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Update: Fight the SF Overlook Development, Get the T-shirt!

stilts — The steep hillside above the planned development

Readers of this blog will know that the much-opposed Crestmont Development (34 units at the end of a narrow road on a steep slope) is back with a new name, The San Francisco Overlook. It’s still 34 units, it’s still at the end of a narrow road, and the hill remains pretty steep. The Environmental Impact Report is in its final phase, and comments will soon be due. The neighborhood coalition is geared up for the battle (pardon the pun) with t-shirts, sweatshirts and bags.

Here’s where I first described the problems with this development — with some maps showing exactly why it’s a bad idea.

This update was sent by the Crestmont-Mt.Sutro-Forest Knolls Neighborhood Preservation Coalition. (It’s republished with permission and added emphasis):

SF OVERLOOK Development Threatens Our Neighborhood!

EIR in Final Phase!

Preparing for Upcoming Publication of 2nd Draft of EIRUpdate, 6-25-11

As summer has begun, we are awaiting the publication of the 2nd draft of the Environmental Impact Report (EIR) pertaining to the SF Overlook 34-unit condominium project at the end of Crestmont Drive. Once it has been published, we will have 30 days to express our concerns and objections regarding this oversized development which will add far too much traffic, parking congestion and density to our neighborhood.

We will notify all of our Mt.Sutro Woods and Forest Knolls neighbors when the time comes to deluge the Planning Department with letters. It will also be important that we attend and speak at the public hearing which will be held by the Planning Commission.

With a united effort on the part of the community, we believe we can stop this project in its present form. If something must be built on this treacherous hillside, we are fighting for a much scaled-back development of far fewer single family homes which would address the critical issues of safety, congestion and density at the end of this fragile cul-de-sac, and be more in character with the surrounding neighborhood.

As a visible reflection of our resolve, we have adapted the now familiar red and yellow “STOP SF OVERLOOK DEVELOPMENT” poster to a line of t-shirts and sweatshirts. We have been wearing them on our walks around the neighborhood and several neighbors have expressed the wish to obtain these distinctive sportswear items for themselves and their family members, to further spread the message of their objection to the proposed development.

If you are interested, the t-shirts and some other STOP SF OVERLOOK items can be ordered here: http://www.zazzle.com/preservecrestmont. We will also post a link on http://crestmontpreservation.org.

We hope to see many neighbors at the hearing wearing these t-shirts and sweatshirts as they might send a powerful message of neighborhood sentiment and cohesiveness!

REMINDER:
Please display the poster in your window and urge your neighbors to also display the poster! If you need a poster, please call 415-640-3869 or email info@crestmontpreservation.org.

Anyone Want A Street Tree?

Kathleen posted a message to the neighborhood Yahoo Group, to let us know that Friends of the Urban Forest are offering to plant street trees in our neighborhood. (It’s reprinted with permission.)

First, the message from Doug Lybeck (DougLybeck@fuf.net) at Friends of the Urban Forest:

Hello! This is a monthly neighborhood organizing report for tree planting in your neighborhood!

Friends of the Urban Forest is working to get enough commitments to plant trees to enable us to have a tree planting in the Twin Peaks Area and in almost every other area of the City. When we get up to 30 trees committed by property owners we’ll be able to schedule a community tree planting. Can you help create the necessary demand? In so doing you will create a legacy right here in our “front yards” — one that can be enjoyed by yourself and the children and grandchildren of the neighborhood. And at just $75 for the tree and periodic maintenance for 3 years the price is a real bargain. Research shows that trees increase property values, help the environment and improve our quality of life in many ways. So please plant a tree in front of your house or talk with neighbors or local business about planting one (or two) in front of their property! If you know the owner of a site that could plant several trees please let me know — we would love to help them start reaping the benefits of having trees. Plantings are fun and literally bring neighborhoods together.

Kathleen’s message indicates why for some of us, it’s not feasible, even though we’d love to have street trees (like Forest Hill or St Francis Wood!) I have the same problems. Not enough space on the street.

But. All the homes here are not uniform, and some of you may have space and inclination to add trees. Please email Doug Lybeck, and/or leave comments here.

Howdy Neighbors,

Friends of the Urban Forest is organizing the planting of trees in our neighborhood (Forest Knolls is included in the “Twin Peaks Area”). See below [i.e., above] if you are interested in getting a tree planted in front of your house. We checked into it and the sidewalk is not wide enough in front of our house (you need 4′ clear on the sidewalk plus room for a minimum 2-1/2′ cut out for the tree basin). They will also plant the tree in your front planter if you are interested in that (we already have trees in all our planters).

