San Francisco, CA

SF residents divided over Measure K to permanently close portion of Great Highway to cars

Published

1 year ago

November 10, 2024

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SF residents divided over Measure K to permanently close portion of Great Highway to cars

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) — It looks like a two-mile stretch of part of San Francisco’s Great Highway will be closing.

The latest numbers show Measure K passing, getting 54% of the vote.

Closing off the road to cars will create a new oceanfront park, but not everybody is happy.

As the sun sets at Ocean Beach, people enjoy another quiet weekend on the great highway without vehicle traffic.

Should SF’s Great Highway permanently close to cars? Here’s what both sides say on Prop K

The Prop K debate over the future of San Francisco’s Great Highway is heating up with just days to go until Election Day.

Measure K, if it officially passes, will make that a reality 7 days a week–not just on weekends.

And that’s exactly what Chase Davenport is hoping for.

“I just think open spaces are very important for the city,” said Davenport.

Davenport is a coastal scientist who’s thinking about the future of Ocean Beach and what’s happening there.

“I think we’re going to have to experience this city in other ways than being in cars a lot more as the world changes,” said Davenport.

Tensions rising over proposition that would close part of San Francisco’s Great Highway

The Great Highway was shut down to vehicles temporarily during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The city then closed it on weekends and holidays.

But not everyone agrees with Measure K and a complete shutdown.

“It’s very disappointing right now for us…that did not want the Great Highway permanently closed to cars,” said Richie Greenberg who lives in the Richmond District.

He says closing the Great Highway permanently will create some big headaches, diverting traffic through normally quiet neighborhood streets.

“These streets were not made for the kind of 20,000 cars per volume that is here, that use the Great Highway,” said Greenberg.

Debate over changes to San Francisco’s Great Highway intensify with Prop K

Greenberg believes that will also impact businesses in the Richmond District.

“People will not want to come here because of the congestion, because of the inconvenience, because of potential accidents. Because of potential overflow,” said Greenberg.

“This movement has been led by people who live in the sunset for years,” said Lucas Lux, Board President of Friends of Great Highway Park says the pros of closing part of the road permanently to cars–outweigh the cons.

Lux says it’s all about giving the community a safe space and a reason to come out.

“After Measure K wins, we are going to work together to make our streets safe for everyone in the family and have a world-class park in our backyard. I think there is a way for us to have a win-win in the neighborhood,” said Lux.

But opponents say the local residents directly impacted by the closure and increased traffic—didn’t ask for this measure.

“We all heavily voted ‘no’ on closures. It was the in the Mission and Noe and toward the east side of San Francisco that voted ‘yes’,” said Greenberg. “This shouldn’t have been a ballot measure in the first place.”

Selena Chu, a resident of San Francisco’s Sunset neighborhood shared on Facebook, “By framing this closure as a citywide issue, (Supervisor Joel) Engardio effectively silenced the voices of West Side communities who rely on the highway for our daily commutes. There was an already existing compromise allowing the Great Highway to be shared on weekdays and closed on weekends and holidays, which doesn’t expire until the end of 2025.”

ABC7 News reached out to Supervisor Engardio Saturday night for comment. He has not responded.

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San Francisco, CA

Daniel Lurie sparked confrontation that injured security team: Police report

Published

9 hours ago

March 10, 2026

Press Room

Daniel Lurie sparked confrontation that injured security team: Police report

Mayor Daniel Lurie sparked the altercation that led to a fight and injuries to two San Francisco police officers in his security detail, according to a police report of the incident obtained by the Standard.

On Thursday evening at 5:38 p.m., Lurie, an aide, and two members of his security team were driving north on Larkin St. when they spotted several people sitting on the sidewalk on the corner of Cedar St., an alley in the Tenderloin.

The mayor ordered the driver of his Rivian SUV, Officer Nicholas Boccio, to pull over. Lurie hopped out of the SUV. His second bodyguard, Officer Joel Aguayo, followed.

What happened next would result in two injured officers, a gun aimed at a man’s chest, two arrests, and renewed questions about the public safety under the mayor’s leadership.

While footage of the incident after the officer pushed one of the men has been published by Mission Local (opens in new tab), details about what led up to the fight have not been previously revealed.

After leaving the safety of his vehicle, the mayor took matters into his own hands, the report says. Lurie attempted to get the group hanging out on Cedar St. to move, but one of the men refused.

“On whose behalf do I need to move?” asked one of the men named Tony Phillips, according to Aguayo’s statement.

