Potrero View 2018: April

Car Break-Ins Decline Dramatically, Still High

BY MICHAEL IACUESSA

The San Francisco Police Department reported a 31 percent decrease in automobile break-ins from January to February, with the number of year-todate thefts down 15 percent across the City. All 10 police districts experienced fewer incidences.

Municipal officials have been combating an automobile break-in epidemic that’s besieged the City over recent years. In 2017, 31,000 vehicles were broken into, an average of 85 a day, thrice more than seven years ago. Dogpatch had been particularly hard hit. In just one square block centered on Illinois and 22nd streets there were 195 vehicle break-ins last year.

The recent dramatic drop in incidences may have been prompted by changes in the way SFPD approaches vehicle crime. Last fall, Police Chief Bill Scott unveiled a plan for a General Crimes Investigation Unit to deal with burglaries, robberies and bicycle thefts. The unit consists of 35 officers plus 13 civilians in crime analysis positions. Creation of the corps followed disbandment of the Patrol Bureau Task Force,

launched in 2015, which focused primarily on auto burglaries. It made 223 arrests, but failed to stop the increase in incidents. By transferring task force personnel, as well as shrinking the narcotics unit, the Department added more officers to the streets to focus on deterrence.

In February, District Attorney George Gascón requested that an additional $1 million be included in his office’s fiscal year 2018 budget to create an auto burglary task force, which would focus primarily on serial criminals. After two years of study, a 2016 Grand Jury, Auto Burglary in San Francisco, determined that street gangs were behind up to 80 percent of San Francisco’s car burglaries. Gascón also launched a vehicle theft tip line and reposted the DA Office’s private camera registry on its website, which allows citizens to list their security cameras to assist in investigations.

The task force, which would include new hires, would become part of the Crime Strategies Unit (CSU), created by Gascón in 2014. The CSU is comprised of investigators, prosecutors and analysts who take a data-driven

Chinese Ban Forces San Francisco’s Plastics Elsewhere, with Higher Garbage Prices Likely

BY MICHAEL IACUESSA

Most of the 380 million metric tons of plastic created each year worldwide winds up in landfills or the natural environment. Despite California being one of the more successful states at recycling, San Francisco Bay isn’t spared. In 2016, samples taken from the Bay indicated it has more plastic pollution be weight than any other water body in the United States.

Compounding the issue, municipalities, including San Francisco, are scrambling to find ways to dispose of the limited amount of plastic that does get recycled. Earlier this year, China, once the biggest importer of recycled plastic from America, jolted the waste collection industry by halting imports of bales that contained more than one percent of impurities; non-plastic elements that survive the recycling process and lower plastic quality. In effect, China’s policy serves as a ban

on plastic imports. Recology, which handles San Francisco’s garbage, and has been shipping to China for decades, is only able to reach four to five percent impurities, considered high quality compared with much of the world.

Plastic bales at Recology’s Pier 96 location have been backing up, the company reports, particularly since China’s ban went into effect the same time trash flow increased over the holidays. According to the refuse company, “it would be inaccurate to characterize this as storage. It is short-term staging, and the stack is getting smaller daily as we move material.”

Some of the bales are being sold to other Southeast Asia and U.S. locations. However, with the largest buyer out of the market, supply is building and prices are dropping. Recology admitted that transportation costs to ship to other countries can be higher,

approach to addressing chronic crime. If the task force is approved by the Board of Supervisors and Mayor, Gascón expects auto burglaries to drop by another 20 percent, as a result of prosecuting individuals committing most of the offenses and tying them to multiple cases. CSU expansion was recommended by the Grand Jury after

interviewing police, prosecutors and outside experts.

Gascón co-sponsored a bill introduced by Senator Scott Wiener in the California State Senate to close a legal loophole they say has curbed prosecutions. Last year, of the miniscule 481

BREAK-INS continues on page 12

Potrero Boosters President Vying for District 10 Board of Supervisors Seat

BY MICHAEL IACUESSA

“I think District 10 is the future of San Francisco,” said supervisorial candidate J.R. Eppler. “District 10 will see the most change over the course of the next decade than other parts of the City. It is the place where all of the problems the City is currently experiencing will either be exacerbated or come to a better resolution.”

The 38-year old Eppler is running for office for the first time, though he’s been involved in several political campaigns, including knocking on doors in Nevada for Barack Obama in 2008, volunteering for Dennis Herrera’s 2011 mayoral effort, and serving as outreach coordinator for his now rival Tony Kelly in the 2014 Board of Supervisors election. He’s been a civic presence since moving to Potrero Hill in 2010, that same year becoming secretary of the Potrero Hill Democratic Club and joining the Potrero Boosters, which he’s served as president for the past five years.

Eppler described himself as a

father, husband, attorney and neighborhood advocate. His wife, Kate, is a librarian at the Main Branch, and is on the board of the Green Benefit District. The couple have a two-anda-half-year-old son, Frank, that Eppler “hopes to be able to keep in the City.”

Eppler is a board member of Friends of Dogpatch Hub, which is trying to establish a community center at the former police station at 2300 Third Street and serves on the steering committee for Gateway to Potrero, which wants to redesign the landscape under Highway 101 between 17th and 18th streets. He’s been on several task forces, including the Railyard Alternative Study, commissioned to examine bringing Caltrain to Downtown; Transportation 2045, looking at future transit options; and the University of California, San Francisco’s Dogpatch Community Task Force, convened to identify measures to mitigate the adverse consequences of that institution’s expansion into the neighborhood.

Reported automobile burglaries in February. IMAGE: Courtesy of crimemapping.com

John B. Anderson

BY STEVEN J. MOSS

Late last year, John B. Anderson died at the age of 95. Anderson, a former Republican congressman from Illinois, unsuccessfully ran for his party’s nomination for the presidency in 1980. When he failed in that quest he launched an independent campaign for the office, ultimately securing almost seven percent of the national vote.

I first encountered Anderson on television, watching him, from my parent’s Palo Alto living room, debate six rivals for the Republican nomination. Each assured the Gun Owners of New Hampshire that they firmly opposed gun control legislation.

“I don’t understand why,” Anderson countered. “When in this country we license people to drive automobiles, what is so wrong about proposing that we license guns to make sure that felons and mental incompetents don’t get ahold of them?”

He was roundly booed.

Anderson had previously told Iowa voters that he favored President Jimmy Carter’s embargo on grain sales to the Soviet Union after it’d invaded Afghanistan. He called for a 50-cents per gallon gasoline tax — when a gallon cost $1.15 — to save energy.

I was smitten. Anderson’s fierce honesty, disciplined approach to public policies, and personal austerity – he presented like a mix between a Methodist priest, one-room school teacher, with a bit of Atticus Finch thrown in – shot through me like a bolt of electricity. I left my parent’s house and returned to the University of California, Berkeley, where I was a freshman, and quickly found, and joined with, the handful of students who were campaigning for Anderson.

My work with the Anderson campaign shaped the rest of my life,

personally and professionally. I created profound bonds and romantic relationships. Some continue to this day, all influenced how I see and act in the world. The ferocity with which I pursued the Anderson crusade set me up for a Washington, D.C. internship with my hometown U.S. Representative, which led to engagements with the gun control and anti-nuclear movements, and, ultimately, a graduate degree, and career, in public policy.

As my first political love, Anderson also set me up for a lifetime of disappointment, as I tried repeatedly to recreate that initial passion. I found advocacy groups to be intellectually shallow and overly strident, shadows of Anderson’s deeper thoughtfulness. And anyways, I was impatient: almost forty years later guns may only now be on the cusp of being somewhat better controlled, after more than one million firearm-related deaths, a solid chunk at schools. Nuclear weapons have reemerged as legitimate war tools.

Thirsty for intelligent debate, after graduate school I tried to convince myself that taking any side of a policy issue was legitimate, so long as the underlying arguments advancing it were intellectually honest. It was a commitment to a kind of “love the one you’re with” model, embedded in the legal adage that everyone deserves a proper defense. The approach enabled me to work for Ronald Reagan’s White House, and later as a consultant for the oil and chemical industries, experiences I ultimately rejected as lacking integrity in “Confessions of an Expert Witness,” an article I wrote for Legal Affairs magazine. While everyone may deserve a proper defense, few people

PUBLISHER'S VIEW continues on page 15

Homeless Sheltered

According to the San Francisco Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing, the Central Waterfront Navigation Center has housed 147 guests since it opened last spring, 28 of whom have been placed in permanent housing. Currently, the facility has 52 guests and 10 vacant beds. DHSH’s Randy Quesada said that complete “dashboards” on Navigation Centers, originally promised to be delivered by the Department by the end of last year, will be published regularly starting in May.

Sign of the Times

A recent Nextdoor post: “My name is Uzuri Pease-Greene and I am running for supervisor of District 10. I wanted to let you know that starting next week I will be walking around and knocking on doors. I wanted to put this out there because people have been nervous with just random people coming to their door and trying to run scams. I would ask that if anyone comes to your door asking for money for my campaign, that you do not give it to them especially if they insist on cash.” It’s generally good advice not to give politicians cash, though the notion that a stranger’s knock on the door is cause for alarm is unfortunate…Speaking of signs, the 18th and Pennsylvania intersection is now a four-way stop.

Annoying Dancing Street Lights

According to Southern Heights resident Edward Miller, two light-

emitting diode streetlamps located at the intersection of De Haro and Southern Heights are blinking rapidly at night, disturbing neighbors’ ability to catch some winks. Miller surmises that the light disco is due to asynchronous interaction between the two lamps’ daylight sensors: each lantern, when lighting up at night, turns the other lamp off; when it goes off, thinking it’s daytime, the first one goes on.  They dance like that forever; it’s not pretty. Bright lights flashing rapidly have been known to trigger epileptic shocks and disrupt sleep for anyone subjected to the irritating phenomenon.

Pig in the Dog

Wooly Pig Café is opening at the Dogpatch Café’s former location, 2295 Third Street. According to owner Lieng Souryavong, the move from his current Inner Sunset spot “was a very difficult decision that we had to make.” State records indicate that the Third and 20th streets space has a Type 41 liquor license, which permits beer and wine sales.

Robot Taxis

Last month, Uber’s Advanced Technologies Group, which was previously scattered around San Francisco, moved into a newly renovated 130,000-square-foot space at Pier 70, featuring exposed brick walls and huge windows. Other Pier 70 tenants include Restoration Hardware; Tea Collection, a children’s clothing maker; Obscura Digital, a visual and film studio; and Gusto, which handles employees benefits for small businesses.

