7/12/2013 SF PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION PARTNERS WITH COMMUNITY TOCREATE AN URBAN FARM ON PUBLIC LANDS IN THE EXCELSIOR NEIGHBORHOODRead NowNearly 300 Residents Surveyed about their Hopes for a Community Farm & Sharing Gardens in the Neighborhood WHAT: PODER (People Organizing to Demand Environmental & Economic Rights) and CPA (Chinese Progressive Association) are organizing a Community Harvest Celebration to share the findings from a community-led planning process to create a cooperatively governed and community-led urban farm at Crocker Park. Neighborhood leaders will share their experiences going door-to-door, learning from the wealth of knowledge, traditions, and skills in the neighborhood, including the nearly 300 surveys they conducted with Excelsior residents. Key findings focus on culturally-based food traditions, programming to address community needs, and the vision for sharing gardens that are cooperatively governed and community-led.
According to community residents surveyed, only 4% of residents have access to a community garden, and as much as 25% have no access to garden opportunities whatsoever, whether it be a yard, windowsill, community garden, or school garden. 39% of community residents surveyed believe that a farm will improve their health; 28% believe they will learn new skills; and 33% believe it will bring diverse communities to work together. In fact, 62% of community members surveyed want to work together, make decisions together, share in the benefits and sign up as a member. Of all 293 Excelsior community members surveyed, 90% believe the farm is a great idea. WHO: PODER youth members, CPA youth members, Community residents from the Excelsior, SF Public Utilities Commission representatives, Supervisor John Avalos. WHEN: Friday, July 12, 2013; Welcome by Supervisor Avalos at 6:00 pm, event runs from 5:00 - 8:00 pm WHERE: Muslim Community Center, 4760 Mission St. (at Russia Ave.), San Francisco WHY: Many low income and working class families in the Excelsior live with disproportionate exposure to high quantities of toxic pollution, some of the highest rates of heart disease, asthma, obesity, and cancer, poor healthy food options, and high unemployment. The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (PUC) passed a new environmental justice and secondary land use policy that provides an opportunity to create teaching and learning spaces on PUC-owned land, such as sharing gardens at Crocker Park in the Excelsior. District 11 Supervisor John Avalos also shares this vision.
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As the media have reported, there may be a strike of the Bay Area Rapid Transit District (BART) system as early as Monday, July 1. Such an event will undoubtedly impact the commute throughout the Bay Area region. The City of San Francisco remains open for business during this time and local City agencies are coordinating to ensure vital public services are not interrupted. To help minimize the impacts from this strike, we are encouraging the businesses community to plan ahead and consider commute alternatives for their employees including:
・ Adjusting Work Hours ・ Telecommuting ・ Carpooling ・ Taking Alternate Routes We appreciate your support in sharing this information and working with your employees to help minimize impacts during this time. Please do share and pass on this information. If you have questions and concerns, contact: Gloria Chan Communications Director Office of Economic and Workforce Development Tel: (415) 554-6926, gloria.chan@sfgov.org Meantime, the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) has developed a contingency plan to get people to and from their destinations; including: Muni To keep major BART corridor service fully staffed, the SFMTA will prioritize Muni service along the following bus routes and rail lines during peak hours: ・ 14 Mission ・ 49 Van Ness-Mission ・ J Church (to and from Balboa Park/Geneva) ・ N Judah (to and from Caltrain @ 4th and King) Transit Fare Inspectors will be deployed to assist customers with directions on how to reach their destinations and how to purchase their Muni fares. Parking and Traffic SFMTA Parking and Traffic, Enforcement and Off-Street Parking employees will be mobilized to implement measures designed to alleviate traffic congestion and to assist travelers. Parking garages may have parking available. Off street parking staff will provide garage managers with additional outreach materials. Visit www.sfpark.org or download the application to find real-time information about available on and off-street parking spaces and rates in SFpark pilot areas. Casual Carpooling Casual carpooling will be expanded for San Francisco-East Bay travelers and available from 3 to 7 p.m., Monday through Friday. ・ Carpooling Departure Point C1 for East Bay locations along the Richmond BART Line is located on Beale Street between Howard and Folsom streets. ・ Carpooling Departure Point C2 for East Bay locations along the Fremont and Dublin/Pleasanton BART lines is located on the west side of Spear Street between Howard and Folsom streets. ・ Carpooling Departure Point C3 for East Bay locations along the Pittsburg/Baypoint BART Line is located on the east side of Spear Street between Howard and Folsom streets. Taxi Service In the morning, taxi stands will be at key transfer points: Transbay Terminal and Caltrain Station. Evening taxi stands are at downtown hotels. A map of the hotel stands is available on sfmta.com. Biking or Walking In addition to transit, carpooling and parking, the SFMTA recommends that commuters consider bicycling and walking when these options are viable. If you plan to use a bicycle for your commute, a map of bicycle routes is available at:http://www.sfmta.com/maps/san-francisco-bike-map-walking-guide. There are number of transportation alternatives with websites that provide information to help plan commutes during this period. The Bay Area’s 511 website is a valuable resource in helping to plan a trip from anywhere in the Metropolitan Bay Area. Links to many trains, buses and ferries are also provided for your convenience below. Bay Area Commuting All things transit at 511.org: http://www.511.org/ Casual carpooling: http://rideshare.511.org/carpool/casual_carpool.aspx More on casual carpooling: http://www.ridenow.org/carpool/ Buses Alameda/Oakland/Contra Costa: http://www.actransit.org/ Western Contra Costa: http://www.westcat.org/ North Bay: http://www.goldengatetransit.org/ San Mateo County: http://www.samtrans.com/ Santa Clara Valley: http://www.vta.org/ San Francisco: http://www.sfmta.com/ Ferries Vallejo, Oakland, Alameda: http://sanfranciscobay Trains Amtrak: http://www.amtrak.com/home Caltrain: http://www.caltrain.com/ On April 27, EAG's office received a Non-Profit Facilities Renovation from Rebuilding Together SF! The renovation has been truly transformative for our organization. RBTSF is already gearing up for their October Build Day and looking for other organizations in need of renovation and repairs. Please contact (415) 905-1611 for more information or to request an application.
