If the would-be developers of a massive grocery store and condo project at the corner of Haight and Stanyan streets hope to win over the community they want to serve, the nasty hit piece they mailed out this week attacking activist Calvin Welch was exactly the wrong way to go.
The project is sort of a political wobbler. Everyone is anxious to get another grocery store into the former Cala Foods site, but the Haight Ashbury Neighborhood Council (of which Welch is a key member) has understandably raised concerns about the scale of the proposed project, which includes 62 condos, a Whole Foods of up to 35,000 square feet (more than double the old Cala), and three stories of underground parking that will generate about 2000 new car trips per day at the already congested intersection.
Yet rather than trying to work with the community, developer Mark Brennan resorted to character assassination that was both childish and ageist, slamming Welch as a “fossil” who is maniacally trying to maintain blight and keep fresh food away from hungry children. He even took a few swipes at Dist. 5 Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi – clearly, not a smart move.
As Welch told us, “This hit piece is a desperate act of a desperate bunch.”