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6 • BAY AREA REPORTER • June 5-11, 2014
CHARLES SPIEGEL
Collaborative Family Attorney-Mediator
Presenting Divorce Options Sat. June 7, 9:30 am to 12:30 pm @ SF Jewish Community Center CharlesSpiegelLaw@gmail.com www.CharlesSpiegelLaw.com Noe Valley Office
VALENCIA CYCLERY PROUDLY SUPPORTS Project Open Hand is a nonprofit organization that provides meals with love to seniors and the critically ill. Every day, we prepare 2,500 nutritious meals and provide 200 bags of healthy groceries to help sustain our clients as they battle serious illnesses, isolation, or the health challenges of old age. We serve San Francisco and Alameda Counties, engaging more than 125 volunteers every day to nourish our community. Project Open Hand was founded in San Francisco in 1985 by Ruth Brinker, a retired meal service manager, who began preparing meals in a church basement for seven people with AIDS. The first grassroots response to the nutritional needs of people with AIDS in the nation, Project Open Hand continues to be a model for similar organizations around the world. In 1989, Project Open Hand started serving people with AIDS in Alameda County. In 1998, Project Open Hand furthered its reach and began serving congregate lunches to seniors at various sites throughout San Francisco. At the beginning of 2000, Project Open Hand expanded its services to provide Meals with Love to people who are homebound and critically ill.
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women’s motorcycle contingent at 6 p.m. The march will go through the Mission, down 18th to Valencia, up 16th Street, and down Market to Castro Street, where it will merge into the Pink Saturday party. “I feel that it’s more important
to go back to that and show people that we are not just here to throw The San Francisco Dyke March is a party in the park,” said Meredith working around the renovations at Crawford, a 48-year-old lesbian Dolores Park this year by returning who is a committee member of the to its roots with a shorter rally takSan Francisco Dyke March. “There ing place before the march. is a message that we have, although Dolores Park is underit changes from year to year.” going a multimillion-dolElizabeth Lanyon, a lar renovation that broke 29-year-old lesbian commitground in March. The park tee member of the San Franis scheduled to reopen next cisco Dyke March, agreed. summer. The closure of a “There is a political aspect portion of the park has afto the march – we are a part fected some groups. of the LGBT community,” In the meantime, plans said Lanyon. have changed for this year’s The committee hasn’t seDyke March, which starts lected a theme for this year, at 4 p.m. Saturday, June 28 but Crawford and Lanyon with a rally at the corner of both hinted that organizers 18th and Dolores streets. are narrowing it down to the Previously, the pre-march war on women or body image. Jane Philomen Cleland party had been held hours The Dyke March welcomes Cyndi Vee danced at last year’s Dyke March as earlier inside the park. volunteers. For more inforThe 22nd annual Dyke Christina Mohammed and Florencia Manovil mation, visit www.thedykeMarch will kick off with the shared a kiss in the background. march.org.t
City sues SRO owners by Seth Hemmelgarn
or habitable.” A woman who answered the an Francisco City Attorney Denphone at a number listed for some nis Herrera is suing the owners of the Thakors said, “He’s not here and operators of several single room ... wrong number” and hung up the occupancy hotels, claiming “perphone when a reporter asked to speak vasive violations of state and local with Bahavasinh, Balvantsinh, or Kilaws intended to protect residents’ ransinh Thakor. The woman ended health, safety and tenancy rights.” the conversation before a reporter The hotels, commonly known could ask about Lataben Thakor. as SROs, house some of the city’s The man who answered the poorest residents, inphone at a number cluding many LGBTs listed for Kiransinh and people who are Thakor said, “He’s not living with HIV and here.” When a reporter AIDS. mentioned the lawsuit, The lawsuit, filed the man said, “I know May 12 in San Francisnothing. I have no co Superior Court lists idea,” and hung up. Balvantsinh, Kiransinh, As of Monday, the Bahavasinh, and LaSan Francisco Supetaben B. Thakor, and rior Court website Rick Gerharter their affiliated busididn’t show a formal City Attorney nesses, as defendants. response by the defenIn a news release, Dennis Herrera dants. Herrera said the ThaThe hotels included kors, who have contracts with the in the lawsuit account for more than city, have “defiantly thumbed their 800 residential rooms in the midnoses at city inspectors over pervaMarket, Mission, South of Market, sive code violations, which endanand Tenderloin neighborhoods, acger residents and neighbors alike. cording to Herrera’s office. And they’ve billed taxpayers for Among the hotels are the Admiral providing clients of city programs Hotel, 608 O’Farrell Street; Balboa with ‘clean, safe, habitable’ housing, Hotel, 120 Hyde Street; Civic Cenwhen it was anything but clean, safe, ter Hotel, 20 12th Street; and Warf-
S
ield Hotel, 118 Taylor Street. (A full list is available in the complaint at http://www.sfcityattorney.org.) Alleged violations include blocking tenants from gaining rent control and other rights by forcing them to vacate units before they accumulate 30 consecutive days of residency. Herrera also claims the defendants are guilty of health and safety violations like “rampant” bedbug infestations and “inadequate” fire protection. Tommi Avicolli Mecca, a longtime queer activist who works at Housing Rights Committee of San Francisco, said, “I know just from experience around here there’s a number of LGBT folks who are in these hotels. ... I’m really glad the city attorney is doing this. I think it’s long overdue.” State law could result in penalties “of up to $2,500 for each unlawful business act,” among other potential costs to the defendants, according to Herrera’s office. Herrera is encouraging tenants and neighbors to report housingrelated wrongdoing through his office’s http://www.Up2Code.org website or the Up2Code app, or by calling the code enforcement hotline at (415) 554-3977.t
DeFrank LGBT center has new board president
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Shorter rally planned at SF Dyke March
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he Billy DeFrank LGBT Community Center in San Jose has a new board president, following the resignation of the man who had headed the organization for the last year. Char Reed, who is a lesbian, was named board president following the May 19 resignation of Greg Belaus, 47, a gay man. She had previously served as board vice president. “I’m excited for Char,” said Belaus, pointing out Reed’s recent accomplishment obtaining her bachelor’s degree in women’s gender and sexuality studies at Mills College. “I am very excited to see her in this leadership position.” Belaus, who served as board president since February 2013, announced the leadership change in a May 20 Facebook post.
Belaus served on the board for ers work on a part-time basis under five years. He took over the presia designated grant for the center’s dency during a tumulVintage Program. tuous time at the center The rest of its proafter former longtime grams are run by a president Chris Flood group of about 47 resigned. Belaus will volunteers along with continue as a volunteer others who pitch in for handling the center’s special events. IT, social media, and “I do think that it is website, he said. important to pass on The mostly volunleadership positions teer-run center has to get fresh ideas and Jo-Lynn Otto been a cornerstone for opinions to do things,” Santa Clara County’s Billy DeFrank LGBT said Belaus, who startLGBT community, Community Center ed working with the serving as a main hub board President board to prepare for for HIV and senior Char Reed his stepping down last services for nearly 35 September. “I wanted years. In 2012-2013 it operated on to leave the leadership role when a budget of $153,140, with a deficit things were stable and in a positive of $31,032, according to the center’s light.” IRS Form 990. The center supports See page 18 >> one part-time staff person. Two oth-