Potrero View 2011: February by potreroview

February 2011

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Rebuild Potrero Project Stirs Hope, Fear for Neighborhood House Sells the Community’s Future

Photograph by Peter Linenthal

Hill residents and business owners, including Goat Hill Pizza’s Philip De Andrade (left), shared stories about their role in the community while participating in Rebuild Potrero’s community building event late last month. More than 100 participants gathered to talk about the neighborhood’s future. A follow-up meeting will be held at St. Teresa Church, 390 Missouri Street, from 10 a.m. to noon on February 5.

By Nicole Spiridakis Some Hill residents are concerned that proposed redevelopment of the Potrero Annex-Terrace housing complexes – which developers have named Rebuild Potrero – will result in “too many, too much.” Under initial plans, new residential buildings at the complex were to be no higher than four

stories. More recent proposals include a mix of building heights, some as tall as eight stories, and a tripling of the current population, prompting worries that the proposed dramatic increase in housing density could cause parking congestion, and degrade the neighborhood’s character. J a n e F a y, w h o b o u g h t a 1,000-square foot condominium

in Parkview Heights in 1984, is concerned that the population surge prompted by the project could impact the Hill’s small-town character. “It will bring a downtown into an old, quaint neighborhood with the taller buildings,” she said. Fay stressed that many residents were excited about Rebuild Potrero until the number of planned units jumped from 1,200 to upwards of 1,800. The higher density would result in “a great increase in people, cars, reduced parking and reduced Muni service, along with the lack of true integration of income levels,” she said. Rosanna Francescato, who bought her Texas Street home roughly five years ago, believes that higher density will bring more revenue into the neighborhood, aiding revitalization efforts. “I feel like the plan is good overall, and it will only be better than what is there now, for both the public housing residents and everyone else in the area,” she said. “The density of the area would increase, which is true, but I don’t think that’s necessarily a bad thing in a city, and it can have some environmental benefits. Also, it’s important to realize that for this project to happen, it needs to be financially feasible, and the density helps with that.”

In Potrero Hill, Recology’s garbage trucks regularly pick-up three kinds of waste – non-recyclables, recyclables and compostable food scraps – in familiar black, blue and green bins. Throughout Southeast San Francisco, the company collects trash from residential customers Monday through Friday, usually between the hours of 6 a.m. to 5 p.m., with occasional late night and early morning pick-ups for commercial clients on 15 main routes. Recolog y – for merly NorCal Waste Systems – is a privately-held firm that has a monopoly on collecting the City’s trash, at least in part based on a 1932 voter-mandate. The company transports recyclables to Pier 96, off Cargo Way, to be sorted and processed. At the recycling facility “hiring preference is given

INSIDE

to residents in the 94124 and 94107 zip codes, good paying union jobs that start at $18 to $20 an hour and where drivers can earn $100,000 a year. That’s what going to zero

waste is all about,” said Kevin Drew, San Francisco Department of the Environment’s (SF Environment) residential zero waste coordinator, “creating green jobs, and reducing the need for landfill in the future.”

Short Cuts p. 3

Recology consolidates the City’s non-recyclable garbage – roughly 1,100 tons a day – at it’s Tunnel Road transfer station near Candlestick Point. Union drivers then haul the trash over the Bay Bridge to the Altamont landfill near Livermore, which is owned by publicly-held garbage giant Waste Management of Alameda County (WMAC). In 2009, after reviewing proposals for a new contract to landfill San Francisco’s non-recyclable trash, SF Environment chose Recology over incumbent WMAC. Under the contract – estimated to be worth $115 million – once WMAC’s current contract expires in 2015, Recology will provide landfill services to the City for 10 years or five million tons, whichever comes first. The see landfill page 6

see park page 23

see rebuild page 9

Calendar p. 17

Mission Bay Families p. 13 p. 12

By Sasha Lekach

With little public notice, late last year the Potrero Hill Neighborhood House (Nabe) sold the De Haro Street corner garden located across the road from the neighborhood center. The 3,362 square-foot property is zoned for a two family building, though for years it’s been an empty lot. Although many residents assumed the plot was vacant park space, it was actually privately owned by the Nabe. “We had intentions to build space for additional program space,” said the Nabe’s executive director Edward Hatter. “But all we could do was pay liability insurance on it.” Public records indicate that on December 28, 2010 the deed to the property was transferred from the Nabe to Thomas G. Keegan, Krista Henry Keegan, Eugene J. Keegan and Miriam McGuinness. The Nabe sold the De Haro Street and Southern Heights Avenue lot to make up for a steep decline in City funding over the past two years. “Signing the papers on the last day was a struggle for me in the first place,” Hatter said. “It was either do or die.” The property sold for roughly $330,000 two months after it was placed on the market, significantly less than other recent lot sales in the neighborhood. The Keegans and McGuiness have proposed to build a two-unit house on the property, according to Hatter. The sale of the corner garden came as a surprise to residents; the only clue of the change was a missing mosaic bench that had stood in the lot for eight years. Carolina Street resident David Glober understands the short-term reasoning to sell the property, but “the Nabe will cover a budget shortfall for one year, but this urban respite will be lost to us forever. Privately-held, publiclyaccessible open space is a community asset that promotes neighborhood health and well-being. Adults and children need access to the natural world within City limits.” Dogpatch Neighborhood Association president Janet Carpinelli expressed outrage over the sale.

Garbage Companies Talk Trash Over City Landfill Contract

By Lori Higa

Pocket Park

p. 15

Crime & Safety p. 24 p. 22

THE POTRERO VIEW

February 2011

Publisher’s View

Rebuild, Again?

Power Plant By Steven J. Moss The Potrero Power Plant will be decommissioned this month, marking the end to San Francisco’s last significant power station, and one of California’s oldest generating facilities. The plant has a long pedigree providing power to the City: it’s located on the site of Pacific Gas and Electric Company’s first generating station, built in the late-19th century. Its main operating unit – three – was constructed in 1965 as part of San Francisco’s post-World War II economic golden age. Candlestick Stadium had opened seven years previously, and the Bay Area Rapid Transit system was launched contemporaneously. The plant was toppled through a combination of political and economic forces. Citizen-activists began calling for its demise roughly a decade ago, in the wake of a proposal to almost triple its size. Greenaction for Environmental Health and Justice, the Power Plant Task Force, and San Francisco Community Power, among others, worked to close the facility to stop the hundreds of tons of greenhouse gases and asthma-inducing particulate matter it pumped-out, as well as the 226 million gallons a day of water it sucked from the subsurface of the Bay, which was dumped back out roughly 20 degrees warmer than it left. The City Attorney’s office negotiated an agreement with the plant’s owner, Mirant Corporation, which enhanced the site’s value for land development, and pointed to its future civilian role as part of a revitalized Pier 70. The plant’s death has as much symbolic meaning as environmental. Its closure was made possible by the development of the Trans Bay Cable, an expensive – half-billion dollar – underwater pipeline that conveys electricity from generating

stations located outside the City. While this power is less polluting than Potrero’s, it still predominately consists of energy produced by older natural gas-powered plants, likely located close-by hard-pressed Contra Costa communities. In this respect former Mayor Gavin Newsom’s victory in leading plant closure efforts mirrors his mixed success with gay marriage. San Francisco is now free of significant fossil fuel-powered generating stations, but remains largely dependent on similarlypowered facilities located elsewhere. A battle was won; the war – to reduce our dependence on earth-degrading fuel sources – continues. To win this war we need to start making as conscious a choice about our energy consumption as those of us who follow Michael Pollan and Alice Waters – or more ancient traditions – do about what we eat. Locavore – eating foods g row n nearby, as a way to reduce transportation costs and sync-up with natural seasonal cycles – needs to be matched with locawatt – developing close-by sustainable energy sources to reduce our dependence on expensive transmission lines and take advantage of placed-based features, such as the sun, wind, and other renewable and more efficient feed stocks. Organic farming – lowering reliance on agricultural chemicals – needs to be mirrored by organic energy use – managing our consumption through conservation and efficiencies. And urban agriculture needs to be matched with urban energy infill, creating community-based smart grids that rely on a diversity of lowimpact technologies and behaviors. The Potrero Power Plant wasn’t evil, any more than the wood-burning see power plant page 10

News and Tips? Email editor@potreroview.net

™ Masthead design by Giacomo Patri

EDITOR and PUBLISHER: Steven J. Moss PRODUCTION MANAGER: Lisa Tehrani FEBRUARY STAFF: Regina Anavy, Bailey Debruynkops, Rheba Estante, Debbie Findling, Dáire Heneghan, Lori Higa, Kelly Kimball, Liska Koening, Sasha Lekach, Catie Magee, Sarah Mcdonald, Sara Moss, Mary Purpura, Greg Roensch, Manu Schnetzler, Mauri Schwartz, Nicole Spiridakis and Ben Terall Editorial and policy decisions are made by the staff. All staff positions are voluntary. Published monthly. Address all correspondence to: THE POTRERO VIEW, 2325 Third Street Suite 344, San Francisco, CA 94107 415.626.8723 • E-mail: editor@potreroview.net • advertising@potreroview.net (advertising)

T h e V ie w is prin t e d o n r ec ycl e d n e wsprin t with soy- bas e d ink .

Photograph courtesy of the Potrero Hill Archives Project

A View from the Past The construction of Potrero Terrace is nearing completion in this 1941 photograph. Originally called the Potrero Low Rent Housing Project, the complex was built following the 1938 creation of the Housing Authority to house the Great Depression’s “deserving poor.” When the United States entered World War II, the project accommodated war-industry workers. Potrero Terrace and the neighboring Potrero Annex, both antiquated and in disrepair, are currently the focus of a redevelopment effort (see related front page story). - Abigail Johnston The Potrero Hill Archives Project

Letters to the Editor Openspace Editor, Thank you for last month’s article about Starr King Openspace and the proposed development at 1321 De Haro (“Starr King Openspace Land Dispute Remains Unresolved”). I appreciate that the reporter, Sasha Lekach, presented perspectives from the several parties involved, and that readers were able to see the significant contrast in size between the existing house at 1321 De Haro and the proposed new building. In addition to the development’s scale relative to the Openspace, we’d like our neighbors to know that the Starr King Openspace board is continuing to address the easement. The previous owner of 1321 De Haro had an easement granting limited vehicular access across the Openspace. We’re working to ensure that all future access is from De Haro. We’ve been pursuing negotiations with the owners of 1321 De Haro for more than a year. Recently there have been some hopeful signs that the owners of 1321 De Haro, Starr King Openspace, and the Potrero Boosters may finally be moving towards detailed conversations. We’ll be sure to keep the neighborhood informed of any progress! Please contact us at 633.6756, or at starrkingboard@gmail.com, if you have any questions, or visit our website at www.starrkingopenspace.org. Caroline Bird President, Starr King Openspace Board of Directors

Pedestrian Bridge Editor, In last month’s View the “Crime and Safety” column included comments I made about the pedestrian over crosses (POC) at 25th, 22nd, and 18th streets. I’d like to put my comments into a larger context. There

are seven neighborhood groups that meet on a regular basis to address community issues. Those groups are: The McKinley Square Community Association, The McKinley Square Foundation, San Br uno Avenue Neighborhood Group, Mariposa/ Utah Neighborhood Group, Vermont Street SAFE Group, Vermont Street Neighborhood Group, and the Kansas Street SAFE Association. I captain the Kansas Street SAFE Association. There have been discussions focusing on the POCs at 18th and 22nd streets in the hopes of curtailing crime in the neighborhood. A December 7, 2010 meeting at the Downtown High School involving the different groups and public agencies raised many suggestions. It was suggested and agreed that vegetation control, increased lighting, and possible camera surveillance be initiated around the POCs. Some groups raised the idea of partial bridge closures – 11 p.m. to 6 a.m. – however, no agreement was reached. Par tial closure of the POCs remains a sensitive issue needing further consideration. In the near future, more meetings will be held regarding this and other neighborhood issues. If you live in the southwest area of Potrero Hill – 22nd Street south to Cesar Chavez – feel free to contact our association at: kansas. safeassociation@gmail.com. You may also “friend” us on Facebook at “Kansas Street.” Ray O’Connor Kansas Street SAFE Neighborhood Association If you read something in this issue that you want to comment on, strongly object to or truly adore, we’d love to hear from you. Please email your letters to editor@ potreroview.net by the 18th of the prior month to get them in the following issue.

February 2011

Short Cuts Chat’s Bistro, which was supposed to open at 501 Connecticut Street late last year, has hit some roadblocks. According to the tenant, who didn’t want to be identified, unexpected problems with the building and its owners have slowed things down. The storefront, located at the corner of 20th and Connecticut streets, previously housed popular sandwich shop Klein’s Deli, followed briefly by Jay’s Deli, and has been vacant since 2009. The new tenant said he’s received support from other merchants along the 20th Street corridor, many of whom have indicated that they’d like to see a new sandwich shop at the location. “All the neighborhood is trying to help,” he said. When it does open Chat’s Bistro will offer sandwiches, soup and coffee, and, eventually, a wider array of menu items. “I intend to make it a really successful neighborhood place,” he said.

Parking Next month social game developer Zynga will move into the Townsend Center bu ild ing on 699 Eighth Street, a 650,000 square foot property owned by TMG Partners, formerly Sega of America’s headquarters. Operating under a seven-year lease, Zynga will occupy 270,000

square feet, which the company says will allow for growth. Zynga’s staff has expanded rapidly, jumping from 398 employees in 2009 to more than 1,200 workers today. Townsend Center was modified to allow non-production and design companies like Zynga to occupy the building without providing additional parking under an agreement brokered by then Supervisor Sophie Maxwell, which led to the creation of the Eastern Neighborhood Trust Fund (see “Transparency Dogs Community Trust Fund,” July 2010 View). With increasing pa rk i ng congestion on Potrero Hill’s northern slope, the additional workers in a node not well-served by public transportation may come back to haunt us…Proposed parking changes at Carolina and 22nd streets have been abandoned by the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (MTA). Last month the agency announced that the intersection appears to be working as is; MTA found no reported accidents at the intersection in recent history. Julie Jackson, who is raising two elementary school children nearby, considers the area safe. “Parking is easy up here, it’s just how they [the MTA] were about to change see short cuts page 26

First time on the market for this two-unit building!

