Meet the Candidates: San Francisco’s District 5 supervisor race

Allen Jones

As supervisor, I will support any and all tech companies in my quest to make San Francisco forget all about Elon Musk, Twitter and or X.

Autumn Looijen

Many people in tech are working to solve our city’s problems and, as supervisor, I will partner with them to get things done for District 5 and our city.

Wishlist:

• Make the city’s financial transactions transparent, so anyone can query them, without a sunshine request.
• When we house drug users, they die at higher rates — because they overdose and no one knows. Create devices that alert a friend if your oxygen levels drop, so your friend can come running with Narcan.
• Use tech to assist with emails, so supervisors and their staff can spend more time building deep relationships in our neighborhoods.

Bilal Mahmood

The division between our technology and public sectors is hurting District 5 residents. SF is the tech capital of the world, yet our teachers are not getting paid because of software errors, and Fillmore and Japantown residents are without reliable internet access.

Much of my career has focused on bridging the digital divide, from working in the US Office of Innovation and Entrepreneurship to helping rebuild a computer lab in Chinatown. As supervisor, I will launch an SF digital service for tech employees to work on large-scale government projects and advance our outdated software and ensure outcomes for all SF residents.

Dean Preston

Technology can improve accessibility, streamline data-sharing, and make city processes more efficient. Like any other profession, tech can help stimulate our local economy by hiring local workers, paying taxes, and even partnering with the city when it makes sense.

As supervisor, I supported efforts to leverage tech for projects that will improve data transparency and information-sharing for our street teams, who are working to address the needs of some of our most vulnerable neighbors.

As tech continues to grow, however, it is important to ensure that new tech is safe and doesn’t gut union jobs.

Scotty Jacobs

We should be proud of our place at the forefront of the global technology industry, including the burgeoning AI industry. However, in fostering the recovery of our tax base, we need to build a resilient economy across a variety of industries — not just tech.

To build a diversified corporate tax base, we need to create a downtown where businesses and residents can thrive side-by-side. This looks like:

• Converting low-density Class B and Class C office spaces to residential units, including affordable housing
• Investing in a 24/7 economy (including more entertainment zones and a 4 a.m. last call)
• Investing in a … read more.

Allen Jones

The first thing I will not do is contact the supervisor who currently represents District 5. And I thought there was a law against trespassing. If so, why not arrest the squatters?

There is a reported dispute between the owners of the property and their insurance company. If true, nothing will get resolved for at least the next five years from today. That said, the city should offer to purchase and not wait 20 years of promises as is the case with Parcel K.

Autumn Looijen

You may remember the 300 Octavia housing project burning in 2023. The property has since been sold, and we should work with the new owners (Octavia RE Development) to clear the blight and develop the property.

Currently, the site is attracting encampments. There is illegal electrical work, and neighbors are worried that the site will burn again, putting their homes at risk. There are five DBI complaints about dangerous situations since the sale on 7/12/2024… with no response from the owners.

We should partner with the owners to clear the encampments, secure the site, and fast-track new housing development.

Bilal Mahmood

300 Octavia represents a failure of leadership from Dean Preston.

A year ago, a fire engulfed the property, displacing multiple residents. Community members called on Supervisor Preston’s office for help, and many were ignored.

Preston has had 400 days to work towards a solution to secure the property, and yet no urgency or concrete action was taken.

We need a supervisor who will collaborate with the mayor, DBI, and City Attorney’s Office to hold the property owner accountable. Even having the city seize the property if it is not secured, as the mayor’s office should be directing this week.

Dean Preston

300 Octavia was under construction when a fire destroyed the building and damaged neighboring buildings causing displacement of tenants. We arrived immediately (our protocol for all major fires), assisted displaced tenants, and maintained regular contact with SFFD about their investigation. We’re in touch with displaced tenants, all of whom thankfully are housed and expressed appreciation for our office’s work to support them.  

The cause of the fire remains undetermined.

Due to the owner’s failure to secure the property, we elevated concerns with the city attorney and DBI, and an abatement order has been issued directing the owner to secure the property.

Scotty Jacobs

300 Octavia is an extremely sad and frustrating situation. Neighbors were displaced because our current supervisor did nothing to address the well-documented, unlawful activity occurring around the site before it burned; this now blighted site has fallen into complete disrepair — a reflection of the gross negligence on the part of the developer (Greenview Planning and Design) and our supervisor. 

The fire at 300 Octavia street was entirely avoidable and a function of a supervisor who wasn’t responsive to constituents repeatedly asking for his help. This lack of accountability is yet another example of why we desperately need new leadership for … read more.

Allen Jones

I do not support either candidate. 

Ryan Khojasteh’s criticism of current conditions is easy. However, I do not support his proposed approach to deal with criminal activity.

My criticism of Brooke Jenkins is simple:  We dumped Chesa Boudin for this?

Autumn Looijen

I support Brooke Jenkins.

Our No. 1 problem in District 5 is the open drug markets in the Tenderloin.  As we work to get drug dealers off the street and drug users into treatment, I trust her to have a tough but fair approach.

Bilal Mahmood

I will personally be abstaining from the District Attorney’s race.

I have, however, appreciated the recent progress made in increasing the prosecutions of fentanyl dealers, and recognize the importance of having a collaborative relationship and building consensus even with differences of opinion, between the supervisor and district attorney’s office in making continued progress for safe streets.

Dean Preston

I have endorsed Ryan Khojasteh for district attorney. Over the past two years, I have been concerned with the hyper-partisanship of the current district attorney, the over-charging of peaceful protestors, and other highly problematic decisions of the city’s top prosecutor.

I believe Ryan would lead the District Attorney’s office with integrity, professionalism, and a spirit of collaboration. I also appreciate that Ryan is deeply committed to implementing policies that will address recidivism and prioritize violence prevention, which will help make us safer.

Scotty Jacobs

I support Brooke Jenkins for District Attorney. The City is still unwinding from the damage caused by Ryan Khojasteh’s disastrous former boss, Chesa Boudin.

We cannot regress; we need a DA that will fully enforce the law. Since July of 2022, since Jenkins took office, she has filed charges in more than 1,700 of the roughly 1,900 felony narcotics cases that have come before her. We must fully use the judicial system to combat open-air drug markets, hold drug dealers accountable, and prosecute crime. I look forward to supporting Brooke Jenkins in her re-election bid this November.

*Note: Chesa Boudin was both Brooke Jenkins’ and Ryan Khojasteh’s boss.

Allen Jones

Before anyone believes the HSH report, I suggest reading the SF Chronicle Opinion of August 17, 2024. If that does not convince you, spend time on Golden Gate Avenue between Jones and Taylor Streets. 

As stated on my campaign website, I intend to promote living in vehicles (PROVIDED BY THE CITY). From 2009 to 2019, I lived in my pickup, which cost the city nothing. So, why is the city spending “$140,000 per year” for each spot in an RV park? With safety in mind, I can reduce the cost to less than $20,000.00 per year per designated space.

Autumn Looijen

The point-in-time count shows a decrease in homelessness in District 5, which is fantastic. Full credit to Prop C – housing 5,160 people, sheltering 3,928 households, and helping 22,624 families stay in their homes.

In D5, it’s more a drug crisis than a housing crisis (which is not true in all districts). It is cheap and easy to do drugs on our streets, and we attract people who want that. Let’s close the open drug markets and compel users into treatment.

(Let’s also cut red tape and build housing – but the priority in District 5 is addressing drugs.)

