More land battle, more bar battle, more Carmignani no-show

Good morning! Things in this city happen very quickly–except when they drag on forever. A couple stories:

• A quick update: Ex-fire commissioner Don Carmignani failed to show up this morning for a preliminary hearing, and his alleged assailant, Garrett Doty, was released from custody. It was the second time Carmignani missed a court date to determine if there’s sufficient evidence against Doty, the homeless person who allegedly struck the former fire official with a metal rod on April 5, breaking his jaw. Carmignani has not answered multiple requests from the police to make a statement, despite talking to the press about the case; the DA’s office said that “this case requires the victim’s testimony.”

Carmignani has now been publicly accused of vigilante behavior, and of possible responsibility for eight previous attacks against homeless people in the Marina. The hearing was moved to May 23, but Kleigh Hathaway, the public defender representing Doty, said, “I don’t foresee the complaining witness coming to court.”

• The Board of Appeals voted yesterday to revoke a seemingly minor permit for local business Monkeybrains to replace a fence on the hotly contested parcel 36. The board was clearly confused and frustrated by the situation on the parcel, pleading with elected officials and city staff to find a lasting solution for the endless back-and-forth battles over the apparently unowned land.

“The city needs courageous leadership to take charge on issues like this,” said board member Alex Lemberg. “And we’re just not seeing it.” Board chair Rick Swig suggested the board send a letter to Supervisor Hillary Ronen to “ask her to do her job.” Board member J.R. Eppler said that the Assessor-Recorder’s Office, the Treasurer’s Office, and the Recreation and Parks Department should also be involved. At the end of the four-hour meeting, board member Jose Lopez told the warring representatives of Mission Greenway and Monkeybrains, “I wish we could settle this this evening and I’m sorry we can’t do that for you. But in the meantime, we really need you all to work together.”

• In other long-simmering fights, Bissap Baobab still doesn’t have a license to serve beer and wine. The restaurant applied for a license ten months ago and is waiting for the results of a March 15 hearing triggered by the complaints of two people who own condos next door. That decision was supposed to be released within 30 days of the hearing, but it has now been over six weeks.

The restaurant is allowed to serve alcohol in the meantime, but a decision denying approval of the license would put its future in jeopardy. Owner Marco Senghor said it’s hard to book DJs and live bands or hire new staff, “because what can I promise to people?” There’s no word on when a decision will be reached.

More soon,

Sara