Over the past few years I have heard constant complaints from downtown business owners about the org DTSF. The same crap is heard frequently;
• What do they do with their membership fees?
• Why did they move all the festivals to 4th and Phillips?
• Why do they charge so much for a booths during festivals?
• What really is their purpose?
• What do they spend their money on?
A few years back some DT business owners discussed starting their own group ran only by them, the idea fizzled, well, because DT business owners work their asses off and don’t have time for it. Downtown SF will argue they are a lobbying entity that gets things for DTSF, you know, like gigantor expensive planters that actually take up too much space. Or handouts in the form of ‘grants’ to a select few DT property owners who need new windows so they can sell more tobacco and liquor. While I understand paying lobbyists, we also expect those lobbyists to do something for that money.
Let’s take this winter storm for example. It seems Public Works found all kinds of time to plow the entire f’ing city, but they could not plow DT before Saturday evening? It’s not like this was some crappy Saturday night at the end of January, it was the day after Christmas! No spaces DT were plowed but to make it worse, the city decided to plow in front of the parking ramp entrances, so you couldn’t even get into them to park. A result was most DT businesses were closed Saturday Night. I know for a fact that Minervas, Touch of Europe and Sushi Masa were all closed.
But I don’t blame the city street removal on this one, I blame DTSF for not getting on the horn. Really?! How long would it have taken to plow Phillips avenue four blocks and clean out the entrances to the parking ramps? Idiots. I kinda wonder how many thousands of dollars of revenue was lost at DT businesses because of it.
If I were the next mayor, I would disband DTSF – they suck.
I have been asking since Friday what was going on downtown, surely the stores would be open. However, there was no parking. Although Phillips was finally plowed out, every time they went down Phillips the pile of snow in the parking spaces got taller and taller. No one could park if they wanted to. And had they already parked in a space they could never have gotten out. The people who were walking downtown had to climb over the snowbanks at the corners. I have been watching the Phillips web cam since Wednesday. It is 1 AM in SF and there are at least 3 snow plows on each side street starting at Minervas. They are going up and down, up and down followed by huge trucks that get loaded with snow. If I were a business owner downtown I would be steamed. They should have been cleaning out all the parking spaces so the stores could open on Saturday for business. There was no shopping, no eating, nothing downtown. Heck of a way to treat downtown businesses.
Especially since we throw so much taxpayer money at that district of the city, and we have the mayor bragging about it being the gem of the city all the time. I guess during a snowstorm they don’t matter. And maybe DTSF could have used some of their moldy money to clean out the entrances of the parking ramps.
Like I said above, I don’t blame public works, they have a schedule to follow. I think they rotate the zones. Last time we had a storm, they plowed Zone 1 (DT) first, so this storm they started with Zone 3 and I assume next storm they will start with zone 2 (my zone – yeah!)
Like I said, DTSF has the capability and I think equipment to clean some snow, I bet if they would have gotten permission from the city they could have did it. I hope they are flooded with phone calls about it tomorrow.
Over the past few years I have heard constant complaints from downtown business owners about the org DTSF. The same crap is heard frequently;
• What do they do with their membership fees?
• Why did they move all the festivals to 4th and Phillips?
• Why do they charge so much for a booths during festivals?
• What really is their purpose?
• What do they spend their money on?
OK l3wis. You spend a lot more time DT than I do. Based on your familiarity, what are the answers to your questions?
I’ll give it a shot, but there is a reason why I posed them as questions, I don’t know the answers, but this is what the rumors are;
When asked about membership fees they say they use the money to water plants, sweep the sidewalks, promote DT and street musicians. While this is true, it seems to me they use most of the money to prop themselves up as an org and pay employees.
The festival thing is odd, I have heard German fest people complain about it. While I think the location is good for ‘some’ events like Taste of SD, I think for the Germanfest it needed to stay where it was at. I think Munson realized Phillips to the Falls is a failure so they try to put as many things down there as possible to make it look like it is useful. Just be careful not to eat the lead contaminated soil.
The booth fees are outrageous and on top of the fee they take a percentage of sales and you can only sell the beer they provide. It is a racket for DTSF and the beer distributor. Many businesses stopped doing the booths because they are a lot of work for just breaking even. I think there should be a booth fee and that’s it. They can sell what they want and they shouldn’t have to give a percentage of their sales.
Like I mentioned, I think the sole purpose of DTSF is it’s own survival. When it first started it was a great organization that really did promote the shit out of DT, it has turned into a beuracratic monstrosity just like the city. And guess who is president of DTSF? Mayoral candidate Bill Peterson, that should tell you what kind of mayor he will make.
I would love to see DTSF’s financial report from 2008. Does someone have a link?
Downtown needs capitalism not bureaucracy. It did OK as an antique store center but struggles with specialty stores. It needs more restaurants and live entertainment. Perhaps, a 2 blocks Phillips gambling district with an overhead light show arch (ie. Fremont Street in Vegas}. The arch roof could be heated with drainage into storm sewers. It would still be outside but sheltered for year round events. It could have been possible were it not for $275 million in city debt for Phillips to Nowhere, Baseball fields in Iowa, and the swimming hole in a crack neighborhood.
Encouraging an entertainment district should be a top goal. What I wonder is where DTSF was during the whole events center debacle. Putting that thing downtown would have been huge for them.
Sitting in a corner, licking their wounds.
Round with red and black. Hell of a logo.