Bilal Mahmood

Unfortunately, what I’m hearing from neighbors in the Tenderloin is that homelessness is getting worse. The PIT data is 6 months old and doesn’t tell us what’s going on today.

That’s why I’m advocating for Built for Zero, a strategy that consolidates city departments into a coordinated task force and has successfully helped 14 US cities make homelessness effectively rare and brief.

If implemented, we can use real-time data to provide personalized care to those in need, build missing shelter beds more quickly, and cut the red tape to move folks into shelter and off of waiting lists faster.

Dean Preston

The latest Point-in-Time (PIT) Count reveals a remarkable 21 percent decrease in unsheltered homelessness in District 5. Hundreds of unhoused people in D5 have transitioned from living on the streets to living safely indoors.

Our work to fill vacant supportive housing units was the biggest driver of this progress. The PIT Count demonstrates the impact of new programs like Street-to-Home to fill vacancies and our right to counsel and rent relief to stop evictions.

Now is the time to double down on strategies that are working until every person living on the streets has a place to call home.

Scotty Jacobs

Despite historically large budgets to tackle homelessness, San Franciscans continue to die as a result of our failed harm reduction, housing-first policies around homelessness and the related issues of addiction and mental health. 

Per the County Medical Examiner’s Accidental Overdose reports, between 2022 and 2024, there were 278 overdose deaths in the 94102 zip code alone, eclipsing the 250-person reduction in the district’s unhoused population highlighted by the recent point-in-time report.

We need results. As supervisor, I will establish performance metrics and outcomes for nonprofits addressing homelessness; we must ensure we are investing taxpayer dollars effectively in light of … read more.

Allen Jones

1. Tenderloin Community Cleanup with refuserefusesf.org. On July 13, 2024, I went out to pick up trash throughout the Tenderloin with about 50 San Franciscans happy to help the TL.

2. I submitted my idea to SFPD Tenderloin station to clear the sidewalks of drug dealing. I invite people to follow up with SFPD on my concept: Heat Wagons. I promise, it’s humane.

3. Followed up on the need for public electric wheelchair-charging stations, starting at UN Plaza. And if our current Rec and Parks director continues to drag his feet on this, we need a new director.

Autumn Looijen

I have a track record of focused, effective leadership that delivers results.

I led the campaign to recall the school board from our apartment in Lower Haight. We gathered our first signatures here. We voted, every District 5 neighborhood voted YES, and we got better leaders.

I led the campaign to bring algebra back. We voted, every District 5 neighborhood voted YES, and now hundreds of 8th graders will be in algebra class this fall.

I’m the only challenger candidate attending the meetings about the Fillmore Safeway. It’s closing shortly after the new Supervisor is sworn in, and I’m prepared to help.

Bilal Mahmood

I’ve collaborated with community groups to uplift marginalized communities across District 5.

On small business, I have served on the board of the TLCBD to help launch advocacy campaigns in support of immigrant-owned restaurants.

On women’s rights, I partnered with the Asian Women’s Shelter to launch the Let’s Talk About Us campaign, raising awareness for domestic violence in the AAPI community via literature still distributed throughout schools and senior centers from the Tenderloin to Japantown.

And on food insecurity, I have volunteered at St. Anthony’s, Glide and Project Open Hand to serve food to our unhoused and vulnerable families.

Dean Preston

Saved thousands of renters from evictions and rent hikes. Specifically, led efforts to defeat landlord state ballot measure to abolish rent control, and stopped 20,000 evictions in SF during the pandemic through our unprecedented rent relief program, pandemic eviction bans, and our tenant right to counsel.

Reduced unsheltered homelessness in District 5 through our work to fill vacant supportive housing units and acquire hotels.

Improved community safety in D5 by bringing community ambassadors to every neighborhood, pushing for departmental coordination of the city’s response to car break-ins (dropped 50 percent), and pressing for equitable deployment of public safety resources/investments.

Scotty Jacobs

The biggest thing I’ve done in service of District 5 is leaving my career in the private sector to run for supervisor. 

Since entering I’ve immersed myself across the district. I’ve picked up trash with Refuse Refuse, engaged with grassroots community leaders and organizations from all ends of the District, and continue meeting with police and firemen to understand the unique challenges they face in serving our District. 

I’ve engaged with homeless and addiction advocates to understand how best to serve those groups as supervisor in the hopes of improving outcomes, cleaning up our streets, and saving lives. 

Allen Jones

A dilapidated and embarrassing structure is on the corner of Fillmore and Turk Street (across the street from the police station). This building looks like it has been vacant for at least 30 years. Why? I intend to find out in the first week as District 5 supervisor.

If I can’t get the owner to do something with this corner property, I will apply pressure to tear it down and expand the adjacent mini park. Of course, I’ll probably learn that the city owns it, which explains why it is so embarrassing and neglected.

Autumn Looijen

The Fillmore Safeway is selling its land to Align Real Estate and closing, leaving the neighborhood without a grocery store, pharmacy or bank. We can’t force them to stay.

A lot of seniors and single parents live here — and cannot wrangle grocery bags on the bus. They’re worried.

I went to the community meetings to hear their needs.

I will explore EVERY option to keep a grocery store in the neighborhood — working with the developer to keep a grocery store on the ground floor, building another site nearby, holding regular farmers markets during construction. We cannot leave the Fillmore without food.

Bilal Mahmood

The Western Addition/Fillmore is losing its only full-service grocery store, risking becoming a food desert. Neighbors in the area share growing concerns about equitable access to food and lack of community input from proposed solutions.

That’s why I’ve met with members and earned the support of the community, like Rev. Arnold Townsend, and am proposing investments in co-operative grocery businesses — democratically controlled and member-owned businesses that can come from, and are for, the community. This will ensure access to affordably priced groceries in our neighborhoods, while investing in economic models that guarantee long-term stability and service in the community.

Dean Preston

The Western Addition/Fillmore is losing its only full-service grocery store, risking becoming a food desert. Neighbors in the area share growing concerns about equitable access to food and lack of community input from proposed solutions.

That’s why I’ve met with members and earned the support of the community, like Rev. Arnold Townsend, and am proposing investments in co-operative grocery businesses — democratically controlled and member-owned businesses that can come from, and are for, the community. This will ensure access to affordably priced groceries in our neighborhoods, while investing in economic models that guarantee long-term stability and service in the community.

Scotty Jacobs

We must correct Redevelopment Era mistakes, retain cultural history, and support culturally iconic businesses as the next generation of entrepreneurs takes over. I’ll ensure an affordable supermarket replaces the Safeway.

I’ll support the creation of new, special startup grants and tax exemptions to support entrepreneurs from within the community. And I’ll invest in public safety (from community ambassadors to police) to ensure all residents — and especially seniors — can safely navigate their neighborhoods. We must invest in retaining the diversity and vitality of our neighborhoods through city-funded economic and social initiatives that support ground-up community development. 

Allen Jones

I am not aware of anything alarming in “The Haight.” I’ve only been there twice in the last year, for BBQ. I noticed the tourists were not alarmed by the homeless.

Warning: If the next District 5 supervisor does not keep a close eye on SFPD encampment sweeps throughout the city, the risk of encampments and fentanyl will be tenfold in crevices of Haight-Ashbury.

Autumn Looijen

New housing for families and transitional age youth is going up now at 730 Stanyan St. in the Haight-Ashbury.

It takes a village to raise a child, and I’m excited for a new generation of children to grow up with a deep connection to the Haight-Ashbury.

