=20 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- This article was sent to you by someone who found it on SF Gate. The original article can be found on SFGate.com here: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=3D/c/a/2003/05/21/BA84234.DTL ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Wednesday, May 21, 2003 (SF Chronicle) Money dries up for SFO plan to build 2 new runways in bay Phillip Matier, Andrew Ross San Francisco -- Just as a critical city audit of the SFO runway project was about to be released, airport officials raised the white flag Tuesday in their long fight to get the multibillion-dollar effort off the ground. "We are not going to seek funding (to keep the planning going)," airport spokeswoman Kandace Bender said late Tuesday. "The political will does not appear to be there, and the economy is not at a point where we can move forward." The airport's hopes of laying down two new runways in the bay have been squeezed not just by the bad times in the airline business, but by growing opposition from environmentalists and increased heat from the Board of Supervisors over where the $74 million spent to date has gone. "I think it's a wise move," said Supervisor Aaron Peskin, one of the runway project's biggest critics. "This will give them the opportunity to focus on higher issues like keeping the airport viable, repaying their existing debt and making sure they have state-of-the-art security." Airport officials are still hoping to spend $700,000 squeezed from this year's budget to keep the runway program on course at least until this summer, when a federal panel of scientists meets to give a thumbs-up or thumbs-down to the way environmental studies were being conducted. That's a sharp turnaround from as recently as last week, when airport brass was lobbying to preserve at least $5 million in next year's budget -- not only for environmental studies, but also to keep the $327,000 a year in option payments going to a North Bay farmer whose land might be turned into a marsh as part of an environmental trade-off for filling in the bay at SFO. Bender said it was clear after the supervisors' Finance Committee met Friday that there wasn't going to be any money for more studies -- let alone the option payments to the farmer. The irony, Bender said, was that "environmentalists had picked that property as a key for restoration . . . and then we put our money where our mouth was by funding it. "We're damned if we do and damned if we don't," she said. The airport's surrender came just as Harvey Rose, the supervisors' budget analyst, released a report recommending that the airport do away with the special bureau overseeing the project. The Rose report raised a number of questions about the $63 million spent so far on various consulting contracts. One area that came under particular scrutiny was "public information" on the project, which Rose said appeared set up more to "sway public opinion" in favor of new runways than to give out unbiased details about the project. Airport officials denied that was the case. Rose also took a hammer to some of the bills run up by runway lobbyists and consultants. For instance, one consultant submitted a $4,686 phone bill -- for one month. Another billed the project for round-trip fares to Washington, D.C., costing $3,874 and $4,252 -- and for stays at top-flight hotels costing as much as $484 a night. And yet another consultant spent $1,039 for "trip gifts" for visits to Hong Kong, Singapore and Hawaii. DRUG CULTURE: So what was the deal with that football field-size tent th= at popped up on San Francisco's Union Square this week? It was billed as the big top for a party to benefit a nonprofit -- but then it also served as a stage for its giant pharmaceutical sponsor to showcase its latest drug to doctors. And from what we're told, you'd better get used to this sort of thing at Union Square. Given the state of the economy, we could be seeing the landmark used for more corporate events. In this case, it all started with the American Psychiatric Association convention at Moscone Center, which has brought thousands of doctors to the city this week. Invites went out for the docs to attend a big cocktail reception "benefi= t" at Union Square for UCLA's Imagination Workshop, a nonprofit that hooks up artists to work with at-risk school kids, psychiatric patients and homeless people. A worthy cause, no doubt, with the evening's tab being picked up by the giant pharmaceutical, Bristol-Myers Squibb. From the looks of things, everyone got something out of the deal. According to an event organizer, besides all the free publicity, the nonprofit received more than $10,000 from raffle tickets sold at the party -- not to mention an unspecified contribution from Bristol-Myers Squibb. According to officials at San Francisco's Recreation and Park Department -- which oversees Union Square and is under pressure to generate an extra $300, 000 next year from permitted events -- event planners paid the city $12,000. But the biggest beneficiary of all appears to be Bristol-Myers Squibb, which -- while spending a small fortune to host the party -- found a perfect target audience to pitch a promising new anti-psychotic drug called Abilify that could generate millions of dollars in revenue. Which explains why -- as doctors were being feted and entertained under the big tent -- Bristol-Myers also had paid for a giant billboard overlooking Union Square advertising the drug and urging doctors attending the nearby psychiatric convention to "get to the Abilify booth . . . any way you can." HEAD OF THE CLASS: Summer classes got under way Monday at Mills College = in Oakland -- and what caught our attention was the education department's course in fiscal and business services. The instructor? None other than Dennis Chaconas -- yes, the superintende= nt of Oakland schools, whose bankrupt district is about to be taken over by the state. It ought to be some lesson. By the way, just three doors down, you'll find Dan Siegel -- the Oakland school board member and chief Chaconas defender -- teaching another class on school law and public policy. Chronicle columnists Phillip Matier and Andrew Ross appear Sundays, Mondays and Wednesdays. They can also be heard on KGO Radio on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. Phil Matier can be seen regularly on KRON-TV. Got a tip? Call them at (415) 777-8815 or drop them an e-mail at matierandross@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx=20 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright 2003 SF Chronicle