SPRING 2021 VOLUME 39, NO. 1

Loss and Hope for Glen Park Businesses

little bit of Glen Park history a new lease, which they rejected; they contemporary," she added. hugging them and even crying with died at the end of March. told her they were going to retire. Kim said he planned to take some them. A Tyger's, the beloved break- The space will be taken over by time off to decide what comes next. Marian Dalere, who runs the fam- fast-and-lunch spot at the corner of Victorson's son, a graduate of the He finished off his final day in the ily hair salon at 660 Chenery St., said Chenery and Diamond streets, has Culinary Institute of America in New neighborhood making the rounds of when it was time to exchange farewells, closed permanently after York. It will still serve breakfast and downtown Glen Park, thanking his fel- “I thanked him for his hard work and by holding on precariously lunch, but the menu will be "more low businesspeople for their support, CONTINUED ON PAGE 10 Gail during the first year of Bensinger the Covid-19 pandemic. On March 31, as he fin- ished cleaning up his restaurant for Ohlone Way Mural Comes to Life the last time, owner Young Kim was distraught as he explained that he had decided to end his run. “It’s OK,” he said. But clearly it wasn’t. Kim first went to work at Tyger’s in 1988 and took over the manage- ment in 1997. For all those years, he labored in the small kitchen, prepar- ing stacks of pancakes, BLTs and tuna melts for neighborhood regulars and casual drop-ins alike. Pre-Covid, seven people worked there, but over the past year that num- ber had been reduced to two—Kim and his wife, Suzie. That was exhaust- ing for them both, he said, but they could not afford to hire anyone else. The changing pandemic rules, including stretches of carry-out-only, limited sidewalk dining and partial inside dining, cut deeply into their revenue and made keeping the business alive unviable. His landlady, Ana Victorson, said of the Kims, "It was their decision to leave." She said she had offered them The new mural on Ohlone Way was painted by Josué Rojas. Here his mother helps with some of the details. Photo courtesy of Josué Rojas

GLEN PARK mong the many charming how the people living just beyond have house runs along Ohlone Way and ASSOCIATION features of Glen Park are the lovingly tended ( neglected) these presented a perfect blank canvas where QUARTERLY MEETING A unpaved lanes that welcome borderlands. the mural could come alive. the wanderer from the urban con- Today, people passing through A Berkeley native, Harris, his part- Thursday April 29, 7 p.m. crete. They’re instant Ohlone Way are offered a new delight: ner Abbie Coburn, and their three by nature, although with a huge, riotously colorful mural on the children, have lived in the house for Via Zoom Bonnee reminders of civili- side of a house. seven years. They’d always nurtured Waldstein zation: backyards, The artwork was commissioned by the idea of a mural, and one Christmas Find the Zoom link at: fences, garages, tire Surrey Street resident Harris Epstein. Harris promised Coburn he was going glenparkassociation.org tracks. Walking through, one can see The entire length of the side of his CONTINUED ON PAGE 14

NEW INGLESIDE POLICE CAPTAIN ~ PG. 4 ZOANNE NORDSTROM ~ PG. 12 RICHLAND BRIDGE RESTORATION ~ PG. 17 2 Glen Park News | Spring 2021

S S len ark GLEN PARK ASSOCIATION G P len Park Strong: It’s more than a rash of shootings—the crime trends Interested in Transportation? Few News just a sign in a store window. change over time in Glen Park, but neighborhoods have the diverse tran- G If the pandemic has taught crime is always a local concern. Safety sit offerings Glen Park does: sub- The Glen Park News is pub- us nothing else, it’s that Glen Park committee members keep an ear way, streetcar, bus, bike corrals and a lished quarterly by the Glen is strong. Since March 2020, when to the ground, attend the Ingleside freeway. Transit committee members Park Association. Signed an infectious and deadly pandemic Station police captain’s monthly meet- work with BART, the upended the world, ings and stay in touch with liaisons Municipal Transportation Agency, articles are the opinions of by Glen Park has buckled from the District Attorney’s office and Caltrans and private operators like the authors and not neces- Heather down and hung tight Supervisor Rafael Mandelman’s office GoBike to make sure neighbors know sarily those of the Glen Park World through hard about potential changes, and Association. times: resi- to make sure these agencies dents are keeping the neigh- Whether you have a few hours, understand the challenges and Editor-in- Rachel Gordon borhood businesses alive and opportunities specific to our a year or a few per month reaching out to help each , neighborhood. Deputy Editor Gail Bensinger other with groceries and the Glen Park Association Interested in Wine and errands. Gossip? Okay, right now it’s Copy Editor Denis Wade Residents are showing up has a committee for you. BYOE—Bring Your Own in the virtual world, too. Everything—but picture this: a Art Director Liz Mangelsdorf The Glen Park Association’s monthly meeting at a neighbor’s virtual quarterly meetings to keep the community informed house, the table set with wine, Calendar Editor Caroline Mangelsdorf are as well attended, if not better about investigations, court cases and cheese, tea and cookies, the room filled attended, than the “old-fashioned” in- general safety tips. with good cheer and the kind of gos- Online Editor Elizabeth Weise person meetings BC (Before Covid). Interested in News? The Glen Park sip that policy geeks and do-gooders Neighbors have joined the Association News needs writers and editors to keep love. The Glen Park Association board Advertising Manager Nora Dowley in record numbers, donating time and print alive. meets monthly and works to keep money to help the neighborhood. Interested in Neighborhood neighborhood interests at the forefront Distribution Manager Paradoxically, the virus that keeps Character? Glen Park is a transit and of City plans, and interested neighbors Murray Schneider us apart has spawned better tools to traffic hub with an established neigh- at the forefront of opportunities. We help us work together. It is now easier borhood plan to help guide zoning want you! In all your weirdness, with Reporters than ever to volunteer on a committee changes that can benefit the whole all your enthusiasm. Please consider Gail Bensinger that meets your interests. Whether you city without sacrificing what makes leading a committee and joining Glen Rebecca Murray-Metzger have a few hours, a year or a few per our neighborhood special. Zoning and Park Strong! S Murray Schneider month, the Glen Park Association has planning committee members keep Hannah Simonson a committee for you. track of building notifications and leg- Heather World is vice president of the Bonnee Waldstein Interested in Safety? Commercial islation that affects building size and Glen Park Association. Contact her at Heather World burglaries, BART station muggings, purpose. [email protected].

Columnists Marc Dickow S NEWS FROM CITY HALL S Betsy Eddy Kay Hamilton Estey n the wake of alarming incidents of Neighborhood Housing: I have Reopening Schools Safely: My office Eric Kammerud gun violence and increased property introduced a legislative package aimed has heard from many District 8 public Rafael Mandelman I crime in District 8, I have been at making it harder to convert exist- school parents about the impacts on Evelyn convening public safety ing housing into luxury single-family students and their families of a year of by town halls in neighbor- “monster homes,” and encouraging distance learning. I share their desires to Heather World Rafael Jamie Wong hoods throughout the the construction of small multi-family see students safely return to in-person Mandelman district to provide neigh- buildings in residential neighborhoods. learning as soon as possible. I met with Photographers bors with an opportu- First, I introduced an ordinance San Francisco Unified School District Gail Bensinger nity to hear directly from their local (available on the Board of Supervisors Superintendent Vincent Matthews late Murray Schneider police captain, the district attorney’s legislation web page: sfgov.legistar. last year to share my concerns about office, and my office about strategies to com) that would require a Conditional the lack of a clear plan for school Denis Wade Bonnee Waldstein make District 8 safer for everyone. Use approval for large home expansions reopening. Also, I have supported the In response to recent drive by- that do not add new housing units. efforts of the SFUSD parent collective shootings in Glen Park and Diamond Second, I announced a package of Decreasing the Distance as well as City 2912 Diamond St. #407 Heights, we held our latest town hall on proposed legislation to allow up to Attorney Dennis Herrera's efforts to San Francisco, CA 94131 Feb. 17, in partnership with the Glen four units in residential “RH” zoning push for a safe and equitable plan to get [email protected] Park Association and Diamond Heights districts on corner lots and on lots students back in classrooms soon. [email protected] Community Association, to provide a within a half-mile of major train sta- My office remains ready and eager forum to discuss those incidents and tions, including the Glen Park BART to partner with parents and students, other public safety issues in the area. station. This zoning change is intended teachers and community members to Thank you to outgoing Ingleside Station to allow for modest increases in the support efforts to get our students back Please support Captain Chris Woon and new Captain number of units allowed in residential into the classroom as soon as possible. S Nicole Jones for both joining our town neighborhoods over time, and would our hall, as well as Brian Bringardner from not include any changes to height, bulk Rafael Mandelman represents District 8, the DA’s office, and especially the more or open-space requirements. The ordi- which includes Glen Park, on the San Advertisers than 100 neighbors who attended to nance is being drafted now, and I hope Francisco Board of Supervisors. Contact make their voices heard. to introduce it in April. his office at [email protected]. Spring 2021 | Glen Park News 3

