 554-7410, and to the Planning Department's Code Enforcement Team, at 575-6863.ÊÊ

Update on Geary Bus Rapid Transit Study
Since voters passed Proposition K in 2003 to improve the City's public transportation and to create Bus Rapid Transit (BRT), the City continues to study the best ways to improve service on Geary Boulevard for Richmond residents.

In a recent David Binder survey, 78 percent of those polled support a Bus Rapid Transit network and 10 percent oppose a BRT network. In addition, 65 percent of those polled supported a center lane dedicated to BRT along Geary and 22 percent oppose the center lane concept on Geary.

The third series of public workshops about the Geary BRT study is scheduled for early November. The workshops will focus on the evaluation results, including transit performance, pedestrian safety, auto impacts and cost. The exact dates and times will be posted at www.GearyBRT.org. You can also contact my office at 554-7410.

San Francisco Supervisor Jake McGoldrick represents District 1.