extension of who i am and a general desire to help improve the quality of life for people in san francisco. >> where do you place yourself on the political spectrum? are you left, right? >> i am more forward-thinking. for me, it is less about being left or right, or moderate or progressive. it is about the issues and creating policies that will have a sustainable and lasting positive impact on the families that live here. it is costly and difficult to do business in san francisco, to raise your children in san francisco. i would like a voice at the table to create policies that will minimize the stigma that san francisco is not a business- friendly city, minimize the stigma of that san francisco prioritizes the rights of dogs over children.

we started walking down that path largely because of political ideology. it is less about politics. i want to have a positive impact on the city overall, specifically district 10, connecting it to the city. people have been left to defend for themselves. i am honored to have been elected to serve to be the next advocate for the next four years, hopefully the next eight years, to really protect, defense, and serve the residents of district 10. >> we will talk more about some of the issues facing district 10. before we do, i would like to know a little bit about what you learned campaigning for supervisor. talk to me a little about that experience. >> first, i learned that a lot of the conversations we have about our neighborhood and community happens in silos. we have folks only talking with

visitation valley. we have folks in bayview only talking with and a small corner of the bayview merchant quarter. we don't have people talking to the potrero hill association. all of these different fragmented conversations are happening. there largely talking about the same thing, crime, keeping streets clean, businesses, supporting small businesses, maintaining and making sure the city is livable for everyone. no one really looked to their neighbors. they stayed within their neighborhood, but did not reach beyond the boundaries. that is one thing i saw that i actually made a concerted effort on the campaign to build bridges. for me, that goes beyond the neighborhood. it goes to connecting the southeast to the large part of san francisco, wake up, we're

out here. we want bike paths, dog parks, open space. we no longer want to have a neighborhood or a reputation of a crime-filled community. the other thing that i learned is really, we are all human. how to connect with that spirit, whether you're living in public housing, owning your own property, your asian, african american, we are all one. we are a community. when we realize and move in the direction of being a human's and having this human experience, connecting together, really be each other's keeper, then san francisco begins to drive. i also learned through the endorsement process -- you go through this process to get endorsed from different popes -- different folks, or no endorsement.

having a broad base. we have a choice of voting in san francisco. there were 21 candidates. no clear front-runner. no major person with a heavy political experience. no person that carried the heavy downtown interest or big business. you had a lot of candidates on an even keel. what i felt quickly was the strategy to being successful was to build coalitions, and also to approach your communication in a multi land will approach. in my district, it is one of the most ethnically diverse parts of san francisco. we incorporated that. my campaign team was diverse. i had seniors. i had young people. i had different types of volunteers. i had folks that could speak

chinese, spanish, someoan, all reaching out to bring people in. there is a certain level of malta and -- of momentum that help people. i would never ask my volunteers to do something i was not willing to do. we were at the bus stop at the morning handing out literature. i think that is critical, to bring into city hall that, yes, i am elected to lead, but more importantly to serve. that is my number one focus point. i am here to serve. when you call me, i am at 4 service. >> what about issues facing san francisco, facing your district, and how you are going to balance the needs of san francisco at large against the needs of your district? >> we actually see the needs of

san francisco and the district cannot be counteracted or counter intuitive. when we address the needs of the district and residents, we also address the issues of folks that are living in the mission, people that are working class people, people that have blue- collar jobs. really, it is paramount and centered on education. for young people, making sure, ensuring we are providing them a quality education in public schools. i served as chair on the select committee, a committee between the members of the board of supervisors and members on the school board, coming together to address the challenges. in this particular case, we are talking about education. we are talking about a working- class community, the excelsior, the bayview, all of these different neighborhoods are smaller enclaves. we still see the same kinds of challenges. when the schools begin to

perform a stellar academic programs, businesses will continue to relocate because the employees will want to live in san francisco and want kids to be educated here. it is a cyclical and symbiotic creation ship. another challenges that we have the highest unemployment rate in this part of san francisco. san francisco before, the numbers are starting to come down a little bit. we have high rates in the latter part of last year, but it is starting to -- it is starting to normalize. it goes back to education. what i would like to see our pathways. not everyone will become a doctor, lawyer, or journalist, fantastic tv host. what can we do? we live in a society where we need engineers. we need sound engineers. we need graphic designers. there are people who prefer to learn with their hands.

they like mechanics. we need to bring back some shop back in schools and allow people an opportunity for a different pathway. nursing is a pathway. validating the hair and makeup industry. there is a lot of money in that industry, and you don't need a college degree. you just need a passion, an art form, an outlet. invalidating it and creating pathways for young people to go down those paths, you want to become a nurse, here is a course at the southeast college to take you down that course. you introduce these ideas to students while they are in high school, when they are still engaged, when they have not disassociated. we will see more african americans becoming more involved in education.