S FROM THE EDITORS S GPA Board of n March 2020, just as the Covid- But as new cases and hospitalizations sidewalks, a segment of Chenery Street 19 pandemic was emerging in San have dropped considerably in recent closed to through traffic, restaurants and Directors and Officers I Francisco, we were readying the months, and more people are getting gyms operating at modified capacity. for 2021 spring edition of the Glen Park News. vaccinated, we believe we are on the We are heartened to see that, with a President As the city adjusted to what became road to recovery. handful of exceptions, most businesses Hilary Schiraldi known as the first lockdown, we made The pandemic also sparked a dis- in Glen Park managed to hang on [email protected] over the past year despite exceptional the call to post the paper online only. cussion among our Glen Park News Vice President We decided against printing copies, editors and regular reporters about the challenges. But of course we are sad- Heather World both because businesses were shutter- future of our paper. Given that most dened to see Tyger’s close. It is unclear [email protected] stories are posted on our news blog whether the pandemic played a part in ing and because we didn’t want to put Membership Secretary our home delivery volunteers at risk hosted on the Glen Park Association that decision; whatever the reason, the Adrienne Lacau going door to door. At the time, we website prior to being printed, does neighborhood coffee shop was a favor- [email protected] thought that publishing only a digital it make sense to still have a quarterly ite gathering spot for many of us and truly was a Glen Park institution. We’ll Recording Secretary edition would be a one-time thing. We print edition? What about publish- Carolyn White couldn’t have predicted that the subse- ing an annual neighborhood journal miss the friendly service and bottomless [email protected] quent summer, fall and winter issues instead with more in-depth stories, and cups of coffee and glasses of iced tea. continue to run more timely stories on It will be interesting to watch how Commuications Secretary would also be online-only. Bonnee Waldstein Glen Park evolves in the coming Now, as San Francisco is starting to the blog? We’d love to hear from you, [email protected] reopen, we are happy to offer readers our readers. Drop us a at news@ months. While there has been pro-

a print edition, as well as the digital glenparkassociation.org. found grief wrought by the health Treasurer The changes in the neighborhood crisis, there also has been an amazing Dennis Mullen version. We’re distributing these papers [email protected] only to neighborhood businesses in due to Covid-19 are evident still— spirit of neighborliness and commu- downtown Glen Park, because lots of fewer buses, less foot traffic from BART nity. We hope that remains. For now, Glen Park News Editor (print) Rachel Gordon folks still aren’t fully vaccinated and patrons, hand-sanitizer stations at busi- let us embrace the promise of spring: [email protected] the pandemic remains all too real. nesses, social-distancing markers on the rebirth and hope! S Glen Park News Editor (online) Elizabeth Weise (online) S CHECK IT OUT AT THE LIBRARY S [email protected] Glen Park News Advertising Rep. his season, the San Francisco cial literacy advocate; "Saving with Tech Week is also back, May 9–15. Nora Dowley Public Library has a bounty of Purpose” and “Understanding Credit,” Look for programs on cryptocurren- [email protected] Tofferings for all tastes. On April offered by Smart Money Coaching; cies, privacy and security with the Webmaster 24, just in time for and “Timely Tips for Successful Job Electronic Frontier Foundation, Mary Szczepanik by National Poetry Month, Searches,” offered by Tim Bombosch. Python for Teens and more. [email protected] Jamie take a seat in our vir- Jane Kim and Thayer Walker of San As the city’s doors continue to open, Health & Environment Chair Wong tual auditorium for the Francisco’s Ink Dwell Studio present the Library is moving steadily forward Stephany Wilkes inaugural address of the a program on their art and the natu- with its tiered reopening plan. While [email protected] City’s new Poet Laureate. ral world in time for Earth Day, on the Glen Park branch remains closed Neighborhood Improvement Chair Tongo Eisen-Martin, appointed in April 22. Additionally, the Library will to the public, we are delighted that we Carolyn White January by Mayor London Breed, is host a series of events with the City’s can provide access to physical materials [email protected] an educator and organizer whose work Department of Environment during through our SFPL To Go front door Program Chair has centered on issues of mass incar- April for Climate Action Month. On and mobile pick-up service, now at Carolyn Deacy ceration, as well as a poet and founder Saturday mornings, look for informa- 18 locations throughout the city. Glen [email protected] of Black Freighter Press. His address, tive presentations by experts from SF Park patrons are encouraged to reserve presented in partnership with Friends Environment. Learn about the ways and pick up materials at the two closest Public Safety Chairs Carolyn Deacy of San Francisco Public Library, City to create a healthy home, edible food branches, Excelsior and Eureka Valley. Hilary Schiraldi Lights and Litquake, is titled “United recovery and the top 10 things you Please visit sfpl.org/sfpl-to-go to learn [email protected] and Struggle: A Collective Inaugural should know about climate change in more, or call our Tip Line, 415-557- Address.” It features poets Marc the city. 4400, and one of our staff will be Recreation & Parks Chair Jessica Bogo Bamuthi Joseph, Biko Eisen-Martin, On April 25, join the Library and happy to walk you through the pro- [email protected] Mahogany L. Browne, Jive Poetic and many exciting performers and partners cess. The Library now offers assistance Joyce Lee. on the Library’s YouTube channel and and support in Cantonese, Mandarin, Transportation Chair April is also Financial Literacy at diasf.org to celebrate a virtual Día Spanish, Russian, Vietnamese, Filipino, Scott Stawicki [email protected] Month. Clear your calendar and take de los Niños/Día de los Libros. Tune Japanese and American Sign Language. steps toward better financial health in for entertaining stories; dance along Additionally, a great tip for school- Zoning and Planning Chair by exploring a windfall of virtual pro- with the music. Learn about special at-home parents: our Youth Center Tania Treis grams focused on job and career seek- places throughout the city that are wel- Librarians are now just an easy phone [email protected] ers, personal finance needs and small- coming families safely. call away for reference questions and business resources, all aimed to help In May, the Library offers robust expert help! For more information, The mission of the Glen Park Association San Francisco survive, thrive and work programs for adults, youth and families visit sfpl.org/about-us/contact-us. S is to promote the collective interests of all persons living in Glen Park, to inform and toward economic recovery. Programs for an Asian Pacific Islander American educate about neighborhood and citywide include “Investing for Beginners” Heritage celebration. Tony Robles (aka Jaime Wong is the public relations officer issues, to promote sociability and friend- and “Investing 101: How to Invest in “The People’s Poet”), author Kristen at the San Francisco Public Library. ships and to support beneficial Stocks,” offered by Carly Matthews, Giang, a Chinatown Minecraft tour, Michelle Waddy, the manager of the Glen neighborhood projects. a Certified Financial Education and K-pop dance class are on the Park branch, has been reassigned for the Instructor and a passionate finan- schedule for youth. duration of the Covid-19 closure. 4 Glen Park News | Spring 2021 New Ingleside Police Captain Makes History istory has been made, as the San Francisco outcome. The department reviews trends of com- Police Department has assigned Nicole H. plaints and implements training, policy or procedural H Jones to be the first female captain at the changes. The most common complaint in 2020 was Ingleside Station. Our previous captain, Chris Woon, officers not activating their body-worn cameras, has taken a position overseeing SFPD records and followed by illegal searches and seizures, language property. deficiencies, and failure to properly investigate an Captain Jones is among six new incident or prepare an incident report. by captains at district stations. Another Bias-free policing: SFPD policy is to treat everyone Bonnee female captain, Rachel Moran, has with dignity, fairness and respect, free from bias or the Waldstein been assigned to the Mission Station, perception of bias. Sworn officers and civilian mem- also first at that post. bers must attend training that includes such matters Jones has been with SFPD since 2007, serving as as racial profiling, managing implicit bias and creating an officer at the Tenderloin and Ingleside stations, an inclusive environment. Members must report any and has held positions at the Special Victims Unit, violations of bias-free policing policy that they become Internal Affairs, Northern Station and the chief’s aware of. (For contact information, see www.sanfran- office. She’s happy to be back at Ingleside. ciscopolice.org/stations/ingleside-station.) In her first monthly Virtual Community Meeting In the Q&A that followed this discussion, in on March 16, Jones focused on three topics for dis- response to a question by the Glen Park News, Jones cussion: noted that the rash of shooting incidents in the neigh- Officer conduct: Members must abide by an exten- borhood during the past year is still under investiga- sive list of policies with the guiding principle of tion. As of now, no gang-related connections have “Safety with respect for all.” been made. Commending an officer or filing a complaint: SFPD Other questions raised covered a smorgasbord of policy is that all complaints will be investigated, activities across Ingleside Station’s territory such as regardless of the source or mode of communication, stunt driving, parked RV campers, motorcyclists on Ingleside police Captain Nicole H. Jones. and the complainant will receive a report on the park trails, and daredevil skateboarders. S Photo Courtesy SFPD Spring 2021 | Glen Park News 5 Glen Park Festival Announces Grants MARCDICKOW Broker, Realtor, Partner he last Sunday in April would •The Commodore Sloat Parents have marked the 22nd annual Club Organization will dedicate the T Glen Park Festival. But, as it funds to ensure students have the tools probably goes without saying, this they need to achieve their best results yearly event had to be deferred for the in a distance-learning environment, by second time in a row providing essential learning materials by due to the Covid-19 and technology subscriptions. Rebecca pandemic. While we •Glenridge Cooperative Nursery Murray- must wait for another School will increase the libraries in both Metzger season to be together classrooms to include more diverse again to celebrate our books—not just books with issues of neighborhood, the Glen Park Festival’s diversity as their central themes, but neighborhood grant program lives also more general picture books that on, thanks to generous support from feature diverse main characters. Genentech. •Synergy School will expand its small The grant program, usually funded collection of early readers, such as the from festival proceeds, benefits schools “I Can Read” series, for parents to bor- and children’s programs in and near the row from the school library.   President of San Francisco Association of REALTORS® Glen Park community. Grantees must •West Portal Elementary School’s be either a nonprofit or public school Parents Club plans to purchase diverse educational institution; located in or books for the library, additional instru- serving children from ZIP Codes asso- ments and watercolor paints for music ciated with the Glen Park neighbor- and arts programs, and a subscription hood; serve some children from low- for a software program that teachers income families (as evidenced by chil- will use to enhance instruction. dren receiving free/reduced lunches, The Glen Park Festival all-volunteer P  BRE # scholarships, etc.); and be for discrete committee is pleased to be able to sup- E [email protected] W altrockrealtor.com projects, programs or capital outlays. port the community in this way. S Typically, grantees are given prefer- ence if they participate in the current ing 2 at 0 Y As a Glen Park resident, I really do know how best to market br e year’s Festival, either by hosting a e a l r your property. I can help you from preparing your home to put on e s vendor booth, donating to the raffle ! C the market through the close of escrow and everything in between. or sending representatives to be on the Check out my real estate column in this newspaper! committee or volunteer on the day of the event. — MARC DICKOW This year, all grantees from prior festivals were contacted and invited to submit an application. Six grantees “Marc did a phenomenal job selling our home!” applied, and all six received awards, Live Music “Marc and his team did everything to ensure we received top dollar for our totaling $5,500. While this is far below and Poetry home and that it was as painless as possible. He was patient and thorough in the Festival’s usual grants total, the all the details. His team responded at all hours of the day and no question was Festival committee remains pleased to too small or silly. He is incredibly professional, responsive, caring, and it’s clear be able to support the Glen Park BOOKS he loves what he does. Thank you Marc, we truly felt supported throughout this Community in some way at this time. whole process.” —J.C., Seller The 2021 recipients include: New / Used •The James Lick Middle School Collectible “Marc is extremely professional…” PTSA will repair and purchase musi- “and well-organized. He was also very considerate and patient in answering cal instruments for its school band all of my questions. In addition, he is well-connected, which allowed me the program, in which students from all JAZZ opportunity to get a special, personal tour of a beautiful historic building, and a sneak peak at units before they were about to be listed. I never felt three grades (6th, 7th and 8th) partici- 33-1/3 & 45 rpm pressured. I highly recommend him to anyone who is buying or selling a home, pate, and use a portion of the funds to RECORDS facilitate distance learning for the band and looking for an experienced, professional, knowledgeable, friendly, and patient real estate agent.” —E.W. , Buyer students. Founded •Centro Las Olas will purchase addi- May 1999 tional art supplies for the children attending the school, in line with their Bird & Beckett mission to encourage and foster a A portion of each of Marc’s commissions go to fund projects for his Core Concern: strong foundational base of experience, BOOKS AND RECORDS 653 Chenery St. LOCAL SCHOOL MUSIC AND ART PROGRAMS play and engagement so that children San Francisco can develop strong academic skills as birdbeckett.com they grow and develop. 6 Glen Park News | Spring 2021