Kathleen

Helicopter and Hand-grenade

It was the helicopter that caught our eye. Elegant as a dragon-fly, gleaming in the evening sunlight between two fat white clouds in the blueness of the sky, it hovered. It was going nowhere, and as we neared home, it seemed to be over Mount Sutro Forest. I jumped out of the car, and took some photographs, not easy because it was into the sun, which at 5.15 p.m. was still quite high.

What was happening? I went off into the forest to take a look. I could see the helicopter through the trees, on the western side of the forest.

But what was it there for? All was quiet in the woods; the only other people there were a couple of friendly bike-riders who called a greeting as they rode past.

It turned out I was barking up the wrong trees. The cause of all the commotion was right back here, in Forest Knolls. The first block of Christopher was blocked by an SFPD car, yellow tape, and a couple of news reporters with cameras.

Someone inquired, and called me in the forest. “They found some ordnance in one of the houses, and are waiting to clear it out.”

Aha. I made my way back to where the police car still stood, and talked to the officer. “Some old munitions,” he said.

“World War II stuff?” I asked.

“I think something like that,” he said. “Old materials.”

“Did someone just buy a house and find it?” I asked.

“I don’t know,” he said. “Maybe someone died.”

“What’s the helicopter about?”

“It’s just a news helicopter,” he said.

Later, Lulu posted a KRON news report to our neighborhood group (where Nola had already given everyone a heads-up).

“The SFPD Bomb Squad found a WWII Era grenade at a residence,” the report said. The SFPD had gotten a call at 2.33 p.m. They planned to remove and detonate it tonight.

So that was it…

My foray into the forest wasn’t wasted, though. It was an absolutely lovely afternoon in the woods.

Legion of Honor: Three Great Exhibits

We stopped by the Legion of Honor the other day. Though this museum isn’t quite in our backyard like the De Young or the Cal Academy, it’s only 15 minutes away — and it may be my favorite. At least currently: In addition to its wonderful permanent collection of paintings from classical to impressionist, it’s got three unmissable exhibits.

THE ROMAN FLOOR FROM ISRAEL

There’s a mosaic floor from Lod, Israel on display. It’s from 1700 years ago, but it’s so well-preserved it looks new. And it’s brilliant, like a carpet of tiny squares of stone.

The most dramatic part is a water theme with huge fishes and ships; but I was also taken by the other side, which has a theme of predators attacking various animals.

I was surprised to find a tiger among the lions and leopards and snakes … tigers are jungle cats, and where’s the jungle? There was also a peacock. I’d always thought these animals to be Asian, so it was puzzling and fascinating.

Also fascinating was a footprint. Apparently, when the archaeologists were lifting the floor to preserve it, they found workers’ footprints in the layer underneath. One of those is also on display. (This exhibition is on until 24 July 2011.)

THE GLOUCESTERSHIRE MAGNA CARTA

The storied Magna Carta is perhaps the first legal document in the world to give protection to the common man. The rights actually were restricted to “freemen” but they formed the basis for the expansion of those rights to everyone.

The first document, signed by King John of England is I think lost, but there are 17 surviving versions issued by subsequent kings. The one on display at the Legion of Honor is from the reign of Henry III, and dates back nearly 800 years to 1217. It’s in Latin, in a beautiful hand. I couldn’t read it, but the translation of one para hangs beside it. It gave me goose-bumps to read it. It’s only here until 5 June 2011.

SCULPTURES OF GOWNS IN PAPER

The final exhibition, down in the basement of the building, didn’t permit photography, I don’t know why. It’s “Pulp Fashion: The Art of Isabelle de Borchgrave,” a display of elaborate clothing reproduced in paper and paint. She’s inspired for the most part by classical paintings. It’s worth a visit for the sheer artistry involved. The museum has a picture on its homepage for now, though I expect this will change when the exhibit moves on — 12 June 2011, I believe. [ETA July 2011: No longer on the home page, this archive page has a bunch of pictures — including ones of the sculpture inspired by the painting here.]

The picture here is a public domain image of Eleanor of Toledo, painted by the artist Angelo Bronzino in 1545. This dress, in white with a bold black and gold pattern, is one that is reproduced in the Pulp Fashion exhibition. An interesting factoid: The dress never apparently existed (though Eleanor did). They gave the artist a bolt of the fabric and asked him to paint it as a gown on his subject.

[ETA: I should note that I’m a member of the Fine Arts Museums… it’s an annual membership that gives free access to two people both to the De Young and the Legion of Honor. If you want to see many of the exhibitions, it’s a whole lot less pricey than paying full admission each time.]

Coyote Pupping Season… Take Care

We live in coyote country, and it’s that time of the year… pupping season. We don’t know if the coyotes around here have pups. They’ll still be too small to come out just yet.

What we do know is that the mom and dad coyotes will be very protective of the pups, if any. Janet Kessler has a detailed post on her Coyote Yipps blog about this, and what precautions people should take. Especially if they’re out with their dogs.

