Published Saturday, May 22, 2004, in the San Mateo County Times

The Insider
Nevin: the Transbay Terminator?

By Justin Jouvenal

Local transit advocates are accusing Supervisor Mike Nevin of putting
San Francisco's Transbay Terminal project and a downtown extension of
Caltrain in jeopardy <http://www.transbayproject.org>.

High-powered San Francisco developer Jack Myers has broken ground on
a residential high rise next to the Transbay Terminal parcel that
transit advocates fear will interfere with the terminal.

Meanwhile, Nevin, who chairs the Joint Powers Authority planning the
$2.8 billion terminal, canceled the JPA's monthly meeting Thursday.
At the meeting, JPA officials could have begun condemnation of the
Myers development.

"He's really threatening the whole project," said Margaret Okuzumi,
executive director of BayRail Alliance. "Every day the developer puts
money into the project, the more he will demand from the city."

Okuzumi and others fear Nevin, who is running for Jackie Speier's
State Senate seat, may be playing politics with the project to secure
the endorsement of San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom. Rumor is Newsom
has a connection to Myers.

[BATN: More than a rumor: Newsom's staff member Jesse Blout is working
more or less full-time on Myers' behalf, and blocking the actions of
the Transbay JPA staff at all junctures. Meanwhile, Newsom has hired
Stuart Sunshine into his office. Sunshine, of course, worked
unceasingly on undermining the Transbay Terminal project under the
administrations of both former SF mayors Jordan and Brown before being
shunted off to an even more lucrative gig at the since-shelved SFO
runway expansion program. Plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose.]

Seamus Murphy, an aide to Nevin, said the transit advocates are
jumping the gun.

"The development he's proceeding with now is on the opposite side from
where the (terminal) project lies," Murphy said. We still have time.
We are trying to find a way for both projects to coexist, before the
Board would move to condemn his property."

[BATN notes that Myers has nothing but time: every month of delay adds
to the "property improvements" and "investment costs" tab he can bill
the public for reimbursement, to the tune of a million or two dollars.
Politicians claiming to be seeking "delay" or "compromise" or
"solutions" -- eighteen months after the TJPA published its plans, to
which Myers made _not a single comment_ -- are in reality working for
one private interest at the direct expense of their consitutent
publics.]

[...]


Staff intern Lou Sian contributed to this report. Staff writer Justin
Jouvenal compiled The Insider. To tip The Insider, call (650) 348-4331
or insider@...


[BATN: See also:

SF Transbay Terminal extortion plan progresses nicely
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/BATN/message/18323

Extortionist ups the ante against SF Transbay project
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/BATN/message/18114

Letter: SF Transbay Terminal article veers off track
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/BATN/message/17978

SF Caltrain extension may displace up to 100 shops
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/BATN/message/17720

SF Transbay Terminal, high-rise plans conflict
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/BATN/message/17693

SF Transbay Terminal EIR OK'd; site conflict looms
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/BATN/message/17692 ]