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uring the Pleistocene Epoch are unexcelled,” not to mention that some 10,000 to 15,000 years “artifacts from these obliterated depos- D ago, the greater San Francisco its have as a rule been scattered … Bay Area was a wild and woolly land- among individual curio seekers.” scape inhabited by Columbian mam- Of the 425 shell mounds Nelson iden- moths, mastodons, tified, only eight are located within the by giant bison and sabre- City and County of San Francisco: two Evelyn tooth . near Lands End, one near Candlestick Rose Evidence of such Point, two at Hunters Point and three megafauna has been along the border of the found during excavations for several wetlands that once flowed east into city projects, including in the 1990s from near today’s during construction of a building in U.S. Highway 101 and Interstate 280 the San Francisco Financial District interchange. Nearly 20 years earlier, and in 2012 for the new Transbay in 1858, the Map of the San Bruno Terminal. These discoveries helped add Turnpike Road also identified three additional insight to what the Bay Area shell mounds. One would have been once was, now referred to by scientists on the Bernal Heights side of the U.S. as the Serengeti. 101 and Interstate 280 interchange near This is also the period when humans Alemany Boulevard, and two near Cesar first reached North America. When Chavez Street at U.S. 101. sea levels were an estimated 300 feet Some experts believe California lower, a land bridge between Russia was home to one of the world’s most and Alaska, over what is now the diverse indigenous populations, and Bering Strait, enabled the migration certainly the densest population of of humans into and throughout North Native Americans on the continent. America and to the far reaches of South Estimates of about 300,000 people America. living throughout the state at the time In San Francisco, physical evidence of European contact are likely low. of our region’s first people has been Unlike the first Americans living in the periodically uncovered. For example, in Plains states, who were known for their 1969 during construction of the BART seasonal migration between geographic Civic Center station at Fulton and A Bay Area Native American, possibly Ohlone, as depicted by Russian explorer and regions, California’s rugged terrain had Market streets, a female pelvis and two artist Louis Choris, circa 1816. Courtesy of the Oakland Museum of California kept its native people largely isolated femurs—carbon-dated to about 5,000 from the rest of North America. The years ago—were recovered from 75 feet Over thousands of years and accom- his research had been “finished none people of California bore little physical below the surface. At that time, it was panied by soil accumulation, these too soon, because the obliterating resemblance to Native Americans east the oldest evidence of human habita- mounds rose tens of feet above what agencies of nature have been strongly of the Sierra Nevada, nor does there tion in the Bay Area. Anthropologists was formerly flat ground. They sup- reinforced in the last four or five appear any connection of language and from San Francisco State College (now ported activities of daily living, served decades by the hands of modern man, culture with those of the Plains and University) surmised the young woman as locations for ceremonial activities, and the ultimate destruction of every elsewhere. had died accidentally in what was then and were the site of communal fire- suggestion of former savage life seems Six geographical culture areas a brackish marsh. places, homes and workshops. not far off." He also observed that have been identified in the state: the One of the earliest reports of the dis- They also served as burial grounds “the earth mounds [shell middens] Colorado River, including the Yuma covery of Native American artifacts in and can be associated with a vari- are nearly all located by the entering and Mohave peoples; Southern Area, the city appeared in the San Francisco ety of artifacts. Such was the case in streams, close to the upper reaches including the Chumash, Serrano Examiner in 1875. During construc- Visitacion Valley, where it was reported of the tide-waters ... and close to the and Gabrielino peoples; Great Basin, tion of a silk factory in Visitacion that “twenty feet below the surface of open bay.” including the Paiute, Washo and Mono Valley, workers were reported to have the earth ... a large quantity of Indian Stating that his list was likely not peoples; the Northwest Area, including excavated several shell mounds. Also implements, such as bones of , exhaustive, Nelson identified 425 shell the Yurok, Shasta and Hupa peoples; known as shell middens, these human- shaped like awls for perforating skins, mounds throughout the San Francisco and the Northeast Area, including the made mounds are found across the fur blanket pins, arrow-heads [sic], Bay Area and speculated why no shell Modoc and Achumawi peoples. globe and are indicative of the presence stone-sinkers for fishing nets, and pipes mound had been left in its “most The Greater of permanent villages. At least half of of fine workmanship” were recovered. pristine” condition. For instance, (including the Sacramento and San a midden’s composition includes mol- In 1908, anthropologist N. C. Nelson most sites had become “suitable for Joaquin valleys) is known as the Central lusk shells discarded after eating the of the Department of Anthropology, habitation by the modern invaders.” Cultural Area and includes the Miwok, meat. Other components can include University of California at Berkeley, Moreover, that the composition of the Patwin, Pomo, Maidu and Ohlone soil, ash, charcoal and rocks used for from work financially supported by accumulated refuse “yielded splendid peoples—the latter also referred to by heating foods. Phoebe A. Hearst, published a report crops of potatoes and other vegetables the Spanish as the Costanoan. Evidence of human habitation recov- in American Archaeology and Ethnology ... [served as] ballast for roads and In the early 20th century, Alfred ered from the middens include the entitled “Shellmounds of the San sidewalks, as garden fertilizer, and even Kroeber of the University of California bones of mammals (including , Francisco Bay Region.” Nelson, using as feed.” He added, “It is said at Berkeley, the first to receive a doc- mountain , deer, elk, wolves, language that perpetuated the white that the mound material, mixed with torate in anthropology in the United domesticated canines, large rodents and hubris that was common among aca- rock salt, produces tennis courts that States, called these geographically ocean mammals), wild fowl and fish. demic anthropologists of the era, noted for combined firmness and elasticity CONTINUED ON PAGE 7 Spring 2021 | Glen Park News 7