Coyotes are feeling particularly edgy and protective of their space right now. When the pups are brought out of the dens, and when they begin to explore further afield, the coyote parents will defend a much wider area around the pups and they will do so more fiercely than usual. We need to give them plenty of girth so that they feel safe…

She goes on to recommend:

If you have a dog, keep walking on, away from the coyote. Try not to stop and stare because this sets up an opportunity for the dog and coyote to communicate through body language and eye contact — it almost always involves mutual dislike. If the coyote feels threatened, he/she may stand his/her ground with a warning display which includes what I call the “Halloween Cat” display: arched back, hackles up, snarly face with teeth bared, head down, pacing or bouncing: this is a message — it is the only way a coyote can make you understand what its needs are.

HOW TO RETREAT FROM AN UPSET COYOTE

And here are some specific suggestions from her blog-post:

As you retreat from an upset coyote, make sure that you walk away, don’t run. Running might incite the coyote to chase — it’s an instinctual reaction.
An angry and loud voice, along with sharp noises or flailing one’s arms might hurry them on their way.
Clapping ones’s hands, or shaking a small 4-ounce juice-size can with coins in it works.
The newest idea that has been suggested is carrying a small fold-up umbrella with you if you walk in a coyote area and feel a need for added protection. Just flashing the umbrella open and closed a few times will startle a coyote off!

Charles Wood, who watches a coyote family in Los Angeles, guest-blogs on Coyote Yipps. He has a description of parental behavior that’s interesting to read:

Dad is still looking a bit thin. I came across them both as I was leaving their field. Mom was partially in cover. I moved about twenty feet away from my leashed dog to get a less obscured picture of her. Seeing an opportunity, Dad quickly approached my dog Holtz. Dad disregarded Holtz’s barking and then charged. I snapped a quick picture and then moved to stand between him and Holtz. His opportunity blocked, Dad broke off his charge, moved back, calmed down and did some investigatory sniffing. Throughout the event, Mom stood at the ready.

Again, the point to note is that coyotes react much more to dogs than they do to humans. Usually, they avoid humans. Janet Kessler notes:

I’ve never had a negative encounter with a coyote. But I have watched other people have them. Every incident I have seen has been caused by a human with their dog who inadvertently or purposefully refused to respect a coyote’s space.

Health Fair – UCSF at Mt Zion – 18 June 2011

UCSF’s sending around emails about a health fair they’re holding on Post Street at Divisadero. It sounds like a neat idea, so I’m putting it in here in case anyone’s interested.

From the email from Damon Lew:

To Our Community,
We invite you, your family, your friends, and your patients to join us at the Mount Zion Community Health Day on Saturday, June 18th.

You will have access to health screenings, educational materials and activities, along with local entertainment and food vendors. Our goal is to celebrate, educate and promote good health! There will be over twenty booths featuring various Medical Center clinics and services, including:
• the Bloodmobile
• Cancer Center
• Division of General Internal Medicine
• Headache Center
• Nutrition Counseling Clinic
• Osher Center for Integrative Medicine
• Radiology
• Sleep Disorders Center
• Tobacco Education Center
• Women’s Health
• and more.

Event Details
Mount Zion Community Health Day
Outdoor Street Fair
Saturday, June 18, 2011
11:00 am–4:00 pm
Post Street between Divisadero and Scott streets

Did You Know?
We are approaching the centennial of the Hellman Building at Mount Zion—the cornerstone of the twentieth century hospital. Mount Zion has played an important role in San Francisco’s rich history by serving the Western Addition neighborhood and the San Francisco community from the end of the nineteenth century through the twentieth and into the twenty-first century. It has been a part of the UCSF Medical Center since 1990.

Celebrating our Community
The leadership at the UCSF Medical Center at Mount Zion, led by Associate Dean Jeffrey Pearl, M.D., is hosting this Community Health Day. It is a way to celebrate our local community, and to extend our thanks and appreciation to the neighborhood for its support of the Mount Zion campus.

We invite everyone at UCSF and in the community to join us in making this event a success. For more information, contact the Fishbon Library at Mount Zion, (415) 885-7378 or visit: http://mzhealthfair.ucsf.edu/mzhealthfair/mz_health_fair.pdf

Please feel free to forward this information on to your colleagues, clients, and community networks!

[ETA – Note: The link above goes to the poster we’ve shown at the top of this post.]

Coyotes on Twin Peaks

Some of you already know there are coyotes living in the area: one, maybe two families are somewhere around in the Twin Peaks/Glen Canyon/Golden Gate Park habitats. We’d posted about it on the Sutro Forest website, here.

