SFMTA board pauses Bayview Community Pathway vote after residents say outreach missed key blocks

The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency Board on Nov. 4 deferred final approval of the Bayview Community Pathway after residents and some directors said the project’s outreach had missed people who would be affected.

Staff presented an infrastructure proposal for a 1.65‑mile corridor parallel to 3rd Street that would add a separated bikeway on the project’s northern industrial segment, traffic‑calming measures and placemaking elements through parts of Bayview Hunters Point. Project managers told the board the project has a $12,300,000 Caltrans Active Transportation Program grant to fund planning, design, construction and non‑infrastructure components. The presentation said the corridor recorded 75 collisions in the last five years (15 involving pedestrians and 5 involving bicyclists) and described protected intersections, raised crossings and speed cushions as primary safety measures.

Community members in the meeting urged the board not to approve the item without additional outreach. “I have been here for 47 years ... I have never been invited to one of these community events,” said a District 10 resident during public comment, urging postponement so more neighbors could weigh in. Sienna Dunn, a transit supervisor who said she grew up in the Bayview Hunters Point, told the board that posting signs is not “proper communication” for an underserved neighborhood and asked for deeper engagement before approval.

Staff acknowledged gaps in outreach and defended the work done. Project staff said they had conducted a multi‑year engagement that included youth and senior focus groups, community events and meetings with neighborhood organizations, but conceded they had not reached every block. Staff told the board the formal deadline to access the next phase of funding with the California Transportation Commission is Dec. 4 and that delaying approval could jeopardize that timeline. They also said the project would result in a net loss of about five parking spaces overall, offset in part by converting parallel to angled or perpendicular parking on nearby streets.

Board members were split about the best next step. Directors who supported a short continuance said a two‑week window could allow targeted outreach to groups and residents who reported being missed; other directors argued the Bayview Community Based Transportation Plan and years of prior engagement justified moving forward. After discussion, Director Kahina moved to continue the item for additional outreach; the motion passed on roll call 5–2 (Yes: Felder, Hemminger, Hinze, Kahina, Chair Tarlov; No: Chen, Henderson).

What’s next: staff agreed to return with more targeted outreach and additional details on parking tradeoffs and timeline options for securing grant funds before the board takes a final vote.