Making Change with Art Agnos Former Mayor of San Francisco
The Beyond The Fog Radio team is hard at work recording and editing new episodes for Season 4, releasing in August! In the meantime, we’re revisiting some of our favorite interviews from Seasons 2 and 3. This week, we listen back to our conversation with former Mayor of San Francisco Art Agnos (Season 3 Episode 04) — politician, social worker, and game-changer.
Art Agnos served as Mayor from 1988–1992. During his term, he fought nepotism in both Fire and Police Departments to pave the way for the city’s second African-American Police Chief and first female Fire Chief. He also allowed regular citizens to sit on city commissions, appointed minorities to city positions, and bolstered civilian supervision within the Police Department. However, his biggest contribution was the removal of the Embarcadero Freeway in the aftermath of the 1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake. This decision, while initially unpopular, opened San Francisco’s waterfront to a new audience, and inspired cities from Seattle to Toronto to remove or reconfigure their own elevated freeways.
Though his decision cost him a second term, Agnos doesn’t regret it. The City of San Francisco has only appreciated it more as years have passed, and dedicated its most recent public pier — Pier 14 — to Agnos and his long-lasting contributions. We are so excited to re-release our interview with the incomparable and insightful Art Agnos.