Neighbors want to be sure the project is well-run, and provides the stable environment children need to thrive.

I will work with TNDC and neighborhood residents to make sure community rules are enforced (quickly and consistently and compassionately), and to help our new families build deep connections with the wider community. Children need both.

Bilal Mahmood

With more than 1,000 doors knocked in Haight-Ashbury, our team has consistently heard the community’s concerns around a lack of progress on our homelessness crisis.

I’ve proposed a Built for Zero solution, an evidence-based framework that has addressed homelessness in 14 U.S. cities. The plan streamlines missing shelter beds, expands real-time data collection to personalize care to every individual, and consolidates city departments to reduce bureaucracy.

This will curtail the inefficiencies and corruption in our current system, and ensure we actually bring housing and services to those who need them, where they need them, and when they need them.

Dean Preston

The Haight is special because of our residents and small businesses. Their top issues:

Small business: We worked with merchants and halved storefront vacancies. We also passed small business protections, including a business eviction ban, rent debt relief, and grants for vandalized storefronts.

Housing and homelessness: We broke ground on 160 affordable homes at 730 Stanyan, reduced neighborhood homelessness, and saved thousands from eviction by funding rent relief, providing counsel for tenants facing eviction, and banning evictions during the pandemic. 

Community safety: We brought community ambassadors to the Haight and supported moving officers from vehicles to foot patrols, which improved safety.

Scotty Jacobs

The Haight is special because of our residents and small businesses. Their top issues:

Small business: We worked with merchants and halved storefront vacancies. We also passed small business protections, including a business eviction ban, rent debt relief, and grants for vandalized storefronts.

Housing and homelessness: We broke ground on 160 affordable homes at 730 Stanyan, reduced neighborhood homelessness, and saved thousands from eviction by funding rent relief, providing counsel for tenants facing eviction, and banning evictions during the pandemic. 

Community safety: We brought community ambassadors to the Haight and supported moving officers from vehicles to foot patrols, which improved safety.

Allen Jones

With all due respect, I do not look to “get rid of” any San Francisco laws.

That said, there are a few heads of some of our departments and agencies and one lawmaker in particular that I would like to replace. Why? No confidence.

Autumn Looijen

[No response submitted.]

Bilal Mahmood

I would advocate for expanding mixed-use zoning policies. Currently, the city’s zoning often separates residential and commercial areas, limiting opportunities for integrated development.

Mixed-use zoning allows for a blend of residential, commercial, and sometimes industrial spaces within neighborhoods. This approach promotes walkability, reduces commuting times, and encourages economic diversity. By utilizing space more efficiently, we could alleviate housing shortages and support small businesses. Ultimately, it aims to create dynamic urban environments where people can live, work, and enjoy recreational activities in close proximity, fostering a more sustainable and inclusive city.

Dean Preston

I would get rid of the exemptions in our local rent-control laws that leave more than 100,000 households without protections and decontrol rents after vacancy.

Unfortunately, because of a state law known as Costa Hawkins, written by and for the real estate industry, our local government does not have the power to adopt stronger rent control. This November, we have the opportunity to pass the Justice for Renters Act, a state ballot measure that would repeal Costa Hawkins and end state preemption of strong rent control. That will restore power to our city to lower rents and protect more tenants.

Scotty Jacobs

We must refer undocumented, convicted drug dealers to ICE.

As we look toward an $800 million budget shortfall in fiscal year 2025, we cannot keep increasing spending on services as our sole solution to the addiction crisis; we must also dismantle the root cause, which begins with the distribution of illegal narcotics. I will advocate for a fully funded police department, harsher sentencing guidelines for fentanyl distribution, and ultimately do whatever it takes to signal to my fellow San Franciscans and the business community that we are getting serious about tackling the addiction crisis.

Allen Jones

This Supreme Court ruling solves nothing, especially for people with disabilities who suffer the most from blocked sidewalks. Homeless individuals who prefer the sidewalk to a shelter will only relocate more often. 

You could not pay me to live in a shelter. That is why, from 2009 to 2019, I lived in a pickup truck — loved it. We need to employ a strategy that clears the sidewalks BEFORE we can reduce homelessness. If you were temporarily homeless, would you rather live in a tent or a town car? Read my proposed solution to clear our sidewalks on my campaign website.

Autumn Looijen

If you are worried about the Grants Pass ruling, remember that there is no Supreme Court ruling that can take from us our responsibility to care for our neighbors, or the compassion in our hearts. 

This ruling means that we do have the authority to remove people from our streets when we can offer them shelter and services.

It means we need not leave our neighbors suffering on our streets, shivering in tents and preyed upon by drug dealers until we find them lifeless on the sidewalk.

That is not compassion.

Compassion is building the shelter beds, the treatment beds … read more.

Bilal Mahmood

We need to focus on addressing the root of the problem — and our homelessness crisis is predominantly a result of lack of housing. We are more than 1,000 shelter beds short needed to serve those suffering on our streets. Of the shelter and supportive housing we do have, bureaucracy has led to waitlists of hundreds of individuals waiting months to get access.

We need to focus on these problems — building more shelters and permanent supportive housing faster, and cutting the red tape that impedes individuals’ ability to get access to that housing. 

Dean Preston

The same court that overturned Roe v. Wade just ruled that cities can criminally punish unhoused people for sleeping in public, even if there is no available shelter for them to go to. It is an unconscionable ruling.

We must act urgently to end homelessness in San Francisco. We should immediately fill vacant supportive housing units, ramp up street outreach, expand our shelter and housing capacity, connect people with existing rental subsidies, and prevent homelessness through our tenant right to counsel and rent relief. Nobody should be forced to sleep outside, and nobody should be arrested or prosecuted for being homeless.

Scotty Jacobs

Until we have adequate shelter beds available, we’ll have encampments. I am committed to ensuring that state funds earmarked for shelters actually result in more beds — not in the pockets of City Hall’s non-profit industrial complex. Our first priority must continue to be offering services to those most in need. However, we cannot allow encampments to exist in perpetuity.

I’ve been clear about my position: If an unhoused person refuses shelter, the city should clear encampments. This policy does not constitute cruel and unusual punishment, and is necessary to restore public confidence in San Francisco’s ability to run itself effectively. 

Allen Jones

We don’t need to give drug addicts a safe place to do drugs; we need to give them a safe place away from drugs.

June 2016, my brother died of a drug overdose while housed in an otherwise encouraging city program. Against public health policy, it placed my brother, a known drug addict, in a hotel known to have drug dealing literally at its front door. Will the Department of Public Health ignore its safe drug-consumption sites policy too? My guess: Yes!

Autumn Looijen

Safe drug-consumption sites are illegal, and ineffective. If we don’t get users treatment, they will die.

Unfortunately, fentanyl is 50x more addictive than heroin: Users choose it over their limbs. They have a steam shovel to dig themselves into drug use, and a spoon to dig themselves out. They need our help, and time is short.

We need effective street intervention, more treatment and mental health beds, a willingness to compel treatment, and sober housing options. (71 percent of SRO residents want drug-free housing, but city and state policies give them no choice. And they cannot afford to move away.)

Bilal Mahmood

I support safe-consumption sites, but as part of a holistic approach to help those battling addiction in our community.

As a city, we need to support the ability to operate safe-consumption sites and abstinence based treatment in parallel, so both options are available for those who are ready for it. 

And more importantly, the Tenderloin cannot, and should not, be the containment zone for the city. We need to make sure that more districts are doing their fair share and collaborating to address the drug epidemic on our streets. 

