Safaí’s Library Kayfabe
The District 11 supervisor claimed London Breed was punishing his constituents over his mayoral candidacy. But some say Ahsha Safaí’s flap over the Oceanview Library may be more about something else.
San Francisco lawmakers passed an ordinance yesterday that requires the city to “prioritize” a site at 100 Orizaba Avenue for a new library serving Oceanview and adjacent neighborhoods, replacing the current site on Randolph Street.
The new law follows allegations by Safaí, who is also running against Mayor London Breed this fall, that plans for the new library were being stalled in retaliation for his candidacy. But some say Safaí’s flap over the Oceanview Library may be more about building political infrastructure for himself at the expense of housing needs.
The bill as passed was watered down considerably from its original version, which would have outright required the site to be used for any planned new library and would have barred “expenditure of City funds to explore, pursue, or plan construction of a new Public Library branch serving those neighborhoods at any alternate location.”
It’s undoubtedly true that Oceanview residents have been pleading for a new library as community uses for the current facility—the smallest of the San Francisco Public Library’s branch locations—have grown over the last several years. Plans were unveiled in 2022 to replace the 23-year-old Randolph Street location with a new, larger facility on Orizaba Avenue on the Brotherhood Way Greenbelt.
But as it turns out, the site is not universally popular and has been stalled over traffic and safety concerns. At around 32,000 square feet, it would replace the city’s smallest library branch with a considerably larger facility, but a full third would be reserved for “partner organizations.” While that may explain why progressive school board member Alida Fisher and Safaí heir apparent EJ Jones have been boosters of the site, the location right on the border of District 7 has also brought more opposition.
District 7 Supervisor and Land Use Committee Chair Myrna Melgar isn’t a fan. This may explain why the bill was transferred from that committee to the Rules Committee, which guaranteed a far friendlier hearing. On Monday, the bill passed out of that committee with unanimous support as a committee report so that it could be heard by the entire board the following day. More than half the public comment on the item was opposed (“It’s on an expressway, for God’s sake, what are you thinking?” one commenter said.)
On Tuesday, Melgar also had her say.
“I also want to have the flexibility to explore other locations, and there's a reason. Brotherhood way is the gateway to the west side of town. It is a four-lane highway. As you probably have seen, it is practically a freeway,” Melgar said Tuesday before the vote. “Folks in the community deserve some thoughtfulness from our city agencies, some good designs that will respond to modern needs, including perhaps the need for housing the folks in that neighborhood.”
Melgar’s mention of housing recalls some alternative plans for the library that have gotten lost in Safaí’s steamrolling of the current plan. One would involve partnering with the Pilgrim Community Church to use a site just a block away from the existing library that could facilitate expanded community uses and affordable housing for seniors. District 6 Supervisor Matt Dorsey compared the alternative plan to the thriving Mission Creek Senior Community in his district, which Mercy Housing developed in the 2000s.
Safaí dismissed the alternative as a “bait and switch.” He nevertheless watered down his bill to end up with a veto-proof, if toothless, win.