FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 
Friday, September 17, 2010 
Contact: Mayor’s Office of Communications, 415-554-6131 
Department of Public Works, Christine Falvey, 415-554-6931

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MAYOR NEWSOM ANNOUNCES $68.5 MILLION TO FUND NEW STREETSCAPE, REPAVING & INFRASTRUCTURE IMPROVEMENTS 
Newly-completed Great Streets Project on Leland Avenue is latest example of City’s continued investment in local construction jobs, neighborhood streetscape and paving improvements despite economic recession

San Francisco, CA—Mayor Newsom today announced $68.5 million in new infrastructure and streetscape projects for the current fiscal year 2010-11, leveraging Certificates of Participation (COPs), federal, state and local grants to fund improvements to San Francisco’s public realm.  $50.6 million will go into street resurfacing, $5.9 million will go into Great Streets projects and other public realm improvements, $4.7 million will go into sidewalk inspection and repair and street structure improvements, and $7.3 million will go to building curb ramps. The projects together will create at least 450 construction-related jobs. 

“Despite the toughest economic environment in generations, San Francisco continues to make record investments and create hundreds of local jobs through our street repair, neighborhood improvements and repaving,” said Mayor Newsom. “Our Great Streets projects, along with transportation, pedestrian, bicycle, and other related streetscape improvements are literally paving the way for a greener, cleaner city and better quality of life in our neighborhoods.” 

In addition, Mayor Newsom announced that the City received nine multi-year Transportation for Livable Communities (TLC) Grants. San Francisco was awarded $7.4 million with local matching funds to total $18.7 million from the region and $11.7 million with local matching funds to total $15.4 million from the county that will go toward transportation, pedestrian, and related infrastructure improvements to the following projects over the next five years. These are funded by the Metropolitan Transportation Commission and administered by the San Francisco County Transportation Authority. 

Projects to be completed with the TLC Grants and City Matching funds include Folsom Street, Second Street and Broadway. Projects also include the Marina Green Bicycle Trail, the SF Port’s Cargo Way Bicycle Project, Bay Area Rapid Transit District’s (BART) 24th Street/Mission BART Plaza and Pedestrian Improvements, Municipal Transportation Agency’s (MTA) Market and Haight Street Transit and Pedestrian Improvements, Phelan Loop Public Plaza and Transit-Oriented Development and San Francisco Redevelopment Agency’s (SFRA), and South of Market (SoMa) Alleyways Improvements 

In addition to resurfacing 320 blocks and providing a slurry seal to an additional 150 blocks, the City will provide other infrastructure improvements, including building curb ramps, inspecting and repairing sidewalks, and repairing street structures citywide. Under Mayor Newsom, the City has more than quadruped annual spending on street repaving since 2004. The City’s total street resurfacing budget will pave: 
·        Woodside from Laguna Honda to O’Shaughnessy 
·        O’Shaughnessy from Portola to Bosworth 
·        Noriega from 19th Avenue to 27th Avenue 
·        Holloway  from Harold to Junipero Serra 
·        Bush from Battery to Montgomery and Grant to Van Ness 

Leland Avenue, the site of today’s announcement, is the City’s latest Great Streets project.  It is the civic and commercial heart of the Visitacion Valley neighborhood.  The Leland Avenue Project includes 63 newly planted trees, 30 accessible curb ramps, 15 corner bulb-outs, 45 pedestrian light fixtures, sidewalk and street repaving, decorative-stamped crosswalks to promote pedestrian safety, sidewalk furniture and public artwork called “Street Life” commissioned by the SF Arts Commission and designed by Rebar.  A large part of the project includes the addition of stormwater management facilities. 

 “The Great Streets Program exemplifies our vision of partnering with neighborhood groups to produce significant and lasting community development opportunities. We are making significant investments to improve and enhance public space in San Francisco that will serve today’s communities and generations to come,” said Ed Reiskin, Director of the Department of Public Works. 

“The Leland Avenue Project represents a significant step forward in the City’s commitment to green stormwater management in the public realm,” said Ed Harrington, General Manager for the SFPUC. “The SFPUC is proud to have been part of this collaborative and positive transformation.” 

The Leland Avenue Streetscape Improvement Project includes important environmental components to support the overall water conservation and green infrastructure to neighboring green space along the Visitacion Valley Greenway. The storm water elements include nearly 14,000 square feet of permeable pavement and sidewalks surfaces to absorb stormwater, biofiltration planters to minimize street runoff into the City’s combined sewer system, durable and drought-tolerant plants and more. The streetlights have also been converted from standard high pressure sodium fixtures to energy-saving LED fixtures. 

This $4.1 million project was funded through a combination of two Transportation for Livable Communities (TLC) federal grants with state and local matching funds. This was a collaboration between the Office of Supervisor Sophie Maxwell, the Mayor’s Office of Economic and Workforce Development (OEWD), the Department of Public Works, the Planning Department, the SF Public Utilities Commission, SF Municipal Transportation Agency, the SF Arts Commission and Visitacion Valley community. 

“I remember sitting through the early community design meetings for the streetscape. The finished product turned out better than I could have imagined. Leland Ave is now one of the greenest streets in San Francisco,” said Nick Wolff, Program Director for the Visitacion Valley Business Opportunities and Outreach to Merchants (VVBOOM). VVBOOM’s ultimate goal is to help revitalize the entire community by targeted improvements along the Leland/Bayshore Commercial Corridor. 

The Leland Street Fair is also celebrating at its 5th Annual Street fair on Sunday, September 19 where it will feature live jazz music and other activities for the family. For more information, please visit www.sfvvboom.blogspot.com/ 

Of the nine total Great Streets Projects, six are complete at Leland Avenue, Valencia Street, Divisadero Boulevard, San Bruno Avenue, Lower Polk Street, and Van Ness Avenue. Three are in design and planning phase at Balboa Street, Cesar Chavez and 19th Avenue. For more information about the Great Streets Program, please visit www.sfdpw.org

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