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Parks department asks for more maintenance, urban forestry investment and adds cisterns for emergency fire protection
Summary
Parks and Recreation described investments in park safety, hazardous-tree removal and urban forestry, requested funding for additional park patrol officers, and highlighted a PUC-led cistern program to improve fire resiliency with 75,000-gallon cisterns in the Sunset District.
The Department of Parks and Recreation detailed a set of strategic priorities for the coming budget cycle, emphasizing park safety, urban forest management and customer service.
Director (Mr.) Ginsberg highlighted that 96% of San Franciscans live within a 10-minute walk of a park and outlined investments: scholarships for recreation ($1.1M), hazardous tree removal, a proposal to add park patrol officers and dispatch capacity, and modest new HR and IT staffing to reduce vacancy impacts. He noted the department's limited arborist capacity (about 10 arborists for ~130,000 trees) and proposed adding four arborist technicians and one urban forester to form a new crew for proactive tree care.
Separately, the PUC and Fire Department demonstrated an on-site cistern (about 75,000 gallons) in the Sunset District as part of an emergency firefighting program; the Fire Chief described cisterns as an "insurance policy" for the city and said the system increases redundancy for large-scale disaster response.
Direct quotes: "96% of San Franciscans live within a 10 minute walk in a park," Parks presenter said, summarizing access priorities. (SEG 1296) "This 1, they all hold about 75,000 gallons of water," PUC representative Steve Ritchie said of the new cistern infrastructure. (SEG 2622'SEG 2624)
Why it matters: The parks budget affects public safety, tree-health and park access citywide. Urban forestry is aging and visible in public safety planning: the department noted a maintenance gap that leaves many trees infrequently serviced.
Next steps: Supervisors requested further detail on materials and supplies per acre (Golden Gate Park in particular), and the department will return with refined scopes and cost estimates in the budget process.
Ending: The committee placed park investments and the cistern program in the context of citywide emergency preparedness and deferred final funding choices to the public hearing and budget add-back process.
