SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) — Despite an unsuccessful bid for San Francisco mayor, longtime Supervisor Aaron Peskin plans to still be involved “outside the tent” of city government and politics.

Come Jan. 8, San Francisco will welcome a new mayor and four new members to the board of supervisors. Peskin, currently the board’s president, will be termed out of his northeastern district seat.

First elected to the board in 2000, Peskin has served five terms, making him the city’s longest-serving district supervisor. During his tenure, colleagues elected him as the board’s president on three separate occasions. City term limits restrict supervisors from serving more than two consecutive terms, but Peskin returned to the board multiple times, despite initially planning to close his public office chapter at one point in 2009.

“I have learned so much along the way. I mean, I was 35 years old when I first ran for office. I am 60 now. Sure, there are things that I would do differently. I’ve learned that it’s always better to start with honey than with vinegar,” Peskin told ABC7 News in a one-on-one interview. “I love the city, and I keep running for supervisor and I keep winning. And it’s been a pretty wonderful chapter of my life.”

MORE: Sup. Peskin talks about his record, public safety and revitalizing SF

In a crowded race to unseat incumbent Mayor London Breed this year, Peskin stood out as the leading progressive. Peskin trailed Breed in third place, with political novice Daniel Lurie elected as mayor. In an interview with ABC7 News, Peskin said that he recently met with Lurie for coffee to offer the city hall outsider some insight.

“As somebody who has a lot of government knowledge and knows how the city works and has been very interested in making government function, I’ve let him know that I’m around for advice, free advice. I’m not looking for a job with the administration, but I’m here as a resource,” he said.

Even if Mayor-elect Lurie offered him a role in the administration, the term limit rules prohibit a supervisor from working in city hall for at least a year after leaving.

What’s next for Peskin and the city’s progressive base?

In his tenure, Peskin helped champion movements like pushing bikes and public transit over cars, drug treatment over incarceration, pushes to tax ‘Big Tech,’ and preserve SF’s iconic neighborhoods with less dense housing.

As for whether or not the progressive heartbeat of San Francisco still has a pulse, Peskin said he believes those ideals still define that city at its core.

“I think San Francisco voters are remarkably smart. They’re very well informed. They still embrace San Francisco traditional progressive values at their base. And they actually, by incredible numbers, rejected a lot of the very conservative pushes that were on the ballot,” he said. “There were wins and losses all across the ballot.”

MORE: SF Supervisor Aaron Peskin wants city to be a ‘more livable home for all’ in race for mayor

Despite his loss at the top of the ticket, Peskin points to other successful citywide ballot initiatives he backed. Like Proposition C, Peskin’s push to create and inspector general position in City Hall to crack down on corruption and increase accountability. Additionally, his Proposition E also won approval from voters, meaning the city will now evaluate its 100-plus commissions and decide whether to eliminate some going forward. It was an alternative pitch to the heavily-funded Proposition D, which would have slashed commissions down to 65 total and give the mayor more power.

“There are many individuals and organizations in San Francisco who want to make sure that these outsized political players don’t have their way with San Francisco, that the cultures that make San Francisco such a unique and envied place continue to survive and thrive in San Francisco,” he said.

Peskin said going forward he plans to coalesce existing progressive groups to make sure they are on the same page when it comes to fighting the billionaires who he said sought to “buy San Francisco.”

“San Francisco is kind of a national prize. And they have been outsized spending in San Francisco because they want to show the rest of the nation that they can take San Francisco. But the San Francisco voters aren’t having it,” he said.

MORE: SF Mayor-elect Daniel Lurie vows to revamp City Hall. Here’s what that will look like

ABC7 News Insider Phil Matier said Peskin’s departure from the board leaves a “talent train” amongst the city’s progressives, who will need to regroup without a clear leader for their values in City Hall.

“It’s a pretty nuts and bolts economic survival feeling in the city and not one that has a lot of room for ideology. We’ll have to see how the progressives go with the Donald Trump in the White House,” Matier said. “The progressives will be raising their voices. The question is, are people listening now?”

Peskin says he is “not going anywhere.”

“My interest in every aspect of the city is undiminished,” he said.

Brandon Crawford and Brandon Belt are among the most recognized and well-liked players in recent San Francisco Giants history.

The pair combined to help San Francisco win world titles in 2012 and 2014.

Crawford recently announced his retirement in November and will be honored in April. Belt remains a free agent but didn’t play last season. He hasn’t officially announced his retirement.

At Oracle Park, one of the best moments is when a Giants player hits a “splash hit,” which is a home run into McCovey Cove, which is behind the right-field seats. Typically, left-handed hitters slam balls into McCovey Cove — but it’s not easy.

Crawford and Belt played more than a decade for the Giants and combined, they only hit 14 of them.

Recently, the Giants put together a super clip of all 14 of their splash hits during their Giants careers.

Crawford played 14 seasons, 13 of which were with the Giants. The 37-year-old California native was a three-time All-Star selection, won four Gold Gloves and was the Silver Slugger at his position in 2015. He also played for the U.S. in the 2017 World Baseball Classic, where the U.S, won the gold medal.

The Mountain View, Calif., product finished his career with a slash line of .249/.318/.395/.713 with 147 home runs and 748 RBI. His best single season was in 2021, when he slashed .298/.373/.522/.895 with 24 home runs and 90 RBI. He was selected an All-Star for the last time, won his last Gold Glove and finished fourth in National League MVP voting.

Belt was primarily a first baseman throughout his career and played in 2023 with Toronto, where he batted .254 with 19 home runs and 43 RBI.

Belt was a National League All-Star in 2016 and finished in the Top 20 in MVP voting in 2020.

He has a career .261 batting average with 194 home runs and 697 RBI.

Locally owned and loved San Francisco establishments like tapas restaurant Cha Cha Cha and the Hong Kong Bakery are getting a hand from the SF Shines Improvement Project, the city announced.

A total of $350,000 in funding will be distributed between more than 50 businesses to support storefront improvements and equipment purchases from the project, which is administered by the city’s Office of Economic and Workforce Development.

Both new and existing small businesses can receive up to $10,000 apiece to make building improvements to reduce vulnerability to crime, attract foot traffic, ensure compliance with City requirements and stimulate economic growth.

Since it launched in 2022, the program has been vital to the City’s economic revitalization strategy, awarding more than $3.7 million to approximately 960 businesses, city officials said.

“San Francisco’s small businesses are at the center of what drives our economy and what makes our city so special,” said Mayor London Breed.

Onur Ozkaynak, owner of Cha Cha Cha, said he plans to redesign the bar at Cha Cha Cha and purchase a new pizza oven for his other establishment, Oz Pizza, with the grant funding.

“This investment has not only enabled much-needed improvements to my businesses but has also brought renewed hope for future growth,” Ozkaynak said.

Hong Kong Bakery owner David Huang said, “In previous years, our old freezer would stop working randomly, requiring constant repairs and careful maintenance.

“With the funds from SF Shines Grant, we will be able to purchase a brand new commercial-use freezer for our bakery,” Huang said.

The new unit will make it possible for Huang to more accurately control and maintain the desired temperature and deliver fresher food to his customers, the bakery owner said.

The program will begin accepting new applications in January 2025. Information on how to apply for an SF Shines grant is available on the Office of Small Business webpage: sf.gov/SmallBusinessGrants.

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