Powerhouse

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The San Francisco Recreation and Park Department announced last month groundbreaking of the $14 million Geneva Car Barn and Powerhouse renovation.  The edifice consists of two adjoining structures: a two-story office building with approximately 13,000 square feet of space, “Car Barn;” and a single-story, roughly 3,000 square feet, “Powerhouse”.  The facelift will focus on the Powerhouse, with seismic upgrades, modern utility systems installation, historic restora-

SHORT CUTS continues on page 15

Construction of 1601 Mariposa Continues

BY JESSICA ZIMMER

This month, concrete pours and site deliveries will limit street parking near the 1601 Mariposa Street development site. Related California’s construction contractor, Nibbi Brothers, is in the process of installing foundation elements and underground plumbing, as well as concrete floors, walls, columns, and elevated decks. In addition, demolition of the existing concrete wall on 18th and Arkansas streets will be completed, and subcontractors will erect two cranes to start vertical wood framing construction on Carolina Street.

1601 Mariposa is a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Silver-certified development, with 299 one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments. The project is sited on the former location of the MacKenzie Warehouse, an automobile parts store. David Baker Architects is the architect; its landscape architect, Fletcher Studio, is also working on the redesign of nearby Jackson Park.

Earlier this year, Related California and the Potrero Boosters cohosted a community meeting at the Jackson Park clubhouse to showcase changes to 1601 Mariposa’s design, and answer questions about construction and cleanup. Among the biggest modifications community activists secured was a reduction in the number of units, from

320 to 299; and provision of 20 percent onsite affordable housing, an increase from the municipally-required 14.4 percent.

Community feedback also served to enlarge the development’s setback from Live Oak School, from 10 feet to about 40 feet. The project will now have a publicly accessible east-west passageway, in addition to a northsouth passage, dedicated Production, Distribution, and Repair space, and an additional garage entrance. Related has committed to paying to install a traffic signal at the intersection of Mariposa and Pennsylvania streets; and pledged $2 million to Friends of Jackson Park (FOJP) for park improvements.

Alison Heath, a leader of the nonprofit organization, Grow Potrero Responsibly (GPR), is pleased with the changes. “The final building design, which was presented at the recent community meeting, is vastly improved since the project was at the Planning Commission,” she said. “The Planning Department and Related did a good job responding to the Planning Commission’s request that the buildings be better differentiated. They’ve eliminated all stucco and replaced exterior finishes with better quality materials, which results in a considerably less “cookie cutter” appearance.

I am particularly pleased that David Fletcher’s landscape design reflects neighborhood requests for expansion

Editor,

Letters to the Editor

As a parent who is participating this year in the San Francisco Unified School District lottery, I appreciated your article “Test Scores Don’t Always Determine a School’s Popularity,” in the February issue. There was a confusing point late in the story, though: in a paragraph discussing Transitional Kindergarten programs, the author ends with the sentence “Pre-kindergarten requires tuition or subsidized care to attend.” This sentence is true for Pre-K, but Transitional Kindergarten is a completely different program from Pre-K, and TK programs are free to attend.

Loring Pfeiffer

Shotwell Street

of the midblock passageway entrance on Mariposa into a plaza-like space, and a final design which includes gathering areas and play spaces.”

“It’s much more open and more connected to the existing neighborhood,” said J.R. Eppler, Boosters president and a District 10 Supervisor candidate. “It’s much more inviting. Related is doing a good job of reaching out to the neighborhood to determine what retail and other businesses should be in the space. It has been designed in a way that people in the community will have access to the project’s open and community space.”

“They made great upgrades to the materials to be used, as well as the design,” echoed Jude Deckenbach, executive director of FOJP. “I was really impressed. Fletcher Studio has created a green, vibrant, walk-through north-south passageway. The opening on the north end will line up with the new opening to Jackson Park.”

Soil removal work, which began in February, and construction activities have engendered pollution concerns. “I have heard multiple complaints from nearby residents and business owners that General Contractor Nibbi has not been following proper procedures mitigating and removing hazardous materials,” said Heath. “There have been issues with lead-contaminated fugitive dust on 18th Street, trucks not properly cleaned as they are leaving the site and trucks not following designated truck routes. In combination with two other projects with contaminated soil, 1301 16th Street and 88 Arkansas Street, the air quality around Jackson Park has noticeably deteriorated. Thanks to diligence on the part of several neighbors, many of these issues are now being addressed. The community meeting co-hosted by the Potrero Boosters and Related was a very positive step

MARIPOSA continues on page 15

Bottle Bill Battle Continues as Good Life Grocery Threatened with Steep Fines

BY JACOB BOURNE

Over the past three years, the View has reported on The Good Life Grocery’s efforts to comply with the State’s “Bottle Bill,” the California Beverage Container Recycling and Litter Reduction Act, or CalRecycle, passed in 1986. Kayren Hudiburgh, co-owner of the store, which has locations on 20th Street and in Bernal Heights, thought the state would waive a $100 a day fine for not providing onsite bottle and can redemption services when a recycling center opened near the neighborhood last summer, fulfilling the requirement to have a redemption option in each of the City’s 58 “convenience zones.”

Under the Beverage Container Recycling Act, San Francisco is divided into convenience zones that must be “served” by a recycling center within a half-mile radius. If a zone is “unserved” for 60 days, beverage retailers either have to function as a redemption center or pay fines. Our Planet Recycling, LLC, whose main center is located at 531 Bayshore Boulevard, had opened a smaller outfit at 250 13th Street, that subsequently closed in a matter of months.

“It was financially difficult,” said Ors Csaszar, owner of Our Planet Recycling. “People were using the site, and there was more and more traffic every day, but we couldn’t keep up with payroll.”

An Our Planet Recycling employee explained that the 13th Street location didn’t have the necessary client base, and was dependent on subsidy payments from CalRecycle, known as “handling fees.” CalRecycle made disbursements, but the monies didn’t arrive soon enough to prevent the center from closing. Csaszar hopes that efforts by state and local agencies will result in financial assistance sufficient to reopen and maintain the 13th Street center. Last August, Csaszar told the

San Francisco Chronicle that it’s difficult to keep both his Bayview and South of Market recycling businesses up and running.

Kelly McBee, policy analyst at Californians Against Waste, said that cheap oil prices have made plastics manufacturing inexpensive, contributing to a decline in scrap value. The worth of recycled materials has also dropped as a result of changes in glass and metal container manufacturing practices, and due to Chinese restrictions on solid waste imports.

The decline in scrap prices has been a blow to the financial solvency of recycling centers, with 1,000 closing in California since 2013. In response, the state issued an emergency regulatory action last fall to “establish fixed reasonable financial returns for urban and rural recycling centers for the 2018 calendar year.” The timing was too late to save Our Planet Recycling’s 13th Street location.

According to Californians Against Waste, the Bottle Bill legislation has been one of North America’s most successful recycling and pollution reduction programs, with 362 billion beverage containers recycled since 1987. However, McBee commented that the law has become outdated and burdensome to local grocers. The closing of recycling centers has also negatively impacted homeless individuals, who had depended on income from cashing in bottles. Californians Against Waste reported that the state’s container recycling rate has dropped below 80 percent for the first time since 2008, equivalent to 1.7 million containers winding up in landfills or as litterpollution daily.

McBee cited the 13th Street center’s opening as “a big deal;” its existence had caused a 10 percent jump in San Francisco’s convenience zones served by a beverage container recycling center. Although dismayed

by the closure, McBee is hopeful about recently passed Senate Bill 458, introduced by Senator Scott Weiner, which mandates that mobile recycling centers be deployed to bring recycling services to underserved areas across the state, including in San Francisco. CalRecycle is currently working on implementing the program. An Informal Rulemaking Stakeholder Workshop: SB 458 Pilot Projects Emergency Regulations, was held last month to discuss operational issues. McBee also mentioned the possibility of new legislation being introduced shortly to help “mom and pop” stores with Bottle Bill requirements.

According to Anna Avoyan, district representative for Senator Weiner, there are 3,000 to 4,000 stores in California that are in a situation similar to The Good Life Grocery, lacking the capacity to serve as a redemption center and struggling to afford the fines. She said that CalRecycle is adamant that the penalties levied on these grocers are valid, and that there’s no legal basis to alleviate the resulting financial burden. A CalRecycle employee told a View reporter that, “There should be some modifications put in place to look out for the little guys.” An automatic phone message from CalRecycle directed at callers inquiring about Bottle Bill fine invoices states, “We anticipate a large volume of calls related to invoicing.”

In February, Hudiburgh received a past due notice from CalRecycle for $18,100. Last June, Hudiburgh had secured an “Exemption Approved No -

tice” from the agency due to the establishment of Our Planet Recycling’s 13th Street location. However, with closure of the recycling service, Hudiburgh was provided with an “Exemption Revoked Notice” in February, indicating that $3,000 was owed from June 2017, despite the recycling center’s operating at that time. According to a CalRecycle statement, The Good Life Grocery has a 60-day grace period before another notice is sent. CalRecycle operates in accordance with State Administrative Manual 8776.6 and Government Code Section 16580-16586 regarding debt collection.

“Our financial statements show that the Potrero store has not made a profit this fiscal year,” Hudiburgh stated. “We are holding on, but it is a struggle. We pay our bills and taxes on time. Our 20 employees get two bonuses a year in addition to their salaries plus health care and stock ownership. We give back generously to the community; always have. All our expense categories are up. At the end of the month we just do not have an extra $3,000 to pay CalRecycle. How in the world could we pay a fine that is the exact same amount as Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s, Costco and Safeway, who have all opted to pay the fine rather than be a redemption center. The only store left in our “convenience zone” is Good Life Grocery, 1,200 square feet, to either be the redemption center or pay the fine BOTTLE BILL continues on page 17

Proposal Progresses for Significant Jackson Playground Facelift

BY MICHAEL IACUESSA

Jackson Playground would be radically altered under a proposed redesign plan. The historic clubhouse would be moved from Mariposa to 17th Street, adjacent to a new community center featuring rooftop tennis courts. The athletic fields would be modified to create a variety of subdivided space, including picnic areas and a batting cage.

Friends of Jackson Park (FoJP), which is spearheading the proposed changes, presented the plan to San Francisco Recreation and Park staff last month. However, before the Department approves it the nonprofit needs to work out financial details. FoJP Executive Director Jude Deckenbach expects a cost estimate to be complete in time for a public presentation in May, with the goal of including the renovation in the 2019 Parks Bond.

“We need to increase the size of the bond, so that’s what we are doing now,” she said. The organization is asking its supporters to contact members of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors and mayoral candidates to advocate for inclusion of park renovation in the bond measure. If it gets into the bond and the bond is approved, Deckenbach said money would be allocated by fall of 2020, with work beginning in 2021 at the earliest.

The redesign plan grew out of a 2016 community outreach effort led by FoJP, which itself organized in 2013 to improve conditions at the park, which hasn’t had a major upgrade in two decades. Among the requests that emerged from the process were a designated children’s play area, dog run, improved alignment between the baseball and softball fields and expansion into Carolina Street, all of which are addressed in the scheme created by Fletcher Studio and Jackson Liles Architecture.

