Category Archives: BCNA News

Proposed Map of District Boundaries Would Break Apart the Northeastern Neighborhoods

A new map was just released by the San Francisco Redistricting Task Force. It’s a dramatic change. It would cut North Beach in half at Columbus Avenue, and remove parts of Russian Hill, Chinatown, Nob Hill, and Financial District as well. It separates the Barbary Coast neighborhood from our children’s playground and the Ferry Building.

We need to act now to make sure the task force hears us loud and clear: this needless change would break up our neighborhoods. Neighborhoods on boundary lines or splintered between 2 districts get fewer resources and suffer from less attention from the city.

Here’s how you can take action:

1.) Write To the Task Force Today
E-mail rdtf@sfgov.org now and let them know you oppose the “March 18th Map 2B.” Instead, mention that you support the “District 3 United Neighborhoods Plan” (see map). Share why it’s so important to you personally that these nearby neighborhoods like North Beach, Russian Hill, Chinatown, the Downtown, and Barbary Coast not be split into two different districts.

2.) Make Public Comment on Wednesday
This Wednesday, March 23rd at 5:30pm, the Task Force will meet to continue drawing new maps. You will have a chance to give a 2-minute public comment. This can be done virtually or in-person.

Here are details for the meeting and how to join. We expect this meeting to span the entire evening, so you can choose when to tune in to give your public comment as it fits your schedule.

Here are the most important points to cover in your email or public comment:–

• Columbus Avenue is NOT a boundary. It is the backbone of the neighborhood. Drawing the line there, as it does in Map 2B, would cut North Beach in half.
• Please add all of Russian Hill to District 3 to balance population. This plan utilizes the natural boundaries of Van Ness and a contiguous waterfront to Market Street.
• We share numerous traits and a have a history of working collaboratively with Russian Hill and the other nearby neighborhoods. We have mutual reliance on hospitality and tourism, shared shopping corridors, and overlapping schools and community services.
• Map 2B completely ignores the natural and historical boundaries such as Van Ness, Market Street, and the northern waterfront, which have traditionally defined an area with a multitude of interests in common.
• We support the “District 3 United Neighborhood Plan”, backed by more than a dozen community organizations in District 3. It is coherent, simple and meets all of the redistricting criteria.

The Barbary Coast Neighborhood Association has joined more than a dozen organizations in District 3 to endorse a District 3 United Neighborhoods plan. This would accommodate the needed population growth of District 3 by including all of Russian Hill, a community that is currently split between two districts. We believe that shared traits between Russian Hill and the rest of District 3 – from a reliance on tourism to shared schools and small business communities – are best served together. 

On Wednesday, April 6 at 5:30, BCNA is co-sponsoring a virtual moderated discussion between the two candidates for Assembly District 17: Matt Haney and David Campos.

Register here for this one-hour Zoom Event: biti.ly/AD17DebateApril6.

For anyone who would like to catch up on the first debate we organized, you can find it here.

March 3, 2022

TO: The SF Redistricting Task Force (RDTF@SFGOV.ORG )

RE:  District 3 United Neighborhoods Proposed Plan & Map

We, the undersigned neighborhood organizations, are writing to express our support for the redistricting plan shown below for District 3.[1]   This plan adjusts District 3’s boundaries by simply extending the existing western boundary of Van Ness northward all the way to the Bay.  This approach incorporates the missing “notch” bounded by Van Ness, Union St, Jones-Columbus-Leavenworth, and the Bay into D3.  The remaining boundaries of D3 are unchanged.

D3 United Neighborhoods Plan: Proposed Map & Boundaries:

Figure 1:  Boundaries Van Ness (west), Bay (north & east), Mission, Steuart, Market to Cyril Magnin St, etc. (south, same as current D3).  SEE MAP BELOW.

This plan is similar to the one previously submitted by the Barbary Coast Neighborhood Association, North Beach Neighbors, Russian Hill Neighbors and other signatory organizations.  It meets the Task Force’s redistricting criteria while offering significant benefits, which include:

• Uniting the Russian Hill neighborhood, which is currently split between D3 and D2. The Russian Hill Neighbors sent a letter to the Task Force on February 11 requesting a plan that unifies their neighborhood and combines it with their peer neighborhoods in District 3.
• Maintaining the integrity of existing neighborhoods (e.g., North Beach, Chinatown, Telegraph Hill, Russian Hill, Nob Hill, Polk Street, and Barbary Coast). This proposal does not create new splits in any neighborhood nor any new divisions in D3 racial/ethnic populations under the city charter.
• Meeting the district population requirement within 1% of “ideal.” The population of D3 with the current boundaries is 72,474 or 8.9% below the ideal number of 79,545. By extending the northwestern boundary to Van Ness, D3’s population would be 78,908 a mere 0.8% below the ideal.
• Continuing a tradition of diverse people within communities of interest—primarily mixed Asian and non-Hispanic White population. District 3’s demographics mirror San Francisco’s mixed minority-majority ethnicity with fewer than half of the population non-Hispanic Whites (39.8%) and more than one-third Asians (34.9%) according to a 2022 population study. According to the 2019 ACS maps of SF, while the majority of D3 residents speak English, more than 90% also speak an Asian or Pacific Islander language in their home.
• Connecting Ghirardelli Square, the Cannery, and Aquatic Park with other D3 waterfront and tourist attractions (Fisherman’s Wharf, Pier 39, Exploratorium, North Beach, Ferry Building, Alcatraz Tours, Coit Tower, Chinatown, and Union Square). At the same time, it maintains commercial corridors of small and neighborhood serving businesses (North Beach, Polk Street, Jackson Square, Chinatown).
• Featuring a high concentration of dense housing and a close working relationship with the Central Police Station.
• Reflecting communities of interest by maintaining solidarity among neighborhood groups having a long, storied history of collaboration, cooperation, and community with their fellow neighborhood and merchant organizations.

In summary, this proposed plan meets the redistricting requirements of population equity, racial/ethnic diversity, and the integrity of existing communities of interest.  It is simple and logical, taking advantage of the natural boundary provided by Van Ness Avenue.  Most Importantly, it aligns with wishes of various neighborhood associations having a long history in District 3.

Respectfully submitted (alphabetical by organization),

[1] Other District 3 organizations have expressed agreement in-concept with the D3 United Neighborhoods Plan & Map but could not meet our submission deadline.

cc: Supervisor Peskin (Aaron.Peskin@sfgov.org)