Dean Preston

Safe-consumption sites have played an essential role in curbing overdose deaths and public drug use in other cities, including our sister city, Zurich. In the U.S., New York City and Providence, Rhode Island, are following the evidence by opening and approving safe-consumption sites. 

Don’t believe the lie that our city cannot do this — they’re in our city’s Overdose Prevention Plan, and we already piloted one for eleven months with the Tenderloin Center, which reversed 300 overdoses. These sites will help save lives, move drug use off our streets, and get people connected with the help they need.

Scotty Jacobs

We need a fundamentally different approach in order to end the rampant addiction crisis; without policy changes, those experiencing addiction on our streets will continue to die from overdoses, with or without safe-injection sites. We need serious leaders who will take the necessary steps to end the addiction crisis.

We must refer convicted, undocumented drug dealers to ICE and ensure that those revived with taxpayer-provided Narcan are compelled toward recovery. I am unwavering in my commitment to ending the addiction crisis, and will work with law enforcement at the local and federal level to ensure we do so.

Allen Jones

SURPRISE! People are crying about Mayor Breed’s $15.9 billion budget proposal. Closing a nearly $800 million shortfall will bring out 799,999,999 critics.

I support Mayor London Breed. And yes, I tried to get members of the Board of Supervisors to fund public electric wheelchair charging stations. In fact, all city agencies that have heard of this idea support it. But some supervisors are “mad” about Breed’s budget proposal. Really? In life, I might have to eat less, which strangely might cost more, trying to lose weight. If grandstanding and crying fixes a budget, I’ll supply the soapbox and tissue.

Autumn Looijen

We’re facing serious budget issues in the years ahead. Office attendance is down 50 percent, and there are 20 Salesforce Towers worth of empty space downtown. That means less money for city services … and it’s not a quick fix.

By 2027-2028, the city expects a $1.3 billion annual shortfall. We cannot spend money we don’t have.

I would preserve safety and infrastructure, audit nonprofits, and compare our current staffing to 2018 levels, and to other cities with satisfied residents. I would entirely cut foil and pipe distribution, reduce administration to preserve workers’ jobs, and make sure we spend our limited money wisely.

Bilal Mahmood

San Francisco has had a record budget for years. And yet, bureaucracy and corruption have held back appropriate delivery of services. Due to bureaucracy, we are nearly 14 percent understaffed across various government departments, with some even at 20-percent-vacancy levels. As a result, nearly $500 million across public health and safety is unspent or inefficiently spent as overtime, as I documented in my research last year. 

If elected, I will ensure our departments are working efficiently and hold them accountable to taxpayers. We don’t have a budget problem, we have a results problem.

Dean Preston

The budget is a statement of values. We should prioritize critical services for our residents, and make sure to meet the needs of the most vulnerable. That’s especially important when we face budget deficits.

Progressive taxes on the ultra-wealthy saved this city from economic ruin during the pandemic. I wrote Prop. I, which has brought in more than $300 million for housing, transit and parks; I’ve strongly backed other successful taxes on billionaires. 

We should cut the administration’s multi-million dollar PR operations, travel budgets, and bloated/ever-increasing police budgets, and invest more in food security, affordable housing, overdose prevention, and youth programs. 

Scotty Jacobs

San Francisco doesn’t have a revenue problem; we have a spending problem. In order to address the projected $800 million budget shortfall, we need more scrutiny around where our leaders are spending taxpayer money.

On Day 1 in office, I’ll demand an audit of outside vendors (comprising approximately $5.8 billion of the fiscal year 2024 budget) to remove duplicative services. I’ll also work to establish a clear framework of performance metrics to ensure we are investing in proven outcomes. We need to find efficiencies in our existing city revenues before levying incremental taxes to get our city back on the right financial footing.

Allen Jones

I did not know of how Parcel K came to be until I researched it for this week’s question.

That said, I have traveled through this area for years and always found it to be a pleasant community hangout. The fact that “affordable housing” has been planned for this parcel for more than 20 years reminds me of why I am in the “use it or lose it” camp. 

Parcel K and all city blueprint promises that seem to have collected more dust than a Donald Trump Bible will not get new life if I am elected.

Autumn Looijen

Parcel K should remain Hayes Valley’s town square. I wouldn’t build housing on a park, and I wouldn’t build housing on a community’s town square either.

Our needs have changed since Covid. Today you can live your entire life from inside your apartment — work remotely, order groceries online, and have your meals delivered. Loneliness is an epidemic. Town squares and parks are where we make friends and build community — and our neighborhoods need that more than ever.  

Hayes Valley has not been shy about building affordable housing, and is happy to welcome more — but not on its town square.

Bilal Mahmood

District 5 can build affordable housing while also prioritizing vibrant, open community spaces for families already here. 

This can mean building adjacent to Parcel K, or even building affordable housing on the parcel, but with an atrium on the ground floor to preserve the open space, as proposed by several Hayes Valley leaders.

This parcel has been debated for more than 20 years — it’s time we focus on progress over parcels. Let’s focus instead on where we can build affordable housing fastest, and put our attention to streamlining the permitting process which is the actual impediment to building more housing.

Dean Preston

It’s a testament to the success of the interim use that many in the community want to continue it, but Parcel K, a city-owned paved lot across from a park (Patricia’s Green), was promised for affordable housing more than 20 years ago, and I’m committed to delivering affordable housing there.

We need homes for low-income and working-class people and their families, and that means taking advantage of every opportunity, particularly on city-owned property.

Scotty Jacobs

We cannot afford to let ideology-led supervisors block high-quality construction projects any longer. Our current leaders have failed to make meaningful progress on the state-mandated 82,000 affordable housing units we need to build in San Francisco.

I am in favor of developing Parcel K into a mixed-use development; this project should have retail spaces for small businesses on the ground floor and a mix of market-rate and affordable housing above to ensure we continue to foster neighborhoods that reflect the texture of our city. 

Allen Jones

I learned from my majestic late father, who raised his 10 children as a single parent. Love and patience were his teachers. However, as someone who has never had the privilege of raising children, I also learned to listen. These three traits were mandatory for the ten years (1983 to 1993) of volunteering at San Francisco’s juvenile hall.

My candidate qualification statement, which will appear in the Nov. 5, 2024, voter information pamphlet, offers what I propose for all our school-aged children. Coincidentally, the eyes of the mostly immigrant families of the Tenderloin sum it up: Inspiring.

Autumn Looijen

Has children who attend public school in Los Altos, CA and San Francisco

Tenderloin families’ No. 1 priority is safe streets. They don’t want their kids to think it’s normal to see open drug use on the streets, and they want to feel comfortable sending their kids to the corner store. I will fight hard for them. I’ve done it before.

We also need to make sure our schools are effective. Are our kids reading? Ready for middle-school algebra? Prepared for college or career? With the district facing budget issues, we must not lose focus on giving kids an excellent education so they can thrive as adults. We must get the foundation right.

Bilal Mahmood

The Tenderloin is home to nearly 3,500 children — all of whom deserve a safe and vibrant neighborhood via safe streets, public spaces, and neighborhood activation.

We must expand support from Rec and Parks, which has been lacking across the Tenderloin park network, from Boeddekker to Turk-Hyde. We must work with community partners to hold regular fairs and carnivals celebrating our diverse immigrant heritage.

And we must end the open-air drug market that has resulted in countless overdoses and mass shootings, as no child should have to walk through a neighborhood at risk of open drug use and stray bullets.

