by ELENI BALAKRISHNAN FEBRUARY 6, 2024 (MissionLocal.org)
Two candidates have filed to run against incumbent Supervisor Dean Preston to lead District 5. The district saw big changes during the 2022 redistricting, and now spans from the east end of Golden Gate Park through Haight-Ashbury, Japantown and the Western Addition, the Lower Haight and Hayes Valley, and most of the Tenderloin.
We have invited the three District 5 hopefuls to participate in our series, “Meet the candidates.” We will ask each candidate to answer one question per week, leading up to the election, with answers capped at 100 words. All the responses will ultimately be compiled onto a single page, where readers can peruse the potential supervisors’ stances on upwards of 40 topics before it’s time to vote in November.
Allen Jones
Restoring world-class city status to San Francisco.
As a longtime (1960) resident of San Francisco, I have witnessed the city lose a lot of its status as a “world-class city.” I believe there are three types of San Franciscans: Those who have class (help others). Those who have no class (threatening elected officials, thieves, vandals, selling drugs, etc.) And those who need to go back to class (the Board of Supervisors).
I intend to open the eyes of San Francisco by reminding us what a world-class city is and is not.
Bilal Mahmood
Housing.
I have been a renter for nearly 10 years in San Francisco and proudly live in the Tenderloin. Workers, nurses, teachers cannot live here unless we build not just affordable and market-rate, but also middle-income housing. We are the slowest city to approve new buildings in the entire state. It’s not progressive, it’s embarrassing. We must tackle the bureaucracy holding us back — 87 permits, $500K in fees, 1000 days of meetings — and I will advocate for initiatives from parallel permitting to technological investments to the reduction of discretionary permits to cut the time to build housing in half.
Dean Preston
My first priority has been, and will remain, getting results for everyday San Franciscans, not billionaires.
I have voted for 29,815 new homes, with 86% affordable. Raised over $400 million for affordable housing. Pioneered the use of empty hotels for homeless people. Raised taxes on large corporations to provide vital services. Banned evictions during the pandemic. Established the right to a free attorney for anyone facing eviction. Championed overdose prevention sites. Brought community ambassadors to District 5 neighborhoods. Protected small businesses from back rent and eviction and assisted those victimized by crime. More results like these will be my priority.
Candidates are ordered alphabetically. Answers may be lightly edited for formatting, spelling, and grammar. If you have questions for the candidates, please let us know at eleni@missionlocal.com.
Illustrations for the series by Neil Ballard.
You can register to vote via the sf.gov website.
ELENI BALAKRISHNAN
REPORTER. Eleni reports on policing in San Francisco. She first moved to the city on a whim more than 10 years ago, and the Mission has become her home. Follow her on Twitter @miss_elenius.More by Eleni Balakrishnan