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Great north slope location

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Upside opportunity

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Views of Bay and city

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Upper unit:

The otherworldly plant life at the San Francisco Conservatory of Flowers, feather-light athletes at the San Francisco Ballet, proud Arabian Camels at the Oakland Zoo, and environmentally conscientious fashion

Photograph courtesy of The Goldman Fund

Richard Goldman

designers at the California College of the Arts, all have benefitted from the Richard and Rhoda Goldman Fund. Founded by Richard and Rhoda Goldman, who passed away in late-2010 and 1996, respectively, The Goldman Fund will close at the end of next year, its remaining assets divided among foundations operated by the couples’ three surviving children, John and Doug Goldman, and Susan Gelman. The couple launched the fund in 1951, after establishing their insurance business, Goldman Insurance and Risk Management. Over the years it has dispersed almost $700 million to 2,600 nonprofit organizations. The Goldman Fund focused much of its giving in the San Francisco Bay Area, particularly supporting local environmental causes such as the Greenbelt Alliance, Californians for Pesticide Reform, and Friends of the Urban Forest. The Goldmans created the Goldman Environmental Prize in 1990,

which annually awards $900,000 to environmental leaders from six continental regions. The Potrero Hill and South-ofMarket neighborhoods have been notable beneficiaries of Goldman Fund grants. The Potrero Hill Neighborhood House (Nabe) was awarded $61,000 over the past decade. According to the Nabe’s board president Skip Charbonneau, “The grants given by the Goldman Fund have been geared toward our holiday celebration, without which could not happen. When we first started, the grants were used to purchase groceries for the food bank. Now that costs have climbed, we have switched to the holiday luncheon, which has become even more significant. The luncheon really brings the community together, sitting down and breaking bread. We also use part of the money for our holiday toy distribution. There has been a decline in toy donations from the fire and police departments. The Goldman Fund, along with droves of community member-donations, has allowed us to get a variety of toys for the kids, which they really love.” The Califor nia Institute for Regenerative Medicine, located on King Street, received $350,000 from the fund in 2006. The institute invested these monies into researching embryonic stem cells, neurological disorders, cancers, heart disease, and blood/immune disorders. Thomas Starr King Elementary School was granted $5,000 in 2002. “Although Richard Goldman was known as an environmentalist and stem-cell research supporter, his dedication to the arts were substantial,” said staff member Christina Quiroz, “The Hills Project [an afterschool program involving eight San Francisco elementary schools] was something that he started. Mr. Goldman visited Starr King on a few occasions, and we are the only public school that was funded individually in the Hills Project.” When Goldman saw Starr King Openspace, a 3.5 acre environmentally protected area adsee Goldman page 8

3 bedroom/1 bath •

Lower unit: 2 bedroom/1 bath

Richard and Rhoda Goldman Fund to Close After Sixty Years of Giving By Bailey Debruynkops

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THE POTRERO VIEW

February 2011

Mission Bay Half-Way to Redevelopment Plan Completion By Nicole Spiridakis

Santa Fe Partners - 39 Condominiums 19,000 square feet of office space 7,800 square feet of retail space Completed June 2003

Centurian 595 condominium units including 27 affordable units with 45,000 square feet of office and 83,000 square feet of retail Completed March 2004

Intracorp 268 Condominium Units 800 square feet retail space Completed June 2008

Opus 110 Condominium Units 500 square feet retail space Completed August 2007

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SFRA - 100 Rental Apartments Very Low Income family units with on-site child care 9850 square feet of retail space Completed June 2002

Avalon Bay - 313 rental units including 19 affordable units 8600 square feet of retail space Completed October 2006

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SFRA - 139 Rental Units Very Low Income Senior Housing, with Health Care Center 7800 square feet of retail space and Public Library Completed July 2006

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UDR 193 Rental Units Completed September 2007

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Avalon Bay - 260 rental units 11,200 square feet of retail space Completed June 2009

SFRA -18 Acre Waterfront Park [P1-3, P8, NP1-NP5] A planned contiguous green-belt lining the Creek, with picnic areas, basketball, volleyball, tennis, boat launch and storage, dog-friendly play area, waterfront esplanade, community garden, pedestrian and bicycle paths, plazas, a cafe space, and outdoor ampitheater.

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The Related Companies 236 Affordable Rental Units Completed June 2007

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DECEM EMBER 2010

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Urban Housing Group 192 Rental Units / 9,900 square feet retail Completed March 2009

Urban Housing Group 147 Residential Units / 9,000 square feet retail

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SFRA - 100 Affordable Rental Units for Seniors

SFRA - 97P20 Affordable Rental Units

City of SF - 280,000 square feet Police Department Hall of Justice, including a local police/fire station

MISSIO MIS MISSIO SSIO SS ON ROCK OC C STREE S STRE T

BRIDGEVIEW WAY B

N4A-3

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SF Redevelopment Agency 125 Affordable Units, For-Sale

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SFRA - 150 Affordable Units, For-Sale

Bosa 418 Condominium Units / 10,000 square feet retail Block 10 (99 Units) Completed June 2008 Block 10A (319 Units) Est. Completion December 2012

CHINA CHIN CHINA CH H NA BASIN BAS A N STREET ASIN STREE TRE TREE REET

3RD RD ST RD STREE REE REET RE EE

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4TH STREET

MERRI MERRIM MERR ERRIM RRIM RRIM RR RIMAC RIMAC AC S ST. ST T

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SFRA - 2.6 Acres Public Open Space Completed March 2009 - October 2010

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MISSI MISSIO M MI ISSIO IS SS S SSIO SIO SIO ION BAY BA BA AY BLV BLVD. BLVD LV LVD LVD. VD VD. D. N D NO NORT NORTH NOR ORTH ORT O OR R RTH RTH

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SFRA - 237 Affordable Rental Units

MISSIO M ISSION BAY BLVD. BLVD SOUTH T

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- Alexandria 59,000 square feet Life Sciences Building (future)

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17AB

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NELSON EL E ELSON LSO LSON SO RISIN RIS I IIN NG LANE LAN N

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PIERPOINT LANE

Alexandria - 225,000 square feet office 4,600 square feet retail Core/Shell Completed November 2009

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- UCSF 170,000 square feet of research space Completed August 2003

BRIDGEVIEW WAY

Lionstone Urban - 291,000 square feet office Completed May 2008

SOUT SOUTH SO OUTH STREET STREE

TERRY FRANCOIS BLVD.

41/43 4 4

280,000 square feet of new neighborhoodserving retail and commercial space.

SFRA - 233 Affordable Rental Units for Families

26-1

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- Alexandria 165,000 square feet Life Sciences Building Completed September 2009

- Alexandria 245,000 square feet Life Sciences Building (future)

18A

- UCSF 237,000 square feet of lab and research space Estimated Completion January 2012

Entitled for 6000+ residential units, including 4200+ market rate and 1800+ affordable units.

P19

NP5

Available Site - FOCIL-MB, LLC 455 Residential Units

- UCSF 162,000 square feet lab, educational space Completed June 2009

Projected $700 million in new streets, streetscape, utilities and traffic improvements.

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- UCSF 200,000 square feet lab, educational space Completed September 2010

NORTH

Bosa - 285 Condominium Units

N4A-1

CALTRAIN / FUTURE HIGH SPEED RAIL

SAN FRANCISCO BAY TRAIL

Mercy Housing - 150 Affordable Rental Units

ET RE ST

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Over 41 acres of new park lands and publicly accessible open space.

LIGHT RAIL STATION

Bosa: 170 Residential Units 18,000 square feet retail space

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MUNI METRO LIGHT RAIL

UDR - 315 Residential Units / 9,000 square feet retail

CHANNEL STREET

I-28 I-2 I-280 280 280 0

UCSF MEDICAL CENTER - HOSPITAL

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UCSF CAMPUS

COMMERCIAL OFFICE / BIOTECH LAB

CALTRAIN TERMINAL

Available Site - FOCIL-MB, LLC 500 Room Hotel / 50,000 square feet retail / misc.

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MARKET RATE RESIDENTIAL

HOTEL

SAN FRANCI NC SCO BAY B

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Signature Properties 100 condominium units Completed May 2004

PARKS & PUBLIC OPEN SPACE

GROUND FLOOR RETAIL

SFRA AFFORDABLE RESIDENTIAL

Avalon Bay - 250 Rental Units including 21 affordable units 7800 square feet of retail space Completed March 2003

KIN

Signature Properties 99 condominium units Completed November 2006

Available Site - FOCIL-MB, LLC 129 Residential Units: [80 Affordable For Sale; 49 Market Rate] 500 square feet retail space

PUBLIC FACILITY

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Bridge Housing 131 Affordable Units Completed September 2009

AREAS MAPPED IN DARKER COLOR ARE EITHER COMPLETED OR CURRENTLY UNDER CONSTRUCTION

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Tishman-Speyer - 285,000 square feet office Completed November 2002

4.4 million square feet of commercial or medical office space, and biotechnology research labs.

Alexandria - 1423 spaces Completed August 2009

Salesforce - 14-acre, 2 Million square feet commercial office / corporate headquarters facility Estimated construction start: TBD

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16TH STREET

ILLINOIS STREET

- Alexandria Completed September 2009

4TH TH S STREET ET

- UCSF 155,000 square feet of educational, social & recreational space Completed October 2005

OWENS S STREET S

At the halfway point of a 25-year, $4 billion public investment, Mission Bay is shedding its less-than-tony past as a railroad yard, and emerging as a densely-built residential and commercial neighborhood alongside the City’s central waterfront. The largest urban planning activity initiated by San Francisco since the creation of Golden Gate Park, the 303-acre Mission Bay project is a partnership between the original master developer, Catellus – which has sold much of Mission Bay’s developable property to private investors – the San Francisco Redevelopment Agency (SFRA) and the San Francisco Planning Department. Mission Bay is bound by Townsend Street on the north, the San Francisco Bay on the east, Mariposa Street on the south, and 7th Street and Interstate 280 on the west. The redevelopment project is ambitious, aiming to attract big-name corporations to settle in the area, offer a mix of affordable and market-rate housing, and create a 41-acre system of public parks. According to Kelley Kahn, a SFRA Mission Bay project manager, 12 years into the process the Agency has issued $280 million in bonds to pay for infrastructure and affordable housing, to be paid off with tax revenues from increases in Mission Bay land value. Today, Mission Bay has been almost completely transformed.

THE GLASSWORKS

THE BEACON LEGEND ARTERRA WHAT’S HAPPENING AT Gone are the MISSION BAY RICH SORRO COMMONS PARK TERRACE canneries, AVALON II shipyards and AVALON I MISSION WALK 235 BERRY warehouses MISSION CREEK COMMUNITY BLOCK N4P3 PARKS & OPEN SPACE 255 BERRY wh ich popuMISSION CREEK PARKS EDEGWATER lated the area AVALON III CRESCENT COVE a f t e r it wa s BLOCK 1 settled by EuINFRASTRUCTURE BLOCK 2 BLOCK 5 1000 FOURTH STREET ropeans in the STRATA BLOCK 13 WEST 19th century. BLOCK 3 WEST BLOCK 4 EAST PUBLIC SAFETY BUILDING BLOCK 3 EAST Also a distant HOUSING BLOCKS 9/9A memory is the BLOCK 12W RADIANCE wide, shallow BLOCKS 11/12E PARKS P16-P17-P18 CARDIOVASCULAR bay full of maRESEARCH BLDG BLOCKS 7 EAST/WEST RETAIL rine life that HELEN DILLER CANCER RESEARCH BLOCKS 6 EAST/WEST CENTER used to cover 455 MISSION BAY BLVD 1450 OWENS Mission Bay. NEUROSCIENCES LAB AND 500 TERRY FRANCOIS CLINICAL RESEARCH OFFICE / BIOTECH LAB In 1869, rock GAP INC./OLD NAVY 1500 OWENS and dirt was 450 SOUTH ST. GARAGE 1600 OWENS used to fill the SALESFORCE CAMPUS ROCK HALL water, followed UC SAN FRANCISCO RUTTER CENTER FIBROGEN LIFE SCIENCE by industrial 1670 OWENS GARAGE THIRD STREET GARAGE GLADSTONE INSTITUTES r ubble f r om CAMPUS HOUSING BLOCK 40 ALEXANDRIA LIFE SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY CAMPUS t he bl a s t i n g MEDICAL CENTER UCSF MEDICAL CENTER QB3 GENENTECH of Irish Hill – HALL the now small w w w . m b a y d e v e l o p m e n t . c o m mound of land east of Illinois An overview of the development progress in Mission Bay. Street between 20th and 23rd street – detritus from garbage dumps shipping activities waned. In 1990 campus; the California Institute for along 7th and 8th streets near Berry, Santa Fe Pacific, the surviving rail- Regenerative Medicine, a $3 billion topped off with 1906 earthquake road company, transferred ownership state agency dedicated to funding to Catellus Development Corporation, stem cell research; the $1.5 billion, debris. Throughout the 19th and 20th a publicly traded real estate company. 289-bed, UCSF Medical Center at centuries railroad companies built A redevelopment plan was hatched Mission Bay – which is slated to open in 2014 – and numerous life sciences yards on the land. But the area fell and approved by the City in 1998. The development is anchored into disuse starting mid-century last, when San Francisco’s industrial and by UCSF’s Mission Bay research see mission bay page 11 P23

Shorenstein - 450,000 square feet commercial office Completed September 2008

43 acre campus with 2.65 million square feet of new classroom, community, and research space.

