(Or “Krave,” as you Yanks call it.)
And Big Cheez-Its, that’s also available at a steep discount on the corner of 7th and Market these days.
But, cheez it, the cops! See them?
Do they ever do anything down here?
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Everybody wins when big corporations, like, I don’t know, Wal-Mart, take big tax deductions for donating food and when donees sell it to happy customers. Hurray!
Whether it’s to open something new or to hunker down until better times I don’t know.
Anyway, it used to be like this but now it’s like this:
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Here’s what happened on Central “Avenue” near Fell Street in the Western Addition NoPA all the way back in 2010.
And here’s the same block today, below.
So, somebody painted these parking T’s where there were none before and then somebody else came along three months later to blank them out with black paint and then, over the years, the black paint wore out leaving the still-visible, commercial-grade white T’s.
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Why would the DPW / SFMTA do this?
To see how parkers would react?
To put in meters?
I don’t know.
Courage.
Now, how does the pink bag mafia keep cold food, like yogurt, cold, you know, after they pick it up for free?
Answer: They don’t.
Oh well.
Opening up for the brunch-time rush:
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And look, we’ll have Yet Another CVS on Market Street. (CVS is the Rite-Aid of the 2010′s, non?)
This has been your Seventh and Market Black Market Update.
I don’t know, you can look right here for one version of the story about why Yammer Microsoft is doing so, so, soooooo many great things for San Francisco.
Or you can ask Microsoft Yammer why it doesn’t want to pay its fair share of taxes.
Leave us begin.
In 2004, the Mayor of San Francisco signed a law that closed a tax loophole.
Later on, that very same Mayor took a lot of money from the owner owner of a building with which you Microsoft Yammerers should be familiar, the Twitter Building:
“Prospective Twitter Landlord Gave Newsom Rent Deal“
That kicked off the whole tax boondoggle that Microsoft Yammer is taking advantage of now.
Oh, here it is:
“THIS COMMUNITY BENEFIT AGREEMENT 2013 MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING is made as of January 1, 2013 in the City and County of San Francisco, State of California, by and between YAMMER, A SUBSIDIARY OF MICROSOFT(“Microsoft”) and the CITY AND COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO, a municipal corporation (“City”) acting by and through the City Administrator”
And it goes on and on talking about all the things that Microsoft is obligated to do for non-profit organizations that just happened to have endorsed Appointed Mayor Ed Lee.
So, well meaning white people who appear to be so, so, soooooo very proud of giving monitors worth (let’s hope) at least the contractually obligated $10,000 agreed to by MS….
….my question to you is this:
WHY DON’T YOU SIMPLY PAY YOUR FUCKING TAXES INSTEAD OF DOING ALL THIS POLITICALLY-CONNECTED, PAT-YOURSELF-ON-THE-BACK RIGMAROLE?
I’ll do all the legwork if you’ll give me some basic tax and income information. So maybe some years that could end up being a lot of money. I’d say, ooh, IPO! That’s going to cost Microsoft SF a few million bucks. And then you’d cut a check for the general fund.
There’d be no Ron Conway-type exception for you.
What’s that? You can’t afford to pay the oppressive taxes and loophole closures signed into law by the San Francisco Mayors of Yesteryear?
You know, I don’t believe that, Yammer Micro$oft.
What’s that, you’d rather move to Brisbane or someplace in San Mateo County?
Well, then be my guest. (You know, most people pricing apartment rentals in town lately would welcome your departure. You think I’m joking? No, I’m srlsy.)
What’s that, you like “giving back” to the corrupt Twitterloin, ’cause you think it’s a kewl thing to do and whatnot?
Fine, do that AND pay your fair share of taxes to the General Fund, why not?
That would be groovy.
But what you’re doing now is getting involved with SFGov corruption in the most corrupt big American city west of Chicago.
Just saying.
Oh, here’s some reading material to explain what you’re involved with, Microsoft. It’s from a time long before Yammer.
Enjoy your private-public neo-corporatism.
All the deets, in searchable form, after the jump.
Hey, it’s the Masonic Avenue Street Design Study:
“About the Project – The primary goal of the Masonic Avenue Street Design Study is to identify how Masonic Avenue between Geary Boulevard and Fell Street can safely and efficiently accommodate the needs of all roadway users, including but not limited to … motorists.”
ALL RIGHT, EXACTLY HOW DOES THIS PROJECT “ACCOMMODATE THE NEEDS” OF “MOTORISTS?” OH, NOT AT ALL? THOUGHT SO. MOVING ON.