The Jewish Home continues to be active on every front, both independently and collaboratively fighting and raising awareness of the impact of AB 97’s drastic cuts to Medi-Cal rates of reimbursement would have on distinct-part nursing facilities such as the Home. This significant issue is gaining momentum. Assembly Bill (AB) 900, authored by Assemblymember Luis Alejo (D-Salinas), and Senate Bill (SB) 640, authored by Senator Ricardo Lara (D-Long Beach), would reverse the Medi-Cal cuts that were enacted in 2011. AB 900 passed unanimously out of the Assembly Health Committee and now awaits consideration in the Assembly Appropriations Committee. SB 640 passed unanimously out of the Senate Health Committee and is pending in the Senate Appropriations Committee. Both AB 900 and SB 640 require a two-thirds vote in both the State Assembly and Senate before going to Governor Brown for action.
With thanks to all the Jewish Home’s supporters, which includes EAG’s most appreciated involvement and contribution, we amassed about 2,500 signed action letters by our campaign’s deadline of April 30. These letters are due to be delivered shortly to seven lawmakers in Sacramento. Starting Fridays on June 7, the Excelsior Branch Library (http://sfpl.org/index.php?pg=1013661401) will host a free, 6-week series of Healthier Living Workshops.
Developed by Stanford University School of Medicine and sponsored by SF Department of Aging and Adult Services, the workshops are designed to help people with chronic conditions like arthritis, diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, depression, chronic pain, cancer, back problems, breathing problems and others. Classes can help people with chronic conditions and their caregivers improve the quality of their life. At the workshops, participants will learn how to: · Manage pain, stress, and fatigue · Be more fit and eat healthier · Work more effectively with healthcare professionals · Set goals and problem solve to make positive changes · Feel better and reduce healthcare costs The workshops begin on Friday, June 7th and take place every Friday for the next 6 weeks (except no class on July 5th), until July 19th. Each Friday workshop runs from 2 pm to 4:30 pm at the Excelsior Branch Library, 4400 Mission St. at Cotter. FREE gifts and awards will be given to participants completing the workshop! Everyone is welcome though space is limited. To register, please visit http://www.cahealthierliving.org/?location=san-francisco, or contact Excelsior Branch Library at 415.355.2868. Recent court and legislative decisions threaten to eliminate the fragile safety net for California’s most vulnerable older adults – frail elders who depend on Medi-Cal to cover the costs of medically necessary, 24/7 skilled nursing care. In December 2012, courts gave California the go-ahead to implement Assembly Bill (AB) 97, a new law that will slash Medi-Cal reimbursements to hospital-based, distinct part skilled nursing facilities such as the Jewish Home. Under AB 97, the Jewish Home, which relies on Medi-Cal to care for 96 percent of its frail residents, will see its reimbursement rates reduced by approximately 30 percent, resulting in an approximate $12 million incremental cash deficit to the Home. But AB 97 will not just reduce future income; the cuts are retroactive to June 1, 2011, requiring the Home to repay approximately $19 million to Medi-Cal as of June 2013. The Jewish Home of San Francisco is a historic, nonprofit facility – rated five stars for excellence by the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services – that counts on and receives generous community philanthropy to carry out its 142-year mission. However, the Home and its supporting community do not have the wherewithal to bridge the enormous funding gap AB 97 will create. Anticipating the profound financial impacts of AB 97, the Home has already implemented significant staffing and program changes. Even before AB 97, though, the Jewish Home recognized the need for change and launched significant efforts to diversify its revenue stream and advance a plan for the future that reflects healthcare reform. The Jewish Home has broadened its short-stay rehabilitation program (STARS), expanded admission to its acute geriatric psychiatry program (one of the only programs of its kind in the Bay Area), and has a strategy to address the changing needs of older adults by delivering a continuum of age-in-place services and programs, including community-based services and new independent and assisted living apartments. This plan would be good for residents, good for the community, and good for California as it could save the state millions of dollars. But because of the impacts of AB 97, these plans have now been put on hold. The Jewish Home is not the only institution affected by AB 97. Impacts will be felt across the entire distinct part nursing home industry, including Laguna Honda Hospital in San Francisco. Since AB 97 was introduced, the Jewish Home has spoken out about its devastating impacts, both independently and by playing a lead role in a variety of coalitions – industry-focused, faith-based, in the city and county of San Francisco, with urban and rural partners. The Home has been an active voice in the California Hospital Association’s efforts to fight AB 97 and continues to support CHA in navigating the appropriate legal channels, including en banc proceedings and a possible U.S. Supreme Court case. The Jewish Home is also advancing its own advocacy efforts, including a letter-writing campaign addressed to key California decision makers that engages the broader community in speaking out for the Home. To download an electronic version of the Home’s action letter, or to learn more about AB 97 and the Jewish Home’s intensive efforts to secure relief, visit its website dedicated to this important issue. Click here to visit the website. Ninety-six percent of the Jewish Home’s residents – a population that includes octogenarians, centenarians, Holocaust survivors, refugees from the former Soviet Union, and other Californians who contributed to our state’s prosperity in the 20th century – depend on Medi-Cal to cover the costs of their skilled nursing care. Are you between 14-17 years old and looking for an activity this summer? Check out the summer 2013 course listings at the Geneva Car Barn & Powerhouse, including Urban Eco Sculpture, Community Newswriting, and Community Visual Storytelling.
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