City Hall Ignores Storeowner's Safety Plea

Scott Silvera, owner of Scout Hardware at 5026 Telegraph Avenue, took action after thieves broke in and stole $10,000 of computer equipment in December. He asked the mayor for a plan to deal with the rampant attacks and burglaries in the Temescal district.

Hearing nothing from City Hall, Silvera staged a sales tax strike, vowing not to collect the tax until he just heard from the mayor's office.

Dellums and his staff never responded. Meanwhile, the sales tax cops visited Scout Hardware and told Silvera he'd better pay. Silvera has called off the sales tax strike.

Instead, as the poster in Scout Hardware's window notes, "we can even the score next election day."

Store demands peaceful neighborhoods

Meanwhile, the mayor's press agent Paul Rose claimed his office never saw the invitation and press release that Silvera says he faxed. (San Francisco Chronicle, Feb. 13, 2008)