On an exquisitely beautiful Sunday afternoon, Mayor Gavin Newsom was absent from the city of San Francisco once again, this time enjoying the hospitality of Angelo Sangiacomo at his home on the golf course at Pebble Beach where the annual AT&T tournament was in its final day. Sangiacomo, by the way, is known as the "Father of Rent Control" in San Francisco, because the greedy real estate mogul was so outrageous in his rent hikes in the late 1970s that rent control legislation was finally voted in citywide.
Meanwhile, the poor and middle-class in San Francisco were enjoying themselves at Lincoln Park Municipal Golf Course in the Richmond District, where dozens of people were trying to qualify for the annual City Golf Championship that dates from 1917 (click here for their website).
Possibly on account of the upcoming tournament, the greens were in remarkable shape by Lincoln's usual standards, though the fairways were mostly a muddy, overgrown mess.
San Francisco's Rec and Park Department has long been criminally dysfunctional and nepotistic, with generations of goldbricking employees and management making life depressing and difficult for the many dedicated municipal employees who are doing their best with limited resources.
It also didn't help that millions of dollars were thrown away at the municipal Harding Park a few years ago to bring in a PGA tournament with Tiger Woods, and millions of dollars continue to be thrown away annually to a shady outside contractor running Harding Park, who is bilking the city treasury outrageously.
Now the powers that be want to take the inexpensively priced Lincoln Park and give it to private interests who will turn it into another rich person's playground. If Newsom or District Supervisor Elsbernd or the Rec & Park had an ounce of shame, they would actually be doing their best to provide recreational activities for ALL of San Francisco's citizens, but instead they are too busy eating real estate gangsters' hors d'oeuvres in Pebble Beach.
When I played golf, I was a regular on the muni courses, most especially Lake Chabot in Oakland. I liked playing Lincoln and Harding when I had the chance, and I hope this group of sellouts doesn't hand them gems away for nothing.
ReplyDeleteIt seems to me that nothing ever changes in SF. Boss Rueff and corrupt politics then and Boss Newsome and corrupt politics now. I don't play gold but I would hate to see that gorgeous area just given to another greedy private developer. If it is, what you want to bet that within five years, they would be building million dollar condos on those greens and restricting access for the great unwashed. I never thought I'd see the Presidio turn into the Fisher show but that looks like it's also on the fast track (to hell). We should picket them both and document it in your blog, complete with your clever comments.
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