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CONTINUED FROM PAGE 6 is some interesting anecdotal isolated groups “tribelets.” evidence. One local resident Today’s descendants of the who grew up in a home that First Californians con- was later demolished for the sider this term disparag- Glen Park BART parking lot ing, its meaning implying at Bosworth and Arlington that “tribelets” were some- Streets recalls digging up thing less than other Native mollusk shells in her back- American tribes. Because yard as a child. Her home California’s tortuous ter- lot would have been adjacent rain had contributed to to Islais Creek before it was the development of nearly rerouted underground, and 135 distinct dialects among the shells might have indi- California groups, the terms cated the site of a temporary “linguistic group” or “tribe” camp. are preferred. In another instance, a vol- With an estimated 10,000 unteer working to help main- individuals pre-contact, the tain native vegetation in Glen Ohlone inhabited the area Canyon said he had found an from Santa Cruz to the obsidian blade under several Strait. In San inches of earth and delivered Francisco, until the arrival it to the of the Spanish and with (obsidian quarried in the 200 to 300 residents, the Napa area was a frequent Yelamu of the Ohlone were A portion of the survey map of the proposed San Bruno Turnpike, published in July, 1858, shows the sites of trade item in the Bay Area the only group living north three shellmounds in the Islais Creek Wetlands. Image courtesy of the San Francisco Public Library and beyond). Confirmation of San Bruno Mountain. from the archivist at Randall Other names have also been used to necessarily specific to San Francisco’s reference to our first San Franciscans— Museum is still pending. describe the Ohlone. The Muwekma Pre-Contact Yelamu. In fact, today's including those who likely followed Further, some modern streets that Ohlone refers to a broader group of representatives of the Ramaytush have Islais Creek into Glen Canyon for follow the gentlest slopes of our topog- Ohlone descendants whose ancestors said: “The original people of what is hunting and gathering, a livelihood raphy may be artifacts of trails tra- were documented in the archives of now San Francisco County we refer to that would remain unchanged for sev- versed by the Ohlone over thousands of several Bay Area Spanish missions. The today as the Yelamu. The Yelamu were eral millennia. The Yelamu may have years. This may be true for Gum Tree Ramaytush Ohlone, first described in an independent tribe of the Ramaytush resided in temporary camps in San Girls Trail (formerly known as Alms the 1970s, represents the Ohlone of Ohlone.” Francisco’s interior, trekking through Road) in Glen Canyon, and Chenery both San Francisco and San Mateo While all three terms refer to the the hills and along the banks of creeks, and Diamond Streets along the route of counties. Though the latter name has pre-Contact Ohlone population in San forging their own trails or following the original El Camino Real (see Glen been adopted by local Ohlone, it cov- Francisco, historically speaking the animal traces and ruts. Perhaps Glen Park News, Summer 2017). ers several linguistic groups and is not Yelamu would be the most specific Canyon was a favored destination for The heritage of the Yelamu Ohlone hunting game, foraging for in San Francisco and the Glen Park grasses, seeds and berries, and district can never be displaced or for- collecting Franciscan chert for gotten. As you shop along Chenery weapons and tools. Street, or hike the Glen Park Greenway The discovery of San adjacent to Bosworth Street or the Francisco Bay by Gaspar Gum Tree Girls Trail in Glen Canyon, de Portola in 1769 trig- try to imagine what life may have been gered a rapid and calami- like for the Ohlone thousands of years tous cultural transformation ago before European contact changed for the Ohlone and Native their way of life forever. S Californian population at large. European diseases for Evelyn Rose, Director and Founder of which Native Americans had the Glen Park Neighborhoods History no immunity decimated the Project, is documenting the histories of population. The severity of Glen Park and nearby neighborhoods. treatment of local Native To learn more about our local histo- Americans varied among ries, visit GlenParkHistory.org. The missions, but all were suc- Glen Park Neighborhoods History cessful in destroying First Project is offering intermittent virtual Californian cultural practices programs during the ongoing and traditions. Tragically, health crisis. Join the mailing list: little is known of Ohlone [email protected]. The Glen culture or language today. Park Neighborhoods History Project is Archeological research has fiscally sponsored by Independent Arts This map shows the large number of Native American linguistic groups that existed throughout never been performed in the & Media, a California nonprofit the San Francisco Bay Area prior to European contact. Image courtesy of Muwekma.org district of Glen Park, but there corporation. Glen Park Elementary School as seen from Brompton Avenue. Photo by Liz Mangelsdorf

8 Glen Park News | Spring 2021 New Mural Depicts Glen Park History n outline of Glen Park history Martin, who floated the idea at the is taking shape on the north Glen Park Festival in 2017 and was A wall of Pebbles cafe on Kern encouraged by the support she found. Street at Diamond Street this spring, The pandemic, which cancelled the as artist Amos Goldbaum paints one Glen Park Festival and most of normal of his signature line life in 2020, slowed her a bit. by murals there. “My friends always laugh, ‘You’re still Heather World Originally slated for a trying to do that?!’, but I kind of never T-shirt that Goldbaum gave up on it,” she said. She scouted intended to sell at the for a location and was thrilled when 2020 Glen Park the Hayes family, Festival, the image is which owns the was drawn to the based on an historic "I Pebbles building, photo of the Glen photo, the details of agreed to provide Park Recreation the wall canvas. Center he found on the old houses, To raise Open SFHistory, the estimated an online photo the cool angle." $7,500 needed archive. for materials “I was drawn to and Goldbaum’s that photo, the details of the old houses, time, Martin seeded an Indiegogo the cool angle,” said Goldbaum, who fund-raiser with $3,000 in January. By The mural of Glen Park that Amos Goldbaum will paint on the side of Pebbles cafe on has painted two murals in Noe Valley, March, 79 people had pitched in to Kern Street at Diamond Street. one in Bernal Heights, and a few oth- meet the goal. Martin was thrilled. ers scattered across the city. He also “I didn’t want it just to be a few ing, Goldbaum kept his price low, in ing by early May, after painters have paints interior murals, and his T-shirts people,” said Martin, who grew up in essence contributing to the cost of the prepped the exterior wall. He estimates and sweatshirts are popular with resi- Noe Valley. “I wanted there to be a lot mural himself. “I thought it was really the work will take about a week. He’ll dents and tourists alike. people so there is a lot of public sup- exciting to do a mural in Glen Park,” bring a ladder and a drop cloth to the The project had long been the port.” he said. “I didn’t want to turn it down.” site, then draw the first outline in chalk dream of San Francisco native Amanda Mindful that people were donat- Goldbaum expects to begin paint- before putting brush to building. S

