Latest news with #BayArea-based
San Francisco Chronicle
an hour ago
- Politics
- San Francisco Chronicle
Former S.F. Mayor London Breed reveals her post-City Hall career plans
Former San Francisco Mayor London Breed has been quiet about her professional plans since she left office in January, but that's starting to change. The Aspen Policy Academy announced Wednesday that Breed and G.T. Bynum, the Republican former mayor of Tulsa, are its first bipartisan 'civic innovation' advisers-in-residence. The academy, a Bay Area-based operation of the Washington, D.C. think tank Aspen Institute, said Breed and Bynum will spend six months mentoring fellows on policy projects, representing the academy at events and working on projects about policy subjects of their choosing. It's not a full-time job, though it does come with a stipend, and Breed is believed to be exploring other unspecified career opportunities as well. Still, the academy's announcement provided the first public indication of how San Francisco's former mayor is spending some of her time following 12 years as an elected official in the city. 'This program is about more than learning how government works — it's about inspiring a new era of civic leadership,' Breed said in a statement released by the academy. Aspen Institute CEO Dan Porterfield said in a statement that mayors 'bring distinctive insights to the work of policymaking given their proximity to the people and communities they serve.' Breed and Bynum 'will be an invaluable resource to future policy leaders,' Porterfield said. The Aspen Institute has connections to Bloomberg Philanthropies, the charitable organization tied to former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg. He was one of Breed's top benefactors when she ran for reelection last year. Breed also appointed a former Bloomberg staffer to the board of supervisors during her final weeks in office. Breed was elected mayor in 2018 and served in the role for more than six years, until she was unseated in November by Daniel Lurie. A native of the city who grew up in public housing in the Western Addition, she was the first Black woman mayor of San Francisco. Her tenure at City Hall was marked by a series of overlapping crises, including the pandemic, which hurt the city's economy and upended the agenda on which she campaigned. Breed won praise for her early response to COVID-19, but her tenure quickly became dominated by public outrage over rampant drug use on city streets and record overdose deaths driven by the rise of fentanyl. As downtown offices emptied out, major retailers fled Union Square and viral videos of brazen property crimes spread online. San Francisco's reputation took a nosedive, further complicating Breed's fight for another term. Her reelection campaign last year centered around a hopeful message, pointing to a drop in reported crime and other developments as evidence that she was leading San Francisco out of its pandemic doldrums. But Lurie, a political outsider who'd never held elected office before, ultimately defeated her by 10 points
Boston Globe
a day ago
- Business
- Boston Globe
Make that another $1 million: Dueling Super PACs in Boston mayor's race rake in more cash
A separate super PAC backing Kraft remained busy, too. 'Your City, Your Future,' which has already dropped Taken together, the outside groups reported pulling in $973,101 between their newly filed reports. The contributions pushed the total raised by the two super PACs to more than $3.9 million through mid-June, with 'Your City, Your Future' — and its $3.16 million in contributions — accounting for the vast majority of that. Advertisement The 'Bold Boston' super PAC first formed in 2023, when it spent nearly $100,000 supporting a trio of Wu allies in their successful bids for city council. Advertisement It effectively re-emerged in mid-March, roughly a month after Kraft Mike Firestone has worked under Wu since she took the mayor's office in 2021. Karen Firestone has been a longtime contributor to Wu, whom she first donated to in 2013, and other state Democrats, including Governor Maura Healey, campaign finance records show. Efforts to reach Karen Firestone were not immediately successful Thursday. Spokespeople for 'Bold Boston' and Wu's campaign also didn't immediately comment. 'Bold Boston' also received $175,000 in early June from the Environmental League of Massachusetts Action Fund Independent Expenditure PAC, whose only donation so far this year was $150,000 in March from billionaire A slate of labor-aligned groups also donated heavily to the Wu-aligned group, including the 1199 SEIU MA PAC, which gave $100,000, and the Unite Here Tip State and Local Fund, which gave $150,000. The Green Advocacy Project, a Bay Area-based 501c(4) organization that gives heavily to The group took a variety of smaller donations, too, including $10,000 from Barbara Lee, a Cambridge philanthropist who's worked for decades helping get women elected office, and $25,000 from William Lee, a partner at WilmerHale, which Super PACs are allowed to raise and spend unlimited amounts of money, and, unlike candidates themselves, they can take donations directly from businesses. They are barred, however, from coordinating with any candidates or their campaigns. Advertisement The attacks 'Bold Boston' has launched against Kraft echo the arguments Wu and her allies have made on the campaign trail: that Kraft, the son of Kraft, a longtime nonprofit leader, is loaning his campaign $2 million from his own wallet. The Kraft-aligned 'Your City, Your Future' super PAC has taken $1 million from New Balance chair and billionaire Jim Davis, as well as billionaire businessman Paulson, who gave $100,000 Matt Stout can be reached at
San Francisco Chronicle
12-06-2025
- Entertainment
- San Francisco Chronicle
‘Lay of the Land' at Root Division
'Lay of the Land' features 14 Bay Area-based artists making work about the environment. Co-curated by Naomi Alessandra Schultz, Julianna Heller and Eleanor Scholz O'Leary, the show includes painting, drawing, sculpture, photography, video, textiles, installation, collage and assemblage. The works on view seek to 're-engage nature and place through personal histories' with featured artists including Jeremiah Barber, Shao-Feng Hsu, Sun Park and Catherine Wang McMahon. The exhibition is partly inspired by the philosophy of Finnish new media theorist and professor in digital aesthetics Jussi Parikka, who wrote '[Art practice benefits] from unfocusing; to train oneself to observe what appears out of sight … to cultivate an understanding of the structural complexity and agency of our environment.' By employing methods akin to Parikka's idea of unfocused observing, each artist seeks to be attuned to the unseen in landscapes, and 'Lay of the Land' hopes to offer unique ways of experiencing environments through art.
