October 2009Thoughts on a Sunny Sunday MorningBy Ed LortzAs I sit in the fresh air enjoying the beautiful Potrero weather in my 24th year here, I’m mulling over the latest annoying news. As I try to ignore the out-of-town hog riders, I’m thinking about the loss of my favorite Hill restaurant to a greedy, arrogant landlord, the same one who ran off my favorite breakfast place, and who pressured the bar in his building to the point where they had to cater to noisy late night kids from out of the neighborhood to help pay the rent. I’ve had the same tenant for 12 years in my downstairs unit. Maybe I’m a nice landlord, but the actions of some greedy arrogant landlords – GALs for short – really annoy me, so very un-San Francisco and definitely un-Potrero Hill. I’m not sure what I can do except boycott whatever goes into Eliza’s space. My boycott of the previous GAL who ran off my favorite deli seems to have had some affect; they closed last month. I’ll be sorry to lose Eliza’s and the staff with whom we have laughed and chatted for 15 years, all of whom seem resigned to unemployment. Many of them I remember from when the place opened. That place was the best place for simple top-value dining. But life goes on. Maybe GAL’s aren’t un-San Francisco. Maybe much of San Francisco has become greedy, arrogant, and inconsiderate in the almost 40 years I’ve lived here, whether bicyclists, pedestrians, drivers, or City supervisors. My house on the Hill is the longest I’ve ever lived anywhere by at least double, including the house in which I grew up. Since my arrival on the Hill, much, really almost everything, has changed, from schools to the influx of young parents, to the change of many restaurants, except Goat Hill, Farleys, and Blooms. Even Thai BBQ is gone. Oh yeah, and real estate prices have changed too. I guess, at 65 years old, I’ll learn to live with change, trying my best to be cheerful no matter what happens, to affect things from building heights to helicopters, and recycling the hell out of every piece of trash I can. Too bad I can’t recycle GALs in the trash can. We can all push our politicians to remove the Proposition 13 protection for commercial buildings, maybe providing protection to neighborhood districts in the process. Maybe we can make this GAL the poster boy, like Sangiacomo was the poster boy for rent control. . |
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