Six weeks before a Sept. 16 recall election that could end his political career, San Francisco Supervisor Joel Engardio is scrambling for a win — any win — to show voters he’s worth keeping around.
During a press conference Monday in the overcast Outer Sunset, Engardio announced a $1.5 million plan to revitalize a 2-mile strip of Sunset Boulevard he has dubbed the Emerald Necklace. State and city funding will go toward installing a new irrigation system that replaces potable water with recycled water, and upgrading the landscaping.
“We have this amazing natural beauty,” Engardio said at the event. “We can realize its full potential.”
Hundreds of trees and other landscaping that line Sunset Boulevard have suffered from years of drought, deferred maintenance, and outdated irrigation infrastructure, according to Engardio’s office.
The state provided $1 million to upgrade the irrigation system, and $500,000 from the city will support a dedicated landscape crew for mowing, weeding, plant and tree care, and irrigation upkeep.
Local residents have long pushed for the upgrades, calling for more climate-resilient infrastructure along Sunset Boulevard to better withstand droughts.
State Sen. Scott Wiener, a staunch Engardio ally who spearheaded the state funding, said the upgrades will benefit the neighborhood. “As we make this investment, we’re going to see more Sunset residents, more families, really use it,” he said at the press conference.
That support could be politically beneficial to Engardio, who is fighting to keep his job after outraging Sunset voters in November when he championed Proposition K, the ballot measure that transformed a portion of the Great Highway into the Sunset Dunes park.
The measure passed with 55% of the vote citywide but drew fierce opposition within Engardio’s west-side district, where 64% voted against it.
A last-ditch effort?
While Engardio’s supporters have raised $700,000 to fight the recall effort, more than three times as much as his opponents have raised, the supervisor faces a brutal fight to keep his job. Mayor Daniel Lurie has refused to take a position on the recall; the local Democratic party has also not weighed in, leaving Engardio without much institutional backing.
Engardio denied that the Sunset Boulevard project was politically motivated, emphasizing that he has been working on it since taking office in 2023.
“I’ve been saying ‘Emerald Necklace’ to anyone who’s ever come into my office,” he said. “It’s been something I’ve been talking about for two and a half years.”
Jason McDaniel, an associate professor of political science at San Francisco State University, said it’s clear Engardio is trying to demonstrate to voters before the recall that he is focused on local issues.
“This press conference shows, ‘I’m doing things you want me to do, right?’” McDaniel said. “Even if we disagree on one issue, I’m still serving the district well in other ways.”
Monday’s event was not without political tension. Sunset resident Lisa Arjes, a recall supporter and an advocate for the Sunset Boulevard renovation, showed up to the event to distribute a statement thanking city leaders for taking action.
“We have advocated for eight years,” Arjes said in the statement. “It is good to see additional resources finally brought to bear on the completion of this project.”
But it’s not likely that Arjes and others who see the project as beneficial to the community will spare Engardio at the ballot box in September. Arjes has contributed $41,525 to the effort to oust the supervisor, making her the campaign’s biggest donor.
“He’s going to have a hard time surviving this,” said McDaniel. “Most politicians, once they’re on a recall ballot, it’s very difficult to defeat it.”
Jamie Hughes, who is leading the campaign to recall Engardio, said the Emerald Necklace is “too little too late.” He called it a last-ditch effort by a supervisor desperate to notch a political victory ahead of the recall.
“This is a classic example of a politician trying to save face,” Hughes said. “It’s time for the sun to set on Joel Engardio as a supervisor.”