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UCSF - 822 spaces (Phase 1) Completed February 2006

180,000 square feet research and lab facility Completed November 2004

153,000 sq ft life science office and lab space 10,000 square feet ground floor retail Completed December 2006

- UCSF 385,000 sq ft research and educational building Completed October 2002

Available Site FOCIL-MB, LLC ~ 600,000 square feet biotech / medical office

California Institute for Quantitative Biomedical

Research - UCSF 152,000 sq ft research building Completed November 2004

UCSF - 430 units for over 750 students Completed September 2005

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P27

P26

Cancer, Womens’, and Childrens’ Hospital Phase 1: 289-beds (est. complete Spring 2014) and 600-space parking structure (est. 2012). Phase 2: 550-beds total

MARIPOSA STREET

I-280 I-28 I-2 -2 2

PIER 70

UCSF’s 550-bed Children’s, Women’s, and Cancer specialty hospital on 14.5 acres.

February 2011

THE POTRERO VIEW

Farley’s Plants a Parklet

from that trend by providing quality loose leaf organic teas to its discerning clientele. Farley’s is famous for having one of the best magazine stands of any café in the Bay Area. Hillyard is By Ben Terrall quick to point out that his stock of Since it opened on St. Patrick’s more than 300 magazines is nothing Day, 1989, Farley’s has steadily built compared to famed newsstands like up a loyal customer base. Today it De Lauer’s in Oakland – which boasts succeeds handily at its goal of “cre- more than 6,000 titles – but given the ating a place of community for the much-lamented decline of print, the community.” The establishment’s wide assortment of titles at Farley’s is proprietor, Roger Farley Hillyard, a welcome sight to periodical-lovers. chatted about the rewards of running Literary magazines like Granta, a community-oriented café during a N+1 and the New York Review of recent performance of the Captain Books sit astride The New Yorker, Casual Blues Band, a local blues and Harper’s, and journals devoted to vintage rock ‘n’ roll trio that plays at art and music, including Art in Amer ica, Mojo, Living Blues, and the punk rock bible Maximum Rock and Roll. As Captain Casual played a blues-drenched 1960s tune, local tattoo enthusiast Steve Cooney leafed through a copy of Skin and Ink. Hillyard recalled that when he was a youngster, newssta nd propr ietor s repeatedly told him that if he wanted to read he should go to a librar y. Today he embraces the opposite approach to customer relations. Farley’s free-to-read approach is aided by its distributor’s policy of providing full An example of a parklet on Columbus Avenue in North refunds on retu r ns of Beach. unsold magazines. Profits from magazine sales are the coffee and tea emporium semi- down, but overall the publications regularly. still turn a profit. Even the nonprofit According to Hillyard, since paper SF Public Press, stacked near the recession began in 2008 Farley’s Farley’s cash register, has sold well; has had to work harder to make the more than 100 copies of its second same amount of money. He’s brought issue. in more business by upgrading the The café not only provides an store’s products, both in terms of atmosphere that welcomes reading, what’s purchased and how its pre- it encourages interaction and compared. Demand for boutique teas has see farley’s page 25 increased, and Farley’s has benefited

Photograph by Laura Mitic

New Mural Lights Up Missouri Street You’ve Got a Right to the Tree of Life was completed at Daniel Webster Elementary School last month. The mural, created by Kid Serve muralist Josef Norris and the school’s students, adorns the Missouri Street side of the school’s main building.

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February 2011

landfill from front page shift from WMAC to Recology will save the City roughly $150 million compared to WMAC’s bid, according to Recology spokesperson Adam Alberti of Singer & Associates. It will also shift the final dumping grounds for San Francisco’s solid waste from WMAC’s Altamont site to Recology’s Ostrom Road landfill. That site is located in rural Yuba County, near the tiny Sierra foothills town of Wheatland, roughly 130 miles northeast of San Francisco. Recology proposes to move the trash via diesel-powered trains from a staging area in Oakland. According to David Tucker, WMAC’s government affairs director, his company could transport the garbage using trucks fueled by methane, with lower greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. However, that transportation method wasn’t included in their initial proposal. SF Environment didn’t evaluate landfill bids based on quantitative estimates of polluting air or GHG emissions resulting from proposed transport approaches, instead using broader scoring categories, such as “minimizing and mitigating climate impacts.” Irene Creps, a retired 76-year old George Washington High School biology teacher who lives in Ingleside Terrace, is from a pioneer family who settled Wheatland in the 1860s, and once owned the land on which Recology’s Yuba County landfill now sits. She’s a member of Yuba Group Against Garbage, or YuGAG, which has been fighting Recology’s expanding landfill for a decade. Founded by fellow W heatlander Richard Paskowitz, an obstetrician who worked on one of the first dialysistype machines, YuGAG contends Recology is misrepresenting the true costs of dumping the City’s garbage, the amount and type of trash it plans to put into its landfill and the potential environmental damage it could wreak. “Because it’s off the beaten path, they think they can do things here and no one will notice,” Creps said indignantly. “This county is one of the poorest in the state, with agriculture its main source of income,” said Creps. Histor ically, wheat and hops were widely grown in the area, but “rice is king” Creps said, with 30 percent of California’s crop cultivated in Yuba County. The county is the fourth poorest in the state; desperate for the fee revenue it’ll earn from San Francisco’s garbage, estimated by Alberti at $22 million over 10 years.

Yuba County supervisor, newly elected board president, attorney and walnut farmer Roger Abe opposes dumping San Francisco’s garbage into the county’s landfill, at least at existing fee levels. Yuba County born and bred, Abe’s farm family settled in the area in the early 20th century. Abe believes Recology should pay the county three to four times its existing fee; up to $18 a ton. The area where the landfill is situated consists of deep, WymanRyer loam silt, Class A growing soil that farmers prize, according to a 1969 joint Yuba County-University of California, Davis study authored by soil scientists Fred W. Herbert, Jr. and Eugene L. Begg. “It’s the soil and abundant, pure water around here that makes this area such prime agricultural land,” Creps pointed-out. The landfill is in a Sierra Nevada watershed, with two adjacent outflows, Dry Creek and Best Slough. “The landfill is in the Sacramento Valley flood plain, right next to two creeks and just feet away from the Sierra foothills,” Creps emphasized. “The watershed gets up to 40 inches of rain annually and is historically vulnerable to flooding. That’s why it’s called a ‘flood plain.’” “Landfills leak; it’s only a question of time,” Paskowitz insisted. “Once groundwater is contaminated, there’s not a dialysis machine big enough that could clean it up,” the doctor-activist warned. “In fact,” YuGAG attor ney Br ig it Bar nes added, “Recology’s own plan shows the necessity of building a berm to prevent overflows into the landfill at the 100-year flood plain line. We are making a challenge on the grounds that FEMA now mandates a 200-year flood line, which will substantially impact the landfill.” “Instead of a money pit, this landfill is a money machine!” said Paskowitz. W hile not a fan of WMAC, Paskowitz believes the firm has cleaned up its act at Altamont, where it settled a lawsuit brought against it by the Sierra Club and the City of Livermore by creating a multimillion-dollar open space mitigation fund in 1999. “Altamont seems more appropriate for San Francisco because it doesn’t have a water table and agricultural issues like in Yuba County,” Paskowitz said. In a letter WMAC vice president Barry Skolnick sent last year to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, the company argues that Recology’s award was procured under “unlaw-

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ful application” of t h e C it y ’s “a d m i n i s t r a tive rules,” and threatens legal action. According to T ucker “there were subsequent conversations prior to the release of the RFP, the City’s Department of the E n v i r o n m e nt Photograph by Irene Creps made a request to Recology to Recology’s Ostrom Road landfill in Wheatland. This photo was taken provide trans- by the Local Enforcement Agency of Yuba County Environmental portation costs Health Department in 2010 from the top of a 100+ foot landfill t h at w a s n o t mountain, looking down at an area next to it, with piles of garbage and asked of WMAC fugitive debris. or any other bidder, better positioning them for a winning bid.” SF Environment deputy director Yuba County, they save three times David Assmann, the main driver the GHG. behind the bidding process, flatly deW M AC ’s po st-bid propo sa l nies this allegation, saying “the pro- would use trucks fueled by liquid cess was completely clean, with the natural gas (LNG), which it makes City Attorney’s office monitoring the from methane, a GHG by-product process every step of the way.” Ac- of decomposing waste at its landfill. cording to Assmann, Recology’s bid According to Alberti, WMAC is playwas selected based on its lowest cost ing a “shell game” with regards to “about $22.73 a ton” and friendlier assertions that its LNG trucks will environmental aspects. Alberti be- result in lower GHG emissions than lieves that WMAC is unhappy since Recology’s rail proposal. “Their the contract represents “a lot of calculations are misleading,” he money that Waste Management said. “It really is roughly equal dedoesn’t want to lose.” pending on who calculates it. There’s “Their proposal is to use fossil- no carbon benefit to Waste Managefueled trains to take the City’s ment’s proposal. We’re in the same garbage to a landfill that is three long-haul air shed. Ours is more times as far as Altamont,” said environmentally beneficial and low Tucker. “We have nothing against cost,” he said. trains, we use them ourselves, but in Skolnick’s letter points out that this case, rail haul emits three times an environmental impact review the greenhouse gases as methane (EIR) has yet to be conducted on gas-powered trucks that are the Recology’s rail haul option, which most carbon-neutral solution that may be required by the California exists.” Alberti admitted Recology Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), will use diesel trains, but claims that compared to fossil-fueled trucks to continued on next page

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February 2011 cover its costs plus a percentage. If their costs go up, they’ll pass it on to the ratepayers in San Francisco. It could be more than three times what it is now. Will San Franciscans be OK with that?” Since Recology opened its landfill in the 1980s it’s increased its size from 261 to more than 1,000 acres, takes in 800 tons of waste daily from five counties, and is permitted for 3,000 tons per day by 2030. The landfill rises up in a mountain 100 feet above sea

2012. Whether Yuba County gets San Francisco’s garbage or not, “we are working very hard on long-term economic development that would generate more jobs and revenues than the landfill,” Abe said, including an industrial/retail corridor near Highway 65. Creps recently co-founded SFGreenWaste.org, organizing fellow San Franciscans to gather signatures petitioning for an EIR. “There hasn’t been that, something comparing the

Photograph by Irene Creps

Waste Management’s Altamont Landfill biomethane-LNG processing plant. The LNG produced at the plant is used to create electricity which powers roughly 8,000 homes.

level, and is allowed to go up to 265 feet. “Once the rail spur is in, there’ll be nothing to stop ‘em from bringing unlimited amounts of garbage. We only have a small window of opportunity to do something,” said Paskowitz. Abe doesn’t think Recology’s proposed permit will be considered by the board until at least

two landfill sites,” Creps stated. The group collected more than 1,200 signatures in two days at last year’s Green Festival. According to Barnes, two crucial issues need to be addressed with Recology before the City approves the proposed landfill contract. “One, the Recology landfill is too close to Wheatland’s water table. I don’t

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know how it ever came to be sited in the first place,” said Barnes. Second, YuGAG claims that Recology’s “alternative daily cover,” or barrier material that will be placed daily on top of landfill waste, will consist of 25 percent treated sewage sludge, which includes hu man and pet waste, toxins, carcinogens, harmful chemicals, construction debris such as concrete dust and various other contaminants. Assmann responded with “this is absolutely absurd and illegal. There’s no way sewage sludge would go in the landfill. San Francisco’s sewage is a completely separate waste stream.” Barnes believes this material should be counted towards Recology’s permitted daily tonnage, and questions whether its use as cover which can blow onto nearby homes and agricultural fields is safe. “Recology is a master at getting permit amendments, going back and getting permits modified for highly questionable reasons,” Barnes said. “We are simply doing whatever we can to fulfill San Francisco’s mission to be the greenest city,” responded Alberti. “To treat San Francisco’s waste stream in the most environmentally responsible way possible, and what can’t be recycled, handled responsibly.” Three San Francisco supervisors – David Campos, John Avalos and Eric Mar – are on record as having doubts about the contract, which needs Board approval. The Budget Committee has scheduled a February 9 hearing to discuss the proposed contract.

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nor for a rail facility in Oakland, and that Recology doesn’t yet have a permit to build a rail spur to its Ostrom Road landfill. Abe agreed that Recology doesn’t yet have all of its required permits. “Recology’s applications to amend conditional use for its landfill and to build a new rail spur are in process,” he said. Abe expects the board “will receive a report in three to four months,” from a consultant it hired to determine whether a full EIR on Recology’s new contract should be conducted. “My own personal opinion as a board member, given the strong opposition from Wheatland residents who I represent, and the issues being raised, is that a full EIR is necessary, to review and examine all the concerns and claims now,” he said. “When Recology first received its permit in 1996, the host fee was $4.40 a ton. It hasn’t changed since then. The landfill was only for the Yuba and Sutter communities. Since then, Recology has added surrounding counties. If they bring San Francisco’s waste, it’s clear their intent is to convert it to a regional landfill. “If you look at the landfill as a local resource, with a limited lifespan and capacity, once it’s full, we’ll have to take our garbage elsewhere. That’s going to increase our costs,” Abe said. “If groundwater contamination or other damage occurs, there’s nothing set up to collect funds to address those types of issues.” According to Abe, “the Recology contract is a ‘cost plus’ contract. Meaning Recology gets to re-

THE POTRERO VIEW

Properties that are in good repair and have nice updates are typically selling more quickly and much closer to the original asking price (and sometimes over). Location is important, so it’s no surprise that our coveted neighborhood is doing well. For all of your real estate questions and needs, contact me any time!

