3 ms·

What's unfortunate is that bike sharing directly benefits many communities with lower income in many ways, as is noted in the article (and if you live in the ar

What's unfortunate is that bike sharing directly benefits many communities with lower income in many ways, as is noted in the article (and if you live in the area, you'll almost certainly encounter the discussion). I think it's entirely reasonable to be mad about a lack of community consult, but I think that this is ultimately the City's fault and not the bikeshare programs. It's unlikely that the outcome of the share point placement would have been much different, but the reduction of vandalization would have easily covered the initial cost. Sadly, San Francisco has a history of not treating certain communities fairly. They're obligated to do more to undo this bad work, in the event of a program that can be genuinely shown to help everyone.

tmh79 9y ago
> I think it's entirely reasonable to be mad about a lack of community consult There were many, many, many community meetings about the bike share program expansion and ample time for anyone to give feedback. People always cry crocodile tears no matter how much public input is put into the process. Source: I'm an advocate for these things, see it at ALL of the meetings I go to. > They're obligated to do more to undo this bad work, in the event of a program that can be genuinely shown to help everyone. The program doesn't need to help _everone_ it needs to do more good than harm. There will be a ton of people who don't benefit directly by this but that is not a reason to remove or roll them back.
mrgordon 9y ago
I think the "lack of community consult" is fictitious to be honest. It is easy to say someone should have reached out to the community more with no facts. https://missionlocal.org/2017/07/neighborhood-group-rejects-bike-share-expansion-to-24th-street/ https://missionlocal.org/2017/07/neighborhood-group-rejects-... ~~~~~ “We really want this to be seen as an asset to all communities around the city,” said Simon. But Arguello said that his group will not negotiate. “We told them no, and there will be opposition,” he said. Simon said that the company has done rigorous community outreach, including more than 30 town hall meetings with residents, to gauge approval and need in the city’s neighborhoods. ~~~~~ Also, hey Dave!
- KirinDave 9y ago
  Hey Matt. It's been forever. Good to see this then. Some folks I know who live around there told me they weren't part of the process. I suppose that's wrong, given this. What Arguello is saying there is pretty... pretty strange. Certainly Japantown's leadership has been working to make their district less of a theatrical tourist show and more livable for the actual community of folks around there, and has been investing more time in outreach via local cultural outlets (which is why the temple festivals have been getting bigger and more public, I guess?). IDK though, I only pass by these communities periodically now since I moved out of the city.
  - mrgordon 9y ago
    Yeah (better) advertising for the community meetings could have gotten a larger group of people involved. I personally don't come across much info about meetings happening for this or other issues so this might be a problem worth tackling in a more general sense. And yeah, Arguello seems to be way out there with his ideas and he has really turned me off from the Calle 24 group. Unfortunately they are a major influence in 24th street politics because they have big megaphones even if they don't seem to represent the views of the people in the neighborhood sometimes. Glad to hear Japantown appears to be headed in a good direction. I actually think a lot of SF's planning is improving the city.

tmh79 9y ago

> I think it's entirely reasonable to be mad about a lack of community consult There were many, many, many community meetings about the bike share program expansion and ample time for anyone to give feedback. People always cry crocodile tears no matter how much public input is put into the process. Source: I'm an advocate for these things, see it at ALL of the meetings I go to. > They're obligated to do more to undo this bad work, in the event of a program that can be genuinely shown to help everyone. The program doesn't need to help _everone_ it needs to do more good than harm. There will be a ton of people who don't benefit directly by this but that is not a reason to remove or roll them back.

mrgordon 9y ago

I think the "lack of community consult" is fictitious to be honest. It is easy to say someone should have reached out to the community more with no facts. https://missionlocal.org/2017/07/neighborhood-group-rejects-bike-share-expansion-to-24th-street/ https://missionlocal.org/2017/07/neighborhood-group-rejects-... ~~~~~ “We really want this to be seen as an asset to all communities around the city,” said Simon. But Arguello said that his group will not negotiate. “We told them no, and there will be opposition,” he said. Simon said that the company has done rigorous community outreach, including more than 30 town hall meetings with residents, to gauge approval and need in the city’s neighborhoods. ~~~~~ Also, hey Dave!

KirinDave 9y ago
Hey Matt. It's been forever. Good to see this then. Some folks I know who live around there told me they weren't part of the process. I suppose that's wrong, given this. What Arguello is saying there is pretty... pretty strange. Certainly Japantown's leadership has been working to make their district less of a theatrical tourist show and more livable for the actual community of folks around there, and has been investing more time in outreach via local cultural outlets (which is why the temple festivals have been getting bigger and more public, I guess?). IDK though, I only pass by these communities periodically now since I moved out of the city.
- mrgordon 9y ago
  Yeah (better) advertising for the community meetings could have gotten a larger group of people involved. I personally don't come across much info about meetings happening for this or other issues so this might be a problem worth tackling in a more general sense. And yeah, Arguello seems to be way out there with his ideas and he has really turned me off from the Calle 24 group. Unfortunately they are a major influence in 24th street politics because they have big megaphones even if they don't seem to represent the views of the people in the neighborhood sometimes. Glad to hear Japantown appears to be headed in a good direction. I actually think a lot of SF's planning is improving the city.