According to research conducted last year by the Citizens Advisory Committee of the Eastern Neighborhoods Plan, the 4.41-acre park attracts more than 2,250 users weekly, a number that’s expected to increase sharply over the next decade. While the park is largely utilized now by groups outside the Hill and schools drawn to the athletic fields, new residents to the area are likely to drive a jump in visitors. In addition to 1010Potrero, the 453 residential units recently constructed at Seventh and 16th streets, on tap are

Doing the Hard Work

IMAGE: Courtesy of Friends of Jackson Park

an additional 1,070 units in five nearby planned developments.

Even without bond funds, Friends of Jackson Park will have access to roughly $4.5 million if and when those projects are built. Related California, the developer at 1601 Mariposa, where 299 units are slated, has promised $2 million to the park. Walden Development, which plans 395 units at the old Corovan site between 16th and 17th streets along Mississippi Street, has pledged $1.8 million. A 127-unit development at 88 Arkansas Street, recently purchased by Hong Kong-based Zhuguang Holding Group, has promised $500,000. Ronaldo Cianciarulo, building 172 units at 1301 16th Street, has vouched $100,000. And Tom Murphy, who is erecting 17 condominiums at 540 De Haro Street, has pledged $10,000.

The park also is eligible for user impact fees assessed by the City to mitigate developments’ effects on public services. In 2014, Rec and Park allocated $1.6 million from those fees toward planning and improvements at Jackson Playground.

While FoJP is still crunching numbers, a recently completed renovation of Joe DiMaggio Playground, which featured a new community center, but is less than half the size of Jackson, at two acres, cost $7.5 million.

Landscape architect, David Fletcher, noted that redesign efforts will be expensive, which is why his plan attempts to maximize public areas. “In this project every space counts, so it’s our way to render as much as possible.” Currently, with just a large open field, he said there “is a ton of wasted space not being used.”

The proposal calls for a six-foot

PLAYGROUND continues on page 17

We have poor, mentally unstable, addicted human beings living on our streets, it costs our city hundreds of millions a year, and we are still failing

to x the problem. All of us have had enough.

Homelessness is the biggest concern in this upcoming Mayoral election, and it should be. The homeless crisis diverts money and resources away from their primary purposes, while shifting spending and sta ng priorities from where they should be.

Police O cers spend their day acting as social workers, when they should be policing. Department of Public Works serves as a disposal company, when its employees should spend their days beautifying the City and maintaining it.

I fixed homelessness before and I will do it again as your next Mayor, because we need to end this crisis now. As Heather Knight’s recent SF Chronicle article explained— My Ten-Year Plan moved 11,362 homeless adults into permanent supportive housing.

“...the city’s “Ten Year Plan to Abolish Chronic Homelessness,” an initiative begun by then-Mayor Gavin Newsom in 2004 and crafted by a council headed by Alioto.

“By 2014, the city had moved 11,362 homeless single adults into permanent supportive housing. Another 8,806 were given bus tickets home to receptive family members or friends through the city’s Homeward Bound program.

(Hey, any real politician would have taken credit for those, too. Come on, Angela!)

“Obviously, all that e ort was great, but it made little dent in the city’s stubborn, increasingly in-your-face homeless population. Alioto says that’s exactly why she wants voters to send her to Room 200 in June.

“She thinks the city’s much-hyped Navigation Centers — more relaxed, service -rich homeless shelters — are OK, but the city needs to focus far more on permanent housing solutions so people don’t wind up back on the streets.

“Or you might as well just throw the money away,” Alioto said, adding she would focus her rst 100 days as mayor on cleaning the streets and moving those in tents inside.

“It would be me actually doing the hard work, and it is hard work,” she said.

“Now that would make a good billboard.”

Angela’s

Green Benefit District Annual Members' Meeting

Wednesday, April 18, 6:30 PM

654 Minnesota Street, 3rd floor (accessible)

Property owners/stakeholders, tenants, business owners and workers within the Green Benefit District (see GreenBenefit.org for district boundaries) are invited to attend the GBD’s April meeting. The GBD Board is interested in hearing your feedback and ideas as we plan for fiscal year 2018/19. Emails can also be sent to Info@GreenBenefit.org. Sign up for the GBD email list to receive surveys and news about the district. http://greenbenefit.org/

Potrero Boosters Neighborhood Association Be in the know. Meet your neighbors. Make the Potrero a better place. Monthly meeting: Last Tuesday of the month, 7:00 pm at the NABE. 953 De Haro @ Southern Heights.

For a $200 annual fee your organization can be listed in Getting Involved. Contact advertising@potreroview.net

Potrero Boosters: A History of Service

BY LAURIE SNYDER

Its members are sharp, insistent, and affiliated with one of the City and County of San Francisco’s oldest and most powerful citizens’ advocacy groups:  the Potrero Boosters Neighborhood Association.

Founded in 1926, the organization had its genesis in an entity created at least two decades earlier:  the Potrero Commercial and Manufacturers’ Association (PCMA). According to an article in a 1910 edition of the  San Francisco Call, PCMA Secretary W. J. Barrett and his fellow members wanted Kentucky Street to “be thoroughly overhauled and repaired as far down in Railroad avenue as Nineteenth avenue South” and encouraged the San Francisco Board of Supervisors to allocate $150,000 for “a new bridge over Fourth street” and $350,000 to convert roughly 300 acres into Potrero Park.

Although the group’s advocacy on behalf of a 300-acre park failed, municipal leaders were persuaded to open a smaller recreational area:  Jackson Playground. Described by current Boosters’ president J. R. Eppler in a July 2017 Potrero View  article, “Jackson Playground to Expand,” as “one of the principle baseball and softball

facilities in the City,” the 4.41-acre park, bordered by Arkansas, Mariposa, Carolina and 17th streets, opened to the public in 1912, and is managed by the San Francisco Recreation and Park Department.

Funding was secured for a new bridge. According to municipal reports for fiscal year 1914, $84,287 was approved to remove the existing “Fourth Street bridge and foundations, constructing a new masonry structure, sea walls and approaches, and erecting a Bascule bridge, complete with operating machinery.” A contract was awarded to the Thompson-Bridge Company on June 25, 1915. Construction began five days later on what come to be called the “Peter L. Maloney Bridge.” The lead engineer was Joseph Strauss, who later served as the Golden Gate Bridge’s designer and chief engineer.

“The district is bound to be of great importance to the welfare of the city,” observed Barrett, “considering the great extent of the Potrero water front, the importance of the industries that are doing business there, the amount of land that is available for the sites of business plants and for pleasant homes for those who are employed in connection with present and prospective Potrero industries

and the great landlocked harbor that is proposed for the island basin.”

“The name of the group was very literal,” explained Eppler, an 18th Street resident who is running for District 10 Supervisor, because Potrero Hill “was largely on the outskirts of the City in 1910,” and PCMA was hoping “to get people to come to the neighborhood.”

Come they did. As industry took over Dogpatch, the Hill became residential, transformed by the construction of affordable homes for middle income workers, as well as public housing at Potrero Annex-Terrace in 1941. By the 1960s, artists and members of the gay community were flocking to the area. PCMA began to address concerns regarding the quality of life impacts of growth and pollution. In 1975, the association was granted 501(c)(4) status by the U.S. Internal Revenue Service, a tax-exempt designation which enables the Boosters “to further the common good and general welfare of the people of the community” and to seek “legislation germane to the organization’s programs” as “a permissible means of attaining social welfare purposes.”

From the 1970s through the 1990s, various residents took on management roles with the Boosters, including Dick Millet and John deCastro. Millet, a decades-long Hill resident until his recent move to a retirement community, served nine years as president, shaping the group’s positions on everything from parking planning to responsible growth. As described in the September 1997 edition of The Potrero View, he oversaw the association’s re -

organization, as it amicably separated into two distinct groups in 1996, one advocating for residents’ concerns, the other – known today as the Potrero Hill Association of Merchants and Businesses (PHAMB) – devoted to improving the economic climate for small business owners.

John deCastro began his four-year presidency in 1999, having joined the group’s board in 1980, a year after purchasing his Missouri Street Victorian duplex. “The first project I got involved with was the very first Mission Bay plan,” he said. Under deCastro’s leadership the Boosters worked to make sure resident voices were heard on plans for a 570-megawatt power plant at 23rd and Illinois streets, and collaborated with other neighborhood associations to heighten municipal leaders’ awareness of “the minimal, if any, fees for transportation, parks and schools” that were being ponied up by live-work loft developers during the late-1990s.

“Planning, not banning, was out motto,” explained deCastro. “We were in favor of planned growth, not having to fight to modify or prevent bad projects lot by lot.”

Improved City responsiveness was also a theme during Tony Kelly’s tenure. Kelly, a Connecticut Street resident who is also a District 10 Supervisorial candidate, helmed the group as it fought to keep the Daniel Webster Elementary School open in 2006, protect Starr King Open Space from developmental pressures in 2009,

BOOSTERS continues on page 17

California College of Arts Campus to Expand

BY JACOB BOURNE

In January, the California College of the Arts submitted a revised Institutional Master Plan to the Planning Commission under which its Oakland and San Francisco properties would be consolidated into a unified campus located in Showplace Square, on Eighth Street. According to Gina Simi, Planning Department communications manager, the Plan’s environmental review, Transportation Impact Study and Large Project Authorization are being evaluated, as are proposals associated with the streetscape and specific buildings. Planning Commission meetings for individual projects within the IMP haven’t yet been scheduled.

“Locating CCA entirely in San Francisco will give the school better access to some of the world’s most creative teaching talent, as well as an increased ability to forge connections

with Bay Area corporations, arts, and cultural institutions, nonprofits, and other world-class educational entities,” the Plan states. “It will also provide a remarkable link to the global community, and a place-based cultural identity that stands out in the competitive global and domestic marketplace.”

The Master Plan has several components, each of which is subject to Planning review. A primary piece of campus expansion is development of a new academic building on a vacant lot at 1140 Seventh Street. The structure, designed by architectural firm, Studio Gang, would provide about 90,000 square feet of indoor and 65,000 square feet of outdoor space. The planning process for the project is currently in between the schematic design and the design development phases. If approved, construction would begin in June 2019, with completion scheduled for

September 2021.

“Conceived as a creative ecosystem that strengthens relationships between people, ideas, and practices, the design extends CCA’s main academic building on the existing San Francisco campus into a new campus yard framed by a layered “double ground” of artmaking facilities and landscapes,” stated a project description by Studio Gang. “The ground plane serves as a hub of indoor-outdoor maker spaces supporting more physically intensive practices. Its flexible plan makes the different programs more visible to one another, promoting interdisciplinary interactions and providing adaptability as new needs, uses, and technologies develop. Above, a second “ground” offers additional art-making spaces, outdoor classrooms, and informal social spaces; all visually and physically connected to the spaces below by a robust terraced landscape.”

