SF Homeless Project AcCOUNTability: March 2017
City Adds Shelter Beds
District 9 Supervisor Hillary Ronan is pushing to open a 100-plus bed Navigation Center near the corner of South Van Ness Avenue and Cesar Chavez Street this month. At two public meetings to discuss the facility, Mission District residents expressed concerns that it’d attract more homeless people to the neighborhood, that the community already had… Keep Reading
Board of Regents Approves UCSF Center in Dogpatch
Last month, the University of California Board of Regents Finance and Capital Strategies Committee unanimously approved UC San Francisco’s proposed Child, Teen and Family Center, to be located at 2130 Third Street. The decision followed an endorsement by the Board of Regents Health Services Committee in April. The Board of Regents approval encompassed certification of… Keep Reading
What’s in a Name: Potrero Hill’s Parks and Schools
Enola D. Maxwell, which used to be the name of a middle school campus, continues as the moniker of the 655 De Haro Street San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) facility. The site most recently was home to a comprehensive high school, International Studies Academy, which closed in 2016 due to low enrollment. SFUSD now… Keep Reading
Six Generations Make Potrero Hill Home
It’s rare for a single family line to reside in the same home for more than century. It’s even more unusual for such continual occupancy to occur in the City and County of San Francisco, which was founded less than 300 years ago. Yet members of the Gallagher-McCarthy-Bray family have resided at 567-569 Mississippi Street… Keep Reading
Carolina and 20th Streets Stairway Commemorated as “Jack Balestreri Way”
Last April, a plaque was installed to officially commemorate the Carolina and 20th streets stairway as “Jack Balestreri Way,” after the man who built them. The late Jack Balestreri was the last known living laborer to have worked on erecting the Golden Gate Bridge when he died in 2012 at the age of 95. Starting… Keep Reading
Pier 70 Shipyard Closes
After 150 years of continuous operation, the shipyard at Pier 70 shut down last month. The closure came less than a year after BAE Systems transferred the repair facility to Puglia Engineering. Roughly 250 workers were laid off. The Port is looking for a new operator. Keep Reading
A Day in Dogpatch, Potrero Hill, and Environs – June 2017
At the start of John Cheever’s classic short story “The Swimmer” the main character is lounging in the backyard of a friend’s home in upper-middle-class suburbia, where everyone has a swimming pool. He thinks wistfully of his own house and family, eight miles away. Suddenly, it occurs to him that “he could reach his home… Keep Reading
Speakeasy to Continue
Speakeasy, a pioneer in the emergence of the Bay Area microbrewery scene, purveyors of Prohibition Ale and Big Daddy IPA, was saved from closing its doors last month when it was purchased by Hunters Point Brewery, a new company owned by Oakland businessman Ces Butner. The 20-year old beer manufacturer, located at 1195 Evans Avenue,… Keep Reading
Ninth Annual Peace March
The ninth annual Peace March, coordinated by the Equal Opportunity Council of Potrero Hill, was held last month. Daniel Webster, Starr King, and Live Oak elementary schools participated in the march, which culminated in class performances, community singing, and chants around peace. All photos: View Photographer Keep Reading
Community Calendar: June 2017
Now through September Photography: Landscapes Tom Reed’s black and white images give a bow to Zen, a nod to Ansel Adams, and an open heart to the Earth’s intense natural beauty. The exhibit features images from Northern California, as well as from Reed’s award-winning book, The Granite Avatars of Patagonia. Moshi Moshi, 2092 Third Street. Monday through… Keep Reading
Gold, Chapter Twenty-Two
“You guys both look like shit,” said Stan. “Up late at the bicycle polo tournament? Playing four square at House of Air?” “Not exactly,” said Stephanie, holding her double expresso close to her mouth. “The polo tourney was last week,” croaked Jordan, who was half sprawled on the conference table his head resting on an… Keep Reading
Four New Faces Elected to Green Benefits District Board
Voters in Dogpatch and Potrero Hill’s Northwest blocks elected four new members, and re-elected three incumbents, to the Green Benefit District (GBD) board last month. The first of its kind in California, GBD it is modeled on Commercial Benefit Districts, a popular undertaking in San Francisco in which business owners in a commercial corridor agree… Keep Reading
Double-Digit Rate Hike Proposed for Garbage Collection