Dean Preston

Has children who attend public school in San Francisco

As a public school parent and a legislator representing families, I consistently fight for families and children. Families deserve affordable housing, great public schools, economic security, open space for recreation, and safety in their communities.

I’ve led efforts that protected thousands of families from eviction, rent hikes, and unhealthy living conditions.

I created a shelter for homeless families, won Free Muni for Youth, co-sponsored the School Success Charter Amendment, and brought community ambassadors to every part of District 5.

I’ll continue to push for wellness hubs to move drug use off our streets and connect people to the help they need.

Allen Jones

Smaller government?  Hell … o yes. I was a committee member of a commission, and refused to use a “doctored” document for a project. As a result, I was kicked off the committee. Also, when I met with the Mayor’s Office on Disability, it was only then that I learned we even had a Mayor’s Disability Council. By law, it had to take up my issue. Really, San Francisco?

Therefore, I support empowering future mayors with a smaller number of boards and commissions. The proposal would not affect the commission or council, I think needs to go. Damn!

Autumn Looijen

[No response submitted]

Bilal Mahmood

San Francisco currently has more than 130 active commissions. This is more than double every other major city in the nation, more than the largest cities like Los Angeles and New York. Many of our commissions are redundant or incredibly specific past the point of significant relevance or value. 

This extensive network of commissions in San Francisco has led to a bloated bureaucracy plagued by overlapping responsibilities, inefficiencies, and slowed decision-making processes. Reducing the number of commissions can create more government accountability and streamlined processes — outcomes sorely needed in San Francisco.

Dean Preston

San Francisco has a strong-mayor system of government. Our mayor has more power than most, and receives the highest salary of any mayor in the country. The mayor appoints commissions, hires and fires department directors, and has unilateral control over spending the $14.6 billion budget. We have many problems in SF — lack of mayoral power isn’t one of them. 

We need to make commissioners more independent and less beholden to the mayor. I was proud to write and pass legislation last year to ban the mayor’s scandalous practice of requiring commissioners to submit undated resignation letters in order to serve.

Allen Jones

I use a wheelchair, so I am limited in what I have to offer on this subject. Nevertheless, promoting alternative modes of transit demands that we all first take a course in courtesy. Then wake up and dream big.

Since November 2022, I’ve been nagging the Mayor’s Office on Disability and the Mayor’s Disability Council to do for San Francisco’s electric wheelchair community what I learned is happening in other cities: Public electric wheelchair charging stations. But my plan stresses stations throughout the city. My nagging is working. April 19, 2024, Mayor’s Disability Council meeting here (Item 7).

Autumn Looijen

I once lived in the Netherlands, where I rode a bike to work every day.  Biking in our city needs to be safe, practical, and welcoming.

SFMTA is creating a Bike and Roll plan right now. 

This needs to be a practical plan where bikes and cars are separated as much as possible.  Where people can get to workplaces, businesses, and grocery stores easily by bike.  And where the paths are green and welcoming for both pedestrians and bikes.

This will reduce the number of people who need cars, making parking easier and traffic lighter for the drivers who remain.

Bilal Mahmood

Encouraging alternative transit modes in San Francisco is crucial and we need to implement traffic safety measures to ensure residents feel safe enough to bike on existing bike paths like the Wiggle and throughout our neighborhoods.

I wrote an op-ed on this topic describing how Tokyo’s transit policy has allowed for widened sidewalks that aren’t just for pedestrians, they accommodate bicycles as well — with separate designated lanes. In keeping bikes off the roadways, streets are designed simpler and safer. Instituting similar urban design here in San Francisco could mean accelerating progress toward the Vision Zero goal of eliminating traffic fatalities.

Dean Preston

I’m an everyday Muni rider and a strong advocate for public transit, slow streets, protected bike lanes, and Vision Zero. I’ve been pushing SFMTA to create a citywide safe streets network. 

I’m the only D5 candidate with a proven safe streets record:

• Championing JFK Promenade, Car-Free Hayes, Golden Gate Greenway, Page Slow Street
• Securing $25m for traffic safety in the Tenderloin and Western Addition
• Establishing parking-protected bike lanes along the Panhandle
• Legislation to ban turns on red
• Lowering speed limits in neighborhoods 
• Unwavering advocacy for public transit

Traffic injuries and fatalities are a policy failure. I’ll continue to prioritize safe streets.

Allen Jones

This city taught this Black man (me) to respect. Nevertheless, even though we have a Black mayor, this city is racist. And there is enough evidence from San Francisco politics to suggest San Francisco has turned “I have a dream” into, dream on.

The call for monetary reparations for some Black residents is an unrealistic progressive political gimmick. Another gimmick: this year’s SF Board of Supervisors “apology” resolution for past racist acts against Blacks, juxtaposed with the four White males trying to oust our Black female mayor in the same year? You don’t sober up by drinking denial juice. 

Autumn Looijen

I was horrified to hear about this.  Racism of any kind is unacceptable in San Francisco.

I’m glad our police are working to protect Terry Williams and solve this crime. 

Black people belong in Alamo Square — and in NoPa, in Lower Haight, in Haight Ashbury, in Japantown, and in every neighborhood across San Francisco.  

I’m heartened to see San Francisco standing with Terry during this chilling experience. Black families deserve to feel safe and welcomed in EVERY one of our neighborhoods.

Bilal Mahmood

The racist harassment Terry Williams has received has no place in San Francisco. It was encouraging and heartwarming to attend the community gathering in his support this weekend in Alamo Square (community fundraiser here). Such community support for survivors can provide a model for addressing hate.

Through my work at 13 Fund, I’ve seen firsthand the benefits of investments in bystander training, and we should explore increasing our city budget allocations for bystander training, language access and accessibility in public safety programs, and health support for survivors. Racism is an epidemic, and it’s time we start treating it as one.

Dean Preston

The horrific, racist threats delivered to Terry’s home are acts of racial terror, and should never be tolerated. I’ve known Terry for years; I’ll do everything I can to support him. I’m in regular touch with Terry and the police, emphasized urgency to find the perpetrator, requested additional police visibility on the block, and joined the rally of support. This week, I’m introducing a resolution at the Board. 

Confronting the legacy of anti-Black racism requires bold action. I’ll continue to center racial justice in my work including reparations, anti-displacement and reducing racial disparities in health, housing, employment, policing and education.

Allen Jones

I’m unsure of the state of business in District 5. I read reports, but they do not match what I witness. Nevertheless, as a resident, I am committed to initially spending at least $100 on any NEW business. For instance, Minnie Bell’s Soul Movement that just opened on Fillmore Street. Check out Holy Stitch on Market Street, a denim factory-plus that opens soon. The entire concept is needed here.

Based on negative experiences I’ve encountered with past and present supervisors, I, as a supervisor, will have my ears and heart open to creativity.

Autumn Looijen

No response submitted.

Bilal Mahmood

Businesses in District 5 have struggled to rebound since the pandemic and, in turn, our neighborhoods have suffered devastating losses to their vibrancy. For example, Haight and Hayes have, combined, lost more than 1,000 businesses, a net 5 percent reduction since 2020. 

I’ll prioritize revitalizing our business community by streamlining our permitting process and cutting bureaucratic red tape to foster a supportive business environment. 

Our economic resilience also depends on supporting diversity and inclusivity in our businesses. I’ve had the opportunity to meet with local business owners around the district who echo the same concerns.