he used to be the police chief. now he is the district attorney, gascon. he had an idea about a junior academy that would take san francisco eans and give them skills to get into the academy. you can make a great living as a police officer. the same notion with the fire department. these are careers you don't normally think about when you are in high school. you often are relegated to a path to go to a four-year university. that is not for everyone. there is an opportunity for everyone to work. that is the main point i am trying to drive home. when we talk about the issues, the one that stands out for me is education, economic and work force of the element, stimulating the local economy. we have the third street merchant corridor and an

opportunity to revitalize what i consider to be the main artery of the bayview district, of the southeast quarter. third street is a pretty long streak. from at&t park, it goes all the way to candlestick park. there is a lot of opportunity. don't squander that. we wanted to be a healthy mix that reflects the cultural history of the southeast part of the city. >> what are your thoughts on how the city can deal with the budget issue? >> we are in a very difficult time financially as a country, as a state, as a county. we have a multimillion-dollar deficit. what i see is we have competing priorities. >> ok. >> there's a whole host of non- profit and service organizations that provide a service and a social safety net for people. if people are not able -- they're not making money to get

on calworks, or they get on aid, we cut that aid, that has an adverse affect on a population that needs it. i would like to see the city continued to move in a direction where we are prioritizing when it comes to our budget, our budget strategy. i was fortunate enough to be named to the budget -- i was not fortunate enough to be named to the budget committee. i will exercise my voice to guide us through this precarious system. i think we need to have a serious conversation about pensions and supervisor elsbernd carries a torch on pension reform. there have been other discussions about pension reform. our city assessor started the conversation about prop. 13. there are several things in place on the state and local level having an adverse affect

on our financial health locally. we are in a quandary. we cannot really move beyond that until we remove the pocket. prop. 13 is a serious block. it would free up hundreds of thousands of dollars that could be brought into public schools and could also be in fused in our local -- infused in our local and state economy. that is a very complicated question, and one i have only brush the surface on. that is another segment. >> we will follow that by another complicated question. i would like to get your thoughts on homelessness and what the city is doing about homelessness, what direction you think we should be headed in, a big issue in san francisco. >> homelessness is interesting. when you look at it as a sociological perspective, we

have some of the people in the homeless community enjoying being on the street. others want help. i think when we also -- we need to do a better job of taking care of those mentally ill. when you are on the street and you listen to the homeless folks or you watch them interacting, you see they are a little disturbed. i think the city overall has done a good job in terms of housing and taking them off the street, providing services. mayor newsom started a private -- program connecting members of the homeless community to services, dental, vision, therapy, housing, mental health. these are things that you and i probably take for granted. we have access and resources we can leverage. this community doesn't. in the southeast part of the city, we don't have many homeless facilities. there is one that i know of, providence baptist church. every night, i have seen this

line wrapped around the corner. it is cold. this is a men's shelter in particular. they're coming in, they are on a floor of a gymnasium. we are not talking a lavish existence. four seasons here. definitely, i think we are a very compassionate city and just continue to extend the compassion to the homeless community. >> what is happening with crime in your district? how do you think the police department is doing to address the issue of crime in district 10? >> statistically, we have a lot of crime. homicides, there were two in the last week in my district. i am vice-chair of the public safety committee. safety and how we define safety, not just in terms of crime, but

over a public safety, is something that is very important and one of my priorities. what i would like to see is more of a community policing approach. maybe engaging more the community. that includes organizations like safe, which is a neighborhood- based organization. neighbors get together and they're watching the streets, giving information to the police department. think about taxicabs. they are all over the city. they can be the eyes and ears of the police department if trained properly. we can also better utilize the sheriff's department. it has the same training as members of the police department. i think we could have a healthy conversation in considering partnering -- creating a stronger partnership with the sheriff's department. overall, crime, yes. we need to reduce the number of homicides.

we need to reduce the number of aggravated assaults, petty crimes, misdemeanors. i do get my fair share in my district. that is one issue that is universal between safety and education. everyone is very concerned about it. >> talk to me about the progress on environmental cleanup in the areas of san francisco where that is a growing concern. >> you know, in san francisco, specifically in the southeast quadrant, san francisco is the industrial armpit. we have got the two major toxic sites, we have the shipyard and the lock site. both of those toxic chemicals that are still in the ground are from earlier activities, business activities. we also have the puc, the water

treatment plant, in the district. for me, the quality of the environment is very important. it is a direct relationship with the high breast cancer rates, a cancer rates in particular, but also breast cancer, and to some degree childhood obesity, there's a correlation between the environment people are growing up in. when we talk about my legislative priorities, the environment is also on that list of priorities. minimizing asthma, maintaining the asman task force, that we will keep implementing that my predecessors started, educating people on healthy lifestyles, exercise, healthy diet. we talked about the environment. it is about the food we are taking into our body, our stress level, and a component that is not often discussed as our mental health -- is our mental

health. mental health and physical health factor into the environment that people are living in. it is in their home, it is in the neighborhood, it is the whole southeast quadrant. any way you guys sit up, we have had our disproportionate share -- you dice it up, we have had our disproportionate share of problems that are happening. the policies and priorities of the city have been implemented. we have an opportunity -- this goes back to jobs. the puc will have a billion dollar project of rebuilding the digestors, the waste water management treatment plant in the district. making sure that people are hired from the neighborhood for the project, a pathway to a career that will be sustainable, and one where people can provide for themselves. they put money back into the