Last February, Recology, the private company that provides the City with garbage services, applied for a rate increase from the San Francisco Department of Public Works. Recology’s San Francisco operations consist of collectors Recology Golden Gate and Recology Sunset Scavenger, and refuse processer Recology San Francisco. The City has the authority to determine the residential… Keep Reading
Mega-Developments Southside Challenge Public Infrastructure
A long stretch of underutilized land on San Francisco’s southeastern Bayfront is slated for massive mixed-use development in the coming years. With a shortage of affordable housing, and a lust for economic growth, the City earmarked the Southside neighborhoods, including the Bayfront, for increased residential development when it adopted the Eastern Neighborhoods Plan in 2008.… Keep Reading
Letters
Editor, In response to “City Budget May Face Cliff,” in the March View, it’s unfortunate that future generations, unable to vote today, will bear the costs of many enacted pension programs, entitlements and boondoggle projects, requiring them to pay higher taxes and work later into their lives to pay for these promises. It’s the inmates… Keep Reading
Letters to the Editor
I’m not a conspiracy theorist, nor do I know what that term means. But I’ve become increasingly aware that letters to the editor in liberal, East Coast newspapers are predominantly anti-President Donald Trump. To that, I say: sad, horrible, unfair. I also ask two key questions: Are the liberal, East Coast newspapers not receiving letters… Keep Reading
Sound of Silence
“I haven’t spoken to her in twenty-two years, and I don’t intend to start now,” my Mother proclaimed, scrubbing at the already clean counter to emphasize her point. “But Mom, it’s a silent retreat. You won’t be talking to her. In fact, you’ll be encouraged not to,” I said to the back of her head,… Keep Reading
Short Cuts
District 10 in Play Last month, Shamann Walton, a City native and San Francisco Board of Education president, announced his candidacy for District 10 Supervisor in the November 2018 election. “I’ve spent my entire career fighting to improve our southeastern neighborhoods, and I’m running for District 10 Supervisor to make sure City Hall addresses the… Keep Reading
Unofficial Historic Buildings Indentified in Dogpatch
The Dogpatch Historic District was officially designated by the San Francisco Planning Department in 2003, becoming the City’s eleventh such quarter. Roughly located between Indiana and Third; 18th and Tubbs streets, it consists of residential, industrial and commercial buildings, the oldest of which was built in 1870. Historic districts impose stringent design guidelines for new… Keep Reading
Large Mixed-Use Project Delayed by Litigation
Last summer, Save the Hill and Grow Potrero Responsibly filed a lawsuit against the City and County of San Francisco challenging the environmental review process for a large mixed-use development located on 3.5 acres, 901 16th Street and 1200 17th Street. The project had been approved by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in a… Keep Reading
Wagly Pulls Out of Potrero Hill
In July, 2016, The Potrero View reported that Washington-based pet care startup, Wagly, planned to launch a “comprehensive” animal boarding facility, grooming service, and veterinary clinic in Potrero Hill. The business was expected to open later that summer at 1400 17th Street. By autumn, anticipated renovations at the gutted building, previously occupied by California Caster,… Keep Reading
A Day in Dogpatch, Potrero Hill, and Environs – May 2017
Fourteen years after the University of California, San Francisco built its high-technology research campus on an abandoned Southern Pacific railyard in Mission Bay, much of the surrounding area still feels pretty sterile, lacking a sense of organic human habitation that comes with a diversified, multiuse, street life of restaurants and shops. That’s one reason why… Keep Reading
New App Helps Dogpatch Residents Report Neighborhood Problems
In March, a new website, Dogpatch Solutions Tracker, launched at https://dogpatch.dillilabs.com. A community service aiming to improve neighborhood safety and cleanliness, the site features a digital map application where registered users can pinpoint such concerns as potholes, graffiti, trash, and vandalism in Dogpatch and Potrero Hill. Reporting a problem, however, is only the first step.… Keep Reading
Winter’s Gamble
One may be surprised to find out that the winter can be disheartening in San Francisco. Though not nearly as cold as other places, we are not always prepared with big warm coats for the winds. There can also be a lot of rain. Out by the sea there is more fog, more cold, and… Keep Reading