Objectives:
1. Engage representatives of all constituencies within the community who would be impacted by changes to Masonic Avenue…
ALL RIGHT, WHICH REPRESENTATIVES OF THE “MOTORIST” “CONSTITUENCY” WERE “ENGAGED?” ANY AT ALL? YOU KNOW, THE OCTAVIA BOULEVARD PEOPLE “ENGAGED” MOTORISTS AS FAR AWAY AS MONTEREY BOULEVARD, OUT THERE WITH CLIPBOARDS AND EVERYTHING. DID THE MASONIC AVENUE PEOPLE DO ANYTHING LIKE THAT? OH NO.
2. Improve transit operation.
THIS PROJECT WILL UNIMPROVE TRANSIT OPERATION ON AND AROUND MASONIC – THERE’S NO QUESTION ABOUT THAT. IT’S GOING TO SLOW DOWN THE BUSES THAT USE MASONIC, INCLUDING THE OCCASIONAL #5 FULTON AND #21 HAYES.
3. Improve pedestrian and non-motorized access to transit.
SO TRANSIT USERS WILL HAVE “BETTER ACCESS” TO REDUCED BUS SERVICE? I DON’T GET THE BETTER ACCESS PART – YOU’RE TALKING ABOUT A BUS STOP? ALSO, WHAT’S “MOTORIZED ACCESS TO TRANSIT?”
4. Increase the safety of pedestrian crossings.
YOU KNOW, THE PRIOR PROJECT MANAGER IS ON THE RECORD AS STATING THAT THIS KIND OF THING IS BAD TO DO LIKE NOW BECAUSE IT WOULD HURT THE CAUSE OF PUSHING THE ENTIRE PROJECT THROUGH. KIND OF SAD, REALLY.
5. Increase motorist compliance with traffic rules and regulations.
UH, WHAT, WITH TREES? IF I WANTED TO INCREASE COMPLIANCE WITH TRAFFIC LAWS, I’D JACK THE SPEED LIMIT UP TO 40 MPH. NOW, THAT WOULD HAVE SOME SIDE EFFECTS, BUT IT CERTAINLY WOULD REDUCE THE INCIDENCE OF SPEEDING, RIGHT? OR, HAVING HOURS-LONG TRAFFIC JAM UPS DURING THE MORNING AND EVENING DRIVES WOULD REDUCE SPEEDING, IS THAT WHAT YOU’RE GETTING AT?
6. Reduce the number of vehicular collisions, especially those involving pedestrians and bicyclists.
HOW? BY PLANTING TREES? WE’LL SEE. HEY DIDN’T THE RECENT OCTAVIA BOULEVARD / MEDIAN PROJECT INCREASE THE NUMBER OF VEHICULAR COLLISIONS ON OCTAVIA? YES IT DID. HOW WOULD YOU EXPLAIN THAT?
7. Support neighborhood vitality by creating a more inviting and accommodating public realm.
BY PUTTING IN A MEDIAN AND PLANTING TREES? SO, LET’S TAX AMERICA, CALIFORNIA, AND SAN FRANCISCO TO CREATE A “REALM” ON 3000 FEET WORTH OF STREET PRIMARILY FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE WEALTHY PROPERTY OWNERS AND PRIVATE SCHOOL(S) WHAT ARE ON THE STREET? ALL RIGHT.
To the right of this accident scene is Octavia Boulevard.
And to the left, a block away, is Octavia Street.
And in the middle, you’ll see NIMBY Green with a newish Mercedes Benz CLS sitting on top.
Via ciprofloxacin – click to expand
You see, Octavia used to be a regular old street until Redevelopment (a bad idea from the 20th century) and the failed Octavia “Boulevard” experiment (a bad idea from the 21st century) came along.
Anyway. this is what results when “activists” are valued more than traffic engineers…
Here’s the news from yesterday:
MacFarlane Partners grabs final vacant Mid-Market development site
And here’s the scene in Mid-Market yesterday.
From left to right: Jr. lackey, sr. lackey, lovely assistant, Man in Black (seen pointing across the street towards the current site of the Market Street Cinema strip club), and black Chevy Tahoe limousine:
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I’m not saying that these people are from the McFarlane Partners, but this is what it looks like when real estate people visit the open-air halfway house known as the Twitterloin.
Anyway, we won’t be seeing as many of these people in the future since there’s nothing left to buy.
How long did this era last?
Two or three years…
But San Francisco-style neocorporatism lives on.
See?
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He’s holding his wallet.
Maybe this is a Lion King deal?
