San Francisco's Mayor Farrell on his last days in office

SAN FRANCISCO (KTVU) - Some days it seems San Francisco Mayor Mark Farrell is trying to fit a four year term into his six months in office. The Mayor said he knew when he was sworn in, he'd have limited time to lead the city.

"The idea was from my perspective to be as active as possible," said Farrell. "Lead as the mayor of San Francisco. Because at the end of the day, not that many people have an opportunity to do this job."

While he's only served as mayor for a little more than four months, he was elected supervisor to District 2  in 2010.

Mayor Ed Lee's unexpected death led to a series of twists and turns including a controversial vote by the Board of Supervisors that eventually landed Farrell in the mayors office.

Farrell says he often thinks about how Ed Lee led the city-- but had to forge his own path.  

"I think style is a lot different between the two of us. I think Mayor Lee did a great job building consensus in our city around a number of issues-- at times people begged for a lot more leadership," said Farrell.

Farrell says he knew coming into office in January with an election in June meant a tight timeline. He has worked with the police chief on a campaign to combat auto burglaries and has seen the numbers decrease.

In his time in office the city took heat for unhygienic conditions and for open drug use; issues he says he worked to resolve. Pledging $13 million over the next two years to keep the city clean.

Farrell says he worked at a fast pace to show how much could be accomplished in a short time. "This is what residents of San Francisco will expect now," said Farrell. "That will be great for our city long term."

With a major election on the line, Farrell has not endorsed any candidate and is not saying how he intends to vote.

He does say he's talked to the major candidates and has already set up transition offices for the new mayor inside City Hall.

While he says he is already looking forward to more time with his family, he does say leaving City Hall will be bittersweet.

"I think I've been a lot more effective in the executive position as the mayor in spite of the successes we had on the Board of Supervisors. These six months we've been able to do a ton for the city of San Francisco," said Farrell.

Mayor Farrell says the incoming mayor will likely be sworn in sometime around July 11th, he says he is looking forward to working with his successor in what will be a short transition period.

While Farrell is not running for public office now, he didn't rule out another run someday down the road.