ST. JOHN CATHOLIC SCHOOL (K–8) where community matters

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925 CHENERY STREET • SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94131 www.stjohnseagles.com 415.584.8383 Spring 2021 | Glen Park News 9 S NEWS FROM GLEN PARK SCHOOLS Born and Raised reetings from Glen Park Ripley and Tacha Santana helped com- Elementary School! We’re plete the final preparations during the G heading into the final months week of April 5. Volunteers helped give Glen Park Native, of a unique and challenging school year. classrooms a final cleaning, organized The biggest issue on the minds of supplies and equipment, and finished many members of our community is setting up break spaces for adults on Neighbor, and school reopening. The campus. by question of when and In the midst of all this preparation, Eric how to reopen schools we held our annual Spring Auction, our Real Estate Resource Kammerud amid the Covid-19 biggest Parent Teacher Organization pandemic is complex fund-raiser each year. For the second and brings up strong emotions on all year in a row, the auction was an online Having grown up on Chenery Street, I know how just special this neighbor- sides of the issue. affair. We had music and dancing led hood and community is. My wife and I attended Glenridge Nursery School and Faculty, staff and families are hus- by Roryography, breakout rooms for are now raising our two young children here. tling to prepare for students to return people to catch up with each other, to campus for in-person learning. a Fund-A-Need supporting programs One of my recent contributions to our community was working with Evelyn Students in kindergarten, first and sec- to address concerns around recover- Rose and my Parlor at the Native Sons of the Golden West to raise 100% of ond grades whose families have elected ing from a year in distance learning, a the funds needed to purchase and install the plaque dedicated to the historic to return in-person were to start on silent auction with items and activities dynamite factory in Glen Park. Other local memberships include The Glen Park Monday, April 12; they were to be donated by members of the school Neighborhood Association, SPUR, The Small Properties Owners Institute, followed a week later by third, fourth, community, and the live auction. The The Residential Builders Association, and The Olympic Club. and fifth graders. evening was a success, raising more All of the returning students in the than $55,000! As a real estate agent at Compass, my business specializes in buying and General Education and Biliteracy pro- Looking ahead to next year, enroll- selling a mix of residential, commercial, multifamily and new construction grams will attend on a hybrid sched- ment season is still in full swing. properties. Please do not hesitate to reach out if you have any needs, ule, with two days on campus and Families have received placement let- questions, or just want to chat regarding real estate. three days in distance learning each ters from the San Francisco Unified week. Students in each class have School District and are investigating been divided into two cohorts, one of their new schools. With restrictions Client Testimonial which will meet in-person on Mondays still in place preventing on-campus and Tuesdays, while the other meets tours, the PTO is organizing virtual Thursdays and Fridays. Wednesday tours and information sessions for is left open to allow classrooms to be incoming students. Visit our website “Kevin was our agent for our rental property that we purchased in San thoroughly cleaned between the two- at glenparkschool.org to learn more or Francisco. We interviewed 4 agents and we quickly realized that Kevin had day sessions. The in-person school day to check out our video tour. S much more knowledge of the SF market compared to the others. This is the will run from 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. We’ll “see” you there! 7th real estate transaction that my husband and I have done and Kevin is by Students whose families elected not far the best agent we have encountered. He was professional, patient, to return to in-person learning will Eric Kammerud is the communications courteous, and extremely knowledgeable. He was extremely organized and continue with distance learning five co-chair of the Glen Park Parent Teacher ensured that we found a place within 90 days of working with him in days per week. Organization. For updates on school to avoid paying massive fees through our 1031 Exchange.” Distance learning will look similar events, go to glenparkschool.org. Follow to what we’ve seen so far this year. us on Facebook at facebook.com/glen- —Glen Park Neighbor, Vidya B. Students spend two hours each day parkschool. with their teachers via Zoom. The big difference will be in scheduling, as Zoom school will take place around the in-person school day. Teachers will Cheese also continue to create assignments for students to complete on their own time to flesh out the rest of the day. Boutique Special Day Class students return- Kevin McCollom ing to campus will attend five days per 415.710.8713 week from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. [email protected] Once classes begin again, anyone KevinSF.com entering the campus will be subject to DRE 01947291 a health screening each day. Everyone on campus will be required to wear a Fresh Sandwiches mask at all times, except when eating. In the event anyone on campus begins Imported Cheeses to show Covid-19 symptoms during Homemade Hummus, the day, spaces have been set up to Baba Ganoush, Tabouli quarantine the affected people and any close contacts. 660 Chenery Street Compass is a real estate broker licensed by the State of California and abides by Equal Housing Opportunity laws. License Number 01527235v All material presented herein is In preparation for the return, a team intended for informational purposes only and is compiled from sources deemed reliable but has not been verified. Changes in price, condition, sale or withdrawal may be made of volunteers led by parents Katie 415-333-3390 without notice. No statement is made as to accuracy of any description. All measurements and square footage are approximate. 10 Glen Park News | Spring 2021 Loss and Hope for Glen Park Businesses CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 day break, so they have been selling for feeding the neighborhood.” 40 to 50 sandwiches a day, along with “It’s so sad,” said Tony, who goes by cheeses, homemade Middle Eastern one name and runs Critter Fritters pet specialties and regular deli fare. shop at 670 Chenery. Carla Ramirez, the cheerful coun- “Tyger’s has been a staple in my diet terperson at Bello coffee house on since I came to Glen Park in 1999,” Diamond Street near Bosworth Street, said Eric Whittington, proprietor of said the latest loosening of pandemic Bird & Beckett Books and Records, rules has helped business there, with 653 Chenery. He added that he was volume running about 40 percent of partial to Kim's patty melt and tamales pre-Covid times—a big improvement and eggs. over the second lockdown. “We’re “We need that kind of restaurant doing pretty well,” she said. here,” said Richard Tarlov, owner, with Bello was closed for the first month his wife, Janet, of Canyon Market at of the original lockdown, then reopened Diamond and Wilder streets, the neigh- for carry-out for three to four hours borhood’s largest private employer. daily. Customers asked them to stay As San Francisco scrambles to con- open longer, and in late April 2021 they tain the coronavirus and get everyone were hoping to resume inside seating. vaccinated, Glen Park merchants hope Teanna Randrup, known as Tea, is the end is in sight, even if the light at the store manager of Perch, the gift the end of the proverbial tunnel still Tyger's Young Kim during happy times in 2018. Photos by Gail Bensinger store at 654 Chenery. She reports that appears to be a good distance off. “little by little, people are coming in.” Business is “slowly coming back,” at the coffee house but landed a tech could share the work and the care of Online sales “haven't been spectacu- Tarlov noted. While shoppers practice job at Tesla. Things are busy enough Marcello's two kids, aged 8 and 3. His lar,” but, of late, things “seem more social distancing along its narrow aisles, now—65-70 percent back on Saturday in-laws, both retired, help out, too. positive than in previous months.” buying staples and treats, the market’s and Sunday, 45 percent back on week- “I love my family to death, but That's the good news. The bad news volume has been down, Tarlov said. days—that Manhal is considering hir- all I want is to get back to normal,” is that in March someone shot at one “The missing link is transit: BART ing someone else, especially on week- Marcello said. of the display windows causing big and the transit buses,” he explained. ends. As a concession to his schedule, A lot of their business has moved cracks, repaired by duct tape until There’s no carry-out coffee business in he has been closing Higher Grounds online, for pickup or delivery, he the glass can be replaced. Randrup the mornings, no outside tables for eat- on Mondays. noted. Especially popular are the acai speculated that the shooter expected ing lunch or snacks, and no post-work Following the lockdown rules, he bowls and Brazilian savory treats. The the window to collapse in small bits streams of subway and bus riders to initially only offered carry-out. When hungry people of the neighborhood, in order to gain access. A police report come in on their way home to pick up allowed, he put a few tables out on the many of them now working from was filed. makings for dinner. sidewalk. Now, as the city is reopen- home, have been their biggest boost- CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE “The biggest impact is on prepared ing, he has resumed socially distanced ers: “People are food, especially the salad ,” Tarlov indoor dining. trying new stuff added. Instead of filling disposable In March someone broke into to support us, and containers with bespoke salads, shop- Manzoni through one of the two front people are telling pers now choose among pre-packaged doors and stole three computers and each other to sup- foods or buy produce and meat to cook some wine—the good stuff, he said. port us.” themselves. He said he hasn’t had to lay As for the shut-down Le P’tit Laurent, Rick Malouf, off employees, but there has been some the restaurant diagonally across the who operates natural attrition as workers left and Diamond-Chenery intersection from Cheese Boutique, weren’t replaced. Tyger’s, Jweinat plans to keep it closed reported: Manhal Jweinat has back-to-back until the economy fully recovers. When “Overall, we're jobs these days: In the mornings, that day comes, will it still be a French OK.” He runs the he is the cook-waiter-cleaning staff- restaurant? “Hopefully,” he answered. cheese, deli and food buyer at Higher Grounds at Running Pebbles, the Brazilian- sandwich shop at 691 Chenery, which he has been American eatery at 2852 Diamond, 660 Chenery with running since 1982. When the cof- always has been a family affair, but now his wife, Nada, feehouse-cum-creperie closes for the it’s a household one, too, said Marcello plus a weekend day, he crosses the intersection to his Waqued. He runs the café with his assist from their Italian restaurant, Manzoni, at 2788 father, Claudio, mother, Heloisa, and college-student Diamond. There, he shares the dinner- brother, Sergio. son, Michael. only workload with chef Raul Aguirre. When the pandemic hit, the busi- They've shortened The rest of the staff had to be let go ness was on the verge of an expansion their hours—they early in the lockdown—even his sister. and remodel, and a revised menu. Just are closed Sundays His days start at 4:30 a.m. with before the first lockdown, they expe- and Mondays, and early-morning trips to the produce rienced “the best month we ever had. end their days at mart. He finishes at 8:30 p.m. “I have Everything was going right, then Covid 4 p.m. But many no time to have a life. I just work now,” hit,” Marcello said. Instead of growing people are work- he said. the business, the family regrouped and ing from home Jweinat's nephew used to help out moved in together, so that everyone and want a mid- Manhal Jweinat in front of his restaurant, Manzoni. Spring 2021 | Glen Park News 11 E-Scooter Craze Slow to Roll in Glen Park n January of this year a clever reporter, can be spotted scooting around. Yet in ted with gaps and potholes … Scooters guarantee that all neighborhoods in Jason Feifer of Entrepreneur.com, downtown Glen Park, scooters can be are hard to see and offer no protection the city are served by scooters; and they I wondered what people in 1921 were seen parked—neatly!—outside Higher or any light to increase their visibility.” must develop an adaptive program to forecasting for the year 2021. His Grounds, fitGLENfit gym, Café Bello Following a one-year pilot program ensure accessibility to scooters by the research led him to this prediction, and Park Salon. Monitoring those by SFMTA in October 2019, involv- disabled. (Lime has recently come up among many others: spots for a week or so showed that, of ing permits for up to 2,500 scooters— with variations on e-scooters to accom- “With the electrical nine scooters, only four remained, all since increased to 4,500—the City has modate different types of disabilities.) by improvements to come, outside the gym. entered a new phase of issuing permits, SFMTA has extended permits for up Bonnee there will be a change E-scooters in Glen Park and sur- to take effect in June. (The original to two years and can suspend them for Waldstein in our transportation sys- rounding neigh- one-year period health and safety violations. tem. There will be more borhoods have was extended due One person who worked in the electric automobiles and electric bicycles received some posi- to the pandemic.) scooter industry, and prefers to remain and tricycles will be developed. Because of tive feedback. With E-scooters are anonymous, has some scathing obser- their simplicity and low price they will be the near-collapse of not just an alterna- vations: available to almost everyone. Our cellars public transit dur- tive mode of trans- “I grew up in San Francisco, so it will be the place to keep them.” ing the pandemic, portation for local pains me a lot to see the tech industry Here we are a hundred years later, scooters are an techies. They are treat our communities as disposable and e-scooters are dotting the Glen option for essential entwined within and a playground. ... Management Park landscape. trips to the market the very fabric of seemed totally blind to real issues that There was a messy rollout—and roll- or drugstore. social issues in San would impact the success and safety back—in 2018, as detailed in the fall The Glen Park Francisco neighbor- of introducing scooters to these areas, 2019 issue of the Glen Park News. BART station has hoods and beyond. and completely downplayed and often Right now, scooter companies Scoot an extensive bank of In the past year outright ignored deaths in SF due and Spin seem to have a foothold in bike lockers, oper- or so, social issues to scooters; someone was killed on Glen Park. Jump is another operator in ated by BikeLink, have begun to shine a scooter in downtown shortly after the city. Lime suspended operations in that can accommo- brightly—due to I started working for this company. California when Covid-19 hit. date e-scooters, in the pandemic and Some companies try more than others The San Francisco Municipal addition to its very E-scooters in front of Café Bello. the Black Lives to ‘play nice’ with local governments, Transportation Agency declared that visible e-bike dock Photo by Bonnee Waldstein Matter movement, but I think they were all trying to make “shared mobility operators” are essen- station. among other seis- a quick buck and a name for them- tial services during the pandemic. After Francisco Gimenez of Bernal Heights mic events—that were not adequately selves in the tech scene. an initial drop-off in usage, ridership says, “Scooters are the best. Totally fun, foreseen by operating companies. “Most importantly to me, the scooter increased as people tend to avoid pub- mildly dangerous, and optimal speed Among them is “spacial equity” in companies seemed to be completely lic transit and ride-hailing services. for 1- to 2-mile travel.” To Taylor which scooter companies limit the avail- aware that their technologies did not Spin has put sanitizing procedures in Angel of Sunnyside, “Scooters are way ability of scooters by using “geofences.” actually result in any environmental place for safe operation. better than the bikes! I’ve gotten hurt Studies reveal high levels of availabil- benefit; if anything, there is so much Getting scooters onto the streets of pretty badly on bikes, but never an ity in the dense northeast quadrant of waste of materials and high cost of San Francisco has been a convoluted issue with the scooters.” San Francisco and little to no coverage operation because of things like using process permeated by lots of bureau- Not everyone is so enamored. Chris in western neighborhoods. vans to pick up scooters every day.” cracy, logistical snags and profitabil- Faust of Glen Park says, “I do not ride For the new round of permits, Unionization has also hit the scooter ity shortfalls. Moreover, it’s not clear scooters for the same reason I no longer SFMTA has added requirements to industry. In December, Spin voted to whether Glen Park has fully jumped ride a bike in San Francisco. The streets address social issues that have come unionize. This action strikes at the onto the scooter bandwagon. are in deplorable condition, especially to light during this time of reckoning. heart of the employee-vs.-gig worker On casual strolls around our partially adjacent to Muni tracks. Church Street The companies must strengthen out- controversy, which was a high-profile hilly neighborhood, not many people and 30th Street especially are both pit- reach to all communities; they must California issue in the 2020 election. S Loss and Hope for Glen Park Businesses