Dean Preston

As the only former small-business owner on the Board, I know how hard it is to run a business in San Francisco. I was an early advocate for shared spaces, championed ordinances to stop eviction of businesses during the pandemic and waive back rent, secured grants for Fillmore entrepreneurs, launched a victim-assistance program for vandalized businesses, funded sidewalk power washing, and more. 

Our small-business recovery in District 5 has been strong, but there is much more to do, especially for businesses in the Tenderloin.  

I’m proud to be endorsed by Small Business Forward, business owners and workers across District 5.

Allen Jones

I’m voting for Mayor London Breed, even though I do not support the proposal to close some stores by midnight in the Tenderloin.

Frankly, I don’t believe this is her idea. Closing stores early sounds like another harebrained SFPD plan run amok. And if true, is SFPD willing to share some of its budget to help these same stores? The lack of creativity by City Hall on this issue is the problem, not, poor ol’ mom and pop, if you will.

Autumn Looijen

Why would we force convenience stores to close from midnight to 5 a.m. in the Tenderloin?

Because these stores supply drug users with late-night strips of tinfoil, torches, and crack pipes … the purchases often funded by late-night sales of stolen goods.

They’re supporting the drug markets that force beloved restaurants and other businesses to close.

Would you want this in your neighborhood?

Tenderloin residents want a one-year pilot curfew narrowly targeted to just these shops, as one part of a broad strategy to shut down the drug markets and make our streets safe.

Let’s run this experiment (and others), and track the results.

Bilal Mahmood

Implementing solutions with community input such as this one is crucial, however, this is a temporary crutch. Supporting our local small businesses requires long-term solutions to addressing the underlying issues — we need to end open-air drug markets to restore safety and vibrancy to the Tenderloin.

I recently proposed a drug-market Intervention plan, a community and evidence-based approach to end San Francisco’s open-air drug markets. It will ensure fully staffed police departments to arrest fentanyl dealers and incapacitate the market, provide off-ramps for local low-level offenders to deter the market, and increase beat patrols to prevent markets from emerging.

Dean Preston

The legislation is overbroad and would unfairly punish small businesses. Tenderloin businesses are struggling, and deserve to be at the table for decisions impacting them. Unfortunately, the Mayor didn’t consult with our office or the immigrant-owned businesses that would be impacted.

We’ve been meeting with stakeholders to arrive at amendments that address problematic businesses without unfairly harming others. The last thing we need in the Tenderloin is more vacant storefronts. 

The proposed curfew won’t reduce drug use/dealing. Comprehensive approaches, like the Four Pillars Strategy, are proven to combat addiction, save lives, and improve street conditions. 

https://www.deanprestonsf.com/statements/tlbusinesscurfew

Allen Jones

Renter

I confess that I am more of a YIMBY. I was opposed to the Board of Supervisors overriding of Mayor Breed’s veto of the legislation sponsored by Supervisor Aaron Peskin.

I fell in love with tall buildings because of my first job. I was a draftsman in an office located at the One Embarcadero Center. I have no fear of new or taller (denser). I did not buy Supervisor Peskin’s reasoning behind his legislation but am confident that San Francisco will have a high-rise boom for housing.

A setback is really a step forward for those who are determined.

Autumn Looijen

Renter / Landowner

I would have voted against Peskin’s downzoning, and I would have voted for housing on the Nordstrom’s parking lot — housing that Dean opposed. 

It is important to preserve our historic buildings, but not our historic parking lots, and not our Supervisors’ historic views.

The people of San Francisco are thoughtful and nuanced, and I trust the people to choose how we use our land.

If we want to sacrifice our historic parking lots to make homes for families, homes for refugees, homes for artists, then let’s celebrate that and let’s get it done.

Bilal Mahmood

Renter

Supervisor Peskin’s downzoning bill was a disappointing, yet unsurprising showcasing of priorities. We must all do our part in developing over 80,000 new housing units in San Francisco to meet the state mandate by 2031 or risk losing our city’s autonomy in shaping the future of our housing market entirely.

District 5’s vacant lots and empty offices could be repurposed into multi-unit projects, backed by community support. However, our current supervisor has actively opposed* their development into much needed affordable and middle-income housing, and his recent votes continue to set a precedent for housing obstructionism. 

*Note: This response refers to Supervisor Dean Preston’s opposition to Prop. C, which passed in March. Regardless of the measure’s passage, developers could continue to convert property to residential use. Under Prop. C, developers are allowed a one-time exemption from the real estate transfer tax after a conversion from commercial to residential use, and the city can now lower the transfer tax without voter approval. The City Controller’s Office also found that the lowered taxes were unlikely to spur conversions.

Dean Preston

Homeowner

Peskin’s bill, which I supported, only applies to a small historic district near the waterfront in D3 and will have no impact in D5. 

I’ve supported market rate and affordable housing development in my district and across San Francisco. I’ve voted for 30,000 homes, 86 percent affordable. I’ve raised hundreds of millions of dollars for affordable housing, and stopped mass displacement during a pandemic. 

My priority is stopping evictions, protecting and expanding rent control and subsidized housing, and creating new housing that’s affordable to low-income and working class people. I have an unrivaled record of doing exactly that. For … Read more.

Allen Jones

When I think of the San Francisco NIMBY vs. YIMBY fight, it reminds me of the game show Family Feud. A clever episode addressed an old feud between two families: The Hatfields and the McCoys.

Some say this 1863 to 1891 feud between two families was over love. Some believe it was over land. Others think it had to do with a stolen pig. Nevertheless, years of ugly ensued. My first piece of legislation on the subject of housing would be a resolution declaring a truce between the Hatfields and McCoys — I mean, NIMBYs and YIMBYs.

Autumn Looijen

Have you walked by the abandoned carwash site at 400 Divisadero? It was approved for 182 homes five years ago (20 percent affordable), but was tied up in delays and never built.

Dean is insisting on 100 percent affordable, and blamed the Mayor when he couldn’t get it done.

We need homes on that site. I will work with the mayor and city departments to use every tool at our disposal (including our new Housing for All tools) to actually build affordable homes.  If we also need to streamline the building process or take other measures, I will make sure it happens.

Bilal Mahmood

I will prioritize fixing our broken permitting system. There’s too much red tape that makes it take more than 1,000 days to build affordable or middle income housing, driving up costs of development and, in turn, rent.

I will work to cut the bureaucracy impeding the permitting process — investments in technology to speed up application approvals, allowing parallel permitting and approvals, and reducing discretionary permits to effectively cut the time to build affordable housing in half. When there’s fewer obstacles, we build more homes affordably.

Dean Preston

As a tenants-rights attorney and affordable-housing advocate for decades, my priority is housing for low-income and working-class people.

Priority District 5 sites include the DMV lot, 730 Stanyan, Parcel K and more. In November, we’ll push for the regional housing bond and Costa-Hawkins repeal to expand rent control. We’re also launching a public bank to scale up investment in affordable housing.

My Right to Counsel law gives tenants facing eviction a free attorney, we passed legislation to ban pandemic evictions, and raised over $300 million for affordable housing by taxing the rich. I’ve voted for 30K homes, 86 percent affordable.

Allen Jones

Renter

Regarding housing, I have not noticed anything get better in District 5.

This includes the fact; I’ve heard of many obtain housing near where I live. Sure, I’m happy to hear that one less person or family is homeless. But I scratch my head more about the criteria/formula for obtaining subsidized housing than that of market-rate rents.