Under the Plan , a five-story

Country Cat with City Sensibility Subject of Neighborhood Search

BY AMY CARR

Born in the quiet rural area of the Sutter Buttes, raised on a farm with a plethora of animals, Jami the cat was destined for bigger things. He lost his way one day – perhaps he jumped in the back of a hay bale delivery truck – and ended up at my parent’s ranch, looking handsome, searching for human contact.  My mother immediately called me, an avid cat lover with a soft spot for adoption. In no time, Jami found his new home in San Francisco.

Some call him the mayor of Potrero Hill, always greeting neighbors and their dogs with his laidback demeanor and friendliness, joining other Wisconsin Street families as a valued member. He was free to roam, as cats sometimes do, looking both ways before lazily crossing the street, lounging in doorsteps, on the hoods of cars, on top of fences, as he watched the world go by.  He brought people together with his charm and grace. He was a constant topic of conversation; “who is this cat that acts like a dog or a person?” He brought community together around him, one encounter at a time.

Now some people just can’t let a soul be free.  In February, a young man, Caucasian, well kept, between five feet seven and eleven inches, with

dark, short, hair, rang the doorbell of a Wisconsin Street resident asking for Jami. The resident thought he was a cat sitter; he led him to the backyard through the house, where he scooped up Jami and took him away. Word spread quickly through Nextdoor, Facebook, and postings around Potrero Hill. People have expressed sympathy, shared photo -

PHOTO: Amy Carr graphs of their pets, provided leads of cat sightings. If a missing person’s report could be filed, with detectives following up, it’d be done; but Jami is just a cat.

It takes a village to find a cat! Once again, Jami has brought the community together; this time in common purpose to bring him home.

student dormitory would be constructed at 188 Hooper Street that’ll provide 530 beds, 8,500 square feet of publicly accessible ground floor dining services, 12,560 square feet of common spaces and 10,980 square feet of outdoor open space. If approved this summer, students will start moving in by fall of 2020. It’s designed by Stanley Saitowitz | Natoma Architects Inc.

A student housing project designed by Leddy Maytum Stacy Architects, located at 75 Arkansas Street, is currently under construction, with a goal of accommodating more than 200 scholars by this fall. Retail space in the Arkansas Street building will be delivered sometime in the future.

About 146,000 square feet of an existing instructional building, at 1111 Eighth Street, will be reno -

CCA continues on page 17

60th Annual Potrero Hill Artists’ Exhibition to be Held in May

BY GENEVIEVE FELDMAN

This May marks the 60th annual Potrero Hill Artists’ Exhibition, at the Potrero Branch Library. This nonjuried show features 78 artists who live, work or study on the Hill and in Dogpatch.

The exhibition is purportedly San Francisco’s oldest annual art show. It began in 1955, and has been held every year since, with the exception of three years during when the branch was closed for renovations. The first show was organized by a group of artists who painted with, or under the tutelage of, the late Charles Farr, and helped save the branch from being closed by the City. Farr remained an integral part of the art show for many years.

The 60th annual Potrero Hill Artists’ Exhibition opens Saturday May 5 and runs through July 28. A free reception will be held at the Branch on May 5, from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., featuring string band music by KC and the MooNshine Band and light refreshments.

Preliminary model of Studio Gang's design for a modified California College of the Arts.

PHOTO: Courtesy of Courtesy of Studio Gang

Studio Gang's initial sketch of the California College of the Arts' expanded campus.

IMAGE: Courtesy of Studio Gang

Jami the cat.

St. Gregory’s Hosts Devotional Art Workshops

BY JACOB BOURNE

About fifteen years ago, parishioner Betsy Porter began teaching an iconography class at St. Gregory of Nyssa Episcopal Church, located on De Haro Street. Iconographers create Christian art based on an ancient Byzantine style, sometimes referred to as the “Gospel in color.” Porter had been a congregant for a couple of years and wanted to share her artistic passion with others.

The word “icon” comes from the Greek, eikoˉn, which means image. Icons are most commonly associated with religious paintings in the Eastern Orthodox Christian tradition, and usually feature portraits of Biblical figures imbued with spiritual symbolism. The works are created following specific steps, according to theological principles, with the goal of spiritual development. They’re ritually blessed; considered to be sacred representations of the divine and creation.

Many religious traditions offer artistic or symbolic physical representations, such as Buddhist mandalas, paintings of Hindu deities, Catholic frescoes, the menorah in Judaism and Islamic calligraphy. Prohibitions of sacred images can be found throughout history in many traditions, often due to interpretations of idolatry. In the Eastern Orthodox custom, it’s believed that the creation of icons can be traced to the earliest days of Christianity; however much of the works were lost between 726 and 842 CE during the Byzantine Iconoclasm, in which there was widespread destruction of icons

Melinda

and persecution of those who venerated them due to differing religious ideologies.

With a strong interest in art since childhood, Porter was exposed to Byzantine-style iconography during her travels to Greece and Russia. Inspired by works painted by her friend, Grace Evans, Porter first received training in icon painting in 1997.

“It started for me in Princeton, New Jersey, when I went to visit a friend and saw on her mantle two beautiful icons,” said Porter. “I complimented her on them, saying that they were much prettier than the ones I saw in Russia and Greece.”

Porter participated in a series of week-long workshops at the Prosopon School of Iconology. The school was founded by Vladislav Andrejev, who began teaching in 1985 and now has a dozen instructors based in the United States and Europe, with studios in Louisiana, Vermont, Virginia, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, New York, California, Florida and Estonia.

Iconography classes at St. Gregory are generally held two Sundays a month from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. in the church’s Rotunda. The three-hour period allows flexibility for participants, who sometimes live as far as two hours away. Though some are parishioners, the classes are open to everyone. Participants pay between $120 to $200 for painting materials, $15 for educational items; there’s a suggested $10 donation for use of the space.

While icon painting is considered part of the Eastern Orthodox

real estate) for years, and she knows everyone and every place!"

Christian tradition, other Christian denominations have adopted the art form. It has similarities with Italian Renaissance paintings. St. Gregory’s rector, Paul Fromberg, is reportedly an iconographer.

According to Porter, iconography has Pagan roots that pre-date the Byzantine era. For example, it’s thought that depictions of the ancient Egyptian goddess, Isis, and her baby, Horus, inspired Christian “Madonna and Child” imagery, and that renderings of Jesus are based on the ancient Roman god, Jupiter.

“Sharing the joy of icons with all people is the first agreement of the iconographer,” states church literature. “Icons are not simply works of art, but rather sacred objects directly connected to the actual presence of God. They are the windows from this world into a place of spiritual reality invisible to the eye.”

Porter is the main instructor and facilitator of the bimonthly classes. Some attendees have a background in the arts; many are completely new to icon painting. Before a student commences work, Porter gives specific instructions keeping with traditional guidelines. Novices begin by creating an image of Michael the Archangel, because it requires acquiring a broad skill set in the art form. One participant commented that working on her first icon sparked a feeling of inquisitiveness as she learned that Michael is considered an archangel in Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Other subjects include “Moses and the Burning Bush,”

Good Life Grocery

“We’ve known Melinda for many years. She is a hard worker and always gets the job done. She is also an integral part of the Potrero Hill community.”

Saint Francis of Assisi, the Archangel Gabriel, “Jonah and the Whale,” and “Christ as Good Shepherd”.

The icons are painted on solid,

ICONS continues on page 18

Kayren Hudiburgh & Lester Zeidman

PHOTOS: Jacob Bourne

Now through Sat 4/21

Art: California College of the Arts Graduate Program in Fine Arts Exhibition

Emerging artists from CCA’s Graduate Program in Fine Arts debut their work in an exhibition at Minnesota Street Project. Opening reception: Saturday, April 14, 3 to 6 p.m. Exhibit: Tuesday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Free. Minnesota Street Project, 1275 Minnesota Street. More information: https://bit.ly/2GoMAuI

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Community: San Francisco

Permaculture Talk

Kevin, from the San Francisco Permaculture Guild, will talk about the 18th and Rhode Island Garden. 7:30 to 9 p.m. Farley’s, 1315 18th Street.

Tues 4/3 and Tues 4/10

Art: Tuesday Night Drawing Series

Learn to sketch from a live model (clothed). Adults only. 6 to 8 p.m. $25 to $99. Hosted by Dogpatch Center for Arts & Culture. Arch Art Supplies, 10 Carolina Street. Class size is limited. More details and to sign-up: dcenter. org/arch

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Music: Soul Delights

Join us for a lively performance. 7:30 to 9 p.m. Farley’s, 1315 18th Street.

Wed 4/4 through Tues 4/17

Film: San Francisco International Film Festival

America’s longest-running film festival, the San Francisco International Film Festival is a showcase of cinematic discovery and innovation. The 61st edition features nearly 200 films and live events, 14 juried awards, with close to $40,000 in cash prizes and upwards of 100 participating filmmakers. More information on film line-up, venues, and tickets, with discounts offered for packages: https://bit. ly/2uiX9dN

Music: Sukhawat Ali Khan

Live music by Sufi singer, Sukhawat Ali Khan. 7:30 to 9 p.m. Farley’s, 1315 18th Street.

Music: Introduction to Ukelele

Are you Uke-curious? Please come to

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Saturday Vigil 4:15

Sunday 8:30

Tuesday 8:30

Friday 8:30

this introductory class, ages 21+. No experience necessary! You’ll receive a delicious beer from Harmonic and a ukelele to use during the session. $25. Harmonic Brewing, 1050 26th Street. More information and to signup: dcenter.org/harmonic

Music: Kevin Patrick McGee

Live music by singer-songwriter Kevin Patrick McGee, whose poetic, and occasionally amusing, original tunes spans alt-country, bluegrass, folk, and rock. 7:30 to 9 p.m. Farley’s, 1315 18th Street.

Saturday 4/14 and Saturday 4/21

Art: Urban Sketching Workshop

Artist David Tenorio teaches urban sketching, a unique way to document the people, places and experiences you encounter daily. We’ll be sketching at the Yerba Buena Gardens, a park with the perfect mix of people, trees, flowers, and more. No experience required. Fee pays for a handmade sketchbook, artist quality supplies, and an informational handout to help you learn all you need to draw the world around you. $40 a person. Yerba Buena Gardens, 750 Howard Street. Sponsored by the Dogpatch Center for Arts & Culture. More information and to sign-up: dcenter.org/ urban

Community: Sunday Streets Bayview and Dogpatch

A neighborhood celebration and fivehour party, where the streets are closed to vehicles, to enable pedestrians, roller skaters, bicyclists, yogis, and everyone except cars to take over the streets for an afternoon. Expect treasure hunts, dance performances, hula hooping, dodgeball games, yoga classes, bubble parties, and tons more fun stuff, all for free. More information: https://bit.ly/2I6aZma

Mon 4/16 through Sun 4/22

Spirituality: Emerging Rituals

Emerging Rituals is a series of powerful demonstrations that invite participants to immerse themselves in a wide range of practices and rites. This event, Experiencing New Ways of Honoring and Celebrating End of Life, includes live demonstrations of end-of-life topics: death doula, natural death care, shrouding, and memory celebrations. Also featured are discussions by experts on cremation, home funerals, green burial, and the creation of a heart will. Free. The Rotunda of St. Gregory’s of NYSSA Episcopal Church, 500 De Haro Street. More information and to sign-up: https:// bit.ly/2G4VRsF

“Yellow Pond” by Celeste Chin, Oil on canvas. Explore more than 100 artists' studios at the Hunters Point Shipyard on April 21 and 22. IMAGE: Courtesy of Celeste Chin

Health: Senior Smiles and Wellness

Health Fair

Music: James Everett

Rhythm and blues, jazz, and pop singer. 7:30 to 9 p.m. Farley’s, 1315 18th Street.

