Bayview Bluster After First Lady Blows Through
Whirlwind visit by Michelle Obama chaps neighbors
By JACKSON WEST
Updated 2:30 PM PST, Wed, Jun 24, 2009
It's not every day you get to see a living legend.
"The people in the neighborhood had to climb fences to even get a look at what was going on," San Francisco Supervisor Sophie Maxwell told the San Francisco Chronicle about yesterday's visit from First Lady Michelle Obama.
Mrs. Obama was in town to tout a new playground built on the grounds of a neighborhood school in San Francisco's Bayview.
But at issue was the lack of notification -- few in the neighborhood knew of the impending visit until just last weekend.
Maxwell was peeved that Obama, and California first lady Maria Shriver were supposed to be "doing something for the neighborhood," but no one bothered to inform the locals.
Other politicians were less critical. San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, who's running for governor and visits the Bayview whenever there's a primo photo opportunity, was happy to tail Obama.
And Maxwell wasn't alone in criticizing the trip. As the San Francisco Examiner pointed out yesterday, San Francisco can hardly afford to maintain the other structures donated by non-profits and built by volunteers.
Jackson West notes that the original Potemkin Village was built to pleasure bureaucrats, not provide for the plebes.
First Published: Jun 24, 2009 1:53 PM PST
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