A lot on the line with 2008 Election.

2008 brings about one of the most anticipated and important election seasons of this decade; though the Presidential election is at the top of nearly everyone’s list, California state proposition 8 could provide a big change to the family structure of the state.

Proposition 8 strikes at the moral foundation of this state; asking whether or not the right of marriage should be extended to the gay and lesbian community. The gay marriage debate has been waging in this country for years and has been fueled by: passion, beliefs, and love from all regions of the debate.

Both sides of the argument believe that their cause is the morally responsible and ethically right one for the state to make. Each side argues that if the other side wins that the grave injustice will cause unforeseeable consequences to the state’s family structure and moral base.

Advocates for the passing of proposition 8 declare that the people of California have already spoken on this issue back in 2000, when they passed a similar proposition (prop. 22) stating that “marriages between a man and a woman are the only ones recognized in California.” Protection of the family structure as well as shielding our young children from being exposed to gay lifestyle and marriage in school; stand side by side with religious values as reasons why proponents believe same-sex marriage should be prohibited.

“God intended for man to be with a woman, not man with man or woman with woman… Acceptance of gay marriage will only lead to the further deterioration of the family structure, which has greatly diminished over the past decade, as it will allow children to be raised, in my belief, in an immoral environment that is unpleasing to God,” said retired Naval officer and proposition 8 supporter Charles Case.

On the other side of the issue, those against proposition 8 dispute that it’s not the governments place to pick and choose who should be allowed to marry. They believe that marriage rights and privileges should be allowed for any couple who chooses to engage in lifelong commitment.

“People’s fundamental right to marry who they love should not be taken from them just because they choose to fall in love with someone of the same sex. There needs to be equality for all couples regardless of sexual orientation,” said Jason Howe, media consultant for the vote no on proposition 8 campaign.

Recent polls, by the Public Policy Institute of California, show that with just over a week to go until Election Day the race has become increasingly close.

“I think the outcome will be close. The general idea of same-sex marriage continues to divide the state’s likely voters. In the latest survey, 47% of likely voters say they favor allowing same-sex couples to marry and 49% say they oppose it,” explains Sonja Petek, research assistant for the PPIC.

With Democrats and Republicans holding serve when it comes to opposing or accepting the ban; 70% of Republicans say “yes” while 67% of Democrats are saying “no” on 8. The independent voter could very well provide the tipping of the scale in either direction, since neither party hold a majority of the votes. According to the Public Policy Institute of California, Independent voters are leaning towards opposition of Proposition 8 (39% yes to 58% no). There are also just over 4% of registered voters who are still undecided on the issue that could also provide a change in the outcome.

The heels are firmly dug into the sand on both sides of the matter with each side expecting for the tug-of-war for the votes of the public to go down to the very last possible moment. The decision of the voting public will undoubtedly result in a slim margin of victory for whatever side is still standing after Nov. 4^th.

http://www.noonprop8.com/
http://protectmarriage.com/

Kim Barnes: leading the charge in cleaning up Lafayette Park

On the first Saturday of every month members of the Friends of Lafayette Park put on their expendable yard work clothes, pull out their gardening equipment, and go to work restoring and preserving the natural beauty of their beloved park. Kim Barnes organizes these calls to arms and can be seen spear heading the community effort for the park’s preservation.

Barnes is a Pacific Heights resident who took up leading the Friends of Lafayette Park just about five years ago. Barnes was born in the state of Virginia and came to San Francisco via her childhood home town of Philadelphia. In college she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in English Literature from West Chester University in Pennsylvania. Barnes chooses not to disclose the actual date of her birthday; she instead celebrates her birthdays and accepts gifts during the month of January.

Barnes juggles her duties of leading the F.O.L.P with continuing to be a successful real estate agent in the city (seen as a “top performer” for Hill and Co. Real Estate). She took up a career in real estate following a successful career as sales Vice President for Xerox. Barnes decided to leave Xerox after becoming weary of the amount of travel that the job entailed. Looking for a more community oriented job she sought out a career in real estate. She took up the effort after gaining distaste for the way her neighborhood park was seemingly falling apart without the proper upkeep.

“The actual call to action came when the New Fillmore wrote an article saying why Lafayette Park doesn’t have a group like Alta Plaza. So that was sort of the gauntlet thrown down. A neighbor suggested I start a group and off we went,” Barnes explains about how she came to direct the Friends of Lafayette Park.

Bringing a community together to rally around saving the park’s natural beauty and transforming it into a family friendly place has not fallen solely on Barnes’ shoulders, but she has provided the glue that keeps the group together and focused. Barnes has had help from a consistently growing number of concerned citizens who have allowed her to balance her career as a real estate agent with her leadership of the F.O.L.P.

Shila Clement, a professional gardener who helps with the F.O.L.P, explains “Though Kim has done a great job of organizing the group and keeping it together, it takes a huge group effort to get the changes done to the park that have been taken place in the past four to five years.”

Though the job of building up the prestige of Lafayette Park has not solely been Barnes’, she has become the “figure head” of the group, leading community outreach and park activism. She has led the charge in getting members of the community to be concerned with the look of the park as well as getting citizens to join the group’s mailing list which, in her mind is “critical to the success of the group.”