CONTINUED FROM PREVIOUS PAGE ing books and putting on music,” he following strict cleaning requirements learned that being flexible and adapt- Eric Whittington’s bookstore is an remarked. In addition to livestreamed between appointments. able is so very important as a business outlier among Glen Park businesses: concerts on Friday and Saturday eve- Although Pono was debt-free by the owner. These characteristics have kept He has seen an increase in volume at nings, the bookshop now broadcasts beginning of the pandemic, Carvalho me on a forward path and have kept me Bird & Beckett since pre-pandemic monthly livestreamed conversations on said the “challenging year” required her from spiraling into despair.” S days. “Business is 20 percent better in-the-news topics. to take out a loan, despite “a small PPP than it used to be,” he said. There are The bumpy progress of the health (Paycheck Protection Program) loan to lots of special orders, and browsers are crisis has required the hands-on Pono help keep the lights on.” She also had to as likely to check out the philosophy or salon to endure shutdowns twice and lay off her two employees during the first history sections as the fiction shelves, limit services to what was possible lockdown. But now she has expanded he said. Kids’ books are selling well, while wearing masks. But once San her space and says the landlords have too—perhaps a reflection that the Glen Francisco entered the tier of been supportive of her tenancy. Park branch library remains closed. reopening rules, owner Debra Carvalho Carvalho said she has learned impor- Whittington has stopped special said, a full range of face and body treat- tant lessons in the past year about her deliveries, now that his customers can ments are on offer. Pono is limiting the feelings about her salon, including the A sign announced the closure of Tyger's. come to him. “It’s good that I love sell- number of clients to six at a time and is importance of community. “I have also Photo by Gail Bensinger 12 Glen Park News | Spring 2021 Zoanne Nordstrom: Gum Tree Girl and len Park has lost one of its school and Silver Tree day camp, deep all-time champions: Zoanne within the park. Nordstrom thought G Nordstrom, who lived on this idea was absurd and unsafe, and Surrey Street for more than 60 years that part of the kids’ exercise, fresh and helped save Glen Canyon from air and recreation were about walking decimation by the free- there and back. “It ain’t gonna happen,” by way lobby, died Feb. 15, Nordstrom swore to Park and Rec. Bonnee at age 87, of the Covid- She counted the cars dropping off Waldstein 19 virus. kids, took down the license plates, and For decades, anyone determined that 95 percent of them out and about in the neighborhood came from outside the city. She also would run into Nordstrom, whether noted that cars would drive along the in earlier days when she was walking path at 25 to 30 mph. She told Mayor her beloved dog Max, or schmooz- Willie Brown there needed to be a City ing with her daily coffee klatch at policy that the majority of children her favorite meeting place, Higher in the programs should be from San Grounds Café on Chenery Street. Francisco, and public transportation to When owner Manhal Jweinat would get there was necessary in the summers. greet her and ask how she was, she’d Nordstrom didn't focus only on big invariably answer, “I’m great—now community issues. She took others that I’m here!” under her wing in a very personal way, She was born in Hollywood and as when she rented out a space in her raised by a single mother. She worked home to a new arrival in San Francisco, from the age of 13 to help support the Jeff DeMark, in the late 1980s. family. While attending UC Berkeley, In an essay he wrote after she died, where she got her BA in English, she DeMark—originally from Madison, managed an apartment building to pay Wis., now an actor and writer in Blue her tuition and expenses. She got her Lake, northeast of Eureka—recalled, master’s degree in psychology from SF “I lived at her house for three years State, while working multiple jobs. and she changed my life with her way Nordstrom was married for about Michael Rice with Zoanne Nordstrom at the Glen Park Association's holiday party at of dealing with the world, her 20 years to Reginald Theriault. (When the Sunnyside Conservatory in 2013. Photo by Denis Wade about money, philanthropy, her opti- they divorced, she went back to her mism, her fighting spirit, her down- maiden name.) She is survived by their taught classes for their parents in child- Girls trio. Arkush died in 1999. home practicality. I left in 1990 but sons, Raymond and Marcus (a third rearing and nutrition. Nordstrom and Seiwald were per- she would let me and my family stay son, Thomas, predeceased her); her Nordstrom’s activism in Glen Park sonal friends from the time their kids there almost any time and we went to brother, Alan, and three grandchildren. and San Francisco was legendary and were small. Seiwald had five kids to many ball games together. She said I Her husband was a longshoreman boundless. But if there’s one thing she Nordstrom’s three, each with a boy the had ‘Former renter’s squatter’s rights and later a union organizer. When is famous (or infamous) for, it was for same age. “We hit it off,” Seiwald said. for life.’” their children were small, Nordstrom her role in the so-called Freeway Revolt. “We were both teachers—I was a school He credited Nordstrom with “show- took them to the fields to pick fruit One day she and her friend Joan librarian and taught English to Spanish- ing me how to live, look at money as along with the migrant workers. Seiwald spotted a surveyor putting speaking students and social studies.” a means to an end, something that’s Her working career was at City stakes in the ground on Bosworth With all they had in common, in flow rather than to be afraid of, College of San Francisco, where she Street. When he told them it was for they differed in politics, of all things. approaching life as an adventure and was chair of the Child Development an elevated freeway that was to run Nordstrom was a flaming liberal; how to be fearless. How to believe in department. She also ran the Child crosstown, above , Seiwald is very conservative. “So we myself above all.” Development Center where, in addi- Nordstrom told him, “Like hell you’ll never brought it up, never discussed it. Once, she asked him, “You’re not tion to caring for the children, she build a freeway!” It was never a problem.” really worried about money, are you?” This cause celebre became known as Another issue that set Nordstrom I said I was, and she asked why. I the Freeway Revolt, and lasted from off, in 1996-97, was a plan to pave the answered, ‘Because I don’t have any.’” 1965 to 1970. Nordstrom, along with gravel Alms Road in Glen Canyon Park “But you’ll always be OK. Money Seiwald and Geri Arkush, campaigned so cars could more easily drive in to drop will come to you. I’ll lend you what- relentlessly and successfully to kill the their kids off at the Glenridge nursery ever you want.” project, and earned the nickname “the Gum Tree Girls,” after the blue gum ore bout oanne ordstrom eucalyptus trees in the park that would M A Z N be mowed down by the planned free- The story of how the Gum Tree Girls helped save Glen way. Canyon Park is recalled by Evelyn Rose, director and founder “It wasn’t a compliment,” Seiwald of the Glen Park Neighborhoods History Project, on the noted drolly. “The City Hall men group's website: hated us. We were beating them, one glenparkhistory.org/freeway-revolt-in-glen-park of the world’s greatest sins.” A tribute to Zoanne Nordstrom by the Glen Park Seiwald, who has lived on Burnside Neighborhoods History Project is at: Jeff DeMark and Zoanne Nordstrom in Avenue for about 60 years, is now the glenparkhistory.wixsite.com/glenparkhistory/list-of-posts 2016. Photo courtesy Jeff DeMark last surviving member of the Gum Tree Spring 2021 | Glen Park News 13 Neighborhood Activist Dies at Age 87 In the end, DeMark never borrowed Unsurprisingly, Nordstrom was a Nordstrom and her sterling qualities. Nordstrom was a Giants season money from her, “but the way she lifelong advocate for women’s rights “Zoanne had an opinion about most ticketholder. She, Sanders and his approached life, how she staked each and recognition, starting when she things, and she was terrific. And she was partner went to baseball games of her sons to a house or land, how managed an apartment building in right 99 percent of the time,” Guichard together. After a few drinks at the she supported so many organizations Berkeley in her youth. She took a observed. “She never did these things Glen Park Station bar, they’d be in … it just amazed me you could live stand in all the city elections, and felt for selfish reasons. She always did them a great mood and hop on BART to like that and thrive. Her humor, her strongly that more women needed to with the thought of the community, the the ballpark. They’d eat hot dogs and fierceness and compassion were defin- be in elected office. health of the children. She was really often they’d have another drink at the ing characteristics. ... I credit Zoe with At City College, she met her best motivated by those factors.” Station on the way home, Guichard so much of the good that’s happened friend of more than 40 years, Margaret They note that her feisty determina- recalled. since I moved west. She’s the ultimate (Peggy) Guichard, who was chair of the tion was always backed up by research Guichard and Nordstrom trav- example of ‘Pay it forward.’” Health Care Technology department. and due diligence. She cared deeply eled together a lot, to Europe and Nordstrom was president of the Glen