THE POTRERO VIEW

February 2011

urban ecologist

Cycling Made Easy By Mary Purpura At some point, those trying to live more ecologically need to consider transportation. Automobiles pollute the air, water, and soil; used tires result in waste that’s difficult to properly dispose of; cars are a dangerous way to travel, with the potential for fatal or crippling accidents; they isolate people in little glass and metal boxes, the antithesis of building community; and their storage, maintenance, and beautification require a lot of space. In a seven-mile-square city like San Francisco, biking provides a good transportation alternative. But, oh, those hills! It’s easy and fun to tool around on a fixie if you live in the Mission and work downtown; two level neighborhoods. But, while some intrepid Potrero Hillians commute daily by bike, for many, life on hills makes it difficult to commit to biking as a preferred mode of intra-city transport. A newly funded City bike share program, bike-friendly improvements to eastside streets, and an embryonic concept being considered by City Car Share may eventually make biking more accessible for Potrero Hill residents. Paris, Minneapolis, and Denver all have successful bike share programs. But a $7 million Bay Area pilot program will be the nation’s first regional bike share

experiment, designed to include San Francisco and the South Bay’s CalTrain corridor. “CalTrain carries more bicycles than any other transit provider in the country,” often to capacity, explained Heath Maddox, a transportation planner with the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Authority (SFMTA) who is overseeing implementation of San Francisco’s pilot portion. “One of the key goals of the bike share program is to make bikes available to serve as feeders to and from transit systems, with the eventual goal of establishing a network that includes all nine Bay Area counties,” said Maddox. The one-year pilot fleet will include 1,000 bicycles, half of them located in San Francisco, with an expected launch in Spring 2012. Funding will come from nearly $4.3 million in federal money allocated through the Metropolitan Transportation Commission, $1.4 million from the Bay Area Air Quality Management District, with the balance from South Bay and San Francisco municipalities and agencies. Like City Car Share, the vehicle sharing program that allows members to use cars at locations in San Francisco, Oakland, and Berkeley, the bike share program will be membership-based, and will probably offer both annual and dayuse membership options. Unlike City Car Share, which requires drivers to return vehicles to the location they took it from, bicyclists will be able to return their bike to any kiosk. see cycling page 22

goldman from page 3 jacent to the school with panoramic views of the City, he exclaimed, “What a gem! You guys need to have a bench on the Openspace.” Between 1995 and 2005 The Goldman Fund contributed $30,000 to St. Vincent de Paul Society, supporting a multi-service homeless shelter, the Riley Center for Battered Women and their Children, and The Wellness Center. According to St. Vincent de Paul executive d i rector Ch r is Cody, “Richa rd Goldman understood the need to generously support the nonprofit community through his foundation. Individual citizens, corporations, and especially foundations must be educated to appreciate the critical importance of a safety net other than the government for those in need. Now, in this economic environment of shrinking government and reduced services, this is even tr uer. Richa rd Gold ma n was a visionary, and has enabled all of us to continue to serve our community here in San Francisco.” The Center for Young Women’s Development on Folsom Street received $105,000 from the Goldman Fund in 2007. The Center teaches incarcerated and formerly incarcerated young women to overcome life’s challenges, and emerge as leaders. Nationally, only two percent of alternative incarceration programs are available to young women, who account for 30 percent of juvenile

arrests. According to the Center, this lopsidedness results in young women finding themselves in jail or on probation longer for lesser crimes than young men. “Through the Goldman Fund we were able to continue supporting young women’s growth and leadership in San Francisco,” verified program director Venus Rodriquez. The Goldman Fund has provided the San Francisco Food Bank with significant support over the past decade. According to Food Bank executive director Paul Ash, “The Goldmans were longtime supporters of the Food Bank, committed to the fight against hunger. They contributed $2 million since 1990, instrumental in our organization’s distribution. There has been a real increase in community members turning to the Food Bank for help. The Gold man’s provisions constructed the Food Bank warehouse, which enables us to provide food to San Francisco and Marin County. With the warehouse we also run six farmers markets in Potrero Hill.” From the Potrero Hill Recreation Center to the University of California, San Francisco Medical Center, the Goldman’s genuine passion and monetary generosity supported organizations that benefitted people and the environment. Their spirit and bravery have made an immeasurable imprint on San Francisco. The Fund will close at the end of next year, distributing its roughly $280 million in assets to the children’s three foundations.

February 2011

Dogpatch Resident Gives Waste A New Identity cap lodged in its throat. “It’s getting in our system,” he said. “I’m really John Borg splits his time between down on how much plastic there is; in his family in Bolinas and working in packaging and wrappers. There’s so his Dogpatch loft at his company, Eco much of it out there. I’m an anti-plastic Imprints. In both his life in Bolinas crusader,” Borg explained. “I have a and work on Illinois Street, Borg blog and write about this stuff, but I’m makes reducing environmental waste not a driftwood artist.” a priority. Whether he’s combing the Borg does get creative with waste Marin coastline for trash, or creating and non-degradable materials. Eco shopping bags out of vinyl posters, Imprints uses these materials to create custom corporate and promotional items. Old vinyl street signs become multiuse bags, reams of used paper become journals or notepads. Even old soda bottles can be made into a cotton-like material for t-shirts. Eco Imprints adds company logos, slogans and images, contributing to a greener promotional Photograph Shawn Sax materials industry, a $19 billion economic John Borg in his Dogpatch office holding a wild bird feeder sector. made of a recycled plastic base and an upcycled two liter “I like that we plastic soda bottle. work with so many different companies Borg is attracted to the challenge and organizations. One day I’m makof making our world a little less ing a hemp table cover and then it varwasteful. ies everyday,” he said. Eco Imprints’ Borg’s main concern is society’s clients include the California Coastal overuse of plastics. His blog, Sustain- Commission, the City and County of able Swag, details creative ways to San Francisco, and Northern Calireuse the ubiquitous material, along fornia brewery Sierra Nevada, which with information on how plastics is working with the firm to make harm the environment, particularly products from leftover hop residue. oceans. According to Borg, the physiBorg founded Eco Imprints just cal manifestation of waste is apparent three years ago, quickly developing in Bolinas, where he picks-up empty it into a successful earth-friendly laundry detergent bottles, beer cans, corporate merchandise company. and chip bags that have ended up on Finding green suppliers wasn’t easy, the beach. His concerns are heightened see eco-products page 26 when he sees a dead bird with a bottle

By Sasha Lekach

rebuild from front page Francescato, who has been involved with a Rebuild Potrero community-building group which met monthly for more than a year – and now convenes every other month – acknowledged that the lack of adequate parking could be an issue, and that the taller buildings will be a change from current community patterns. But she pointed out that the taller structures would be placed on lower ground, reducing their impact on the skyline, and would enable the creation of more open space. Potrero Annex-Terrace, which was built in two phases in 1941 and 1955, is located on 33 acres along the Hill’s southern ridge. The complex consists of 606 housing units, which are home to roughly 1,200 people. According to a report developed by the City and County of San Francisco’s (CCSF) Planning Department late last year, the proposed project would replace all existing units; incorporate additional affordable and marketrate homes; and add amenities, such as open space, retail opportunities, and neighborhood services. All told as many as 1,800 homes would be constructed, including up to 100 affordable senior units, 900 affordable units designed for four-person families, and 700 units offered at a range of prices to encourage households with diverse incomes to live on the property. Buildings would be between three to eight stories, ranging in height from 40 to 85 feet. Up to 30,000 square feet – sufficient to house a modest-size grocery – would be allotted for retail space, which, according to the report, would consist of neighborhoodserving retail that would be developed along 24th Street between Arkansas and Missouri streets, and at the corner of 25th and Connecticut streets. Community space – the exact use for which hasn’t yet been defined – would make up about 50,000 square feet, to be located on 24th Street between Arkansas and Missouri streets. Open space would consist of a large park on 24th Street, a pocket park and overlook area on 25th Street, edible gardens on Texas Street, a pocket park at the confluence of Missouri and Texas streets, and a Texas Street overlook park. Public and private open spaces would total approximately seven acres. There’d be 850 off-street and 600 on-street parking spots for a population that could exceed 5,000 individuals. “Anyone

THE POTRERO VIEW

you ask in the community-building group is likely to feel good about the proposed changes,” Francescato said. “I can’t say how everyone else in the neighborhood feels…I feel like the plan is good overall, and it will only be better than what is there now, for both the public housing residents and everyone else in the area.” Bill Owen, who has lived near Annex-Terrace for almost a quartercentury, wonders if a model for the rebuild could be Parkview Heights, a “planned unit development” of 120 town homes built in 1984 under a partnership between CCSF and private developers which replaced a portion of Terrace. “Due to the concept of pride of ownership, Parkview Heights has been enormously successful and has allowed both residents of the former project it replaced along with lower middle income San Franciscians to form a vibrant, clean and safe community,” Owen wrote in a letter to the San Francisco Planning Department. Owen also worries that 1,800 units is too dense for the area. “Many of our residents believe that a maximum of 1,200 units would be a much more realistic target for Rebuild Potrero, with 606 of those being replacement units for the current subsidized dwellings, 600 to be sold at market rate and the remainder to be sold at a subsidized market rate to assist low-income home buyers.” he said. Fay, an original owner in Parkview Heights – which she called a “rousing success” – said she supports Rebuild Potrero’s overall vision, and hopes the final plan can be tailored to better fit the Hill’s character. “It seems that this [plan] will be citifying what’s essentially a one-family neighborhood,” she said. “It just doesn’t really fit with how the neighborhood is.” The environmental impact review (EIR) for the project – which will identify its potential impacts on the community – will be released by the end of this year. Once the EIR is approved by the San Francisco Planning Commission, additional land use applications related to various project elements will need to be approved. Construction isn’t slated to begin for at least another three years, with financing – a portion of which will be secured by the sale of market rate units – scheduled to be formalized before then. T h e C it y ’s pl anning re por t can be found at www.sf-planning. o r g / M o d u l e s /S h o wD o c u m e n t . aspx?documentid=8329; check unitepotrero.org for community updates on the project, and www.rebuildpotrero. com/pdfs/Q&A.pdf for basic project information.

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February 2011

power planT from page 2 fires that used to be the dominant way to provide a similar, if cruder, service not so long ago. The facility served as a way-station to the future; the technology on which it relied will remain the primary method to produce electricity for at least another half-century. But the technologies we adopt, whether the chimney, which enabled us to build larger homes with separatelyheated rooms, or fossil-fueled central generating stations, which offer economies of scale that provide the cheap power underlying our energyintensive lifestyles, change us and our environment in unexpected ways that aren’t always beneficial. The Potrero Power Plant helped create the world we live in, filled with super-sized stainless steel refrigerators, 40-inch plasma television sets, and well-lit homes. But it also contributed to a steadily warming planet, and the risks that our children will develop asthma. The choices we make about how we produce and use energy in the wake of its death will determine whether the plant’s smokestack, visible throughout Southeast San Francisco, will become a grave marker for a prior, environmentally-destructive, age, or the middle finger of the industrial machine we created, but only intermittently choose to control.

Esprit Park Homeowners Association Goes Green By Dáire Heneghan The Esprit Park Homeowners Association, associated with the 142unit condominium complex located between Indiana and Minnesota

Photograph by Lisa Tehrani

streets along 20th Street, is working to become a more environmentally sustainable multi-family community. The Dogpatch-based association is taking actions to improve indoor air quality, slash waste flows – as well as water and energy use – and identify environmentally-friendly cleaning products. Association members hope to lower their ecological footprint

while increasing property values and reducing utility costs. The association is being guided by the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED Operations + Maintenance (O+M) tool, with assistance from green consultant Burren Builders, Inc. The approach enables the association to make small capital expenditures in sustainable practices throughout the year, with the investments paying a return through savings in the common space’s operations and maintenance budget. The Esprit Park Homeowners Association hopes that by taking a series of small steps it will ultimately achieve LEED O+M certification. To date the association has launched a light bulb replacement program, switching from incandescent to compact fluorescent bulbs. Tri-State Enterprises, Inc. – Esprit Park’s property management company – relied on Pacific Gas and Electric Company’s instant rebates, under which selected bulbs are available at below cost when purchased at specified retailers. Each Esprit Park homeowner was provided with six energy efficient light bulbs through the program. A battery recycling bin has been installed in the concierge office for homeowners to use, courtesy of Recology, which picks the bin up for free once it’s full. More than

80 new signs outlining what items properly go in the landfill, recycling and compost bins where installed in trash rooms to promote a reduction in landfill bin use. Over time the community hopes to reduce the size of its landfill bins, and exchange them for additional recycling receptacles, which in turn will save on garbage collection charges. Transportation and green cleaning product plans are being developed. The transport plan will identify alternatives to private vehicle use, including nearby bicycle and scenic walking paths. The green cleaning product plan will provide a list of alternatives to everyday hazardous cleaning products. To date homeowners have reduced their lighting-related electric utility bill by up to two-thirds, and expect that adjustments to landfill bin sizes will ultimate reduce waste disposal costs by $300 a month. Next steps include investigating how common space lighting bills can be lowered by installing light sensors, upgrading bulbs to more efficient models, and removing bulbs from multi-bulb fixtures at selected locations. In addition, a list of energy saving tips will be provided to homeowners, along with access to devices that measure how much electricity a given piece of equipment uses, providing insight into individual power use.

