Welcome back to our “Meet the Candidates” series, where the congressional candidates respond to a question in 100 words or less. Answers are published every Monday.
CA-11, the congressional district that Connie Chan and Scott Wiener are running to represent, includes most of San Francisco. Some southern neighborhoods (the Excelsior, Portola, Visitacion Valley, and Ingleside) are a part of a neighboring district.
Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi has directed large sums of federal money back to San Francisco over the years, including over $700 million for the Presidio, nearly $1 billion for the Central Subway and more.
As a junior congressperson, San Francisco’s next member of Congress will likely not be able to send back as much money as Pelosi did. But, as they gain seniority, they may have the chance to secure the federal funding needed to get significant projects over the line.
This week we asked: If given the opportunity, what are the top three public infrastructure projects in San Francisco you would want to fund?
Connie Chan
Job: San Francisco District 1 Supervisor
Age: 47
Residency: Homeowner, has lived in San Francisco since she was 13
Transportation: Driving, public transit, and walking
Education: Bachelor’s degree from the University of California, Davis
Languages: English, Cantonese, Mandarin
Seawall and Waterfront Resilience: Invest in strengthening the Embarcadero and surrounding infrastructure against flooding, sea-level rise, and other climate threats.
Downtown Rail Extension and Subway Expansion: Complete the connection between Caltrain and the Salesforce Transit Center and advance the Geary/19th Avenue Subway to bring high-capacity rail to San Francisco’s west side, connecting more residents to jobs and opportunities.
Citywide Emergency Firefighting Water System and Electrical Grid Upgrade: Modernize San Francisco’s aging water and electrical infrastructure to ensure reliable power and adequate water pressure for firefighting during emergencies, strengthening our city’s resilience and protecting our neighborhoods.
Endorsed by: Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi, U.S. Senator Adam Schiff, Congressman Ro Khanna, California Federation of Labor Unions, SEIU California, San Francisco Labor Council, Working Families Party, San Francisco Tenant’s Union … read more here.
Scott Wiener
Job: San Francisco’s State Senator
Age: 56
Residency: Homeowner, moved to San Francisco in 1997
Transportation: Public transit and walking
Education: Bachelor’s degree from Duke, law degree from Harvard
Languages: English, Spanish
Raising the Embarcadero to protect it — and the Muni/BART tunnels — from sea level rise
The downtown extension of Caltrain and High Speed Rail
Two subway extensions (Extending the Central Subway north to Fisherman’s Wharf and building a subway down Geary Boulevard to Ocean Beach)
Endorsed by: The California Democratic Party, the San Francisco Chronicle, the Sierra Club, San Francisco YIMBY, Grow SF, San Francisco Bicycle Coalition, North Coast States Carpenters Union, Dolores Huerta … read more here.
Candidates are ordered alphabetically and rotated each week. Answers may be lightly edited for formatting, spelling, and grammar. If you have questions for the candidates, please let us know at io@missionlocal.com or yujie@missionlocal.com.
You can register to vote via the sf.gov website.