Today, someone on our neighborhood group described an encounter with a coyote on Twin Peaks while out running with their dogs, early in the morning… in which the coyote chased them off the hill:

I spotted a coyote running up the street… I would stop and yell at him and tell him to go away (as if), and he would briefly stop but continued coming…..we finally got away…must be protecting his cubs.

It ended with a warning to people going up there with small unleashed dogs. (The coyote picture here isn’t of that coyote; it’s a public domain photograph.)

[ETA 25 May 2011: I personally saw a coyote a couple of days or rather, nights, later. It was around midnight, on the other side of Twin Peaks, near Panorama. Possibly the same animal.]

I’d like to refer everyone to the brilliant Coyote Yipps blog. It’s kept by Janet Kessler, the “Jane Goodall of San Francisco’s coyotes.” It minutely observes and documents the behaviour of a family of coyotes she watches (and also another family of coyotes in Los Angeles, observed by Charles Wood).

However: It also posts a warning.

More importantly, if you go with dogs into coyote areas (most open parkland in San Francisco or its surroundings): What concerns coyotes is dogs. Here are the special guidelines for dog-walkers. (Note that the person who originated this warning did the right thing by yelling at the coyote.)

[ETA: However, Janet Kessler added in a private communication: “…it is best never to run away from a coyote, but rather to walk away slowly. Running away sparks an instinct to chase.”]

Here’s a link to a Coyote Yipps post with more detailed pointers for dog-walkers. I’d recommend them to everyone. Janet Kessler’s been watching coyotes and their interactions with people and dogs for some years now. She’s deeply knowledgeable.

A Local Celebration

Mother’s Day, 2011. The family took me out for lunch to a place of my choice… Pacific Catch on 9th Avenue. It’s barely 10 minutes from Forest Knolls, and has an interesting range of food from sushi to fish-and-chips served in faux newspaper. (Until I started writing this, I didn’t know it had 4 locations: 9th Avenue, and Marina in San Francisco; and in Corte Madera and Campbell.) I’d eaten there a couple of times before, and really liked it — great food, friendly servers, spacious, modern and bright decor. (Don’t miss the modern chandeliers made of bottomless cobalt glass bottles.)

We parked at the paid parking lot across from Ebisu restaurant… and we’re glad we did. The street was crowded, and parking difficult. Only a little while later, we saw a car being towed out of the bus-stop box while parking enforcement stood by. Oops. Not a good way to celebrate.

Knots of people stood in front of all the restaurants on the block. “It’s so cute,” commented one of our party, “All these people standing in groups, like here’s our mother.”

We’d made no reservations, so while we waited for a place to open up, we walked across to Golden Gate Park. There, just above the baseball diamond, was a Blue Heron hunting in the grass, oblivious to the people out enjoying the sun and breeze. Only temporarily oblivious, though. After a few minutes, it had had enough and flew into a tree . They’re nesting at nearby Stow Lake. (Stow Lake’s an avian nursery right now: There’s a Great Horned Owl nest with fledgelings, the heronry, at least one batch of ducklings, and recently I saw a pair of Canada Geese with 8 goslings in tow.)

After a great meal that started with spicy ahi tuna and calamari and edamame and got even better from there on, we went to Tuttimelon, the newish gelato place in West Portal. They have superb sorbets in addition to gelato and frozen yoghurt. (I got passion-fruit and mango…) They also have Illy coffee (“best coffee in the world” commented one of our group), and soon plan to add Vietnamese sandwiches to their offerings. I’m looking forward to it, banh mi are great.

This beautiful pink hydrangea came from Papenhausen (also inWest Portal), complete with a double pot with a wick to reduce the need for water. Even though it’s a hardware store, it often has an enticing display of potted plants out front. Especially in spring.

In fact, the only non-local element was this wonderful arrangement of ranunculus, tulips, roses and white hydrangea. That came from Menlo Park, a charming new flowershop called Twigs and Petals. Definitely worth it!

Then the guys stayed home to watch a film on TV, while the girls went off to the Legion of Honor’s Pulp Fashion exhibition. It was very impressive: Costumes from the medieval to the vintage, replicated in paper and paint. They were so elaborate and so beautifully made as to be jaw-dropping.

Unfortunately, neither the Legion of Honor nor the De Young permit photography of their exhibitions — even without a flash. I can’t think why. People can’t post pictures on blogs or Facebooks and tell their friends. (This is why there’s no report here on the Olmec exhibition.) In this era, it’s like turning down free publicity of the best kind — word of mouth. With added pictures, worth a thousand words.

Inner Sunset Fix-It Fair, 7 May 2011

~~Each year~~ From time to time, the Inner Sunset Park Neighbors hold a “Fix-It” fair, offering free repairs. They have professionals volunteering to fix any ~~small~~ thing you bring along.

