European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - April 20, 1968, Darmstadt, Hesse Stripes daily Magazine a mayor Joseph i. Alioto with an open door policy discusses problems ranging from strikes to hippie dancing in his office in san Francisco s City Hall. By Harold v. Streeter a staff writer a millionaire who talks wit equal ease to hippies and president Johnson is setting a dizzy Pace As san Francisco s new l. Alioto 52, a sicilian Fisher Man s son who made his Fortune As a antitrust lawyer has been in office Only since Jan. 8. In that Short time he settled the seven week old sym phony orchestra strike at an All night session in his Home. He played a key role in ending a 54-Day newspaper strike first such in the City s history. He waded into what seemed a Hope less mess after one of two Long feuding teacher groups struck and closed Down the City schools. Thence got the disputants into negotiations with mediators and the school reopened. He set up a youth committee to pro vide troubled neighbourhoods with Quick Access to him and said Cometo me with your problems before you take them to the he named or. Washington Garner to the police commission the first negro Ever placed there. He defended police for forcibly Clear ing hippies from a blocked Street intersection then met with hippies face to face on How to arrange future festivals. He met in the White House with pres ident Johnson and separately with Robert Weaver the Secretary of housing and Urban development Over a proposed multimillion Dollar Urban redevelopment program in Sanfrancisco. He then hurried Home and broke along stalemate by getting the Board of supervisors to approve 10-1 a plan promising $53 million in Federal funds. He reached agreement with such old be Craft unions As the plumbers and electricians to set up apprenticeship programs for minority persons and give them jobs. Into ins Plush offices in the imposing domed City full. Negroes have come personally to present their prob lems members of the Mission rebels and the negro youths for political action have conferred with him. His prodding of business and lab Runions have produced jobs for negroes he lined up three in his own Law office and he has persuaded labor unions to invest pension funds in new ghetto hous ing. This Winter the Long haired beaded unorthodox disciples of flaunting the establishment blocked a Street inter Section in the Haight Asbury District. They ignored police orders to Clear used Force including for the first time the spraying of Mace chemical irritant. Bottles were thrown from windows at police. A policeman Seyes were Cut. About 90 arrests were made. Hippies and their supporters charged police went on television and declared dissent will be tolerated Vio Lence will not he did t Stop there. He sent an aide Michael Mccone into the streets of Haight Asbury to talk personally with hippies. It k is f . He upshot was that the City Sani tation department supplied 50 brooms the hippies cleaned up the streets. The next sunday police closed off a five Block sector and the hippies had they danced to the music of was no violence. Since then hippie delegations have approached the mayor with plans for music and Art will be arranged the mayor assured. Alioto whose face beams All the eagerness of a boy scout intent on win Ning his next Merit badge keeps hop Ping onto new latest he said is an exciting Model City concept for the Mission Are of san Francisco the stress is on re habilitation of some Beautiful old Vic Torian architecture rehabilitation rather than steamroller now he has most of the More than 2 million people in the san fran Cisco Bay area talking about him but Alioto traded Broom session for dancing in the streets by the hippies. Not All complimentary. Alioto is push ing hard for a one per cent tax on the salaries of commuters to help pay for such protective services for them As fire and has touched off angry threats of retaliation and charges of unconstitutional taxation without representation. But the Resolute mayor is standing says any of the thousands who work in the City but live outside should also saturday april 20, 1968 the stars and stripes work outside if they Don t want to pay the tax. His immediate predecessor former congressman John f. Shelley had to quit because the Job was too arduous for his health. How does Alioto manage i play Golf on weekends with my five boys and girl. And i walk a Home is close by the grounds of the Presidio. I walk there often at Page u