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Environment: Earth Day San Francisco

Celebrate the 49th year of Earth Day, and the 100-year anniversary of the Save the Redwoods League. The theme for this year’s Earth Day is “Stand for the Redwoods/Stand for the Future.” Talks will be conducted throughout the day on such topics as conservation, climate change, recycling, and the intersection of politics, technology and the environment. The festival will also feature entertainment, an organic celebrity chef showcase, food trucks, wine and beer gardens, a “clean energy zone,” demonstrations of earth-friendly products, an electric vehicle showcase, kids’ zone and more. Free. 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Civic Center Plaza. For more information: https://bit.ly/1LClNsW

Film: Yojimbo by Akira Kurosawa

In 19th Century Japan, a wandering samurai comes to a town divided by two criminal gangs and pits them against one other to free the town. Theatre of Yugen’s artistic director, Nick Ishimaru, will present a pre-show lecture on the conflict of giri and ninjo — “duty” and “human feelings” – that form a central theme in the Edo-period drama. 6 p.m. $5. Theater of Yugen, 2840 Mariposa Street. More information: https://bit.ly/2pFQ81h; to purchase tickets: https://bit.ly/2G1yiAK

fri sat wed

Those age 55 and older are invited to receive free health and wellness services, including hearing, dental, oral cancer, cholesterol, bone density and denture screenings, as well as blood glucose and blood pressure testing. Plus, learn about local community resources for seniors, meet friendly students, faculty and staff. Screenings are limited and will be offered on a first-come, first-served basis. Free. Reservations not required. University of the Pacific’s Arthur A. Dugoni School of Dentistry, 155 Fifth Street, at Minna. More information: https://bit.ly/2pFbCeF

Saturday 4/21 to Sunday 4/22

Art: Shipyard Artists’ Open Studios Experience San Francisco’s largest arts community. For one weekend, more than 100 artist studios open their shipyard doors to the public to showcase paintings, sculptures, photography, weaving/textiles, ceramics, and more. There are seasoned and emerging artists to be discovered at this hidden gem on the Bay’s edge. Free. Visitors will be greeted with an informational brochure and directed to free and abundant parking. 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. 451 Galvez Avenue. More information: www.shipyardartists.com

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Music: Daniel Berkman

Potrero Hill resident Daniel Berkman is a composer, multi-instrumentalist and innovator of the kora, a 21-stringed harp/lute from West Africa. 7:30 to 9 p.m. Farley’s, 1315 18th Street.

Music: GT2

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GT-squared plays 20th Century music. 7:30 to 9 p.m. Farley’s, 1315 18th Street.

Political Engagement: Burrito Project

San Francisco’s Burrito Project is a community-supported group that makes and delivers vegan burritos to hungry and homeless people. Each event takes about three hours for food preparation, burrito assembly, and delivery. Volunteers of all ages welcome; parents need to be present to supervise their children. Registration required. More information: https://bit.ly/2DTmhaG

We love calling Potrero Hill our home. Over the past decade-plus, we’ve helped dozens of clients find their perfect spot on the Hill. It’s easy to sell the virtues of our beloved neighborhood, having lived and worked here ourselves for more than 20 years. This year, we are proud to annouce that we are Zephyr Real Estate’s TOP PRODUCING POTRERO TEAM OF 2017!

THE PROOF IS IN THE SALES...

415.518.6538

WesFreas@ZephyrSF.com

WendyWatkins@ZephyrSF.com

WesandWendyHomes.com

This month's winners

Submit your child's photos — see contest instructions below!

Calling All Shutterbugs!

Kids 12 years and younger can submit a photo once a month, before the 20th, with the winning image receiving $35. Teenagers from 13 to 17 years old are eligible for a $50 prize. Please send submissions to editor@potreroview.net.

arrests police made for automobile burglaries, the DA’s Office prosecuted just 391. One reason even the small number of cases aren’t pursued is that prosecutors have to prove a car was locked to obtain a felony conviction. If a window is broken and an item stolen, but it can’t be proven the door was bolted, the offense is deemed a misdemeanor.

“Unfortunately, the fact that a victim’s window is broken does not, by itself, establish that the vehicle was locked,” explained a statement from Wiener’s office. “Judges sometimes require the DA to show that the car door was locked, which is difficult to do since a burglar can simply unlock the car door after breaking the glass.” Senate Bill 916 would add the term “when forced entry is used” to the felony description.

According to Jeff Cretan, Wiener’s communications director, the Senate Public Safety Committee will hold a hearing on the bill this spring, with a legislative vote unlikely until the fall. To garner support, the Board of Supervisors in January voted unanimously to support SB 916. State Assemblymen David Chiu and Phil Ting of San Francisco are co-sponsors.

According to the Grand Jury, the San Francisco Police Department’s shift toward community policing over the past decade may have reduced the efficacy of car break-in crimefighting efforts. “The loss of a central bureaucracy has hindered communication between stations,” stated the Grand Jury report. “A decentralized police force has been ineffective at curbing organized criminals who offend across districts.”

Potrero Hill and Dogpatch are covered by three stations: Bayview, Mission and Southern. Scott has promised that General Crimes Investigation Unit officers, although assigned to individual precincts, will actively coordinate their efforts.

The DA’s Office and SFPD agree that pursuing serial offenders offers the best approach to reducing vehicle crime. The Grand Jury report noted that while some break-ins are crimes of opportunity – people down on their luck who violate the law on the spur of the moment – they make up less than 20 percent of incidences.

“Many are gang members,” states the report. “Some are armed and violent. They are highly proficient at counter surveillance and evading capture. They work in teams of two to five people, although different people from the same gang make up the teams on different days. They drive from location to location, breaking into dozens of parked cars in a day, at 30 seconds a break-in.”

Offenders are often known to law enforcement through other arrests. One of those was Carloz Paz, a San Francisco resident who was arrested in Fremont in December, accused of shipping stolen items from cars to Vietnam to be sold on the black market. Authorities seized $2 million in pinched electronics in the bust.

Gascón tipped police that Paz might be a fence two years ago, and cites the case as an example of his Office’s ability to identify such culprits. Eight others were eventually arrested, including three San Francisco residents.

Max Szabo, DA’s Office spokesperson, admitted that short of putting officers on every street corner, catching

random car burglars in the act isn’t feasible. “In making one arrest for one crime, you are not likely to be capturing the scope of the conduct,” he said. “It is likely they are responsible for more than one auto burglary, but it is only one they will be charged for.” Focusing on serial offenders, he said, would allow the DA’s Office to bring a stronger set of charges to court.

The DA’s Office disavowed the notion that Proposition 47, passed by voters in 2014, has had any effect on car break-ins. Under the Proposition some felonies were reduced to misdemeanors, and prison sentences shortened. According to Gascón, who pushed the ballot measure, treatment of auto burglaries was unchanged by it. In a press release, Gascon stated that individuals assigning blame for the epidemic of vehicle crime to Proposition 47 are “either misinformed or intentionally providing bad information.”

PLASTICS from front page

expenditures that eventually will be passed on to residents and businesses. Recology declined to provide specific data on how much its recycling revenue has declined, or associated costs increased.

According to Doug Woodring, founder of the Plastic Disclosure Project (PDP), an initiative which helps businesses and governments measure their use and waste, his organization has been swamped with requests for such analysis since the Chinese ban went into effect. He suspects most municipalities will either be forced to stop collecting plastic, stockpile it or landfill it. “The rest of the world will

not be able to take the volumes China would take,” he said.

Vietnam’s National Assembly is debating tightening its plastic intake, an action Woodring, who has offices in Hong Kong and Los Angeles, believes other Southeast Asia countries are considering. Nonetheless, he sees a silver lining in the ban. “It’s the biggest land-based tsunami the world has seen,” he stated. “And it’s great, as it forces change and much needed new thought on this issue, and innovation.”

Woodring would like to see legal standards governing the types and colors of plastic manufactured; current diversity hinders automated recycling efforts. Soda bottles, detergent containers, egg cartons and plastic bags rely on different types of plastic, which have to be separated from each other. Bottle caps even use dissimilar plastic than the bottles they come with. According to Woodring, plastic recycling is akin to taking an omelet after someone has eaten it and trying to put the egg, cheese and mushrooms back together. “It’s that complicated. There is some high-tech machinery, but 99 percent of the world doesn’t have it.”

On an average day, Recology receives between 600 to 650 tons of co-mingled recycling that has to be sorted, three to five percent of which are plastics. The company is investing $3 million this year to improve its sorting technology. In 2016, it completed an $11.6 million upgrade to its 200,000-square foot Pier 96 plant, adding four high-speed optical scanners to automatically sort plastics and produce higher quality cardboard bales. China’s one percent impurity rule applies to PLASTICS continues on next page

BREAK-INS from front page

Photo 1: “Where is the pot of gold?” taken by Missouri Street resident, nine-year-old Tyler Tachiki, a fourth grader at Clarendon Elementary School.

Photo 2: Taken by Mason Tachiki, seven-years-old, a first grader at Clarendon Elementary School.

PLASTICS from previous page

other recycling imports as well. Although paper shipments to that country have been halted, Recology is still able to ship cardboard to China.

“Because recycling markets are competitive and changing we are going to decline to state exactly where we are sending bales of recycled paper and bales of recycled plastic to, but we can confirm end locations do include facilities in the U.S. and in different countries in Southeast Asia,” stated a Recology spokesperson.

Recology wants its customers to be more attentive. It encourages the public to refuse single-use plastics, such as cups, straws, coffee cup lids, bags and water bottles, and to carry reusable glass, canvas and metal containers as a means to remove plastic vessels from the waste stream. Composting also helps recycling efficiency, by keeping food scraps and soiled paper out of bins. According to the company, the dryer the recycling, the easier it is to protect against impurities, which “helps San Francisco continue to sell its recycling when economies dip and manufacturers who buy bales of recyclables are choosier.”

In the meantime, plastic manufacturing continues to boom. In 1950, the world was producing two million metric tons. By 1999, the number climbed to 200 million; in 2015 it reached 380 million, according to a joint study released last year by the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB) and the University of Georgia.