[ETA: A clarification from Barbara — actually, two:

” Thanks for your fast action; I certainly appreciate it…and the charming clip-art.

“I would like to point out that it’s not necessarily ‘any ~~small~~ thing,’ as many have brought us large furniture, chairs, benches, tall lamps, etc. to fix; it’s quite remarkable. Additionally, we’ve now done this four times in a year…. it seems to be happening quarterly, for which I’m very grateful to our volunteers. Last January, we repaired around 160 items. Not bad, eh?”]

Here’s the notice:

****************

Inner Sunset Free Fix-It Fair

Saturday, May 7th , 2011

10a.m. – 4p.m.,

Irving at 6th Ave.

Last items in at 3pm.

We’ll try to fix anything—except electronics & relationships—for FREE.

Yes, for free. No hidden charges, no fees, no gobbledegook.

Bring your wobbly, loose, broken, frayed, splintered, torn, ripped, cracked, or severed item. We will glue, solder, clamp, re-wire, sew, chop, sharpen, file, cut, adjust, weld, screw, etc. If we can’t fix it, we’ll give you twice your money back!

This is simply our community’s effort to keep stuff out of landfill, so a host of talented volunteers will be armed to repair!

For questions or to volunteer, call Barbara: 415/2.46.47.48

****************

Crestmont Development, alias San Francisco Overlook: New Name, Fast Track

Someone sent me the notice below with a request to post it here. The Crestmont project (which I wrote about here, almost exactly a year ago) seems to have reappeared with a new name, and a fast timeline. There are meetings in early May.

CRESTMONT – MT. SUTRO – FOREST KNOLLS NEIGHBORHOOD PRESERVATION COALITION

http://www.CrestmontPreservation.org 415-640-3869

URGENT ALERT

CRESTMONT DEVELOPMENT THREATENS AGAIN!

Same massive 34 condo project with minor revisions

Same Developer, New Partner and New Name

“SAN FRANCISCO OVERLOOK DEVELOPMENT, L.L.C.”

The project is in the last phases of the EIR (Environmental Impact Report)

* * * * *

Mandatory SF “Community Workshop” Meetings

Tuesday, May 3 and Wednesday, May 4, 2011

7:00 P.M.

Clarendon School, 500 Clarendon Ave, San Francisco

Please attend the meetings and express your opinions about this development which threatens our neighborhood

* * * * *

SAFETY FEARS

Much more traffic on narrow Crestmont Drive, San Francisco’s longest cul-de-sac

Dangerous for drivers, pedestrians and children

Limited access and passage for emergency vehicles

Destabilization of the hillside above and below

* * * * *

NEIGHBORHOOD IMPACT

Loss of green space

Insufficient parking

No public transportation

More traffic and parking congestion in Forest Knolls

* * * * *

Please display the new “STOP SF Overlook Development” poster in your window

To keep up with the latest developments and sign up for email notifications, visit www.CrestmontPreservation.org

Mandatory SF “Community Workshop” Meetings

Tuesday, May 3 and Wednesday, May 4, 2011 7:00 P.M.

Clarendon School, 500 Clarendon Ave, San Francisco

Spring comes to Forest Hill Station

Until I researched it for this post, I had no idea our local Muni station, Forest Hill Station is one of the oldest in the land. It was built in 1916-18 as part of the tunnel under Twin Peaks, which actually emerges at West Portal. [Edited to Add: The two pictures of the station aren’t mine, they’re in the public domain. The first one is from 1917, the other from 2006.]

What inspired this post wasn’t the building (though it’s a beautiful one, often ignored as we drive past). It was the garden behind it, in spring.

The cherry trees that line the back of the property were in ethereal bloom, and their beauty was echoed in daisies that covered the lush green lawn like a drift of snowflakes. The sky was blue and fluffed with clouds. The whole scene was picture-book pretty.

We pulled up half a block forward, and I ran back to take these photographs…

These two pictures are the last ones ever from this camera. It’s been a forgiving gadget. I’ve thrust it into my purse, jammed it in my jeans pocket, even taken it out in a drizzle. But as I backed away to take one last shot, I dropped it on the concrete sidewalk with its lens out. What camera would tolerate that? Goodbye, Nikon Coolpix.

[Edited to Add: I’m glad I did get those photographs. When we drove by there today, the cherry blossoms were past their prime with the leaves coming in — and the daisies had been mown away.]

Cats, Lies, and the Smithsonian Catbird Study

Like many of us in this neighborhood, I like birds and animals, including cats. So I was dismayed to see the recent SF Weekly with a huge cover picture of a demonic cat. It contained an article by the controversial journalist Matt Smith, using as fodder a press release from the Smithsonian about a study done in 2004.