Guichard lives in Saratoga. about Glen Park because that’s where Disneyland, among other places. Park Association from 1998 through Nordstrom was also dear friends with she and her neighbors were raising Nordstrom was of Norwegian heri- 2002. Michael Rice, another neighbor- Roger Sanders, director of the Mayor’s their kids. tage. Her favorite destination was hood stalwart, followed Nordstrom in Office of Community Development Nordstrom, Guichard, Sanders and Tromso, a town in Norway above the that office in 2004, after two years as during Willie Brown’s administration, his partner have been family to each Arctic Circle, where she had family. vice president. He remembers her as a and Nordstrom served on its Citizens other. “We traveled together, enjoyed Her home on Surrey Street was filled mentor as well as a friend. Committee. They were also together on holidays together, haunted the flea mar- with eclectic art, ranging from vintage Rice first attended a GPA meet- the board of San Francisco Tomorrow, kets, and went gambling in Las Vegas all prints of women’s fashion to works of ing when he wanted to speak in an environmental advocacy group. night on New Year’s Eve,” Sanders said. original art. favor of a project that the association In interviews with the Glen Park She loved the terrifying rides at Great Of the many facets of Nordstrom’s was considering opposing. “I called News, both Guichard and Sanders America, he recalled: “Let’s do it again!” life, the two things she loved most Zoanne and asked if I could speak on brimmed with recollections about she’d say after the first ride was over. were in Glen Park—Higher Grounds this agenda item. Zoanne said, ‘Of Café, where she enjoyed daily lattes course. We always want to hear all and talk of “politics, politics and sides of these issues.’ After a bit more politics”— and Glen Canyon Park, conversation, Zoanne said, ‘Michael, The Gum Tree Girls especially as she got older. She was I can see you are really interested in so happy that it existed, that the City Glen Park. Would you like to be an For Zoanne Nordstrom invested in it, and that people were officer? The vice president position is using it, including those from other Walking through Glen Park Canyon vacant.’” neighborhoods. Cold December afternoon “Without thinking too much, I said There’s a Glen Park history sign along Eucalyptus trees towering yes. That started a great experience, Alms Road that commemorates the Swaying and dancing watching Zoanne run GPA meetings, Gum Tree Girls era. Sanders recounted Tended paths meander firmly take on controversy, be clear on that, on their last walk through the through bushes goals for the neighborhood, and over canyon, a woman looked at Nordstrom And a fairy altar in the rocks: time, say, ‘Michael, I’ve been president and asked, “Is this your first time “An old gnome home” for a long time. When are you step- here?”—right beside the plaque that ping up?’ Couples and families strolling has the Gum Tree Girls' history on it. “After I became president, Zoanne was in this refuge of beauty and calm Sanders told her Nordstrom’s picture always ready to give advice, share her jagged rock formations up above was right there. The woman couldn’t knowledge of City workings and opin- as if we walked in a Utah canyon get over that, and she just wanted ions on Glen Park issues, and, also, tell in the middle of San Francisco to talk with Nordstrom. It made me if I was going down a tricky path.” Photo courtsey of Glen Park Nordstrom’s day. This beautiful refuge In later years, Rice recalled, “I would Neighborhoods History Project Nordstrom’s health declined in recent almost bulldozed mostly see Zoanne as she walked years and, when the pandemic hit, she 50 years ago couples hold hands on paths back from morning coffee at Higher rarely went out. Her friends shopped for a four lane freeway and kids run wild as parents trail Grounds. She’d say I was doing a great for her and brought food in. job, and I would say she had showed Three neighborhood women time passes slowly When asked how he will remember me the way. Zoanne showed all us the stood up to power, and quietly Nordstrom, Sanders says, “I will miss way to be a neighbor.” mocked as dreamers, deluded, in Glen Park Canyon. her for the rest of my life. I will think Nordstrom was a strong of doomed to fail One Gum Tree Girl, about her every day. She was so close. the library, market and housing com- laughed at as “the Gum Tree Girls” Zoe Nordstrom, And believe me, Zoanne and I had plex that was built at the intersection of because they loved those lead rabble rouser, many fights. We had many arguments, Diamond and Wilder streets in 2006. blue gum Eucalyptus trees self-described but you want to know something? It She knew that San Francisco had a didn’t make a difference.” But power bent to the dreamers “shit stirrer supreme” housing shortage, and she focused on Said 50 years later: Of their long friendship, Guichard supporting inclusion of residential units a freeway lost to trees, rocks said, “Zoanne is the best friend I’ve in the project, especially since it was and tranquility. “My is: had for over 40 years, and for all near BART. She wanted to keep big-box 50 years later no SUVs, ‘Ya gotta try. women, an absolute role model. In stores out of the neighborhood. Harleys or Hondas If you don’t try all that time the only disagreement More recently she advocated for the disturb swaying and dancing Ya got no complaints.’” we had was: I was a fan of term limits Glen Park Rec Center renovation of blue gum Eucalyptus trees, - Jeff DeMark, December 2016 and she wasn’t. She was a smart, smart, 2016. savvy woman.” S 14 Glen Park News | Spring 2021 Colorful Ohlone Way Mural Comes to Life CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 regional or linguistic subgroups of the Josué Rojas, a muralist, was recom- things to light and reminded me that to have the mural created as her pres- Ohlone. mended to Epstein and Coburn by I’m at my best with a brush in my ent. Time passed, the mural didn’t get Unlike many unmarked lanes and a friend, another muralist. Rojas was hand. That’s what I really want to do,” painted, and their family grew. Then a alleyways in San Francisco, Ohlone raised in the Mission District. He says he explained. major remodeling project presented an Way has an official street sign on both he was drawing before he could write The mural, “This is Ohlone Land,” opportunity. ends, at Surrey and at Sussex streets. and ultimately earned his bachelor’s is his second commission. “There was scaffolding in place A former Van Buren Street resident, and master’s degrees in painting. Together Rojas, Epstein and Coburn already, and we were already spend- Dolan Eargle, had a good deal to do “As a teenager I was going through worked through design iterations at ing all this money on remodeling, so with the sign- a lot of tumul- the end of 2020. Rojas put the various spending for a mural didn’t seem like age, lobbying tuous moments. elements of the mural together digitally it was going to be too much more. We the City to offi- I lost my father from a series of sketches and mock- were really pleased to add to the tradi- cially recognize and a cousin, ups. Once the painting got underway, tion of public art in San Francisco,” the lane. and I had a lot of it took about six weeks to complete. Harris said. Epstein and issues and pain. Others contributed to the mural, They started with the idea of an Coburn decided Around then I and are recognized in an inscription homage to San Francisco and the that to honor was discovered on it. Rojas was assisted by “Pablito Ohlone people, who are native to the the Ohlone peo- by Something,” the name he goes by Northern California coast from San ple native to our Center and they artistically, and one of his understud- Francisco Bay through Monterey Bay area, their mural gave me a paint- ies, “MEG.” The mural is dedicated to to the lower Salinas Valley. should show the local flora and fauna, brush,” he said. Epstein’s grandmother, “E.R.”—Ethel Bands of the Ohlone people lived in rather than depicting buildings, people Rojas laments that there weren’t a Ratner, who recently passed away at 50 distinct landholding groups and tra- and artifacts. lot of art classes in the public schools the age of 101. ditionally subsisted on hunting, fishing “We chose the most charismatic we in San Francisco when he was growing The mural is coated with a protective and gathering. With Spanish coloniza- could think of—Mission blue butter- up; it wasn’t a priority. In recent years, clear coat, which has UV protection, tion of California, and especially after fly, red-tail hawk, , California this has begun to change and there’s and in the unfortunate possibility of California became a state in 1850, the poppies, yarrow, lupine.” It’s meant to more of a push for arts in the schools. tagging, graffiti can be wiped off with population of Indigenous Californians imagine the landscape before the city For two decades Rojas ran cultural alcohol. was decimated through massacres sanc- was a city and to pay tribute to it. arts programs to benefit the Latinx There are many ways to put up a tioned by the state government. Along the fences beyond his house, community in the Mission District, mural, but Rojas noted that the loca- The Ohlone people residing in San Epstein has created a garden with an the most recent being Acción Latina. tion of this one presented some unique Francisco and San Mateo counties array of succulents and other drought- He has since gone full-time into his obstacles. Challenges were presented belong to the Ramaytush, one of eight tolerant plants. own practice. “Covid brought a lot of CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE

