Mayor Gavin Newsom today imposed an immediate moratorium on city employee travel to the State of Arizona for official business as the Mayor and City leaders considered an official City boycott of Arizona following the recent adoption of a punitive new anti-immigrant law there. Mayor Newsom also announced the convening of an Arizona Boycott Workgroup to be chaired by his Chief of Staff, and including the City Purchaser, the City Controller, the City Attorney’s office and others, with the purpose of analyzing the impacts and extent of an Arizona boycott on City contracts and purchasing and making recommendations for a smart and effective Arizona boycott. Read more

In this week's YouTube update Mayor Newsom discusses the weeks progress towards balancing the budget, the design of the new Transbay Terminal, federal stimulus grants and San Francisco's new sister city partnership with Amman, Jordan.

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New Green Landscaping Ordinance to Beautify City, Reduce Stormwater Runoff, and Improve Air Quality

Mayor Newsom today signed legislation requiring developers to use landscaping and permeable paving to beautify the city and keep excess rainwater out of the sewers. The Green Landscaping Ordinance will primarily affect new development, but also will apply to property owners who make significant alterations to their properties.

“San Francisco is leading the way in designing and building beautiful, highly functional and sustainable streetscapes that create a more inviting atmosphere for all users of our streets,” said Mayor Newsom. “The Green Landscaping Ordinance represents a new vision of streetscapes.” Read more

Following several weeks of negotiations, Mayor Gavin Newsom and San Francisco public employee unions today reached a comprehensive two-year agreement to help close a historic $483 million deficit next year while protecting vital public service and jobs. The agreement is estimated to save the city $200 million over two years.

“This comprehensive agreement will help us balance the budget while protecting vital city services and jobs,” said Mayor Newsom. “Once again our public employee unions are stepping up to be part of the solution towards closing next year’s budget deficit.” Read more

Mayor Gavin Newsom today announced that the San Francisco Office of Economic and Workforce Development (OEWD) has awarded a total of $520,464 dollars through the Commercial District Capital Grant Program to support the City’s commercial corridors and local business districts.

San Francisco’s Office of Economic and Workforce Development (OEWD) is providing one-time funding for strategic capital projects in targeted neighborhoods to help stimulate the local economy. Projects were selected through a competitive process requiring the demonstration of a short-term time frame but long-lasting positive impact within the neighborhood. Read more