That study implied that cats are the main cause of death of small birds. It’s become a talking point for those advocating stronger measures against feral and outdoor cats. But did the study’s results justify it? No way.

It sounded pretty bad. According to the website of the Smithsonian, “The main determining factor was predation, which accounted for 79 percent of juvenile catbird deaths within the team’s three suburban study sites. Nearly half (47 percent) of the deaths were attributed to domestic cats…” This makes it sound like cats killed a huge number, over a third of the birds. What huge number was it, actually? Well, six.

The study followed 69 young catbirds (the name is a coincidence, it has nothing to do with cats really) by putting tiny radio transmitters on them. In the five months of the study (May-September 2004), 42 died from predators, glass-panes, or disease. Cats killed only 6 of them.

Here’s the real picture:

WHAT THE RESEARCHERS DID

Working in three Maryland suburbs filled with homes and gardens, the researchers tagged a total of 69 baby catbirds with tiny radio-transmitters. They tracked the birds until the bird was found dead, or its signal disappeared, probably meaning it had moved on.

Of the 42 that died, the researchers figured 33 were killed by some kind predator. For 19 of them, the researchers thought they could make a good guess at what kind of predator got the bird. Besides the 6 actually killed by cats, they thought another 3 probably were because they were found headless. But it turns out that many hunting birds (owls, hawks, for instance) also bite off the head first, so assuming cats did it is a stretch.

Unfortunately, when the study was published, the abstract (the summary that’s the only thing most people read) said:

Why is this misleading? Two reasons. First, it includes the headless birds that probably were killed by something else. Second, it compares the number with “known predation events” — which just means the number of cases where they guessed at who killed the catbird. What they should use is a comparison agains the whole bunch of tagged birds: 6 out of 69. That would be 8.7%. The graphic below represents the real story.

And since it’s in the nature of predators to go for the weakest and slowest, it’s more than likely that if the cats didn’t get them, something else would have… an owl, a hawk, a rat, or disease.

What really hurts our birds is destroying their habitat. Everywhere in the city, bushes and thickets are being removed, even in the so-called “Natural Areas.” Some ground-nesting birds like the quail are particularly affected. It’s easy to blame cats, especially feral cats. Though cats do hunt birds, they’re far more likely to get rodents. But small birds are prey to everything that hunts: hawks, owls, coyotes. They need places to hide and nest.

Not that I’m particularly advocating outdoor cats. Quite aside from the whole bird issue, they are themselves at risk from predators, whether with two legs or four legs or four wheels. As their reflexes slow with age, they face greater odds.

[A longer version of this article appeared on the Sutroforest.com site.]

A Brilliant Day at West Portal Arts Fair

It’s wonderful weather for a fair. The sun’s out, the wind died down, and it’s cool. Which is lucky, because West Portal’s annual Arts and Crafts festival is on this weekend. It started today, and I went to have a look.

Many of the wonderful stalls that were there last year are back. It’s a mix of art, jewelry, clothes, and things like handmade wooden toys and elaborate artistic wood-inlay. Prices ranged from maybe $3 (notecards) to $3500 (an elaborate marquetry mirror). A ~~Navajo~~ Zapotec weaver was working on a rug, his loom set up next to an artistic display in bright colors as well as muted ones.

I stopped to talk with some of the artists. That’s always interesting; they’re so into their work, and willing to explain their artistic vision. One jeweler talked about texture and using unusual materials. She had a necklace of baroque pearls that looked like jasmine buds on a string.

A few people were out and browsing. I overheard one young woman discussing the spiritual significance of lapis lazuli with a jewelry artist. A little boy in a stroller spotted the wooden toys. “Stop, I want to look!” he said. Unfortunately, his mom was in a hurry. He gave the toys a regretful glance as they went by.

Here are a selection of photographs:

West Portal Arts Festival, 8-10 April 2011

It’s that time of the year again! West Portal’s having its Arts and Crafts Fair this weekend, starting tomorrow actually. It was a lovely fair last year, and this year promises to be good, too. Sixty-five professional artists. Paintings, photography, sculpture, jewelry and a great deal of other stuff. Browse through last year’s fair report for a sense of what to expect. [ETA: Here’s a quick report from the first day of this fair.] Here’s the poster.

SF CARES/ JCCCNC + Japan Relief: 16 April 2011

There’s an event to show solidarity with Japan as it battles the aftermath of the quake and tsunami, and also to raise funds.

In 1906, San Francisco’s hour of need, Japan was the largest contributor to San Francisco Aid Relief….

Here’s the poster, and there are more details at RaiseTheFlagAtFive.com

Seven Views of Sutro Tower

From everywhere in and around San Francisco, the Sutro TV Tower is visible; but for our neighborhood, it’s iconic. So recently, when a friend pointed me at Our Lady of Darkness by Fritz Leiber (1910-1992), I was fascinated to discover that the tower featured in its opening pages.