“We realized it would be really interesting to account for all plastics humankind has ever made,” said Roland Geyer, a UCSB professor and

lead study author. “We wanted to look at plastic production data all the way through its lifecycle to the end.” The report discovered 8.3 billion metric tons was produced from 1950 to 2015, and that 6.3 billion had already become waste. Of that waste, nine percent was recycled, 12 percent incinerated. The remaining is on land and in oceans.

In terms of humanmade manufactured materials, plastic in weight ranks just behind concrete and steel, ahead of paper and aluminum. But while concrete and steel are largely used in infrastructure, plastic is widely disposed of. “Without a well-designed and tailor-made management strategy for end-of-life plastics,” said Geyer, “humans are conducting a singular uncontrolled experiment on a global scale, in which billions of metric tons of material will accumulate across major terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems on the planet.” He added that, while the study took an objective look at the numbers, his personal opinion is that recycling and incineration alone aren’t going to solve the proliferation of plastic waste, and that use reduction is needed.

Packaging, accounting for 42 percent of plastic usage, is driving much of the manufacturing. A 2016 study by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation determined that 95 percent of plastic packaging lost its value after one use, and only 14 percent of that is recycled. At current rates, by 2050 the report claims the weight of plastic in the ocean will be greater than the weight of all the fish.

Other growing plastic usages include synthetic fibers, which can be found in backpacks, carseats, carpets, clothing, and microbeads, which are in

Rebuild Potrero Milestone: Halfway Mark for Block X

Located at 1101 Connecticut Street, Block X, the first phase of BRIDGE Housing’s Rebuild Potrero partnership has reached its halfway point in construction.

Framing of the five story building is almost complete with infrastructure upgrades beginning on Connecticut Street between 25th and 26th Streets. New underground utilities along with upgraded streetscapes will be installed to provide optimal services to the new 72 residences and surrounding neighbors. Expected occupancy of 1101 Connecticut Street will be in early 2019.

Rebuild Potrero is a part of the City’s HOPE SF initiative to rebuild and replace the existing public housing units, create new residential opportunities, and sustain neighborhood vibrancy. The project is a collaboration between BRIDGE Housing, the San Francisco Housing Authority (SFHA), and the City and County of San Francisco.

If you would like more information about Block X and the upcoming phases of Rebuild Potrero, the public is invited to attend the next Community Building Group (CBG) meeting on April 12, 2018, 6:30PM at Starr King Elementary School where we will discuss the next phases of work.

toothpaste and facial products. “They are so small you don’t really realize they are there,” said Woodring. “They just go straight down the drain. There is no municipal system in the world that can capture these microplastics.” The same applies to microfibers in clothing that sheds in the washing machine.

Larger plastic pieces tend to breakdown into micro-pieces in the water, but don’t degrade. Woodring, who founded the Ocean Recovery Alliance, a nonprofit umbrella under which PDP operates, explained that toxins can get attached to microplastics, which eventually are swallowed by fish, and wind up on our dinner table.

According to a 2016 study by the San Francisco Estuary Institute and 5 Gyres, a nonprofit battling plastic pollution, 3.9 million pieces of plastic enter San Francisco Bay daily from eight sewage treatment plants. That same report found that the southern part of the Bay had one million pieces of microplastic per square kilometer, six times higher than Chesapeake Bay and nine times greater than Lake Erie, the next two highest recorded U.S. water bodies. The northern part of the Bay, which feeds into the ocean and thus disperses more rapidly, had 300,000 pieces per kilometer.

The two nonprofits are in the middle of a two-year study assessing wastewater and storm water runoff, as well as testing outside the Golden Gate Bridge and adjacent ocean areas. “We are really looking at how this stuff gets into the Bay,” explained Carolynn Box, science programs director for 5 Gyres.

At least two local small businesses are working to develop alternatives to heavy plastic use. Go Box offers

the country’s only reusable container takeout service. It began enlisting food trucks in Portland, Oregon in 2011. Three years later, a San Francisco effort was launched, using Dogpatch as a testing ground. San Francisco founder Paul Liotsakis formerly worked at the American Industrial Center on Third Street, where he noticed trash bins after lunch would be overflowing with containers. When the City implemented composting, he thought it’d solve the problem; instead people were confused about what went where. The bins remained full.

While Go Box was successful in downtown Portland working with street vendors and signing up individual patrons, Liotsakis found that San Francisco didn’t have a sufficient concentration of food trucks to replicate that model. He approached City government and corporations instead. For a fee, a group or individual can sign up with Go Box, download an app, and choose from a list of participating vendors who provide the container, which, after use, the customer disposes of at drop sites monitored by Go Box. “If a company wants to offer a green perk to their employees, we put a drop box at their location and service the drop site once a week,” Liotsakis explained. “It reduces trash entering the building from disposables.”

Four municipalities have enrolled so far: San Francisco, Palo Alto, San Rafael and Oakland. The cities partner with participating vendors to offer discounts to customers. Vendors, saving on containers, also provide food markdowns.“Changing behavior is always a challenge, but what will be

PLASTICS continues on page 18

What are the Least Expensive Ways to Add Value to a Home Before Selling?

Getting a home ready for sale doesn’t have to be difficult or expensive. There are several simple ways you can add value inexpensively:

ƒ MAKE IT SHINE—There is nothing more important than ensuring your home is clean.

ƒ LIGHTEN AND BRIGHTEN—If it is time to repaint, consider lighter colors that will make your home brighter and feel more spacious.

ƒ OUT WITH THE OLD—It is easy to accumulate clutter even after just a few years. Donating or discarding unneeded items can make a home feel more spacious—and make your future move easier.

ƒ DON’T FORGET SMALL THINGS WITH BIG IMPACTS—Simple steps like painting the garage floor or planting bright flowers near your home’s entrance are easy and inexpensive ways to make a home more welcoming and tidy.

If you’d like a free report on the value of your home, call Tim Johnson at 415-710-9000.

Tim Johnson

415.710.9000

tim@timjohnsonSF.com

www.timjohnsonSF.com

Lic. #01476421

“One of the reasons I am running is I have seen the importance of the district supervisor’s office in helping the neighborhood achieve its goals,” Eppler said. “When we’ve been aligned with the supervisor’s office we’ve been able to achieve good outcomes.”

According to Eppler, current District 10 Supervisor Malia Cohen demonstrated how neighbors and the supervisor’s office can work together to solve issues; he hoped to expand on that model. “I think I’ve done that for Potrero Hill and Dogpatch as Boosters president. I want to do that for the whole of the District,” he explained.

Eppler originally hails from Oklahoma City. His father was a produce manager at a grocery store; his mother sold department store cosmetics. He attended public schools where, while the majority of students were European-American, almost 40 percent were non-White, including the Classen School of Advanced Studies.

“In fact, the first time I was ever in an environment that lacked diversity was when attending college,” he said. Eppler was referring to Stanford, from which he graduated in 2002, earning honors for a thesis on environmental economics. After a year teaching middle school math in San Bruno, he enrolled at the University of California, Los Angeles, where he simultaneously earned a law degree and a master of business administration in finance and strategy.

After working for seven years for large firms doing corporate transactional law, Eppler opened his own law office in 2014. “My emphasis now is with small businesses,” he said. He provides pro bono legal counsel to Friends of Jackson Park and the Community Awareness Resource Center in Potrero Terrace, and is on the advisory board of OneJustice, which provides legal aid to underserved communities.

Eppler believes that District 10, and particularly Bayview, has been “historically underserved” by the City and County of San Francisco. That deficiency, he said, acts as a “tax on communities that are already stressed.”

Eppler pointed out that in many parts of the District residents need to own and maintain a vehicle “to have any sort of economic life, whether to get to the grocery store or a job,” while wealthier communities have greater access to public transportation. The District needs a strong advocate, he said, to ensure that its needs are met as its population grows.

Transportation has been one of Eppler’s main advocacy areas with the Boosters, which he said helped secure $98 million from the Mission Rock and Pier 70 projects to help address that need. He cited Pier 70 in particular as one of his greatest successes with the Boosters. In addition to negotiating a compromise to ensure that Irish Hill remains visible from Illinois Street, the Boosters pushed for additional housing and less commercial space in the development. Housing has less impact on traffic than commercial property, Eppler explained, and meets a current need.

Eppler is concerned about housing affordability, which he described as a citywide crisis acutely felt in District 10. He believes that it’s crucial to ensure development is both inclusionary for lower and moderate-income levels

and fits the neighborhood fabric, with space for parks, retail and community uses. “We can’t have a coherent community that’s constructed of independent vertical subgroups,” he explained.

Eppler believes that the Planning Code should be modified to mandate provision of amenities that’re often gained through intense negotiation by community groups. “We know that these things are possible economically for developers because we’ve been able to achieve them, but it shouldn’t be left to the effort of volunteers in the neighborhood.”

Eppler supports deployment of Navigation Centers to address homelessness, but called them incomplete. “Navigation Centers are an expensive way to take people off the street for 30 days,” he explained. “It would be better if we had temporary housing, with services for people to move into after they exit the Navigation Center and before they are moved into permanent supportive housing. This will prevent some of the relapses people have when they get back out into the streets and that intensely stressful situation.”

Eppler is optimistic about new Police Chief Bill Scott, praising his focus on community patrols. However, he added, “We need retraining on deescalation with the Police Department. There has been an unfortunate tendency for officers to turn to their weaponry when it may not be necessary.”

While Eppler believes there’s a strong group of candidates in the District 10 Supervisor race, he claims that his consensus building skills and detail-oriented approach separate him from the pack, including Kelly, with whom he continues to share many of the same objectives. “I am a hands-on participant in issues. I get down into the documents. I read the things that need to be read,” he said. “The issues we are dealing with are very large issues in the District, but it’s going to take someone that can focus down to the detail of a single comma, a single sentence in a piece of legislation to address them effectively.”

Eppler added that he’d provide multiple pathways with which to communicate with citizens as a core foundation of his office. “I can’t be a good district supervisor without hearing directly from constituents. As Boosters president, I’ve had a policy of listening to anyone on any issue and having small meetings to discuss any topic. I would do exactly the same thing as district supervisor,” he said.

Community leaders praised Eppler, though stopped short of endorsing him or any other candidate. According to Mark Dwight, San Francisco Small Business Commission president, Eppler is “incredibly knowledgeable and highly involved at the grass roots level.”

Katherine Doumani, who has worked with Eppler on efforts associated with Friends of Dogpatch Hub, called him a “straight shooter.”

Alison Heath, of Grow Potrero Responsibly, said that Eppler does an “exemplary job bringing together people with diverse opinions and interests.”

to be fully honest while being ideologically consistent, and, ultimately, successful. In politics and public policy – as with marriage and deep friendships – these three elements rarely purely coincide. Complex, sometimes painful, compromises must be made to be successful. Apart from clergy, hermits, and some academics, neither unmitigated truth nor philosophical chastity tends to productively advance personal or professional agendas, expect as used sparingly and strategically, and often only after patiently waiting for a long time.

