Petrelis Files

19 City Hall Folks & Chron Reporter: $24K Mexico Junket in May

A new gifts of travel disclosure was posted at the San Francisco Ethics Commission web site, showing that nineteen City Hall folks, members of the Board of Supervisors, public transportation commission members and reporter for the SF Chronicle will all be in Mexico City from May 15 thru May 18.

The will be on a junket to look at transit systems in Mexico City, all expenses paid by the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy. The disclosure estimated the official's expenses would be $1,300. Multiply for all nineteen junketeers and the total tab comes to $24,700.

What does the sponsoring institute want in return and what on their agenda when the nineteen folks return to San Francisco? Will there be a community forum with these illustrious junketeers, including the Chronicle reporter, before and after the trip? Does the citizenry deserve a lot more transparency about this junket and all junkets our elected go on?

Here's the list of folks going on the junket:


1. Andrea Bruss, Designee/Legislative Aide to SFCTA Finance Chair Malia Cohen (a) 

2. Cindy Wu, SF Planning Commission Vice-Chair (a) 

3. Eric Mar, SFCTA Plans and Programs Committee Chair (a) 

4. Gillian Gillett, Director of Transportation Policy, Office of the Mayor (a) 

5. Jeremy Pollock, Legislative Aide to SFCTA Board Chair John Avalos (a) 

6. John Avalos, SFCTA Board Chair (a) 

7. Judson True, Designee/Legislative Aide to SF Board of Supervisors President David Chiu (a) 

8. Leah Shahum, Executive Director, SF Bicycle Coalition  

9. Michael Cabanatuan, Staff Writer, San Francisco Chronicle 

10. Michael Schwartz, Senior Transportation Planner, SFCTA 

11.  Peggy da Silva, SFTRU Chair  

12. Peter Gabancho, Project Manager, SFMTA (a) 

13. Rama Amin  Transportation Director, SPUR 

14. [REDACTED] 

15. Shari Tavafrashti, Principal Engineer, SFCTA 

16. Tom Nolan, SFMTA Chairman of the Board (a) 

17. Christopher Van Eyken, Institute for Transportation & Development Policy (d) 

18. Bernardo Baranda, Institute for Transportation & Development Policy (d) 

19. Karina Licea, Institute for Transportation & Development Policy (d)