In a recent post on this website, Bridge over troubled waters: Addressing pedestrian safety and the Havelock Bridge, Sunnyside resident and past SNA board member Estelle Smith detailed the outstanding issues with safety, the promised crosswalk, and graffiti on this important pedestrian link for the neighborhood.

Lila Carrillo, Legislative Aide to D7 Supervisor Myrna Melgar, gave this reply:

“Rest assured that Havelock Pedestrian Bridge and landing is a priority space for us to help improve, and the complexity of it will not deter us. Very shortly after Supervisor Melgar took office, Christine [Weibel, author of The Havelock Street Bridge Beautification and Safety Project] reached out to us to put this on our radar. Since then, we’ve been actively engaged with understanding the nuances of this space and connecting with agencies (especially CalTrans, who’s the most difficult to reach) to solve for: 1) who has jurisdiction over what, 2) who would “own” what project, 3) true costs and implications for every action item, etc. Although we are not yet where we’d like to be, we are firm in our advocacy for resources and improvements needed for the Havelock Bridge and pedestrian area.

“As we work with DPW to fulfill the vision and scope of the PB project, we are working simultaneously with SFMTA to prioritize the crosswalk. The most recent update we received is that funds transfer was initiated early this month to Public Works, they should have the funding in-hand in approximately three weeks. MTA has also asked DPW to provide us with info on how soon they can schedule the work and how long it will take them to complete. I will keep SNA updated on that timeline, once we receive it.”