In this respect, my love of Anderson was of the puppy kind, best approached as a phase to be passed through. He was a unicorn a few of us caught a magical glimpse of, who, like that mythic creature, disappeared from view not long after wandering out of the wilderness. Chasing that magic, trying to rekindle it in different settings, is an infantile pursuit. You can never go home; a return to Eden, assuming it actually existed, is impossible.

As H.L. Mencken wrote in 1940 about politicians,

I sometimes suspect that, like everyone else, I often expect too much of them…I not infrequently find myself looking to them to be able, diligent, candid, and even honest. Plainly enough, that is too large an order, as anyone must realize who reflects upon the manner in which they reach public office. They seldom if ever get there by merit alone, at least in democratic states…They are chosen normally for quite different reasons, the chief of which is simply their power to impress and enchant the intellectually underprivileged. It is a talent like any other, and when exercised by a radio crooner, a move actor, or a bishop, it even takes on a certain austere and sorry respectability. But it is obviously not identical with a capacity for the intricate problems of statecraft.

While we might whisper under our breaths about the other “stupid” voters, it’s politically incorrect to directly accuse the opposition of being “intellectually underprivileged,” though the current Presidential Administration has laid solid siege to that barrier. Setting this point aside, Mencken’s insights, produced almost 80 years ago, remain apt. Politicians, of the grand kind, are more akin to opera singers than policy analysts. They need to croon a good song, carry a catchy tune. And then voters have to hope that once they’re elected they pick a good team to actually address statecraft’s “intricate problems.”

In retrospect, I wish I’d tried to have a thoughtful conversation with Anderson in his later life, to ask him what’d he expected from his campaign, what’d he’d learned from it. I’d have benefited from any aging wisdom he might have offered, or at least to have seen him aged. Instead, the only time I came in direct contact with him was for a brief moment at Zellerbach Hall on the U.C. Berkley campus, when I shook his hand after introducing him to a cheering crowd of thousands of undergraduates. It’s a moment I won’t forget; mass enthusiasm for a politician attempting to tell the truth.

increased American Disability Act access, streetscape improvements, new roof and restored windows, as well as a floor with radiant heating.  Once the revamp is completed early next year, the Powerhouse will host youth arts classes in dance, theater, music, and spoken word, with programming provided by Performing Arts Workshop, an arts education nonprofit that’s been serving San Francisco’s children and teenagers for more than 52 years. The Powerhouse will also be available for rental for meetings, events, rehearsals, performances, adult arts classes, and exhibitions.

No More Toys

Let’s have a moment of silence for Toys R Us. Many of our lives have been bookended by childhood experiences walking saucer-eyed past toy-laden shelves there, years later to accompany our own offspring through that same thrill. Yes, there’s still Target, and the always ready to please Amazon, but a physical emporium dedicated to the single purpose of vending joy to kids is something special, in a similar manner as thankfully saved from extinction bookstores, and dearly departing video outlets. Thank you, Toys R Us. A part of us departs with you.

Schools Suffer Under Social

Evidence is mounting that schools are being overwhelmed by social media, with matters made worse by legal weed. After all, what better way to spend the day than stoned, binging on Friends reruns? According to one educational expert, who works mostly in San Francisco’s independent schools, “…the Netflix, phone and social media addiction is rampant. In school, I observe students in the library watching Netflix during study halls…they are using personal hotspots so they don’t get caught streaming. I’ve heard they are sneaking it in class as well.” According to a high school junior, “weed is everywhere; lots of kids are using it to quell their anxiety, but then they just act stupid, and can’t focus in class…” Is it time to unilaterally shut the Internet down, across all public and private school campuses?  But then, how would students communicate about the latest school shootings…?

MARIPOSA from page 3

towards better communication with the neighborhood.”

“There have been some noise and dust issues,” confirmed Eppler. “The dust related to trucks not getting cleaned up before leaving the site and then leaving soil on the streets. Related has been very receptive to comment, quick to help change subcontractor practices and address concerns.”

and purposes can afford one.

The challenge that Anderson, the candidate – the man no doubt grappled with his own demons – posed was how

tion, hazardous materials remediation,

Developments in the area have prompted the Boosters and GPR to work to address emerging traffic congestion, parking, and public transit needs. “I don’t think you can look at the immediate area around Jackson Park without considering the broader network,” said Heath. “SFMTA needs to make vast improvements to public transit throughout the entire area, while simultaneously regulating private transit via transportation network companies

MARIPOSA continues on page 17

PUBLISHER'S VIEW from page 2

SHORT CUTS from page 2

TOP 10 INDIVIDUAL AGENTS

TOP 10 AGENT TEAMS

Seated, left to right: Andrew Roth, John LePage, Tanya Dzhibrailova (#1 Companywide Agent), Isabelle Grotte (#1 Noe Valley Agent), Simon Shue (#1 Pacific Heights Agent). Standing, left to right: Robin Hubinsky (#1 West Portal Agent), Laura Kaufman, Suhl Chin . Not pictured above: Chris DeNike (#1 Marin Agent), Damon Knox (#1 Upper Market Agent).

Group at far left: Real SF Properties (#1 Upper Market Team) with Kira, Danny & Harry. Group seated at center, left: Team Howe (#1 Companywide Team) with Kristin, Samantha & Sherri. Group seated at center, right: Amy Clemens & Alec Mironov (#1 Noe Valley Team). Group at far right: The Gullicksen Group (#1 Pacific Heights Team) with Tim, Jonathan & Virginia. Back two rows, from left: Spiro Marin (#1 Marin Team) with Dorothy (seated) & Spiro (standing); Team Honda with Darryl & Julia (seated) and Nick & Jason (standing); Joan Loe er & Jim Beitzel (seated/standing); The Valandra Group with Priya (seated) & Vicki (standing); The Shagley Team with Carren (seated) & Jennifer (standing); SFNorth with Greg (seated) & George (standing).

of $100 per day. This is not rational.”

Hudiburgh asserted that most of her store’s sales are from produce and fresh goods, with only a small amount of trade in canned and bottled items. The store’s monthly garbage and recycling expenses total about $1,000. Hudiburgh maintained that The Good Life Grocery can’t afford to pay the fines and lacks the space to serve as a redemption center, which she says would also violate her lease and Department of Public Health regulations.

Numerous media outlets have detailed CalRecycle’s struggling recycling program in recent months. In 2017, Resource Recycling Inc. reported that a state audit revealed that retailer Walmart had failed to pay $7.2 million in bottle deposits in California by underreporting the number of beverage containers it brought into the state, sold or transferred over a three-year period. This money, known as California Refund Value, ultimately gets put into a CalRecycle to pay recycling centers’ operating costs. Walmart paid the sum plus interest late last year but wasn’t subject to penalties. In February, the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office announced a settlement with Walmart over allegations that the company sold plastic products that were misleadingly labeled “biodegradable” or “compostable” in violation of California law. Walmart didn’t admit liability, but agreed to pay $875,000 in civil penalties and an additional $50,000 to CalRecycle.

PLAYGROUND from page 5

extension into Carolina Street, where the community center, clubhouse, children’s playground and an additional designated open space area would be located. A promenade, with low walls and shrubbery, would separate activities. The fence that currently surrounds the park would be removed, allowing easy access to and from all four surrounding streets. To further that end, the existing two-foot elevation would be graded to street level.

The community center would feature a basketball court inside, with tennis courts above, the latter accessed by a sloped walkway that’d feature an overlook suitable for use as an additional picnic area or for viewing baseball games. The community center would connect to the clubhouse via a glassed-inroom.

Preservation of the clubhouse, which was built when the park was established in 1912, was a chief priority of planners. One reason for moving it from the park’s southeast to the northwest corner is to locate it on soil more suitable for a building. According to Fletcher, the shift also opened other opportunities. Relocating the historic structure to 17th Street would help revive its visibility, which has been disappearing as its surrounded by new development. And, it’d allow the edifice to be placed in a friendlier manner. Currently, Fletcher noted that the worst side of it, essentially a blank wall, faces the street.

“We can rotate it and bring it into the public view so we can see it and make it a much better public amenity,” he said. He’d also like to cut a hole in that wall so that the stage inside can serve outdoor use as well.

It’s hoped that by creating a more open and lighter environment people will feel safer using the park’s amenities. The current location, particularly around the public bathrooms, has drawn unsavory activity, including prostitution and drug sales.

BOOSTERS from page 7

and foster creation of the Green Benefit District, a special assessment district that assists with the maintenance of neighborhood public spaces.

According to Eppler, high points during his tenure were the Boosters’ persuasion of Trumark Urban to increase the number of multi-bedroom units in its 91-unit condominium complex, the Knox; and the successful conclusion of Pier 70’s planning process.

“First, the magnitude of the project itself – jobs, housing – the amount of open space that it can give to the neighborhood. Secondly, it serves as a model for other projects. Third, it was an opportunity for the neighborhood to learn from and apply the  Eastern Neighborhoods Plan,” he said.

At the Boosters’ February meeting, members heard from San Francisco Municipal Transportation Authority representatives, who presented information regarding SFMTA’s “design for 16th Street as it gets reconstructed into more transit-oriented, replacement of a bus line to better serve the community, and an exploration of possible additional transit resources to address Potrero-Dogpatch neighborhood needs,” Eppler said.

Eppler urged Hill residents who aren’t members to attend a Boosters meeting or the group’s annual dinner. “With so much of our discourse occurring online, there’s great value in being able to discuss community issues with your neighbors face to face.”

“We don’t always win, but our views count, and that is what democracy is all about,” added deCastro. “Our goal is to find consensus on key issues of the day and to make our neighborhood and the City more livable for all of us.”

The Boosters’ next monthly meeting will be held on April 24, 7 p.m., at the Potrero Hill Neighborhood House, 953 De Haro Street. Association membership is open to all Hill residents and property owners. For more information: www.potreroboosters.org.

CCA from page 8

vated, also by Studio Gang, to achieve carbon-neutral and zero water waste goals. Sustainability consultants, Rocky Mountain Institute and Atelier Ten, will be involved in water and energy conservation elements, and recommend environmentally safe art materials and practices. Public realm improvements will include additional bicycle parking, street trees and street furniture, among other amenities.

According to David Meckel, CCA director of research and planning, community activists have been enthusiastic about the housing projects, as they’ll provide units for students who would otherwise be competing for shelter in the general market. Following several presentations to neighbors and civic groups about 75 Arkansas Street, CCA met with the Potrero Boosters Development Committee; a follow-up meeting is likely to happen

soon to discuss 188 Hooper Street. Meckel said that in January there was a community open house focusing on the Hooper residences, where positive feedback on the design was given. Similar gatherings will be scheduled regarding the new academic building once the preliminary design stage is complete.

“We’ve been very collaborative with neighbors,” Meckel said. “We know we have to be very active in this process and talk to many neighbors and groups. We’ll continue to do that all the way through.”