“The TV tower — San Francisco’s Eiffel, you could call it — was broad-shouldered, slender-waisted, and long-legged like a beautiful and stylish woman — or demigoddess.”

He was writing back in the 1970s, when the tower was new, and literary analogies sometimes a touch sexist:

“… the TV tower stood tall, her colors fresh and gussied-up and elegant as a brand-new whore (Your pardon, Goddess).“

Not everyone was so complimentary. I was looking up information on Mount Davidson when I came upon this quote: “Now a giant red and white, but politically correct, pitchfork adorns the mountain named after Adolph Sutro.” — Jacqueline Proctor, Mt Davidson.org, article on Madie Brown (2010)

The Chronicle weighed in: ‘”…it’s a beacon, an orientation point,” EHDD’s Marc L’Italien says of the 977-foot three-pronged communications tower completed in 1973 despite an outcry from neighborhood groups. “It’s also well-proportioned, a bit futuristic…”‘ — John King, SF Chronicle, 8 March 2011.

[Edited to Add on 18 May 2012: From Earl Martin, an original resident Midtown Terrace resident, I got this photo taken around 1957. It shows the predecessor to today’s tower – a lot slimmer than the existing one.]

AND THEN THERE’S YELP

Then I went to the review site, Yelp, which allows anyone to review anything from laundries to landmarks. It had 47 reviews of the tower…

Like this one from GIR in 2007: “Sutro Tower is also the coolest landmark in SF, a giant diabolical pacemaker in the heart of the city. It is instantly recognizable without being a common tourist attraction, defining and defiantly brazen against the sky.”

Mike S totally disagreed: “It’s a hunk of red and white metal that s*its on the SF skyline…” And Derek B expressed the same sentiment: “Painted red and white, it’s obnoxious. Stickin’ out of the purdy twin peaks, it’s an eye sore…”

John S had mixed feelings about the tower: “On the one hand, it’s iconic and visible from a great deal of the city and the East Bay. Its scale is also amazing. It’s obviously very tall, but you don’t really understand just how tall it is until you’ve been up pretty close to it. On the other hand, it’s most likely carcinogenic, and it is pretty ugly. OK, I’m not sure how ugly it really is because I actually like how it looks…”

GOT THE T-SHIRT

Sutro tower even has its own t-shirts, from ~~at least two~~ many different makers, among them United Hue; and Amos Goldbaum. Handmade earrings from Chantal de Felice (being sold at her Etsy store). Many artists, particularly print-makers, have found its geometric lines interesting.

And…fans even got it as tattoos.

Chris R, whose tattoo appear in this photograph on Flickr, explains: “A tribute to my dad who died back in 1990. He lived here in SF, so I’d always come to visit on weekends and such. He played around with wood block printing as a hobby, and Sutro tower was always a significant landmark for me, so the design just seemed to fit.” Chris found the image on the craft-site Etsy, but couldn’t recall the artist. Only afterward did he discover the original artist, Eric Rewitzer of 3 Fish Studio, who was honored that his work was so memorialized. (See the comment-stream after the photograph.)

NIGHT VIEW

The last word goes to Fritz Leiber, from the same book: “The constellation of Orion was shouldering into his window… its nine brightest stars made an angular, tilted hourglass, challenging the smaller slenderer one made by the nineteen winking red lights of the TV tower… When he’d first seen the tower, he’d thought it worse than grotesque, but now — how strange! — it had become almost as reassuring to him as starry Orion.”

West of Twin Peaks Council Meeting

Last evening, I attended the West of Twin Peaks Central Council meeting. The WTPCC is an umbrella organization; its members are neighborhood associations, including the Crestmont/ Forest Knolls Neighborhood Organization. Kristine Zaback attended for Forest Knolls. Judy Clarke represented The Woods, a home-owners’ association of townhomes next to Laguna Honda reservoir on Clarendon Avenue, which was inducted into the Council at this meeting.

WTPCC meets in the romantic Maybeck clubhouse in Forest Hills. It’s a lovely old building, though a bit dim — mainly because the brick and wood walls absorb light. Still, the lighting was bright enough on the head table and the speakers.

MAIN ISSUES

Though the 2+ hour meeting covered a good deal of ground, the focus was on three main issues:

In-law (secondary) units.

Should San Francisco add housing by letting owners convert a single family home into a multi-family home? Many neighborhoods oppose it, primarily because of population density issues. More households will mean, for example, more cars; it would impact the character of the neighborhood. Neighbors were concerned that the City wants to push for increased housing density on the Westside, primarily to raise property tax yields.

