The City passes a budget with little quarreling, Bay Area bridges are in better shape than most of the country’s bridges, and the streets become a little bit cleaner.

Balancing act

1|San Francisco leaders approve balanced budget.

The details: Compared with years past — and in stark contrast to the state — San Francisco city leaders passed a balanced budget with relatively little grandstanding and stonewalling. Although Mayor Gavin Newsom warned that some cuts are still ahead — and The City has a structural deficit that needs to be tackled — perhaps a more cooperative spirit can be brought into the new fiscal year.

Commuter relief

2| City poised to pass law to boost public-transit ridership.

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The details: Businesses would be required to participate in a pretax program to help employees pay for public-transit programs, provide transit passes or carpool reimbursement, or provide employee shuttle service under legislation expected to be approved by the Board of Supervisors. While most business mandates have been met with opposition, this environmental-friendly legislation has enough options — as well as potential financial benefits for both employer and employee — to ensure its smooth passage.

Winds of change

3| City leaders, entrepreneurs encourage wind power.

The details: With a federal Energy Department report saying that the United States could create a system that would allow wind to provide 20 percent of the nation’s electricity by 2030, it’s smart that San Francisco leaders are encouraging development of this renewable energy source. A recent directive by Newsom aims to expedite the permitting process for the turbines, which the entrepreneurs who are setting up shop in The City say will help more residents and businesses take advantage of this green technology.

Send homeless hiking

4| Suggestion to add a path in Corona Heights Park.

The details: The Recreation and Park Department is weighing whether a trail through the park is feasible. A neighborhood group says the path would add access to the areas of the park where the homeless set up camp, which could discourage transients from setting up encampments.

Bridge retrofits

5| Previous bridge repairs have left spans in good shape.

The details: Many bridges in the Bay Area may seem to be under construction all of the time (think Bay Bridge), but those repairs have left the region’s bridges in better shape than their counterparts in other areas of the country, according to a study released this week. Construction mess seems a small price to pay for safety.

Slimming food options

6| Los Angeles puts moratorium on fast-food outlets.

The details: The City Council unanimously approved a delay on the building of any new fast-food restaurants in an impoverished swath of the city that already has a proliferation of the eateries and an above-average rate of obesity. That might top banning chain stores in some neighborhoods.

Cleaner streets

7| Study finds there is less litter on the ground.

The details: Last year, Newsom pledged to reduce litter on the streets of The City by 50 percent during the next five years. A study released Thursday found that the amount of trash on the streets had indeed been reduced by 19 percent. While this is a good step forward, even Newsom said there is still more work to be done.

Lawmaker faces slammer

8| Sen. Ted Stevens, R-Ala., indicted on felony charges.

The details: It is alleged that Stevens, who is the longest-serving Republican senator, concealed more than a quarter-million dollars in house renovations and gifts from a powerful oil contractor that lobbied him for government aid. Any corruption in government cannot be tolerated.

Water works

9| Agency to bury water pipe.

The details: The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission approved an $86 million project to bury a mile of pipeline as deep as 200 feet under San Mateo County’s Polhemus Road — a depth at which seismic specialists say the new 8-foot concrete pipe will be safe from earthquakes and landslides. The current pipe — which carries fresh water to area residents — is only about four feet underground and has been threatened in the past by storm-related landslides. Infrastructure, however costly, should not be put off in hopes that a threatened someday never comes.

Lumber land sold

10| Gap founders’ company takes over bankrupt lumber firm.

The details: Pacific Lumber Co., which owns 210,000 acres of land in Humboldt County, was taken over by Mendocino Redwood Co., a company owned by Don and Doris Fisher. Palco had been criticized for its logging practices during the past two decades. “It’s the right outcome,” said Paul Mason, deputy director of Sierra Club California. “The Mendocino Redwood Company has a good track record of working on badly depleted lands. ... Frankly, everyone’s tired of fighting over unreasonable logging proposals.”