JP Murphy Clubhouse: Why it Matters

I wrote earlier about San Francisco Rec & Parks plan to lease out the newly (and expensively) remodeled JP Murphy Clubhouse on 9th avenue at Pacheco. There’s a lot of opposition. The Sunset Beacon carried an article about it. There’s a Facebook page for the Friends of JP Murphy Playground.

The article suggest this is important not just for the would-be users of that clubhouse (currently locked); it’s a change in the way Rec & Park functions, with revenue as a driver. It could thus presage more such actions, with leases of other Park properties to private parties.

(It’s interesting that at almost the same time, Rec & Park has budgeted $82 thousand for a new trail through Sutro Forest, starting at Stanyan. The forest already has a number of trails, including one starting nearby at Belgrave, and another at Edgewood Way. So far, they seem to have cut down a lot of trees. But I digress.)

Rec & Park is holding another meeting at the Clubhouse to discuss its future, on Monday, Jan. 31st, from 5:30-7 pm.

Meanwhile, the West of Twin Peaks Council (which is a group of all the neighborhood organizations on San Francisco’s west side) has passed two resolutions on the matter. They’ll be up on their website soon.