Apparently, some language in the Housing Element (which is sort of like the overall plan for San Francisco housing) was changed after the Environmental Impact Report was finalized (in “Draft III” — this link is to the “red-lined” PDF file showing the changes). Instead of “Density limits should be maintained” it now reads, “Height and bulk limits…”

[From the document: Within a community ~~supported~~ based planning process, the City may consider using the building envelope, as established by height, bulk, set back, parking and other Code requirements, to regulate the maximum residential square footage, rather than density controls that are not consistent with existing patterns. In setting allowable residential densities in established neighborhoods, consideration should be given to the prevailing building type in the surrounding area so that new development does not detract from existing character. In some areas, such as RH-1 and RH-2, ~~density limits should be maintained to~~ prevailing height and bulk limits should be maintained to protect neighborhood character.]

They were also concerned about a change in the language that takes power away from the neighborhoods and places it in “the community” — a vague and general term that includes everyone with an interest in the matter.

(From Draft III: Ensure ~~neighborhood-supported~~ community based planning processes are used to generate changes to land use controls.)

Planning Commissioner Antonini, who voted to approve Draft III despite disagreeing with those particular changes, was at the meeting; he suggested the best way for neighborhoods to protect themselves was through Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions (CC&Rs) that were actually known to San Francisco’s Planning Commission. He also suggested neighborhood organizations or Homeowner Associations should charge enough to make a difference. There was some question as to whether the city could over-ride a CC&R.

High speed rail.

Judge Quentin Kopp, introduced by Denise La Pointe of Twin Peaks Improvement Association, spoke about the High Speed Rail project. The idea is to have a high-speed rail link between San Francisco and Los Angeles, and ultimately San Diego. The first section is planned to be built from somewhere near Fresno down to Bakersfield, an area where they can test the trains at full speed (about 220 mph). It’ll be funded by a mix of stimulus funds and bond money. It’s projected to be open for ridership around 2018.

Park Merced redevelopment.

The whole area of Park Merced is gradually to be redeveloped, increasing housing density. The main issue seems to be whether tenants in currently rent-controlled apartments will get comparable housing at the same price later on. Though the owners say yes, there seems to be no bomb-proof legal format to assure it. The Development Agreement wouldn’t necessarily survive a legal challenge. The Environment Impact Report will be voted on today, March 29. District 7 Supervisor, Sean Elsbernd came to the meeting to take feedback and comments before the vote.

MAYORAL CANDIDATE

Dennis Herrera, currently City Attorney, is running for mayor. He described his four main thrusts as City Attorney: Code enforcement (building codes etc); Public safety (mainly by injunctions against known gang members — some of whom weren’t even residents of the city), and also by curbing illegal dumping by roofing companies; Fiscal responsibility (dealing with construction cost over-runs and scams targeting school districts); Protecting small businesses that do work for the Department of Public Works by co-ordinating with DPW to make their requirements more definitive and transparent. He offered his vision: “Make San Francisco a city that works.”

OTHER MATTERS

1. Miraloma Park had some issues with a CVS Pharmacy planned to open there: It was going to sell liquor and stay open until 11 p.m. After discussions with neighbors, it will not sell liquor and will close be 10 p.m.

2. There are some ongoing issues at Laguna Honda Hospital, which may need to be addressed at another meeting.

3. The National Parks Service new plan for a 75% reduction in off-leash areas for dogs will likely lead to overcrowding: When the tsunami threat closed Ocean Beach, other areas saw a surge in dog visitors. (Comments to the plan will be accepted at the website here or by mail — no emails or faxes.)

4. Phil Ginsburg of Rec & Parks Dept is committed to public/private partnerships in many areas.

I’m sure I’ve forgotten some… if anyone has anything to add, email me at fk94131 at yahoo.com — or leave a comment. (Comments are moderated against spam, so they won’t appear right away, but they will show up.)

[ETA: Here’s a link to the Westside Observer report on the meeting.]

Want to Play a “Victim” for NERT?

A nearby NERT class is looking for volunteer “victims” on 31 March 2011 evening (details below). As Lulu says on our neighborhood newsgroup, “Who knows – you may help train someone who winds up really rescuing you!”

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Volunteer to be a “Victim” for Graduating NERT Class:

THURSDAY, MARCH 31, 6:30PM – 9:00PM

UPPER NOE RECREATION CENTER

299 DAY STREET AT SANCHEZ

Google map: http://maps.google.com

Attend the final session (Class 6). Instructors will make you up to be a victims for the students attending the training so they will have a more realistic experience. No previous experience necessary, all are welcome.

Upon arrival, inform class instructors that you are volunteering to be a victim.

“Victims” should wear something comfortable that you don’t mind getting dirty.

Contact or RSVP: sfshell@gmail.com

Shelley Carroll
NERT Coordinator Chair

sfshell@gmail.com

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