Community Perspectives on Sutro Tower -
San Francisco, California, USA
This web site is privately sponsored, and not associated with Sutro Tower, Inc.
Check tpiasf.org for the latest community information from the Twin Peaks Improvement Association, which is more recent than the information on this site.
The SutroTower.com web site contains current information.
There's an additional site SutroTower.org which contains more interesting background and technical information.
The contents of this (sutro.org) web site are primarily a record of the process until 2006.
Former planning chief fired from PUC—Agency won't say if action due to flap over Olympic Club; in San Francisco Chronicle, Saturday October 29, 2005
"Former San Francisco planning chief Gerald Green was fired from his new post at the city's public utilities agency Friday after The Chronicle reported that while in his former job, he accepted a $12,000 gift membership to the Olympic Club at a time the private club was lobbying him to approve an expansion of its downtown athletic facility.
San Francisco Public Utilities Commission General Manager Susan Leal made the decision to oust Green, effective at the close of business Monday, her spokesman, Tony Winnicker, said. He declined to provide an explanation for why Green was being relieved of his duties, citing confidentiality in personnel matters.
A year ago, Green was pushed out of his previous post as city planning director by Mayor Gavin Newsom, but was kept on the city payroll at $146,000 a year in a new director's job at the public utilities agency, where he worked on the real estate rights-of-way needed for the pending rebuilding of the Hetch Hetchy aqueduct.
Green could not be reached to comment Friday.
In its Friday editions, The Chronicle reported that in 2000, Green accepted an honorary membership to the private Olympic Club, which was seeking city permission to expand its property downtown. The Olympic Club's lobbyist, Robert McCarthy, also had another client at the time embroiled in a dispute before the city over the placement of antennas on Sutro Tower. In that case, Green, in a move that favored the consortium of media companies McCarthy was representing, overturned a subordinate's decision."
Ex-planning chief took gift while being lobbied... in San Francisco Chronicle, Friday October 28, 2005
"Former Planning Director Gerald Green accepted an “honorary membership” worth $12,000 to the San Francisco Olympic Club while being lobbied to help the private club obtain permits for a major addition to its downtown athletic facility." ..."Just before Green accepted the membership, McCarthy also was lobbying him on behalf of a consortium of media companies regarding 177 antennas for television, radio and telephone communications, installed without permits on Sutro Tower.
The issue was whether the city had to hold hearings about the antennas and any hazards posed by the 975-foot tower. The consortium contended the hearings were not necessary.
On Dec. 17, 1999, city zoning administrator Mary Gallagher ruled that the permit hearings were required.
The lobbying firm GCA Strategies, which operates out of McCarthy's office, had been paid more than $100,000 to lobby on behalf of the tower's owners to avoid the hearings. McCarthy told The Chronicle in 1999 that he had called Green to ask that the decision be rescinded.
Gallagher suddenly resigned her post on Dec. 22. The next day, Green said he was stepping in as acting zoning administrator to reverse the decision. Sutro Tower's owners were exempted from the hearing process."
Planning Commission discretionary review May 22, 2003
A Discretionary Review of Sutro Tower's permit application will be held by the Planning Commission on Thursday, May 22, 2003, beginning around 6:00pm, in room 400, City Hall (San Francisco). Official information is online at the San Francisco City Planning web site.
Land Use Committee Hearing May 5, 2003
Board of Supervisors Land Use Committee hearing Monday, May 5, 2003. Official meeting information is online at San Francisco city web site.
FBI probes approval of Sutro Tower expansion
(San Francisco Examiner Apr 30, 2000) (this file is no longer available-there is no explanation—the article just disappeared)
Tempers Flare At Panel Meeting Over Sutro Tower - Structure's lobbyist thrown out
(San Francisco Chronicle, January 20, 2000)
Sutro Tower Ruling Prompts Struggle in S.F./Lobbyists call -- official resigns
(San Francisco Chronicle)
Planner leaves post after making controversial ruling
(San Francisco Examiner)
Board of Supervisors Resolution establishing the Sutro Tower Health and Safety Task Force
Text of Resolution 992082. See also the San Francisco city web site.
Commentary
Jon Ridenour, Midtown Terrace resident, comments before the Board of Supervisors on November 8, 1999.
Christopher Beaver, of Noe Valley Families, reviews the July 20th, 1999, meeting of the Public Utilities & Deregulation Committee (of the Board of Supervisors).
In The News
Board of Supervisors Resolution 992082.
We also have a press reports page containing press releases and links to all of the news coverage we've tracked. This includes a new article by Supervisor Leland Yee in the Richmond Review.
The San Francisco Chronicle, the Bay Guardian, The Examiner and The Independent occasionally report new developments which can be found on their web sites.
Local efforts to support US Senate action regarding a local voice in placement of communications facilities and antennas.
Don't miss this 1973 press "blast" at Sutro Tower showing what people thought of the tower before it was constructed.
Why is "www.sutro.org" here?
This site is privately funded and maintained as a community service. The opinions expressed here are solely those of its sponsor, or of the community groups or publications cited.
See additions to the Frequently Asked Questions regarding the community lawsuit.
RFR and EMR
Information on EMF and current research and publicity related to EMF exposure.
People are also concerned about the many effects of Radio Frequency (including television) Radiation (RFR or EMR) - more than 20 million watts from Sutro Tower, for example. See our link to THE EMR NETWORK and see our Opinion page for more on this.
Board of Supervisors
Supervisors' telephone and FAX numbers, and their email addresses are kept up to date on the City of San Francisco web site. We used to keep them here, but the city's site keeps them up to date.
Dynamic Analysis Results
See press reports on the Structural Advisory Committee's (SAC) meeting regarding Sutro Tower, during which committee members expressed a desire to see a full dynamic analysis of the tower. Outrageously, they were not allowed to express their professional concern in any official way to the City!
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