Main gripe: The city is operating so desperately to house our most mentally unstable residents, it shows little to no regard/respect for those who fork over hard-earned money for rent. This will be my focus area for improvement.

Autumn Looijen

Renter / Landowner

Our Victorian homes are an irreplaceable treasure, and our neighborhoods have done incredible work to preserve them. On Haight Street, we’re building great affordable housing for families and youth.

Yet the rent is too high for families, working-class people, artists and youth we invite here for sanctuary. (My family moved here because Covid-19 dropped the rent.)

We haven’t been building enough homes. We’ve been slow to approve homes — even in vacant parking lots — and even slower to build them. Slow process means financing falls apart and the homes we need are never built.

Let’s start by fixing the process.

Bilal Mahmood

Renter

San Francisco has made significant, but insufficient, progress on housing. Talking with residents every day in District 5, it’s clear that affordable rent and cost of living have gotten undeniably worse over the last 4 years.

Especially for our nurses, teachers, laborers — we have not prioritized middle-income housing. The time to get any type of housing approved in San Francisco averages 1,000 days, the longest of any city in California. Until we solve this permitting crisis all types of housing — from affordable to middle-income — will almost never be developed.

Dean Preston

Homeowner

As a tenant rights attorney and affordable housing advocate for decades, my priority is housing San Franciscans can afford.

I wrote the Right to Counsel law to give a free lawyer to any tenant facing eviction, passed legislation to ban evictions in the pandemic, and raised over $40m for rent relief. I voted for 30,000 homes (over 85 percent affordable), taxed the rich to raise over $300m for affordable housing, and broke ground on sites across District 5. Visit www.deanshousingrecord.com for details.

What works: rent control and social housing. What doesn’t: Relying on trickle-down economics to make housing affordable.

Allen Jones

I love the challenge of the Tenderloin, where I live. Haight Ashbury reminds me of my late father. The Panhandle reminds me of some of my naughty and nice times … I mean strolls through the park on a sunny day. And I think the Fillmore is majestic, in need of a new caretaker.

And though I would not use the word “special” for any district in the city, it is because I reserve that word to describe all of San Francisco.

Autumn Looijen

District 5 is the best district.  

We’re an incredibly diverse district, a microcosm of the City — but, even more important, we’re the heart of the City, where movements begin.

The Harlem of the West. The Summer of Love.  The school board recall I led from my apartment in Lower Haight to turn our schools around. The fight to save our Safeway. The AI revolution. All here in District 5.

In our darkest times, District 5 is where we’ve found hope.

Hope in the faces of the Safe Passage volunteers guiding kids to school in the Tenderloin.  Hope as new restaurants … See more.

Bilal Mahmood

Our people.

District 5 spans a wide array of perspectives that inform district values. Each neighborhood has rich character, from Yemeni and Vietnamese refugees in the Tenderloin to multi-generational Black families in Western Addition to seniors in Japantown — we host an incredible tapestry of culture and vibrant communities.

Our food is unmatched, our small businesses fight hard to succeed, our residents come together for their neighbors. The people here inspire me every day.

Dean Preston

District 5 has been my home for 28 years. We have deep roots here and are happy to be raising our kids in this amazing place. 

The diverse people, small businesses, and neighborhoods make our district special. From the Fillmore to Japantown, to the Haight, Lower Haight, Tenderloin, Divisadero, NOPA, and Hayes Valley, we have some of SF’s most incredible, resilient and celebrated neighborhoods. D5 is walkable, historic and transit-rich, with great parks, slow streets, restaurants, music venues, nonprofits, cafes, thrift stores, schools, local grocers, and much more. 

It’s been an honor to serve D5 through the pandemic and recovery.

Allen Jones

Mode of transport: The finest Swiss-designed electric wheelchair ever, in my opinion

I applaud current city efforts already in the works to maximize road safety. But the recent West Portal bus stop tragedy reminds us all that road safety will always be a challenge. Whether a road accident, criminal road act, or poorly constructed roads that make up the challenge, we all have a responsibility.

I thank all those who sounded the warnings before, not after the tragedy, as too many SF politicians are famous for doing. And I will not wait until elected to do my part to continue to report road safety issues to the responsible SF agency.

Autumn Looijen

Mode of transport: Walking, bus, Lyft, and driving

The tragedy in West Portal leaves a hole where a family once stood — two beloved parents, and two children who will never grow up. Devastatingly sad.

Families I’ve talked with don’t feel safe on our streets. They are worried for their kids.

We don’t yet know the cause of this accident, but we do know that this bus stop was at street level, with little protection from cars. Our streets have been designed to move cars swiftly from place to place, not to keep pedestrians safe… and that puts everyone in danger, kids and adults alike.

We need to redesign … Read more.

Bilal Mahmood

Mode of transport: Walking, public transit

San Francisco needs safer streets. Tragically, we’ve seen traffic fatalities increasing in our neighborhoods.

Living in District 5, with one of the highest rates of traffic collisions in the city, road safety is key to my platform. We need automated speed enforcement cameras to keep our most vulnerable communities safe. Further, safety measures to ensure safe street conditions for our construction workers are essential.

As someone who walks and uses public transportation everyday, I understand and champion improved safety policies for our pedestrians and cyclists. Walking and biking should not be the most dangerous way to travel in our city.

Dean Preston

Mode of transport: Public transit

We cannot have tragedies like the West Portal crash. I’ve been a champion for public transportation, a citywide cycling network, slow streets and pedestrian safety. My office secured $17 million to fund the Western Addition Transportation Plan, and $8 million for Tenderloin street safety, created the Panhandle protected bike lane, championed the Golden Gate Greenway, Page Slow Street, and Car-free JFK. We led the way in bringing back bus lines, increasing evening service, stopping fare hikes, and winning free Muni for youth.

I’ve been an everyday Muni rider for 30 years. Green transportation and safe streets are top priorities for me.

Allen Jones

In June 2018, I had a ballot measure placed on the that special election. My measure (Prop. I) received 98,000 yes votes from San Francisco voters, with no advertisement and one donor.

I intend to trust the voters of District 5 to read what I have to offer and I will not raise funds. You can’t make it to Heaven by raising Hell on Earth. Therefore, I intend to raise awareness.

Autumn Looijen

I launched my Supervisor campaign last week, and I’m kicking off fundraising now.

I have a proven track record winning five ballot measures in SF, including landslide wins with the school board recalls and to bring algebra back. District 5 voters said yes to every one of them … and that’s the endorsement I’m most proud of.

Funding is important to get our message out, and even more important is a demonstrated ability to deliver practical solutions to our hard problems.  That’s what district voters are looking for.

Bilal Mahmood

We are proud to not accept any corporate PAC, fossil-fuel or law-enforcement money on this campaign.

We have a wide coalition of donors across many sectors, ranging from government, nonprofits and the private sector to everyday people who are simply fed up with the lack of action on San Francisco’s problems. I’ve earned trust from supporters to get results on housing, safety, and education.

I am incredibly grateful for the unity coalition we have built with a wide array of endorsements coming in, most notably from State Senator Scott Wiener, and our most recent DCCC Chair, Honey Mahogany.

Dean Preston

I’m proud to have earned the endorsement of the SF Labor Council, Tenants Union, Community Tenants Association, Affordable Housing Alliance, Tenderloin Chinese Rights Association, Nurses, Health Care Workers, Teamsters, Teachers, Public Employees, Harvey Milk LGBTQ Democratic Club, Bernie Sanders, and community leaders in every neighborhood across District 5. 