According to the narrative of the combined witness statements, “Mayor Lurie addressed the group and requested that they move along, as they were standing in the roadway. Phillips became immediately argumentative, stating that he did not have to move.”

Lurie told Phillips that Aguayo was an SFPD officer. Aguayo repeated that and requested that Phillips comply and move out of the way. Phillips again refused.

The police report said the mayor and Aguayo asked Phillips to move at least four times, at one point saying they would call uniformed officers to remove him.

Still, Phillips refused, as the mayor paced a few feet away from Aguayo, video of the incident shows.

While most of the group of four men appeared to stay put, according to footage of the incident, Phillips stepped toward Aguayo, who was standing in front of the mayor.

According to the police report, Phillips then said, “I’ll Bruce Lee kick your ass.” Aguayo then swiftly pushed Phillips to the ground. Phillips got up and was pushed again before rushing the officer. The pair grappled and then fell to the ground, and Aguayo struck the back of his head.

During the fight, Lurie ran to the parked SUV to tell the driver, Boccio, that his partner was in trouble. When Boccio rushed to help, another man in the alley — Abraham Simon — grabbed the officer and reached for his waistband. Simon backed off after Boccio pulled his service weapon.

Boccio then helped Aguayo but was unable to restrain Phillips. It wasn’t until several uniformed officers arrived that Phillips was taken into custody.

Aguayo, who suffered cuts to the back of his head, facial bruising, and a back injury, said to investigating officers that he had to use force on Phillips because he was threatened verbally and got within inches of him. The officer also said he tried to de-escalate to no avail. Boccio’s hand was cut during the confrontation.

No body camera footage was captured of the incident because officers in the mayor’s security detail did not wear them.

The incident, about which Lurie has made brief statements, has raised questions about whether Lurie’s freewheeling approach to walking the streets could put him into danger. The mayor told reporters last week after the incident that he asked the people to move because he was concerned for their safety and that of other pedestrians and drivers.

“I’m out here walking the streets of San Francisco like I do every day. I believe that you can’t solve what you can’t see,” Lurie said in an Instagram post Monday, seemingly doubling down on his approach to interacting with San Franciscans.

When asked for comment, the mayor’s spokesman Charles Lutvak referred to the Instagram post and a story Lurie shared in his State of the City speech about approaching a man who appeared to be an addict, who told the mayor to mind his own business.

The mayor’s reply: “You are my business.”

Lurie’s own account of the incident was not included in the police report, although the document says he later would be contacted for a statement.

Phillips is set to be arraigned Tuesday on charges of threatening an officer, inflicting great bodily injury, and contempt of court for violating a stay-away order from the alley. District Attorney Brooke Jenkins said her office will request that Phillips remain in custody as he is a threat to the public.

Simon is also set to be arraigned Tuesday on charges of interfering with an officer.

The incident is also being investigated by the Department of Police Accountability, according to The Chronicle.

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San Francisco, CA

San Francisco man charged with attempted murder in unprovoked daylight Chinatown stabbing

Published

21 hours ago

March 9, 2026

Press Room

San Francisco man charged with attempted murder in unprovoked daylight Chinatown stabbing

SAN FRANCISCO – A 37-year-old man has been charged with attempted murder in what authorities described as an unprovoked, broad daylight stabbing in San Francisco’s Chinatown last week.

Suspect charged

What we know:

San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins announced that Jian Feng Huang was charged with attempted murder in connection with the attack at Stockton and Sacramento streets.

Huang, of San Francisco, will be arraigned Tuesday. He remains in custody.

Jenkins described the incident as a “horrific attack of an innocent man waiting to cross the street.” She said there is no indication that the victim and the suspect knew each other.

Surveillance video captures attack

Dig deeper:

Surveillance footage circulating online shows a man in a black hoodie walking down Stockton Street before suddenly lunging at a man who was waiting at a corner to cross the street.

The attacker stabbed the victim in the back and then walked away, according to the video. The victim is seen collapsing to the ground.

The attack occurred shortly after 1 p.m.

Bystanders rush to help

Local perspective:

Bystanders and business owners rushed to help the wounded man.

“We bring the ice and the towels to stop bleeding,” said Rawnie Chan, manager of Flags International Services. Chan said the victim was speaking in Cantonese and said he was in pain.

One business owner said she grabbed frozen dumplings from an office refrigerator to place on the wound because there were no restaurants nearby with ice available.

Victim recovering

Jenkins said the victim is recovering at a local hospital. Authorities previously said the victim suffered life-threatening injuries and has undergone at least two surgeries.

The Source: This story was written based on information from San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins.

San FranciscoCrime and Public Safety

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