San Francisco committee backs Bernal Heights memorial for Alex Nieto, adds maintenance requirement

The Public Safety and Neighborhood Services Committee on Dec. 1 voted to send an ordinance to the full San Francisco Board of Supervisors that would direct the Recreation and Park Department to install a memorial to Alex Nieto at Bernal Heights Park and waive permit and inspection fees for the installation.

The measure, introduced by committee leadership with several cosponsors, was framed as a community request to acknowledge Nieto’s life and the family’s enduring trauma after he was shot and killed by San Francisco police on March 21, 2016. Committee members said the memorial is intended to support healing and community education while further work on the memorial’s design and fundraising proceeds.

Supervisor Campos, who led the hearing, described Nieto’s long ties to Bernal Heights programs and said community members and students have rallied behind the family. “The memorial is really to mark this tragic event, to also acknowledge the life and contributions of Alex Nieto, and as well as the suffering and harm that’s been caused to the family and the community,” Campos said during the meeting.

Family members and community supporters delivered several comments in favor of the ordinance. Refugio and Elvira Nieto told the committee the memorial would help them cope with ongoing trauma; other speakers described petitions and public engagement in support. Mary Mendoza, an organizer and participant in the Alex Nieto coalition, told the committee the effort has collected more than 1,000 paper signatures and over 2,000 online signatures.

Several public commenters urged the supervisors to ensure the memorial would be maintained and would serve as an educational site about local history and the city’s changing neighborhoods. A longtime resident suggested the Recreation and Park Department be required to maintain the memorial so upkeep would not fall to the family. Committee members incorporated that recommendation.

The committee adopted two narrow technical edits to remove redundant planning-code findings and approved an amendment adding language that the Recreation and Park Department will be responsible for upkeep and maintenance of the memorial. The committee then voted to forward the ordinance with a positive recommendation; committee action was taken without objection. The clerk clarified the item will appear on the Board of Supervisors agenda on Dec. 13.

Next steps include completing a final design through the Arts Commission process, fundraising for the artwork, and site preparation. The ordinance itself directs installation but does not specify a final design or funding source for the artwork; those details were described by committee members and commenters as matters for the community and relevant city processes.

The full Board of Supervisors is scheduled to consider the ordinance on Dec. 13; committee members said they expect to present the measure with a positive recommendation.