According to Meckel, CCA administration is aware of the transformation occurring in and around Dogpatch, Potrero Hill, and Showplace Square, with a growing population and concomitant need for safer streets and sidewalks. He expects that the campus will evolve to be more porous in relation to the community, with an inviting, street-friendly feel. However, he stressed that openness has to be balanced with the need to keep the campus environment safe and secure for students; it’s likely that neighborhood connections will be made over time.

Last summer, an intensive architecture design studio enabled 18 CCA students to learn in a laboratory-like environment for three weeks, led by Studio Gang founder Jeanne Gang and architect Steve Wiesenthal. Scholars teamed in small groups to create a conceptual design for a library as part of the new academic building. Although there’s no commitment by Studio Gang to incorporate aspects of the students’ work, the process prompted in-depth conversations regarding the role that the library plays in the institution, and the part the institution plays in the neighborhood.

“One theme was thinking about the role of the library and the broader constituency of users beyond just students and faculty,” said Christopher Roach, adjunct professor of architecture, CCA. “It was proposed that the library could have an outside street entrance where researchers from other institutions, members of organizations and neighbors could use the library as a resource and allow for rich mixing. The current library is really only for CCA students and faculty or visiting faculty.”

“It’s rare for students of architecture to be able to offer input about the building of their school,” said Cesar Lopez, a CCA lecturer and graduate. “Few architecture schools are being built right now. It’s a unique oppor-

tunity for students to influence the trajectory of the school building.”

According to Emily Viemeister, CCA senior communications manager, the collaborative posture has extended beyond the classroom to include faculty, staff, students, alumni and trustees through a series of workshops and presentations intended to help establish an overall vision, develop a framework for new architecture and modifications to existing buildings, and determine relationships with the campus and City.

MARIPOSA from page 15

like Uber and Lyft and private shuttles. Although Related can and should advocate for transit improvements, this is the City’s responsibility.”

“New transit resources are being studied to make the whole neighborhood work to help handle the cumulative impact of the various projects that are going on,” said Eppler. “Fortunately, that location is fairly well-served. It has access to the 22, 55, 19, and 10 bus lines. It’s also near the accepted tech shuttle routing. We expect residents will not need to rely on their own cars to get around. Further, they should be utilizing the parking inside of the building, not street parking. That is already a diminishing commodity in the neighborhood.”

Related will create 249 parking spaces, including six car share pod spots, in its onsite lot. It’ll also offer one per-bedroom bicycle parking for residents and add three street parking places by closing existing curb cuts.

FOJP and GPR were pleased with Related’s donation to Jackson Park, and its commitment to greenspace overall. “We need to raise money to get the project done. Related is a stakeholder in the neighborhood and is interested in helping us with that,” said Deckenbach. “We’ve raised $4.5 million in pledged contributions from the developer community so far. We’re using that to get our project shovel-ready. That way we will be prepared to build the new park when we receive money from the 2019 Parks Bond. If we can build what’s been designed, it’ll be amazing,”

“I think that Related did a great thing donating $2 million to Jackson Park. I would challenge other developers to be as generous,” said Heath.

Related, David Baker Architects, and Fletcher Studio declined to be interviewed for this story.

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Company Retreat Space

Gorgeous, rustic, Muir Beach space and stunning Mission Dolores home available for day rentals. Perfect for six to 10 people engaged in retreats of all kinds: writing, yoga, team-building, strategy sessions. $1,500 to $3,000 a day. Editor@ potreroview.net; 415.643.9578.

Muir Beach Vacation Studio

Walking distance to the beach, with the crashing waves visible and audible from the place. Includes kitchenette and lovely patio. $175/ weekdays; $200/weekends; $250/ holidays. Editor@potreroview.net; 415.643.9578.

Muir Beach Vacation Home

Walking distance to the beach, with the crashing waves visible and audible from the place. Three bedrooms, two baths, with a lovely deck. Minimum two nights: $450/ weekdays; $500/weekends; $550/ holidays. Editor@potreroview.net; 415.643.9578.

Got something you need to sell? Have a service you provide? Our Classified Ad section is just the place for you! Cost: Each classified ad is $25 for up to 200 characters, including spaces. A 20-percent discount will be provided for ads paid for six months in advance. Payment, and/ or corrections, must be received by the 18th of each month for the ad to appear in the following month’s issue. Please email all classified ads to office@potreroview.net

ICONS from page 9

hardwood boards that are about an inch thick and cost $150 or more. The preferred medium is egg tempera, a durable paint made from powdered pigments mixed with egg yolks and white wine, freshly mixed for each session. Gold leaf is used to represent religious figure’s halos or as backgrounds.

“Working with egg tempera is unfamiliar to most people, but it’s a lovely

medium and the layering technique gives you a beautiful glow and subtle colors,” Porter explained.

Porter and other iconographers strongly prefer the use of egg tempera because it gives paintings more depth, and richer, more natural looking, colors can be achieved. People create icons using acrylic paints; however, Porter cautioned that acrylic can result in a “plastic” appearance. According to Porter, some of the materials used in iconography contain a mixture of red

Count on WIC for Healthy Families

clay, mortar, glue and a little glycerin. The clay is symbolic of Adam, as the Hebrew derivative of the name means “earth” or “red clay”. Whenever clay is used in an icon it represents God’s creation of Adam, she said.

In addition to the bimonthly classes, an Icon Intensive Workshop will be held from July 30 to August 4 at the church. There’s no firm deadline, but applications for the course should be submitted by early June. Judith Tucker, who coordinates the clinic, had participated in a similar event many years ago in Santa Barbara; since then about five summer workshops have been held annually. Porter will be involved in the session; however, Dmitri Andreyev, from the Prosopon School, the son of Vladislav Andrejev, will be the instructor.

“He’s an excellent teacher,” said Tucker. “We always learn something new from him. Dmitri does more than just teach his technique. He delves into the meaning of the icons and the spiritual connection beyond what we’re doing.”

Anyone can apply to attend the summer workshop. However, Tucker emphasized that the experience is intense, running from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. for six days, and will cover intermediate and advanced material. Last year, the workshop fee was $900; Tucker anticipates it’ll be a similar amount this summer. Payment covers breakfast and lunch, as well as materials and Andreyev’s airfare, as he lives in Vermont.

For more information about the bimonthly classes, call 510.663.4830; for the summer workshop email jktucker@ sonic.net.

Outreach Ads April 2018

PLASTICS from page 13

interesting coming up is that cities are looking to do something more to reduce disposables. They are not meeting their zero waste goals,” said Liotsakis. “Why shouldn’t reuse be treated the same way as recycling and hauling?”

Dogpatch-based Steelys Drinkware has been wholesaling reusable stainless-steel cups and bottles to festivals, corporate events and catering services since 2010. One patron is the Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival in Tennessee; Steelys owner John Borg said the cups and associated free water refill stations provided at the festival have diverted more than two million disposable plastic cups over the past four years. For Outside Lands last year, Steelys produced 4,000 water bottles and 600 reusable wine cups, the latter selling out halfway through the first day. Water stations at Outside Lands poured 142,092 liters over three days, the equivalent of 284,184 16-ounce cups otherwise lining the trash. Steelys has also been incorporated into music tours by Jack Johnson, Phish and Dave Matthews.

Borg’s original background was in marketing, where he said he used to produce a “lot of swag.” In 2006, he founded Eco Imprints, which makes environmentally-friendly merchandise and apparel. The impetus to start Steelys came from his health concerns about plastic. “If you and I were to get tested we would have plastic in our bodies,” he said. “Plastic is super cheap, super efficient. It is a terrific material, but it has consequences long term.”

WIC is a federally funded nutrition program for Women, Infants, and Children. You may qualify if you are pregnant, breastfeeding, or just had a baby; or have a child under age 5; and have a low to medium income; and live in California. Newly pregnant women, migrant workers, and working families are encouraged to apply.

WIC provides Nutrition Education and Health information, breastfeeding support, checks for healthy foods (like fruits and vegetables), and referrals to medical providers and community services.

You may qualify for WIC if you receive Medi-Cal, CalFresh (Food Stamps), or CalWORKS (TANF) benefits. A family of four can earn up to $3,793 before tax per month and qualify.

Enroll early! Call today to see if you qualify and to make an appointment. Call City and County of San Francisco WIC Program at 415-5755788.

This institution is an equal opportunity provider

Sunshine Ordinance Task Force

The Task Force advises the Board of Supervisors and provides information to other City departments on appropriate ways in which to implement the Sunshine Ordinance (Chapter 67 of the Administrative Code); to ensure that deliberations of commissions, boards, councils and other agencies of the City and County are conducted before the people and that City operations are open to the people’s review.

Upcoming term expirations or vacancies:

• Seat 1 must be nominated by the local chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists and be an attorney, for a two-year term ending April 27, 2020.

• Seat 2 must be nominated by the local chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists and be a journalist, for a two-year term ending April 27, 2020.

• Seat 3 must be a member from the press or electronic media, for a two-year term ending April 27, 2020.

• Seat 4 must be a journalist from a racial/ethnic-minority-owned news organization and nominated by the New California Media, for the unexpired portion of a two-year term ending April 27, 2019.

• Seat 5 must be nominated by the local chapter of the League of Women Voters, for a two-year term ending April 27, 2020.

• Seat 6, must be a member of the public experienced in consumer advocacy, for a two-year term ending April 27, 2020.

• Seat 7 must be a member of the public experienced in consumer advocacy, for a two-year term ending April 27, 2020.

• Seat 8 must have demonstrated interest in, or have experience in, the issues of citizen access and participation in local government, for a two-year term ending April 27, 2020.

• Seat 9 must have demonstrated interest in, or have experience in, the issues of citizen access and participation in local government, for a two-year term ending April 27, 2020.

• Seat 10 must have demonstrated interest in, or have experience in, the issues of citizen access and participation in local government, for a two-year term ending April 27, 2020.

UCSF Seeks Vendors for Two Exciting Business Opportunities

University of California San Francisco is seeking two retail vendors to operate:

2,012-square-foot restaurant in the new Center for Vision Neurosciences at the UCSF Mission Bay campus:

•Concept: limited food service café space

•Located on the ground floor at the corner of 3rd and 16th Streets with Street frontage

•Across from the MUNI T-Third St. line, and #55-16th Street MUNI line

•Across from the new Chase Center, future home to the Golden State Warriors

5,140-square-foot corner market on the ground floor of UCSF Minnesota Street Student and Trainee Housing in the Dogpatch neighborhood:

•Concept: community-focused corner market

•Located on the ground floor of the building

•Featuring groceries, convenience items, prepared packaged foods/deli items, coffee and espresso drinks, and wine and beer

Interested? Visit our website for more information http://campuslifeservices.ucsf.edu/retail/services/lease

Proposals are due Monday, May 30, 2018.

Questions? Email: retail.services@ucsf.edu