We’ve been targeted by billionaire-funded PACs with unlimited money, but are holding our own, having raised more than $180,000 from grassroots donations, qualifying us for an additional $250,000 from public financing.

Our campaign is funded by the people, not corporate special interests. To support our campaign, visit www.dean2024.com.

Allen Jones

I have not noticed a difference one way or the other in law enforcement crackdowns.

Also, I have no intention of trying to tell SFPD how to do their job, but I will monitor the situation post-Prop. E. If Prop. E tools are not effective enough in cleaning up street drug dealing; after being given a chance to work, I think we need to clean out those in charge. The reasonable time frame should be no more than one year after the police cameras are installed.

Bilal Mahmood

Arresting fentanyl dealers and providing treatment to users is necessary to ending our open air drug markets. As a Tenderloin resident, I know that we need both, and that our current efforts are not enough.

We need beat officers who build relationships with the community to be patrolling our streets — currently, we have 0 in nearly all precincts of the Tenderloin. We need to fully staff employees for existing social services programs and reduce the bureaucracy impeding nurses and officers’ ability to do their job.

By cutting red tape and increasing staffing, we can improve outcomes to create healthier, safer communities.

Dean Preston

Effectiveness should be measured by whether the crackdowns have prevented overdose fatalities, reduced street violence, and improved neighborhood conditions.

By those metrics, the crackdowns have largely failed. At best, enforcement strategies have improved some blocks at the expense of others, while creating turf wars that have increased gun violence.

We need to use a comprehensive strategy with evidence-based solutions, and until we do that, we will continue spending millions without results. That’s why I’ve called for San Francisco to implement Zurich’s successful “Four Pillars” strategy to combat addiction, save lives, and improve street conditions.

Allen Jones

In 2016, one of my brothers died due to a fentanyl overdose. Until I read the autopsy, I never heard of fentanyl. The city not following its policy is partly to blame. It placed a man with a 40-year heroin habit in a hotel where heroin was sold right at the front door. My brother did not know fentanyl was in his heroin.

But the first thing I will do is talk to at least 25 people who use the drug knowingly.

Bilal Mahmood

Living in the Tenderloin, I walk past the open-air drug market a block from my apartment every night. I have seen first-hand how Dean Preston’s failed leadership has led to overdoses in the neighborhood increasing 20%.

We need new initiatives based on evidence to get results for our district. To help those suffering on our streets, we must streamline the hiring of our nurses and essential workers, which are understaffed.

The drug dealers, in kind, must be arrested and held accountable via drug market intervention strategies that mix restorative and punitive justice. This approach has led to a … read more.

Dean Preston

San Francisco police arrested more than 800 people for public drug use and more than 900 for dealing in recent months. Yet the overdose crisis continues, and only 12 people arrested for drug use sought treatment.

It is clear that law enforcement alone will not stop overdoses.

My office led efforts to create the city’s first overdose prevention plan. I will continue to advocate for a Wellness Hub in the Tenderloin. Last month, I directed the Budget and Legislative Analyst to expedite a roadmap for San Francisco to implement the Four Pillars Strategy based on prevention, treatment, harm reduction and enforcement.

Allen Jones

I think Proposition E’s Police Chief/Commission aspect is asinine. However, I voted Yes on E because I am unwilling to throw the baby out with the bathwater. I support less police paperwork. The surveillance technology is akin to “See something, say something.” This includes possible police misconduct. I am not looking for fairness in Proposition E; I am looking for the challenge of making it help fight crime in District 5, if passed by voters.

Bilal Mahmood

Amid a fentanyl epidemic, smash-and-grab crisis, and small-business break-in extremity, ensuring public safety must be a priority in District 5. Reducing the bureaucratic bottlenecks for our first responders to ensure they can do their job is one avenue to ensuring we achieve better outcomes on public safety. In turn, the intent of some of the elements of Proposition E I find are in the right direction, but some of the facets like amendments to vehicle-pursuit policies are questionable.

Dean Preston

We need public safety interventions that work to make us safer, not empty rhetoric and failed approaches. Unfortunately, Proposition E offers nothing that will make us safer. The measure reduces oversight of police, blocks crucial reforms, encourages dangerous, high-speed car chases through our streets, and unleashes unchecked surveillance on San Franciscans. It will increase racial disparities in policing, especially when it comes to use of force by police. We need real public-safety solutions, not harmful political gimmicks like Proposition E.

Allen Jones

I am supporting Mayor Breed. At the risk of sounding like I am playing the gender or race card, these three White male challengers should do the same. 

I am skeptical of her three challengers: expressing change should not make voters feel skeptical. For instance, stating you would fire the police chief while supporting the mayor’s ballot measure on policing. Another challenger is running ads supporting that same ballot measure. The latest challenger said he would fire the police chief, but called him a “good man” in the same sentence. 

Be a part of this city; don’t tear this city apart.

Bilal Mahmood

I am not endorsing anyone for Mayor, and will frankly work collaboratively with anyone who becomes our next Mayor.

Because San Francisco needs results, not the constant excuse-making and finger-pointing we’ve become accustomed to from City Hall politicians. For years, our political establishment, including District 5 Supervisor Dean Preston, has been focused on dysfunctional rhetoric and blaming others for their lack of outcomes. Getting results on housing, safety and small business, requires collaborating with those we don’t always agree with, and that’s what we need to achieve results. Accountability is not possible without collaboration.

Dean Preston

I have not endorsed a candidate for mayor, and look forward to seeing who all runs and what they stand for.

I will support the candidate who will work the hardest for everyday San Franciscans, not corporate special interests. A mayor who uses our city budget to create affordable housing, houses homeless people instead of vilifying them, funds data-driven public safety solutions over failed strategies, prioritizes mental health and overdose prevention, fights for public transit, and supports our small businesses will have my vote.

Allen Jones

I wrote and self-published an autobiography in 2010. With misspelled words, this book is in the San Francisco Main Library.

How I live, help and inspire others is detailed in 25 chapters. This includes a chapter titled “Beautiful.” Stories of how my father raised ten children as a single parent and taught me to love. Another chapter, “Respect Thy Neighbor,” explains how San Francisco taught me to respect others. Another chapter, titled “King of Hearts,” is a 10-page poem describing the true stories of how I believe God taught me, a crippled homosexual, never to give up.

Bilal Mahmood

I am a Muslim American and a proud son of immigrants. My grandparents’ and parents’ journey from Kenya to Pakistan to the Bay Area, to rise through the middle class, inspires my focus on ensuring San Francisco remains a beacon for upward mobility for all peoples. And as a lifelong renter and current resident of the Tenderloin, these experiences guide and inform my priorities as Supervisor: Ensuring safe streets for the 3,500 children who live in the Tenderloin, streamlining affordable and middle-income housing from Hayes to the Haight, and guaranteeing support for our elders from the Fillmore to Japantown.

Dean Preston

Prior to taking office, I worked as a tenants’ rights attorney for 20 years to keep vulnerable low-income residents in their homes. In 2008, I founded California’s only statewide tenant organization, Tenants Together. I’ve fought on behalf of tenants for housing stability against profit-driven speculators and mega-landlords for decades. Alongside a grassroots coalition, I played a leadership role in fighting to save rent control in 2008 and, a decade later, authored and championed Proposition F, our city’s groundbreaking law to provide legal representation for all tenants facing eviction. My decades of experience as a tenants’ rights lawyer and affordable housing… Read more

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.