USA Today
10-06-2025
- Entertainment
- USA Today
Jonathan Mayers, Bonnaroo cofounder dies, days before festival
Jonathan Mayers, Bonnaroo cofounder dies, days before festival Show Caption Hide Caption The first Bonnaroo started with an epic traffic jam A look back at the first annual Bonnaroo, and the massive traffic jam that preceded it. Nashville Tennessean Jonathan Mayers, a titan of the music festival business and cofounder of Bonnaroo, has died. Mayers' death was confirmed in a post to the Tennessee-based festival's official Instagram page. No cause of death was revealed, and his age is not confirmed at this time. USA TODAY has reached out to Bonnaroo for comment. "Our hearts are extremely heavy as we mourn the loss of one of our Co-Founders, Jonathan Mayers," the post reads. "For more than a decade, Jonathan was a creative force behind this festival that so many of us have held near and dear to our hearts now for more than twenty years." Mayers was highly influential in the music and entertainment scene. He founded several large music festivals, including Bonnaroo and Bay Area-based Outside Lands. Bonnaroo is set to kick off this weekend, running from June 12-15. Mayers' death will no doubt hang heavy over a crowd gathered to enjoy a festival that may well be his crowning achievement. "Our thoughts are with Jonathan's family and friends during this very difficult time," the post continued. "This weekend, we celebrate Jonathan by doing the two things we know best to do in our favorite place on the planet. Spreading love and radiating positivity." In 2002, Mayers teamed up with Ashley Capps to found Bonnaroo, which brought more than 70,000 fans to Middle Tennessee in its inaugural year for a four-day musical experience. The festival remains one of the most well-known music festivals in the U.S. today. In memory of Mayer, a tree will be planted at The Farm in Manchester, according to the festival's Instagram post.
Axios
05-06-2025
- Health
- Axios
Exclusive: Newsom faces fallout with key health care allies over Medi-Cal
Over 120 major organizations throughout California, including health providers, unions and religious groups, are issuing a warning to Gov. Gavin Newsom: Keep Medi-Cal funded, or you'll lose our support. Why it matters: Newsom ran on a universal health care platform. But with a $68 billion budget deficit and presidential ambitions on the horizon, access for the state's most vulnerable populations could now be on the chopping block. Zoom in: Under Newsom's proposal, undocumented immigrants 19 and older would be entitled to emergency medical and pregnancy care but lose coverage for expenses like prescription drugs, dental care and doctor's visits if they don't enroll before January. Starting in 2027, the state would also add a $100 per month premium for adults whose immigration status makes them ineligible for federal Medicaid, including those with legal status. Community-facing clinics would see their reimbursement rates cut as part of the plan. Driving the news: A new open letter, spearheaded by Health Justice Action Fund and St. John's Community Health, blasts Newsom for attempting to "balance the budget on the backs of poor and working Californians" and creating a system that discriminates against immigrants. "People will die. That is not political rhetoric, but a grim reality when chronic conditions go unmanaged, emergencies go untreated, and facilities are forced to shutter," the letter states. "[O]ur goal is to make sure everyone gets the care they need, but these cuts will make that impossible," Bay Area health care worker Ron Cook told Axios via email. Threat level: Newsom's proposal would force California health clinics to face a 20% cut in funding on top of the 10% reduction to Medicaid currently making its way through Congress, the letter notes. It'd jeopardize 2,300 health service sites and lead to loss of access to primary care, mental health services and life-saving medications for 1.6 million Californians, per the letter. Signees include the Bay Area-based North East Medical Services, La Clínica de La Raza, Inc. and Gardner Health Services. What they're saying: The budget proposal "was kind of a five-alarm fire," St. John's president and CEO Jim Mangia told Axios. After California expanded coverage for undocumented immigrants last year, many are finally seeing a doctor, getting their diabetes under control and having their hypertension treated, Mangia said. "The thought of losing it is devastating." The other side: Newsom's office did not immediately return a request for comment, though he has said Medi-Cal expansion cost the state more than expected — about $8.5 billion from the general fund annually. Between the lines: Many community health groups supported Newsom in his run for governor, but his White House ambitions have created a rift, with some advocates accusing him of catering to Republicans by targeting immigrants and trying to avoid raising taxes. "Everything at this point, unfortunately, is about the political calculation of a presidential campaign, not about what's needed by the people of California," Mangia said. What we're watching: Mangia acknowledged the reality of the budget deficit but emphasized that the solution lies with revenue, such as increasing corporate taxes.
