Volume XXXIX, No. 4
May 2015
THE NOE VALLEY VOICE Judges Share More Than a Love of the Law
There’s Marriage, Their House, The Neighborhood, and Jerry By Matthew S. Bajko
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n his chambers in the California State Building overlooking San Francisco's Civic Center, the presiding justice of the 1st District Court of Appeal's Division One, James M. Humes, administered the oath of office to one of the newest members of the San Francisco Superior Court, Joseph Quinn, in a private ceremony in early April. Having sworn to uphold the constitutions of California and the United States, Quinn three days later reported to Department 318 at the courthouse on McAllister Street, to start presiding over civil trials and misdemeanor cases. His first day on the bench, April 13, is believed to mark only the second time in the state's history that both members of a same-sex couple were concurrently serving as judges. Quinn and Humes, Noe CONTINUED ON PAGE 11
Marriage Equality. After his recent appointment by Governor Jerry Brown to the San Francisco Superior Court, Joe Quinn (right) now shares the title of judge with his husband of seven years, Jim Humes. Humes made history in 2012, when Brown named him as the first openly gay judge to serve on an appellate court in California. The couple also share a home on the Sanchez Street hill. Photo by Beverly Tharp
Former ‘Shake Shack’ Stirs Passionate Debate
Who Stole My Succulents? Drought-Tolerant Plants a Target for Thieves By Corrie M. Anders
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he plant thief came sometime during the night. It wasn’t until the next morning, as she was leaving her home for work, that Rachel Rassen noticed the empty space in her front-yard garden. Someone had rifled through her bed of succulents, dug out a prized specimen, and escaped under cover of darkness. It was the second time in as many weeks that Rassen’s succulent garden had been assaulted. “I was devastated and felt violated,”
the Castro Street resident said after the burglary in early April. “These are plants that I’ve had out there for 20 years with no problems. I think there are professionals going around and selling them,” said Rassen. Plant thefts are nothing new in Noe Valley. They have happened off and on for decades. But drought conditions over the last four years—and the growing popularity of drought-resistant plants—may have changed the nature of the raids. Now, instead of say rose bushes, thieves are targeting succulents—the kind of thick fleshy plants that store water in their
Neighbors Ask New Owner to Spare 109-Year-Old Cottage By Matthew S. Bajko
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Hidden Past. You’d never know it, but the little cottage at 369 Valley St. was built from two shacks used to house refugees after the 1906 earthquake. Photo by Art Bodner
he small cottage at 369 Valley St. appears of little consequence at first glance. Yet the unassuming structure belies its ties to San Francisco history. It is one of the last remaining earthquake shacks built to house refugees made homeless by the disastrous 1906 Earthquake and Fire. More than a century later, only about two dozen of the 5,610 temporary cottages remain standing. The original cottages were built in three sizes and featured cedar-shingled CONTINUED ON PAGE 13
Noe Docs Say Vaccinate, but Don’t Alienate Parents Who Are Wary of Shots Need Time, Not Pressure By Liz Highleyman
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The Colors of Our Days are captured by Shalom Flash as he paints plein air in the streets of Noe Valley. For the full story on our visitor from Israel, see page 9. Photo by Art Bodner
oe Valley does not appear to be a hotbed of vaccine refusal, but there is some difference of opinion about the timing of childhood vaccinations and the best way to respond to parents who might not comply with legal requirements, according to an informal sampling of neighborhood medical providers. “We’re science-based and pro-vaccine,” said Judy Kivowitz, RN, the longtime advice nurse at Noe Valley Pediatrics on 24th Street. “We encourage all
patients to be vaccinated, but if a parent is wary, rather than kicking them out we do our best to have a dialogue and ultimately convince them to get [their children] vaccinated.” The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices recommend that children receive more than two dozen doses of vaccines for 14 diseases by age 12. Some vaccines—including measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR), and diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis (DTaP)—are normally combined into single injections, which means fewer shots for kids and CONTINUED ON PAGE 15