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February 2011

mission Bay from page 4 companies, research institutes and venture capital firms. “UCSF is particularly happy with how quickly everything has come together,” Kahn said, noting that ground broke on the hospital building in December. UCSF occupies 43 acres, with five research buildings, a campus community center and a university housing complex completed. Despite a nationwide economic downturn, progress on Mission Bay redevelopment continues to move along briskly. A recent boon was last year’s announcement by Internet software company Salesforce.com that it will build a two-millionsquare-foot corporate campus on 14 acres as its global headquarters near AT&T Park. According to Kahn, the housing built north of Mission Creek, along the northern border of King Street, got off to a fast start with initial investments. And because construction of biotechnology facilities started before the 2008 market crash, these projects haven’t significantly been impacted. “One of the strengths of the plan of Mission Bay is that it’s diverse – housing gets built when the market is hot, then there’s retail…and the UCSF campus is a whole other entity,” she added. Mission Bay will need more than $700 million in new infrastructure improvements, including revitalized streets, traffic lights, sewer and water systems and open space areas, such as parks and paths. Infrastructure projects that have been completed or are underway include the rebuilding of Third Street to accommodate Muni’s light rail system, the construction of new and rebuilt streets and utility systems to serve residential and commercial development, and the creation of 13 acres of new parks. Parks along the north and south shores of Mission Creek, as well as the first sections of the east-west “Commons,” have been finished. Open

space development is timed to “keep pace” with private development, according to City documents. Overall public open space will include playing fields, sports courts, a children’s park, informal recreation lawns, seating areas, habitat enhancements, a waterfront promenade and public gathering spaces. “A big goal is to get the next public park in the Commons park system open and to complete the financing for our next affordable housing project,” Kahn said. “We’d also like to get the design of the next

This includes one of the first tenants, Safeway, on King and 4th streets, which opened in 2004. Philz Coffee, at Berry and 4th streets, opened in 2007. Kahn said that retailers don’t typically sign a lease until a space is built; there are no commitments for future buildings. It takes “some imagination to picture” the future “core” of Mission Bay, said Kahn, which is envisioned as a thriving retail corridor along 4th Street in Mission Bay South, from Channel Street to Mission Bay Boulevard North. All

Mission Bay Progress to Date Housing Built: 3,126 units Under construction: 320 units Affordable units: 674 units Commercial development: 1.7 million square feet (including office and biotech laboratory space) Retail space: 170,000 square feet (mostly on King Street in Mission Bay North) UCSF: 1.4 million square feet Parks and Open Space: 13 acres and the sports courts along Mission Creek, at Berry and 7th streets

couple buildings along 4th Street approved so they can move toward construction and we can be closer to creating the planned neighborhoodserving retail corridor.” Commercial office and biotechnology development in Mission Bay South is roughly 40 percent complete. Current major tenants include Celgene, Bayer, Nektar Therapeutics, Fibrogen and The Gap. Five additional projects totaling 1.3 million square feet are in predevelopment, with tenants to be determined. Most of the retail space is in Mission Bay north along King Street.

residential buildings located in that area are required to have ground floor retail, but only one so far, in the Strata Apartments on 4th Street, is built and actively trying to lease space. Two other parcels along that corridor recently were sold to private housing developers. A main goal of the redevelopment plan is to create an economically diverse community. Some of the units will be inclusionary – affordable housing located in market rate buildings – but the majority will be developed by nonprofit housing developers on land donated by Catellus

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to the Agency for Affordable Housing under the original 1998 agreement. Affordable housing is funded through the housing set-aside portion – 20 percent – of tax increment generated in Mission Bay. To date, 674 affordable units have been constructed, including three agency-sponsored projects. The affordable housing includes family rental units – a family of four earning San Francisco’s median income – units geared toward first-time homeowners and a senior housing project. A key tenet of the redevelopment plan is that affordable housing must be of the same architectural standard as market rate housing; units should be of a high quality, regardless of resident’s income, with the architectural differences between affordable and market-rate housing not obvious. The project is adhering to current environmental standards. Kahn said that while in 1998 the notion of green construction practices didn’t exist, today every new building must be constructed to Leadership in Energy and Environmental design (LEED) standards. The project is experimenting with sustainable storm water management, relying on natural systems to clean and re-use storm water. Mission Bay South includes a split water treatment system in which storm water runoff will be treated onsite and released to the bay through a series of pump stations and systems rather than being directed to the Southeast Water Pollution Control Plant to be treated together with wastewater. “Things change over such a long period of time with a 25-year project, so we’re trying to update as we go along,” Kahn said, noting that Mission Bay boasts San Francisco’s first private residential building – at 5th and Barry streets – that would be classified as a green building, even though it predated LEED. This is the first of a three-part series on Mission Bay. Next-up: the environment.

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February 2011

Cats Make a Splatter on Potrero Hill By Sasha Lekach What once housed a flower shop, and for a few months View publisher Steven Moss’ supervisorial campaign headquarters, is now a brightly painted, highly-decorated children’s art studio space. 4Cats Arts Studio is located at the corner of Connecticut and 18th streets. The Potrero Hill studio is the first 4Cats – named for the Barcelona café Pablo Picasso frequented – to arrive in the United States. There are 25 studios scattered across Canada, four in Mexico and one in London. The franchise will soon open a space in Palo Alto. Dale Cheveldeff’s search for a San Francisco location led him to open Potrero Hill’s 4Cats Arts Studio late last year. Cheveldeff owns the Hill studio; his nephew’s wife, Joey Simon, is the company’s chief executive officer. Cheveldeff said they considered Noe Valley, but “we picked Potrero Hill because we felt a big sense of community. And it was family oriented.” According to Cheveldeff, as soon as they stepped into 291 Connecticut “The space spoke to us. We decided within 10 minutes.” 4Cats fixed-up the space, painting walls and floors, removing the entry-way awning and building shelves, child-sized tables, and benches. The walls are covered with imitation Andy Warhols and Gustav Klimts, created by participants in the studio’s monthly classes. In the center of the studio stands the appropriately named splatter room, where during parties participants make art by flinging paint onto canvases strung floor to ceiling. Even the bathroom is artist-inspired, covered in silver foil, in homage to Andy Warhol. Each 4Cat studio has a curator, or art teacher, who leads workshops, art lessons and birthday parties. Morgan Jones, an art history graduate from Florida State University who interned at the San Francisco DeYoung Museum, leads Potrero Hill’s studio. According to Jones, 4Cats is about children discovering the fun, even soothing, aspect of creating something themselves. “We want them to have ownership of

Photograph by Lisa Tehrani

their artwork,” she said. Children fill their own water cups, clean paint brushes and only get technical help on their canvases or sketchbooks if they ask. At last month’s grand opening celebration more than 100 parents a nd ch i ld ren put on aprons to splatter paint, mold clay and spin the potter’s wheel. “Potrero Hill is full of kids and artist parents,” said Cheveldeff. “Since arts are being cut in schools, the timing is great for 4Cats to come in for school-aged children.” Joey Simon created the brand and associated franchise with her husband Darryl seven years ago this month. The company includes the franchised studios, a seasonal periodical called 4Cats Magazine, books and art supplies. Inspired by her oldest son, Jet, now 12 years old, who started painting as a way to overcome potential lear ning

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disabilities, 4Cats has become a family business. Simons’ twin eight-year-olds, Tex and Cash, pose in promotional banners or read

voiceovers about famous artists on the company’s website. According to Cheveldeff, his family’s business has grown from one small Canadian art studio to a multi-national franchise because “they push the envelope on new ideas.” Jones said she’s received positive feedback from customers on 4Cats’ art supplies, informational brochures, and posters. “The biggest praise from customers is the branding, the attention to detail,” she said. Many adults have called or wandered into the studio asking about classes for themselves. But Jones emphasized that the workshops and curriculum are designed for children based on age and skill level. Especially for the two to three year-olds, “they need steps set up if [parents and participants] want projects that look good,” Jones said. Although new to Potrero Hill, Jones and Cheveldeff are already contributing to the community. At a fall fundraiser for Daniel Webster Elementary School, 4Cats donated a paint splattering session for students. “We want to get the community involved,” Cheveldeff said. Jones said 4Cats hopes to sponsor a show in the neighborhood, displaying the creations of 4Cats’ young artists at a venue such as Farley’s or another local hot spot. Workshop slots are available for childre n age s t wo thro u gh 15. For m ore infor m at i o n: w w w.4 c at s.c o m /S t u di o - Ho m e . a spx?Studio =Potrero+Hill; 255.2287.

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Mission Bay Home to an Emerging Community of Families By Rheba Estante Mission Bay Families is dedicated to creating deep community roots in a neighborhood that only recently emerged as part of a massive redevelopment project. “Just 10 years ago Mission Bay was occupied by the Santa Fe Pacific rail yard, with a smattering of residents living nearby on houseboats and shacks,” said Sarah Davis, co-founder of the nonprofit organization. “Today upwards of 300 kids live in Mission Bay

Photograph by Shawn Lytle

Mission Creek resident Olivia Lytle.

with their parents, grandparents, and the seniors in the up-and-coming neighborhood. These residents plan on making the neighborhood their permanent home.” Davis estimates that the area grows by 100 new households a year. A San Francisco native who grewup in Potrero Hill, Davis helped launch Mission Bay Families as a way to serve the needs of these new residents. A professional event planner, Davis lives with her husband, Shawn Lytle, and their six-year-old daughter, Olivia, in a houseboat built by her father 33 years ago. The boat sits in Mission Creek, which divides Mission Bay North and Mission Bay South. She loves the flexibility offered by the area. “It’s the dream of these families to live here in San Francisco,” said Davis. “They are a new generation of people who reflect the Manhattenization of San Francisco. For these families it is their dream to live here close to the City as long as there is access to amenities.” “I admire the bonds and community involvement that I saw growing up Potrero Hill,” recalled Davis. “Potrero Hill has a community infrastructure that allows new people to come in and get involved. There are anchors for the neighborhood, like community centers. My mom lived in Noe Valley, which didn’t have the

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P6 is the future site of the playground. This park won’t be built until the surrounding parcels are ready for development, which could take years. Mission Bay Families wants to build a children’s area next to the Pavilion Building on Channel Street in P1 Park.

same connection. The Hill is defined beginning. Levine, a retired educaso it knows its borders and residents tor, lived in the Mission district for 40 years before choosing Mission Bay organize around that.” Mission Bay’s redevelopment as her new home. “Mission Bay is hasn’t been without growing pains. where we wanted to go,” said Levine. There’s a deficit of close-by childcare. “I have had a long association to MisAlthough a parcel of land has been set sion Creek because it’s a huge natural aside for a public elementary school, attraction with bird life.” Levine it has yet to be constructed. The pointed-out that the City’s business San Francisco Unified School District has until 2027 to decide whether or not to develop the parcel. Initial concepts for the school center on a science and technology focus. If a school isn’t ultimately built, the land will be used as affordable housing. While 6,000 housing units are planned for the area, half that amount has been constructed so far. The closest park cur- Mission Bay residents Toby and Jerry Levine. rently available is located on the north side of AT&T ballpark, and is oriented to babies community has a substantial stake and toddlers. Davis is concerned in Mission Bay. “This place is built about the gap of places for children on the concept of change. New busito play. Mission Bay Families was nesses, buildings, and people are formed in 2009 to raise money for a coming in constantly. I like to see the park geared towards three to seven people flowing in the area to join the year olds. The economic downturn events here.” Like Davis, Levine wants to has delayed the development of these and other public amenity projects by nurture the development of a familyseveral years. Mission Bay Families friendly community “The Promenade is now calling on the redevelopment along the creek is a nice feature agency to build a temporary park for young families,” said Levine. at one of three different locations. “Parents feel that their kids can run The only other close-by recreational around freely because there are no options are tennis, basketball, and cars. We have so many young and volleyball courts, which mostly cater energetic people here it’s refreshing. There is a huge spectrum of income to teenagers and adults. “Parks are the catalysts for levels which provides a balance. I family communities because people believe in mixed communities as bond. Dog owners have bonded in being healthier and more interesting the Dogpatch since they are together because that is how I was raised. I every night making connections,” taught in mixed schools and don’t explained Davis. “Mission Bay does like the idea of living in a ghetto.” According to Davis, most Mission not yet have one central location for families. We just got the first library Bay families depend on two full-time in 40 years. Kids and their nannies income earners to afford to live in go to libraries to connect with their the City. Grandparents – some of whom live in the 150 affordable neighbors.” Tobey Levine, a four-year Mission Bay resident, has been involved see families page 18 with Mission Bay Families from the

THE POTRERO VIEW

February 2011

One Resident’s Commitment Optimizing Health by Expanding Qi An Interview with Angela Angelone to Her Community Endures By Liska Koening Even in an earthquake-prone town like San Francisco, few people shake up things like local activist Babette Drefke. For more than six decades, the long-time Potrero Hill resident has mobilized neighbors, local merchants and community members to make things happen on the Hill. After a fall last May when she was pulling weeds in front of her house, Drefke currently relies on a walker, getting around with help from her daughter, Wendy Drefke Shinbori. But Drefke doesn’t let this personal challenge stop her efforts to improve the community. “Always give it try, that’s my motto,” she said. The native San Franciscan first fell in love with the neighborhood while working as a park director at the recreation center on Arkansas and 22nd streets during the early 1940s. “There are all kinds of people here in Potrero Hill,” she said, “but they are all real, genuine people.” A couple of years later Drefke settled on Kansas Street. Soon she and her husband Mel, a local police officer, welcomed their son Cory and, four years later, Wendy. The 1951 expansion of Patrick Henry Elementary School on Vermont Street – now occupied by Downtown High School – brought an unexpected change to the family’s life. Their residence was among ten homes slated for removal by the San Francisco Unified School Board’s decision to enlarge the campus and add a play yard. Construction crews picked up Drefke’s house and moved it to an empty lot across the street. Patrick Henry became one of Drefke’s first neighborhood causes, after seeing the students struggle with a lack of supplies. “They didn’t have anything, so I got together with other parents from the neighborhood and got the PTA dropped,” she said. “From the funds we raised, the school was able to buy traffic boy sweaters, record players and other things for the classrooms.” Drefke continued to raise funds for

the school long after her children had graduated. She beamed a smile when she remembered the vaudeville shows organized to raise money for the school. “I even was a chorus girl once,” she said proudly. Drefke’s political activism left her enough time to express her creative side. She carved the sign and laid out the stone mosaic at “The Benches,” the small park at the intersection of San Bruno Avenue and 18th Street that was designed and built by a group of neighbors in 1971. Her grown-up grandchildren enjoy wearing the socks she knits; she loves to weave and crochet. The agile senior fondly remembers Emma Fleming, who lived just a block away, and who passed-away in 2004 at the age of 93. The friends – affectionately nick-named “The Gold Dust Twins” – fought side by side to improve the Hill. The two women were instrumental in bringing a junior high school – now International Studies Academy – to De Haro and 19th streets – which Drefke considers her most important success. The twins and their collaborators also helped increase public transportation access in the community. “I was thinking about all the people living here. We only had the F train, but it stopped on Market Street,” she said. After more than a year of lobbying public officials, the Number 19 bus line was rerouted along Rhode Island and De Haro streets in 1969. Drefke still writes letters to local politicians and newspapers, and attends community meetings. “The next thing we need to do is to put stairs into the sidewalk on 19th Street between Rhode Island and De Haro streets. It’s a mud path right now and really dangerous in bad weather,” she said. Even in light of her significant achievements for Potrero Hill, Drefke sees herself as part of a bigger picture. “None of these things I could have done alone. It was always a community effort,” the modest senior said, leaning back in the seat of her walker, no doubt planning future endeavors to improve her community.

