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Saul Bloom, a friend and long-time San Francisco development activist of ARC Ecology, is back. This time, the ever-friendly proponent of clean development has inserted himself -- again -- in the matter of the redevelopment of the BayView Hunter's Point area -- a project that Lennar Urban has been involved in and leading the pace toward a sound plan for several years.


After Bloom managed to get some press for his "alternative plan" in the San Francisco Chronicle on Wednesday, it drew considerable negative fire at that night's community meeting. One public speaker said "Now we got all this ecology stuff and I wish I were a snail because they get more help that we (people of color in the community) do."

Then I received an email from a concerned citizen regarding the project:


“City’s Candlestick Plan Under Fire” blares a headline in today’s San Francisco Chronicle. Who is mounting this fearsome attack on a plan approved by nearly 62 percent of city residents last year, 70 percent of Bayview voters and ten out of 11 city supervisors two months ago?


One Saul Bloom. Who is Mr. Bloom? An urban planner? A forward-thinking developer? An elected official?


None of the above. Mr. Bloom is the Executive Director of Arc Ecology, an environmental consultant that – get this – holds a contract with the San Francisco Redevelopment Agency to provide environmental outreach and information to Bayview residents about the cleanup of Hunters Point Shipyard. Now Mr. Bloom has taken it upon himself to offer slings and arrows to a community and Redevelopment Agency approved plan that would actually accelerate the environmental remediation of Bayview-Hunters Point. Only in San Francisco, folks.


City officials have been aware of Mr. Bloom’s posturing for months but The Chronicle appears to have completely bought his act. And Robert Selna, author of today’s article, apparently felt no need to quiz Mr. Bloom about how he intends to pay for his development plan, one that would, by the way, relocate The San Francisco 49ers to the fair city of Brisbane. Maybe the City of Brisbane would be interested in paying for Mr. Bloom’s alternative development plan?


It seems to us that Mr. Bloom is a day late and a dollar short, at the minimum. After years of planning and more than 100 community and City Hall meetings on the development plan for Bayview-Hunters Point, Mr. Bloom now wants to add further delay to promises that have gone unfulfilled for too long.


Too many folks claim too often to speak to the people of Bayview-Hunters Point who finally deserve a chance at building better neighborhoods and a better future. Residents of Bayview-Hunters Point can speak for themselves without Mr. Bloom’s help. And on the issue of development in their community, the people of Bayview have spoken.