local economy. they are buying houses, paying taxes, money is going into the school district, kids are being educated. we are raising help the community. >> thank you so much for joining us on sfgtv's "meet your supervisor." we will be back with another one of our 11 supervisors. >> the public wants to access particular information about your house or neighborhood we point them to gis. gis is a combination of maps and data. not a graphic you see on a screen. you get the traffic for the

streets the number of crimes for a police district in a period of time. if the idea of combining the different layerce of information and stacking them on top of each other to present to the public. >> other types of gis are web based mapping systems. like google earth, yahoo maps. microsoft. those are examples of on line mapping systems that can be used to find businesses or get driving directions or check on traffic conditions. all digital maps. >> gis is used in the city of san francisco to better support what departments do. >> you imagine all the various elements of a city including parcels and the critical infrastructure where the storm drains are. the city access like the traffic

lights and fire hydrants. anything you is represent in a geo graphic space with be stored for retrieval and analysis. >> the department of public works they maintain what goes on in the right-of-way, looking to dig up the streets to put in a pipe. with the permit. with mapping you click on the map, click on the street and up will come up the nchgz that will help them make a decision. currently available is sf parcel the assessor's application. you can go to the assessor's website and bring up a map of san francisco you can search by address and get information

about any place in san francisco. you can search by address and find incidents of crime in san francisco in the last 90 days. we have [inaudible] which allows you to click on a map and get nchldz like your supervisor or who your supervisor is. the nearest public facility. and through the sf applications we support from the mayor's office of neighborhood services. you can drill down in the neighborhood and get where the newest hospital or police or fire station. >> we are positive about gis not only people access it in the office but from home because we use the internet. what we used to do was carry the large maps and it took a long time to find the information.

>> it saves the city time and money. you are not taking up the time of a particular employee at the assessor's office. you might be doing things more efficient. >> they have it ready to go and say, this is what i want. >> they are finding the same things happening on the phone where people call in and ask, how do i find this information? we say, go to this website and they go and get the information easily. >> a picture tells a thousand stories. some say a map >> hi. i am cory with san francisco and we're doing stay safe and we're going to talk about what shelter in place or safe enough to stay in your

home means. we're here at the urban center on mission street in san francisco and joined by carla, the deputy director of spur and one of the persons who pushed this shelter in place and safe enough to stay concept and we want to talk about what it means and why it's important to san francisco. >> as you know the bay area as 63% chance of having a major earthquake and it's serious and going to impact a lot of people and particularly people in san francisco because we live on a major fault so what does this mean for us? part of what it means is that potentially 25% of san francisco's building stock

will be uninhibit tabl and people can't stay in their homes after an earthquake. they may have to go to shelters or leave entirely and we don't want that to happen. >> we want a building stock to encourage them to stay in the homes and encourage them to stay and not relocate to other locations and shelters. >> that's right so that means the housing needs to be safe enough to stay and we have been focused in trying to define what that means and you as a former building official knows better than anybody the code says if an earthquake happens it won't kill you but doesn't necessarily say that can you stay in your home and we set out to define what

that might mean and you know because you built this house we're in now and this shows what it's like to be in a place safe enough to stay. it's not going to be perfect. there maybe cracks in the walls and not have gas or electricity within a while but can you essentially camp out within your unit. what's it going to take to get the housing stock up to this standard? we spent time talking about this and one of the building types we talk about was soft story buildings and the ground floor is vulnerable because there are openings for garages or windows and during the earthquake we saw in the marina they went right over and those are -- >> very vulnerable buildings. >> very and there are a lot of apartment buildings in san that

that are like that. >> and time to. >> >> retrofit the buildings so people can stay in them after the earthquake. >> what do they need? do they need information? do they need incentives? mandates? >> that's a good question. i think it starts with information. people think that new buildings are earthquake proof and don't understand the performance the building will have so we want a transparent of letting people know is my building going to be safe in it after an earthquake? is my building so dangers i should be afraid of being injured? so developing a ranking system for buildings would be very important and i think for some of the larger apartment buildings that are soft story

we need a mandatory program to fix the buildings, not over night and not without financial help or incentive, but a phased program over time that is reasonable so we can fix those buildings, and for the smaller soft story buildings and especially in san francisco and the houses over garages we need information and incentives and coaxing the people along and each of the owners want their house to be safe enough. >> we want the system and not just mandate everybody. >> that's right. >> i hear about people talking about this concept of resiliency. as you're fixing your knowledge you're adding to the city wide resiliency. >> >> what does that mean? >> that's a great question. what spur has done is look at that in terms of recovery and

in new orleans with katrina and lost many of the people, hasn't recovered the building stock. it's not a good situation. i think we can agree and in san we want to rebuild well and quickly after a major disaster so we have defined what that means for our life lines. how do we need the gasolines to perform and water perform after an earthquake and the building stock as well, so we have the goal of 95% of our homes to be ready for shelter in place after a major earthquake, and that way people can stay within the city. we don't lose our work force. we don't lose the people that make san francisco so special. we keep everybody here and that allow us to recover our economy, and everythinbecause it's so interdependent. >> so that