By Greg Roensch

Getting stuck with sharp objects might not be anyone’s idea of a good time, but Anne Angelone is a licensed acupuncturist and herbalist who knows how to put her needles to good use. Angelone owns Expanding Qi – pronounced “chi” – a Potrero Hill practice that specializes in restoring optimal health with acupuncture, herbal medicine, and nutrition. I asked Angelone a few questions about her needlework and other services. GR: How did you decide to become an acupuncturist? AA: It was because of a combination of things. I’ve always been interested in nutrition and health care, and I studied Chinese language in college. While taking Mandarin classes in Taiwan, I had my first Acupuncture treatments, and I never felt so relaxed in my life! A friend who was with me in Taiwan was studying Chinese herbs. We explored many herb shops, and I was fascinated by the depth and breadth of herbal treatments. These experiences led to my decision to study Chinese Medicine. When I returned to SF, I enrolled at The American College of Traditional Chinese Medicine.

AA: The master of science program for acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine takes three full years, with no summer breaks. In California, acupuncturists are considered primary care physicians and study Western biomedical sciences along with our Eastern training. GR : W h at do e s Ex pa nd i ng Q i mean? AA: Simply put, “Qi” means energy. “Expanding Qi” refers to the potential for improving our health by improving our energy. GR: Acupuncture is one of your specialties. What other services do your offer? AA: I analyze blood work with a different lens, and in many cases I can detect patterns of chronic disease Black lab. before it’s flagged by a regular This is crucial for patients Green who have PMS 382 gone from doctor to doctor only to 185 Red PMS hear that “everything looks fine” on their test results. At Expanding Qi, we also offer detox classes, chronic disease prevention classes, and therapeutic massage.

GR: Some people who come to you must have a fear of needles? AA: Yes, but the needles areRGB hair thin Green (184, 218, 25 and I am very gentle.

Red (241, 26, 10)

GR: Does it take a long time to learn acupuncture?

see qi page 25

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February 2011

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Kids on the Block

18th Street resident Sara Moss (left), nine, and Cole Valley resident Sophia Stephens, also nine, raised almost $350 for the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals late last year, more than any other volunteer team.

Ana Louisa Elizabeth Tetlow Happy sixth birthday, already! I can’t believe it! All my love, Mommy

Above: Chloe will be ten on February 20! Happy first birthday, Dashiell! We love you, Mommy, Daddy, Ava, Rufus, Ralph and Beau

Left: Kali Nyami Cissell, age five and a Daniel Webster Elementary School kindergartener, was the kindergarten 2nd grade winner of the San Francisco Alliance of Black School Educators 2010 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Essay Contest. Congratulations, Kali!

Left: Welcome to the neighborhood, Carl Steven Burgess! Born July 20, 2010. Love, Mom, Dad and Ella

San Francisco is now recycling 77% of its waste while generating 400,000 tons of prized compost annually.

The employee-owners of Recology would like to thank you for your partnership in the nation’s most effective recycling programs. By recycling and composting, you are doing your part to change the way people see waste.

THE POTRERO VIEW

February 2011

How much is your home worth?

This home at 1216 19th street attracted 5 offers and sold for $2,440,000. To learn more about how I marketed this spectacular view home, please visit www.FinestPotreroViews.com.

sales Prices for All Potrero Hill Homes sold in 2010*: 1216 19th street.............................. $2,440,000

739 De Haro street ............................$885,000

1261 Rhode Island street ................$780,000

1409 20th street..................................$800,000

1118 De Haro street ...................... $1,250,000

1366 Rhode Island street ................$730,000

2000 20th street.............................. $1,630,000

1379 De Haro street ..........................$665,000

275 Arkansas street ...........................$646,000

746 Kansas street ...............................$649,000

363 Arkansas street ...........................$925,000

918 Kansas street ........................... $1,200,000

594 Arkansas street ...........................$800,000

959 Kansas street ...............................$905,000

515 Texas street............................... $1,081,500

685 Arkansas street ...........................$878,000

534 mississippi street ......................$800,000

558 Texas street...................................$891,000

690 Arkansas street ....................... $1,225,000

506 mississippi street .......................$880,000

599 Texas street...................................$599,000

698 Arkansas street ....................... $1,385,000

369 missouri street ........................ $1,111,111

374 Connecticut street ................ $1,042,000

473 Pennsylvania Avenue ........... $1,040,000

455 Connecticut street ....................$975,000

525 Rhode Island street ............... $1,300,000

505 Connecticut street ................ $1,100,000

773 Rhode Island street ............... $1,115,000

704 Wisconsin street .........................$850,000

509 Connecticut street ....................$925,000

1029 Rhode Island street ................$778,000

783 Wisconsin street .........................$950,000

1378 Rhode Island street ................$939,000 454 san Bruno Avenue .....................$651,000

435 Vermont street............................$980,000 636 Wisconsin street ..................... $1,175,000

In 2010 the average sales price for a home on Potrero Hill was $995,016*. If you’d like a free report on the value of your home, call Tim Johnson at 710-9000. TIm JoHnson

Paragon Real Estate Group DRE# 01476421

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*Sales information as of December 31, 2010 from SFAR MLS.

February 2011

THE POTRERO VIEW

c o m m u n i t y CALENDAR February 2011

Through February 19 Art: Progression Minus Progress Romer Young Gallery (formerly Ping Pong Gallery) presents Progression Minus Progress, an exhibition curated by Sarah Lehrer-Graiwer featuring work by Dianna Molzan, Brian Kennon, Lisa Williamson, Erika Vogt, D’Ette Nogle, and Piero Golia. Gallery hours: Tuesday and Thursday, 6 to 9 p.m.; Friday and Saturday 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. 1240 22nd Street. Information: 550.7483; www. romeryounggallery.com.

February 2 Community: EN Trips Community Meeting The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) invites community members to discuss the Eastern Neighborhood Transportation Implementation Planning Study (EN TRIPS). EN TRIPS is the transportation phase of the multiyear San Francisco Eastern Neighborhoods Program. Its purpose is to minimize transportation impacts of anticipated growth by identifying key, transit-focused, pedestrian and bicycle friendly infrastructure projects that will be needed in the Eastern Neighborhoods in the next 20 years. The project team will provide an overview, and share preliminary concepts for multi-modal transportation improvements. 6 to 8 p.m. Recology Community Room, 900 Seventh Street. Information and RSVP: ENTRIPS@sfmta.com.

February 3 Health: The Latest in Technology and Therapies for Heart Rhythm Problems Learn about heart rhythm abnormalities and its effects: skipped beats, persistent racing heart, repeated fainting episodes, and even cardiac arrest. The rapid advancement in available technologies and therapies over the last few years will be reviewed in this health course at California Pacific Medical Center. 5 to 6:30 p.m. $10 donation requested. Registration required. Community Health Resource Center, 2100 Webster Street, Room 106. Information: 923.3155; cpmcchrc@sutterhealth.org.

Art: David Mahlow Reception David Mahlow’s original and custom photo mosaics of San Francisco sights and beyond will be on display. Meet the artist and view his creations at this reception in his honor. 7 p.m. Free. Farley’s, 1315 18th Street. Information: www.dmahlow.etsy. com.

February 5 Environment: Tours of Heron’s Head Park San Francisco Nature Education, in conjunction with the Port of San Francisco and Golden Gate Audubon Society, hosts tours of Heron’s Head Park led by Lowell and Lincoln high school interns. Experience the thrill of observing and learning about the waterfowl, shorebirds and wading birds that call the park home during the winter. Recent sightings include Harlequin Duck and White-tailed Kite. Meet at 10 a.m. at Heron’s Head Park for tours that leave every 30 minutes, with the last tour at 11:30 a.m. Free; donations accepted. Jennings Street and Cargo Way, two blocks south of Pier 96. Information: www.sfnature.org; 387.9160; info@ sfnature.org.

February 6 Music: Jennifer Bryce and Josh Workman at Bliss Bar Bliss Bar presents The Art of the Duo and Trio as part of it’s Sunday Jazz Series. Recording artists and Potrero Hill resident Jennifer Bryce and Josh Workman perform classic jazz, vintage and contemporary pop and soul. 4:30 to 7:30 p.m. $10 cover charge. 4026 24th Street. Information: www.blissbarsf.com

February 7 Music: Voice Studio Showcase The Voice Studio presents the final showcase of its group vocal class “Vocal Technique & Performance.” 7 p.m. Free. Farley’s, 1315 18th Street.

Performance: Silent Happening Cocktail Party and Screening of Replikaaa Silent Happening is a silent cocktail party where guests are introduced to the art of nonverbal communication and expression. The evening includes a screening of Replikaaa, a new silent short film by Tayeb Al-Hafez. Syrian fare and a no-host bar will be on offer. 7 to 9:30 p.m. Free. Z Space, 450 Florida Street. Ticket reservations and information: www. replikaaathemovie.com.

February 10 through April 5 Art: Paintings by Trinh Mai San Francisco Street Car 1007 by David Mahlow. His artwork will be on display at Farley’s, with a special reception on February 3.

in San Francisco will include new works from her series Relearning the Language of the Birds, paying homage to the natural world and the messages it brings forth to awaken the human spirit. 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Free. 614 Alabama Street. Information: www.yourmusegallery.com.

An exhibition of paintings by local Vietnamese artist Trinh Mai at a.Muse Gallery, benefiting the Angkor Hospital for Children in Cambodia. Mai’s first solo exhibition

Information: http://www.sfhistory. org/index.php?pageid=20#expo.

February 13 Community: Flynn Elementary Cut-A-Thon Cut hair, not school budgets. Get your hair cut by top local stylists from Zindagi and Ginger Rubio salons during a Cut-a-Thon to benefit Leonard R. Flynn Elementary School in the Mission. Bubbly beverages and other Valentine’s Day treats included. 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Haircuts $50; blowouts $30. Zindagi Salon, 55 Grant Avenue in Union Square. Information: book an appointment with Amy Armas, 609.909; amydevlinarmas@gmail.com.

February 15 A Prayer for Anh Duc by Trinh Mai. Mai’s work will be on display at a.Muse Gallery February 10 to April 15.

February 12 Valentine’s Day: Valen-tiny Idea Night Explore love and sexuality in the 21st century at Yerba Buena Center for the Art’s Valen-tiny Idea Night for couples and singles. Delve into the politics of love with queercore author and spoken-word poet Michelle Tea. Experience a performance by Jess Curtis and Gravity. Peruse YBCA’s visual arts exhibitions. Attendees will be invited to play Infatuated by Situate, an interactive cell phone game in which attendees can meet up, make out, break up, and make up all in one night, but only if they can solve the mysteries of modern love. 8 p.m. to midnight. Free. 701 Mission Street. Information: www.ybca.org.

Community: Daniel Webster Car Wash and Bake Sale Help send Daniel Webster’s fourth grade class on a camping trip to Coloma as part of their education about California history, and support the school’s African American History month event. Stop by for multicultural finger foods, baked goods and a car wash. $10 cars; $15 SUVs/vans. 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. 465 Missouri Street.

February 12 & 13 History: San Francisco History Expo The SF Museum and Historical Society will bring together more than twenty San Francisco neighborhood historical associations, incuding the Potrero Hill Archives Project, to create mini-museums in the Old Mint, showcasing their unique contributions to our City. Special art will be on display, including large acrylicon-wood panels by Frank A lan Zimmerman depicting San Francisco in the 1850s. 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Free. Old Mint, 5th and Mission streets.

Community: UCSF Community Meeting Weigh in on the discussion about the Phase 2 development of the Mission Bay campus. This is the third of three community meetings to plan for the remaining u ndeveloped blocks on the UCSF Mission Bay campus. Based on feedback received during and after the second community meeting, UCSF designed another set of alternatives regarding campus locations for future research buildings, housing, outdoor recreational space, parking and other uses. Come review those alternatives and provide feedback. 6:30 to 9:00 p.m. UCSF Mission Bay, Genentech Hall, N-114 - 600 16th Street.

February 23 Health: Brain Plasticity Studies have shown that the youth brain grows and creates neural networks at an unprecedented rate. Join a California Pacific Medical Center neurologist for a discussion on brain plasticity and the brain’s unique ability to constantly change, grow, and remap itself. 6 to 7:30 p.m. $10 donation. Registration required. Community Health Resource Center, 2100 Webster Street, Room 106. Information: 923.3155; cpmcchrc@sutterhealth.org.

February 25 through March 3 Film: We Were Here We Were Here takes a deep, reflective look back at the arrival and impact of AIDS in San Francisco. Produced and directed by David Weisman with Bill Weber, the film explores how City inhabitants were affected by, and responded to, that unprecedented calamity. Opening night VIP reception begins at 6 p.m.; 7:30 p.m. film screening; 9 p.m. question and answer with the filmmaker and select interviewees. Screens nightly Saturday through Thursday 7 and 9:15 p.m.; early shows Saturday, Sunday and Wednesday and 2:30 and 4:45 p.m. General admission $25; VIP reception $100. Castro Theatre, 429 Castro Street. Information: www. castrotheatre.com.

