Advocates were appalled to learn Friday that newly appointed Sunset District Supervisor Alan Wong will support a new ballot measure to destroy Sunset Dunes. Advocates with Friends of Sunset Dunes accused him of holding backroom meetings with opponents exclusively in his bid to close SF’s third most popular city park.
“We believed that he was serious when he said he wanted to help restore trust after a divisive few years in the Sunset. Instead, he’s doing the opposite: claiming he’d listen to constituents while actively turning his back on them," wrote Lucas Lux, President of Friends of Sunset Dunes. “This is unacceptable and we, along with thousands of Sunset Dunes volunteers and supporters in District 4 and across the city, will do everything we can to protect the park we love.”
Advocates wrote the following letter to Wong:
Supervisor Wong,
We are writing as a coalition of Outer Sunset community organizations and neighbors in District 4 regarding your support for a ballot measure that would close Sunset Dunes.
Over the past several weeks, multiple Outer Sunset organizations and constituents reached out to request meetings with you to discuss Sunset Dunes and other priorities in our neighborhood. These requests were sent in good faith, with follow-ups, and with the understanding that you would meet with all sides before taking a position. None of these requests received a response. In practical terms, our organizations were ghosted.
Despite this, you announced support for a ballot measure that would close a beloved Outer Sunset community space.
Our organizations represent residents, families, seniors, small businesses, and volunteers who live alongside the park and use it daily. To take a public position affecting this space without engaging with the community undermines trust and raises serious concerns about whose voices are being prioritized.
We are stating plainly that taking a controversial position – while refusing to meet with Outer Sunset organizations after committing to do so – undermines trust and damages your credibility in this neighborhood.
We believe this can still be corrected. We are asking you to:
● Meet directly with Outer Sunset organizations and constituents that were ignored
● Hold your decision on this ballot measure until after engaging in those conversations
We, your constituents and voters in district 4, expect transparency, direct engagement, and follow-through from our representatives. We are prepared to meet. The question is whether you are willing to do the same.
We look forward to your response.
Sincerely,
Alice Duesdieker, Vice-President of Outer Sunset Neighbors
Molly Rose, representing Sunset Parent Advocates
Eliza Panike, Outer Sunset Neighbors and District 4 SFMTA Citizens Advisory Council Member
Poppy Gilman, Offix Edge owner and D4 resident
If it receives the four votes it needs on the Board of Supervisors and makes it to the June ballot, a new measure would be the third time voters have been asked to weigh in on the question of whether the center section of the asphalt formerly known as "Great Highway" should be a park. The first time was 2022's Prop I. The second time was barely over a year ago, in November of 2024, when voters passed Measure K, "Permanently Closing the Upper Great Highway to Private Vehicles to Establish a Public Open Recreation Space," by 55 percent. That measure was literally what park opponents asked for: they demanded the future of the middle section of the 'Great Highway' go directly to the voters instead of being decided by the Board of Supervisors.
Meanwhile, claims by park opponents that the creation of a permanent park caused a traffic nightmare are simply counterfactual. That's been shown by SFMTA's studies. It was studied again by the San Francisco Chronicle.
But advocates put together the following reality check for people who don't like data:
From Streetsblog's point of view, it's truly sad that there's a group in District 4 who think democracy means continually rerunning elections until they get the outcome they want. They've already wasted hundreds of thousands recalling their supervisor a year before he was up for re-election anyway. The park is popular. It's transformed the shoreline into something enjoyed by all. This was voted on twice. The city is struggling to balance its budget. It's time to move on.