“Her outreach for FOLP alerts people in our neighborhood to the opportunity to join together in a fun and useful activity: coming together once a month to supplement the efforts of city gardeners in maintaining Lafayette Park. She was able to provide us with a list of 1700 homeowners within a 3 block radius of Lafayette Park for our mailing, so we could let Lafayette Park neighbors know about that meeting and give more people in our neighborhood the chance to connect with FOLP (i.e. the opportunity to join our email list, and to come to our monthly cleanups),” said Art Persyko, a member of the informal board of directors for the F.O.L.P.

With leading, in a way, the charge of community participation for the F.O.L.P, Kim has become an important figure in the community affairs of Pacific Heights. She has organized, informed, and educated the citizens within the community, aiding in giving the citizens of the community a reason to care about Lafayette Park and the Pacific Heights area. Kim has spear headed the campaign of providing the Pacific Heights community with a family friendly community park that is safe and easy on the eye.

http://www.hill-co.com/about/detail.php?aUID=178
http://www.sfnpc.org/lafayetteparkhistory
(Photo credit:sparkletack.com)

What is to become of C.A.M.P and the Presidio

The battle for the Presidio of San Francisco’s Main Post has been waging for just about two years now and it shows very little signs of letting up in the near future.

This highly contested debate and test of wills was brought about with the proposal of Gap founders Donald and Doris Fisher’s Contemporary Art Museum of The Presidio. From the day the plan was laid out to the public it has been met with criticism from neighboring communities, historical associations, and environmental groups. Praise for the museum has come from the San Francisco art community as well as San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom.

The battle here is not about money, the museum will be privately funded by the Fisher Family, but it is about whether we should preserve history. The Main Post of the Presidio is thought of as historically the most important part of the Presidio. It is the historical heart of the Presidio and is lined with buildings dating back to the 1800’s.

Criticizers of the museum believe that placing a modern museum and lodge in the Main Post reduced the historic luster that it has to offer. The modern museum will take away from the history of the Main Post that dates back to the 18^th century when the Spanish military used to occupy it. Many feel like the building of the museum destroys the chance to preserve the Main Post.

With all the negativity and resentment for the museum it is sometimes hard to see what could be positive about this museum. If this museum is built, it will house one of the finest personal art collections in the world today. The museum will allow for more people, most importantly more students, to be introduced to art history. The museum also brings about a possibility of attracting more people to the Presidio.

When initially proposed the plans called for a 100,000 square foot museum to be erected at the head of the main post; as well as constructing a 125 room 95,000 square foot lodge. Those plans, as of December 5, have been scaled down to a 70,000 square foot museum with a 35,000 square foot building across from it; both buildings will be one-story tall with one story underground. The lodge has been trimmed down to 110 rooms and 80,000 square feet.

Do these changes mean anything though? Many of us will find out on December 9^, when the Presidio Trust will explain the changes in an open board meeting. Much of the criticizers of the museum will also voice their likes and dislikes of the new museum before, during, and after the meeting.

http://www.presidio.gov/
http://savethepresidio.org/
http://www.camptoday.org/
(Photo credit:Sfgate.com)

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Lafayette Park, a place to meet you neighbor and get a tan.

In a city flooding with condominiums, single-family homes, and a vast array of shops Lafayette Park provides the community the indispensable green to contrast the grey-scale of the congested city streets.

“Lafayette Park is one of the treasures of the neighborhood, a great open space with grass so green it looks electrified on a sunny day,” says Thomas Reynolds, editor of the New Fillmore newspaper.

Lafayette Park sits on the crest of Pacific Heights; the park is boarded by Washington Street and Sacramento Street (north to south) as well as Gough Street and Laguna Street (east to west). The north side of the park offers visitors with a birds-eye view of the Marina district and the San Francisco bay.

Kim Barnes, director of “Friends of Lafayette Park” explains that, “Lafayette Park has become the communal backyard to the Pacific Heights community.”

The park has been a staple in the Pacific Heights community since its inception in 1867. The park provides a necessary place for the residents to get away from the daily grind of the city life. The grassy hillside landscape offers an ideal place for park goers to play fetch with their k-9 companions or to lay out on sunny days and work on their tans. The park is also family friendly; with a playground for the kids to play on and picnic tables as well as many open grass areas for the family picnics.

“If the weather is right, this place is great to come to and lay out with a book and enjoy the natural beauty of the park,” says Akeem Little, a park visitor.

Though the park is city owned, the park relies mostly on a concerned group of residents to help with its up keep. The city’s budget is simply stretched too thin and cannot provide much financial help for the parks.

“Friends of Lafayette Park” gets together the first weekend of every month to help clean the park as well as help it grow with adding new plants and helping with the gardening. The “Friends of Lafayette Park” also allows for people in the community to meet other people from the area that they normally wouldn’t have met.

During these cleaning parties, Kim explains, they do have to sometimes pick-up what is left behind by the homeless and other night-time park visitors. On some occasions the group will have to pick up the needles and prophylactics that are amongst the bushes, remnants from the night before.

Despite these seldom occasions of obvious illegal night time antics; most within the community and leaders of the parks programs would agree that there is not a huge problem with homeless and/or illegal activities at the park. Just as in most other neighborhood parks, there are bound to be homeless people looking for a comfortable place to sleep for the night as well as random night-time issues.

Don’t let these sparse occasions shy you away from Lafayette Park. The majority of the people who visit the park are pleasant and welcoming.