THE POTRERO VIEW

February 2011

people getting along with all different families Local Artist Takes Thirty Years to types of people. Why not know people different backgrounds.” Finish Stained Glass Window Project housing units built for seniors – help fromDrutz would like to see more from page 13

By Sasha Lekach It may have taken three decades for Potrero Hill artist Christine Lando to complete the second half of a two-paneled stained glass window in a Hill home, but the finished work now tells a full neighborhood story from 1980 to 2010. Lando – whose art has been shown internationally – has been a painter through most of her artistic career. She’s known for her forms and shapes, which emerged in a series of fluid, pastel square paintings during the late-1970s. It was from these works that people told her she should make paintings with glass. And she did, exploring glass as a new artistic medium. In 1980 in her Missouri at 18th streets studio, Lando designed a panel of stained glass entitled, “Places where I lived.” The plans called for a two-panel design, but the owners of the property insisted that they “needed to be able to open the window to get to Italian neighbor Ed, who would pop his head in, bring in food, or in the morning there would be a loaf of bread waiting outside the window,” according to Lando. Debbie Huysenstruyt – who along with her husband Kurt later purchased the property – a San Francisco native, public school teacher and longtime Potrero Hill resident, described the relationship with Ed and the window as, “The window became a means of communication between me and my neighbor and means of connecting to him.” Not wanting to destroy their friendly ways, Lando only created one window panel. “This is a very Potrero Hill story,” she jokingly warned. With half the window design in place, Lando left the right-hand designs and supplies in her garage and focused on other projects. She married her husband, Al Marshall, moved her studio to Connecticut Street, and then to its current location on 22nd Street, had a daughter, Leigh, and moved their family home to Divisidero Street. When her daughter was in high school, Lando’s life “turned out to be a bit of a personal journey,” she said. Marshall was diagnosed with an aggressive cancer; he died two weeks later. “He was my guy, husband of 23 years, my best friend,” Lando said. More time passed. The Huysenstruyts contacted her about finishing the project. Lando was uncertain if she could handle revisiting a period of her life when she’d lived on Missouri Street with her then soon-to-be husband. At an impromptu meeting at The Good Life Grocery Store she told the Huysenstruyts she’d think about it. Lando then received word that Ed had passed away, ending the era of bread or conversation through the

Lando’s artwork.

Photograph by Emil Flock

window. Shortly after Ed’s death, clients of Lando came to pick up frames at her 22nd Street studio – Lando does archival framing as well as painting — and urged her to take on the stained glass project. “I said, ‘That’s crazy!” but [my friend] said ‘Just do it!’” Lando remembered. “I looked at her and I said, ‘That’s right; I’ll do it.’” Lando spent the next nine months revisiting the piece she’d designed three decades before. The Huysenstruyts had kept all of the glass materials, technical patterns and sketches stowed-away in their garage since they’d bought the house in 1991. Once Lando agreed to complete the window, the pile of supplies was finally put to use. “I never felt like it was mine to dispose of,” Debbie said about the materials. “I always felt my job was to take care of it.” Lando comprehensively revisited the window’s design, “not only technically, but also artistically,” she said. “What a privilege for me. How many artists have the privilege to visit their work 30 years later and be able to analyze it?” Working in stages, Lando completed the piece, “Genesis,” late last year. “ Art is never just about executing, it’s a living breathing piece,” she explained. “As a result, colors were changed, I made new pattern pieces.” The 67-by-64-inch windows are inspired by foliage, botanicals, and tree-trunks. “It wasn’t ever incomplete, but it has come to life more so now that it is complete,” Lando clarified. For the Huysenstruyts the complementary piece was striking, particularly after 19 years of only one modern-looking window. “My daughter came downstairs and said, “Oh! Those are trees.’” You never really saw it before,” Debbie said. “It was amazing how one really finished the other. It looks like a complete work.” “I was so grateful to be working with the Huysenstruyts. They gave me the opportunity to complete this project,” Lando said. “I walk past it and just smile,” said Debbie.

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with childcare. Davis regularly sees preschool children with an elderly adult walking the Promenade. “Our demographic includes very educated, high tech workers, UCSF employees, along with senior citizens and children. UCSF is considering expanding childcare facilities in Mission Bay. One-third of Mission Bay real estate is built as affordable housing, so there is a great economic diversity amongst families,” said Davis. “This adds a great component to the diversity of people. From my boat, I look out one side and I see the people doing boot camp at 6 a.m. On the other side are the Asian seniors doing Tai Chi. This wouldn’t be the case without the one-third affordable housing units in Mission Bay.” Kimberly Drutz, a middle school teacher and mother, moved to Mission Bay in 2007. Her husband chose the area, and they now enjoy being in an emerging neighborhood with new housing. Drutz likes the closeness to the bay, and easy bicycle access. “I organized parent events in my building, and Tobey connected me with Sarah,” recalled Drutz. “We met at a coffee shop to talk about building a playground. Our families don’t want to leave the City. I grew up in a city and took the bus everywhere so I want my daughter to do the same. I’m pro-public transit, and want my child exposed to the libraries, museums, and resources that San Francisco offers.” Dr utz explained that playgrounds serve as great meeting places. “Kids can get together and meet with parents, grandparents, nannies, and get to know each other,” she described. “It helps people feel safe and secure. Kids have friends to grow up with. Adults can also meet each other to socialize during the limited free time that families have. As a teacher, it is important to see

daycare facilities for Mission Bay families, as well as an elementary school. “We need long-term planning,” said Drutz. “Otherwise people will move or go to a private school. More places here like the planetarium, where you don’t need a car to get to. Enrichment classes outside the library and more special events would be very positive additions. I would love this community to one day function like a small town.” Mission Bay Families unsuccessfully applied for a Community Challenge grant in 2010. Drutz intends to reapply this year, and is researching other funding opportunities. She believes that policy makers remain largely unaware of the burgeoning community. “The family community is not as well known by the City. There are assumptions that this is an affluent community full of professionals,” she explained. “It’s a luxury to be able to walk everywhere and benefit from the environmental impact of people living car-free.” “If you are not 100 percent urban and like nature you can see skyscrapers and watch seals play in the front yard,” described Davis. “These are hardworking people no matter what their financial background. They don’t want to spend time in transport. If we build the infrastructure, then they can stay here. Right now people have to go outside the neighborhood for resources.” For Davis, Mission Bay has a chance to create itself anew. “We are new. We are not established or old and set in our ways,” said Davis excitedly. “We have a chance to be diverse in ethnicity and economics and have a really great thriving neighborhood. Our affordable housing means people can purchase a home in San Francisco. People can be close to the opera and symphony. It’s wonderful.”

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February 2011

Southside Taco Smack-Down By Kelly Kimball

The New Spot –Yucatan and Salvadoran Travel on a Budget When I was a University of California, Los Angeles student I thought a lot about food. There were many fine restaurants in LA, but I had little money to spend. My boyfriend, now husband, and I had a monthly food /entertainment budget that we kept track of on the back of an index card. Invariably, we ran out of money before the end of the month, and I wheedled for an advance on the next month’s budget, with mixed success. I have fond memories of cheap and greasy meat-filled burritos from Tito’s Tacos, and 10-pound meat pizzas from Chris’ Pizza. Inexpensive and plentiful. The New Spot, in Dogpatch, is my new Tito’s. Not because of their burritos, but because their panuchos are even more satisfying and delicious. A panucho is hollow, like a pita, but made of a double layer of masa. The bottom layer crisps when fried, and the top layer puffs up. Between the layers a savory black bean paste is shmeared and clings to the softer puffy masa on top. The crispy, crunchety bottom layer and pillowy corn top layer contrasts with

the earthy bean tapenade. Juicy roasted chicken is heaped on the surface and pickled onions, tomatoes and avocado nestle in between the savory chunks. A New Spot panucho is a whole lot of delicious for $3.50. The fragrant mole tacos are my second favorite item. Sweet, with a floral aroma, the dense sauce baths the roasted chicken in two corn tortillas; a big, wet mouthful of meaty goodness for $2.50. The al pastor pork taco has the taste of dry rubbed pork with a hint of lime. Roasty, pork succulence is offset by spicy bits of minced onion and cilantro. We sampled the chicharron and cheese pupusa, a grilled corn disk enclosing a uniform meat and cheese stuffing, sold by the pair for $5. The spicing is subtle, enhanced by one of the three salsas included with the meal. The brown, roasted chili salsa is by far the richest and hottest, the green tomatillo salsa piquant with tangy fruit, and a citrusy habanero salsa is available by request. The restaurant serves dinner Thursdays through Saturdays. We had the place mostly to ourselves on a recent Friday night, but I expect that to change once word gets out. We tried the Yellowtail and avocado ceviche, a plate of ocean fresh chunks

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of the mild fish with cubes of avocado, pickled onions and plaintain chips on the side. Tortitas de yucca con quesa consists of three fried yucca cakes stuffed with mild cheese and served with a side of chipotle aioli, $7. Duck tamales are two to an order, $8, and served rustic style with meaty slabs of duck, potato and chili loosely wrapped in masa and steamed in a banana leaf. I’m a big brussel sprouts fan, and The New Spot’s version is especially good. Co-owner Julia Rivera first sautés her sprouts in chicken broth and then pan roasts them. Aged Salvadorean cheese is sprinkled atop, adding a salty balance to the iron-rich green, $4.50. Rivera and her husband, Gilberth Cab, specialize in Mayan, Mexican and Salvadoran foods. The dinner menu features traditional Central American items, along with roasted Yucatan chicken and braised lamb with mole and goat cheese. Service is attentive, and the cheery restaurant is attired in bright yellow, purple and orange. A mural of a Blue Macaw adorns one wall. A liquor license is in the works, and should be secured by summer. The New Spot is located at 632 20th Street. Parking is easy to find, and the T-Train stops across the street. Open for breakfast, lunch and dinner Monday and Tuesday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Wednesday through Friday 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and 5 to 9 p.m., and Saturday 10:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Prices are ultralow; dinner entrees range from $7 to $11. Four tacos, two panuchos, two pupusas and chips and salsa were $23.50 out the door. Servings are generous; we had plenty for two meals.

Papito – No Reservations, Anthony Bourdain would like it Jocelyn Bulow, of Chez Maman and Chez Papa fame, brings a different take on the taqueria at his Connecticut Street location, blending a Southern French style and

THE POTRERO VIEW

an emphasis on fresh produce with familiar Mexican finger food. Papito, or little Papa, has an interior that features copper-topped tables and a granite bar that enables patrons to observe their food being prepared. In warmer months, an awning extends over the front door and patio tables are arranged for alfresco dining. The Elote Asado, available in the fall, features grilled corn with mayonnaise, chili salt, lime and queso fresco; succulent, spicy, tangy and seasonal. Two ears to an order, $5. Carnitas de Pato – a close-your-eyes flavor-savoring journey – consists of a large tortilla folded in half over mounds of tender duck confit with chili, mint and tamarind sauce, $11.50. The tacos de pato are similarly filled with ducky richness. The slightly gamy meat is complemented by pickled slaw salsa fresca, and the tortillas are soft and full of corn flavor. Two tempura battered jumbo shrimp are slathered with chipotle remoulade and sprinkled with cabbage slaw for a Frenchified version of a global shrimp taco. A Bajataco combines Negro Modelo beer battered fried fish with the same spicy remoulade and tangy slaw. I especially like the carnitas taco, which blends pork with a piquant pineapple pico de gallo. The rich smoky pork is nicely accented by the fruit’s sweet– acid; a Luau on a taco. Papito serves two tacos for $9, one for $4.50. They’re are served with thin crispy chips and three salsas. I prefer the fire roasted red chile salsa, but the tomatillo with jalapeno and habanero with fruit is also tasty. Dinner entrees include chicken mole, $15, pan roasted red trout, $17, and enchiladas, $15. The beer and wine selections are good, and non-alcoholic agua frescas vary by season. I enjoyed a watermelon agua fresca while waiting for my order; it was like biting into a slice of watermelon—very refreshing. Papito, located around the corner see Tacos page 21

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February 2011

Local Filmmaker’s Powerful Documentary Reflects Upon AIDS’ Impact on S.F. By Lori Higa It’s been thirty years since acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) emerged as a viral epidemic. David Weissman’s new documentary, We Were Here, examines the scourge in a way that couldn’t have been accomplished decades ago. “Enough time has passed that something like this could be done,” said the local filmmaker. Weissman – who is best known for co-directing the award-winning true story of San Francisco performance troupe The Cockettes – tells the story of AIDS through intensely personal interviews with five San Franciscans. From the vantage points of a nurse-researcher, caregiver, artist, activist, friends, lovers of the afflicted and with AIDS themselves, the film illuminates the larger political and sociological ethos of the time. Archival imagery from local photographers Dan Nicoletta and Rick Gerharter, among many others, offers an elegy to preAIDS San Francisco and the horrors of the disease. Weissman’s mother – who died when he was only 15 – and grandparents were survivors of the Nazi death camps in Poland. “All the other members of her family were killed in the camps. It was something she never spoke about,” he said. “The AIDS epidemic was like the Holocaust of the gay community...The same fear of talking about it, I felt in the Jewish community about the Holocaust. Younger people don’t know when to ask questions about sensitive

things, they don’t want to bring up pain. Often, the younger generation has no historical perspective, ‘cause no one’s offered it, how things got to where they are. We who have stories to tell, have a responsibility help younger people understand the history and sacrifices of generations before...it’s up to us to let them know when it’s OK to ask. I hope my movie will bridge that gap.” Weissman, originally from Los Angeles, moved to the City in 1976. He was at Harvey Milk’s camera store the night Milk was elected to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in 1978, a landmark victory of the first out gay elected legislator in the nation. Devastated by Milk’s assassination just a few months later, Weissman became active in San Francisco politics, working as a legislative aide to Supervisor Harry Britt. Weissman, who “never had a life plan,” was waiting tables when he began taking film classes at City College a few years later. He made short films which won acclaim at festivals around the globe. In 1998, Weissman teamed up with friend Bill Weber to co-direct The Cockettes, his profoundly moving “love letter to San Francisco.” “In a way, We Were Here is also a love letter to the City,” said Weissman. Early in the epidemic, San Francisco’s compassionate, multi-faceted and creative response to AIDS became known as the “San Francisco Model.” “I think that hap-

pened because of all the idealists who came here in the ‘60s and ‘70s,” he opined. “They got jobs in the social services infrastructure. When AIDS hit, it provided an avenue for their caring and activist ideals. Young people who’ve seen the film are blown away...it’s an inspiration to them. They don’t have the same kind of community and they see an incredible, rich history of politics, caring, engagement that’s very beautiful. It’s a constructive way to build self identity,” Weissman said. Though the film centers on San Francisco, and the emerging gay movement in the Castro plays a large role, many people and places see film page 25

Photograph by Peter Berlin

Top: The Mariposa Film Group. Bottom: Director David Weissman.

