“This is a blatant move to inappropriately influence this critically important election, and yet another example of the District Attorney’s Office being politicized and used for personal favoritism.”

Less than 12 hours after the abrupt Oct. 3 announcement that District Attorney George Gascon would resign in two weeks to run for DA in Los Angeles, Mayor London Breed appointed candidate Suzy Loftus interim DA ahead of the Nov. 5 election. Loftus, a former Police Commission president, had previously received Breed's endorsement. It’s unknown whether the controversial appointment will boost or detract from Loftus’ campaign. San Francisco Chronicle | KQED

Protesters demonstrated on Friday to condemn Breed’s appointment of Loftus. SFBay

The outcome of the District 5 Supervisor election between incumbent Vallie Brown and challenger Dean Preston will shape the political makeup of the Board of Supervisors. Both are campaigning to increase affordable housing, improve public transportation and address homelessness and mental health. However, Brown is running on a platform of realism that has caused opponents to label her an incrementalist. Preston is running in a call to disrupt the status quo, proposing free city bus service and 10,000 units of affordable housing in a decade, and allying himself with the national Democratic Socialism movement.
San Francisco Chronicle

“This is the last piece of a really comprehensive program to improve our vehicle fleet.”

The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency’s 185 new 40-foot electric New Flyer trolley buses are outfitted with batteries that can power them without overhead wires for several miles. The feature allows the agency to provide more continuous service to riders when detours limit buses’ access to power lines. San Francisco Chronicle

After a decade of planning, SFMTA may make Market Street between Main Street near the Embarcadero to Van Ness Boulevard car-free. San Francisco Examiner

The Department of the Environment will re-inspect 28 newly renovated public housing developments to determine the effectiveness of a pest control program. Before the rehabs, 875 units had cockroach infestations, and 175 had bedbugs. The grant-funded monitoring program will continue until 2022. San Francisco Examiner

Following the governor's signage of a second state bill last week to enable conservatorship, San Francisco will begin imposing treatment on people who suffer from problems caused by mental health and substance abuse. Participants must have been forced into at least eight involuntary 72-hour emergency holds in a yearlong period to qualify. The Public Defender's Office will represent those conserved, while the City Attorney's Office will petition courts to compel treatment. Fifty to 100 people citywide meet the criteria for the program. San Francisco Examiner

Can you hear the jets? Sunday marked the beginning of Fleet Week. The weeklong event is expected to draw 1 million visitors to San Francisco for a variety of festivities. Additional buses and streetcars will run on the 47 Van Ness and F-Market & Wharves line from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Friday through Sunday. The Marina and Fisherman’s Wharf are projected to attract 300,000 people each day of the weekend. San Francisco Examiner

Sens. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., and Kamala Harris, D-Calif., sent a letter to the U.S. EPA requesting that the inspector general examine whether the White House was involved in the agency’s decision to issue a notice of violation accusing San Francisco of violating the Clean Water Act by discharging waste into the ocean and bay. The missive is the latest action in a battle between the agency and Golden State. San Francisco Chronicle