February 2011

tacos from page 19 from Chez Maman, is open Monday through Saturday, 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Brunch is served Saturday and Sunday, 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Trucking with Senor Sisig Some restaurateurs have responded to the evaporation of disposable income by eliminating the d i n i ng atmosphere. C u stomer s have accepted the change, but still demand good food for their money. No longer slandered as “roach coaches,” today’s mobile food vendors have developed cult followings that follow their travels via Twitter and e-mail. Senor Sisig is co-owned by Evan Kidera and Gil Payumo, two local chefs who’ve combined the Filipino foods of their heritage with the structure of Mexican street food. Each morning they update their website, senorsisigsf.com, and announce their location for the day. They frequent Civic Center’s United Nations Plaza, Stanyan and Waller streets, Valencia and McCoppin streets and the Walmart in Brisbane most weeks. Often you’ll see them parked outside a South-of-Market nightclub late nights, or at an office complex in Oyster Point. Their truck typically beds down for the night at the MacKenzie Warehouse parking lot on Mariposa Street. There’s a reason Senor Sisig has a tail of customers following its parade of tacos, and it’s the sisig. Originally conceived as a way to utilize the less desirable portions of the pig, sisig

combined the ears, snout, cheeks and sometimes liver and brain with garlic, pineapple juice, peppers, vinegar and calamansi juice, a sour orange-like citrus from the Philippines. Nowadays sisig is more likely to feature cheeks or hocks, but the flavor is the same palate tingling extravaganza. We tried the pork sisig taco, a tangy, chewy, roasty, spicy and slightly gamy succulent mash-up of meat and spices. A single corn tortilla barely keeps the meat from soak ing th rough to you r pants instead of your mouth. Jalapeno is offered on the side for a spicier taco. The chicken sisig is also great, chewy, smoky and a bit drier than the pork. The tacos are topped with onion, cilantro, cabbage and a cilantro crema concoction for moistening the tortilla. Tofu tacos consist of fried cubes marinated in the sisig sauce. These may appeal to vegetarians, but the pork tacos are more nuanced and flavorful. Tacos are $2.50 each. A daily lunch special offers a taco, burrito, sisig fries, nachos or rice plate and a drink for $10. Sisig burritos are $7, sisig fries or nachos, which are topped with nacho cheese, sour cream, guacamole, pico de gallo and jalapenos, are also $7. Sisig rice with onions and jalapenos is $6.50. You’re encouraged to “silog it,” which means adding an egg to any menu item, $1. The food is cheap, yes, and it’s worth searching-out. Coupons for a 20 percent discount at Senor Sisig can be found at www.localbizblogs.com/ phamb.

THE POTRERO VIEW

POTRERO BRANCH 1616 20th STREET 355.2822 Tuesday 10 am - 8 pm, Wednesday 12 noon - 8 pm Thursday 10 am - 6 pm, Friday 1 pm - 6 pm Saturday and Sunday 1 pm - 6 pm Monday CLOSED

By Abby Bridge, Potrero Branch Librarian

Library Adult Programs Quick and Easy Vegetarian Cooking. Patti Breitman of the San Francisco Vegetarian Society will present a lecture and demonstration on vegetarian diets and cooking using quick recipes anyone can make. February 5, 4 to 5 p.m.

Saved by the Sea: a Love Story with Fish. A book talk with David Helvarg, journalist, documentary filmmaker, and founder and president of the Blue Frontier Campaign, a Washington, D.C.-based organization working for ocean and coastal conservation. The book chronicles the author’s journey around the world’s oceans and seas for the last half-century. February 12, 4 to 5 p.m.

Library Children’s Programs Baby Rhyme and Play Time. For infants up to eighteen months old and their caregivers. Tuesdays, February 1, 8, 15 and 22, 1:15 to1:45 p.m. Family Storytime. featuring stories, songs and rhymes. For children from birth to five years old and their caregivers. Thursdays, February 3, 10, 17 and 24, 10:30 to 11 a.m. and 11:15 to 11:45 a.m. Fun Flicks: No Roses for Harry, The Sand Castle, Seven Blind Mice, Seven Chinese Sisters. Fun Flicks is offered every second Wednesday of the month and includes short films based on children’s books and stories. Bring a snack! For children ages five and older. February 9, 6:30 to 7:15 p.m. Jazz Music with M.B. Hanif. Join the fun with renowned jazz musician M.B. Hanif, who will introduce children to the exciting rhythms of jazz music. Funded by the Friends of the San Francisco Public Library. February 26, 4 to 4:45 p.m.

VOLUME 5 • FEbrUary 2011

he Community-Wide Get Together took place at the NABE 10am-4pm, on Saturday, January 29th. We will provide a synopsis of the outcome of that event in the next (March) column. Thank you to the members of the event Planning Committee for their time, thoughtfulness and guidance during many hours of meetings and outreach leading up to this Community-Wide Get Together. The Rebuild Potrero team continues to meet with concerned community members, individually and in groups, to answer questions about the proposed master plan. We are happy to come and discuss the project with you and/ or your organization. Please contact Charmaine Curtis at 415-647-1898. In January, the Garden Committee started monthly field trips to community gardens throughout the City. On Jan. 20th we visited Hayes Valley Farm, located on the site of the demolished Central Freeway between Octavia and Laguna Streets. This garden employs permaculture principles and was redolent with the scent of nutrient-rich horse manure. Many times larger than the garden we have planned on Texas Street, with its current, nitrogen-fixing crop of Fava Beans, Hayes Valley Far m is an inspiration for our work ahead. The Rebuild Potrero 2011 Calendar was delivered to almost 1,000 residents of Potrero Hill and has been distributed at retail shops and businesses throughout the neighborhood. The calendar

The first two in a monthly series of nutrition and cooking workshops were held on December 22nd and January 26th at the Family Resource Center (FRC) at 85 Turner Terrace. Rebuild Potrero is partnering with the FRC to expand this existing program as part of a Healthy Living Initiative. The one-year curriculum developed and taught by a Registered Dietician will provide a fun, interactive and educational opportunity for Potrero Terrace & Annex residents to learn how to prepare and eat healthier foods. The workshops will include hands-on food preparation, expert speakers, pre- and post assessments and a chance to grocery shop with the Dietician. highlights photos from events held in 2010, and showcases some of the commemorative tiles that have been painted throughout the last two years. If you have not received a calendar and would like to, and/or to find out more about any of the above projects or groups, please call us at 415-806-1429 or email: potrero@bridgehousing.com

A MONTHLY UPDATE SPONSORED BY BRIDGE HOUSING

Unless otherwise noted, all Potrero Branch Library programs are held in the second floor meeting room.

Potrero Library Campaign The Potrero Neighborhood Library Campaign Committee meets monthly to discuss fundraising strategies and progress. If you’d like to join the campaign committee, please contact Mary Abler at Friends of the Library: 626.7512, extension 107 or mary.abler@friendssfpl.org.

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February 2011

cycling from page 8 Bike kiosks are unlikely to be located on Potrero Hill, at least initially. “In the first year, we’ll locate kiosks at CalTrain and BART stations, focusing on downtown, SOMA, the financial district, and possibly Civic Center,” explained Maddox. “If the pilot program is a smashing success and we’re able to secure funding to continue, I’m guessing that we’ll expand into denser areas of residence and employment and flatter areas of the City. Until the program really proves itself and we’ve picked all the low-hanging fruit,” bike share kiosks won’t be located on Potrero Hill or Bayview. In its initial stage the bike share program is designed primarily to move suburban commuters in and out

of the City, much like BART, rather than to provide an intra-city transportation alternative. For Potrero Hill residents who work downtown, it may offer an additional transportation choice for getting around downtown once they’ve arrived by some other means. Leah Shahum, executive director of the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition, pointed-out an important potential future upside to the Bike Share program for Hill residents. “With multiple CalTrain stations in or very near Potrero Hill, and all the development at Mission Bay, at some point Bike Share might mean that commuters coming to your area may decide to leave their cars at home, which could ease traffic congestion and help address any parking shortages,” she said. “The Bike Share program can work well when combined with

excellent conditions for people riding on the streets,” said Shahum. “In that sense, we’re in good shape in San Francisco, with more than 30 miles of new bike lanes being added.” Bike lanes are planned for Illinois Street— “we hope within the next year,” said Shahum—providing a north-south connection, for 17th Street, and for Cesar Chavez, a notoriously dangerous but important route for bicyclists from the east side. Between 2006 and 2010, SFMTA estimates that the number of San Francisco bicyclists rose by 58 percent. “We think these numbers will really increase again after the Bike Share program begins,” said Shahum. “We’re very excited about the pilot, and we hope to see the program expand eventually throughout the City’s neighborhoods.” City Car Share has been a keen

Things on Sticks By Emmanuel Schnetzler

We asked Potrero Hill resident and photographer Emmanuel Schnetzler to take some shots of things in the area that reside on sticks. Here are some of his findings.

supporter of the Bike Share pilot. “We’re thrilled about bike sharing, and we’re doing everything we can to promote it,” said Anita Daley, the nonprofit’s marketing director. “We think it’s a powerful complement to what we do with City Car Share,” she added. City Car Share is examining a project that might specifically benefit Hill residents. “We’re considering introducing a fleet of electric bicycles in many areas, targeting hilly neighborhoods, including Potrero Hill,” said Daley. The project would include plug-in stations to charge the bikes, which would allow Hill residents to pedal down to wherever they’re going, but rely on electric power to get back up. For a map and information about the progress of the more than 30 miles of bike lanes being added to San Francisco’s streets, go to sfbike. org/link.

February 2011

park from front page “The open space is a resource for the whole City,” Carpinelli said. “It’s a devastation to the neighborhood.” Carpinelli is concerned about the lack of communication between the Nabe board and the neighborhood, and believes that the sale of the space should have been publicly vetted. Glober agreed, adding, “The Nabe could have worked dynamically with community members on Potrero Hill, where there is much deep experience working with city planning and supervisors in setting up land swaps or other arrangements that have protected open areas and provided for financial hardships.” More than a year ago Hatter had casually mentioned to a number of community activists that the Nabe might have to resort to selling the property, an action Carpinelli had

vehemently discouraged. She hopes it’s not too late to negotiate with the buyers to keep the area as open space. The mosaic bench wasn’t included in the sale, and has been placed in front of former supervisor Sophie Maxwell’s house on Jerrold Avenue. The home had previously been occupied by the Nabe’s first woman and African-American executive director, Enola D. Maxwell. A community artist in 2003 dedicated the concrete-covered-in-mosaic-glass bench to Enola, who was appointed the Nabe’s executive director in 1972, serving in that position until her death in 2003. Despite the loss of property, Hatter is focusing on the positive in these tough times. “We still have our building, still have our childcare facilities. We are open, that’s the bottom line for me,” Hatter said.

Photograph by Lisa Tehrani

The Nabe’s recently sold corner park.

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THE POTRERO VIEW

Get a Job By Mauri Schwartz The View asked Hill resident and career expert Mauri Schwartz, President / CEO of Career Insiders, www.CareerInsiders. com, to answer questions from job seekers. Submit your questions to editor@ potreroview.net.

Q: I’m really frustrated. While I attended a few years of college, I don’t have a degree. I know better than to lie on my resume, but every job I see requires at least a bachelor’s degree. Can you help me? A: I understand your frustration. Not only does it seem that all jobs require a bachelor’s degree, many call for a master’s. You’re right not to lie on your resume about a degree or anything else. You’d ultimately pay dearly for your dishonesty. But there’s a way to lower your frustration level. Believe it or not, there are a lot of positions that don’t require a college degree. Here’s how you can find them. In previous columns I’ve mentioned that my favorite job search site is Indeed. com. It isn’t an employment bulletin board, but rather a search engine for jobs that allows seekers to find positions posted on thousands of company career sites and job boards. The simple search on Indeed. com’s home page lets you enter a job title or keywords plus a geographic location. However, under an advanced job search you can refine your search in several ways. Look for the phrase “Advanced Job search” in tiny letters just below the “Find Jobs” button on the

right side of the screen and click on this link. On the subsequent page you’ll be given an array of options, such as job type – full-time, part-time, temporary – commute tolerance – distance between home and employer – salary, and how long the job has been posted. There are also options that allow you to get specific with your keyword search. You can specify an exact phrase, or look for certain words in the title. The choice you want is the one that allows you to exclude job descriptions with stated words in them. It’s called ”With none of these words.” Type these words into that box: degree ba bs. When you complete the search, the result will be a list of positions that don’t have these words in their requirement section. A few jobs may slip in for which the employer requires a degree but failed to include it in the job description. In general, however, you should be able to apply for these positions without getting screened out for not having a degree, as long as you’re otherwise qualified.

www.potreroview.net/classifieds

THE POTRERO VIEW

February 2011

Crime & Safety REPORT

94107 Crime Statistics December 16 through January 15