The completed mural covers the Ohlone Way side of Epstein and Coburn's house. Photo courtesy Josué Rojas Spring 2021 | Glen Park News 15

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glen park dental Conveniently located across the 590 Bosworth Street • San Francisco street from Glen Park BART! A coyote is featured in the mural. G 16 Glen Park News | Spring 2021 + DIGGING THE DIRT + his February, the Glen Park ing those in the Asteraceae (plants with Garden Club dipped into a huge compound flowers like daisies), borage, T topic: How to Attract Butterflies mallow and thistles. The pupa/cater- To Your Garden. Undaunted by the pillar may wander around the garden reams of information available and looking for tasty plants and a place to some controversy in the subject, pupate. It will build a silky web around Garden Club member the leaves. The adults sip nectar from by Kay Michele Lundy gave us thistles, clovers and asters. Hamilton an inspiring talk. Some Anise Swallowtail. A large butterfly, Estey of the highlights: black with a striking yellow markings. Garden Basics: Plant This lovely creature feeds on members a wide variety of colorful flowering of the parsley family such as fennel and plants to attract butterflies and other Fernleaf Biscuitroot (Lomatium dis- pollinators. Avoid the use of chemicals, sectum). It flies along the coastal areas because butterflies are sensitive to pes- seeking places to lay eggs and often ticides and herbicides. Some caterpil- visits home gardens. lars hide in the soil during the day or . Endemic to live in the leaf litter, so don't smother this area, but endangered due to habi- the soil with heavy bark mulch or fab- tat loss. The remaining populations The endangered Variable Checkerspot. ric. You need to pull weeds by hand in are on San Bruno Mountain. They are Photo courtesy of Wanderingnome/Creative Commons critter-friendly gardens. Butterflies may poor flyers and are not likely to flutter sip water from mud puddles, so a bit of from the mountain down to your gar- and volunteers, they have created a Monarch. It is impossible to write damp bare soil is helpful. A bird bath den even if you plant California blue corridor of backyard lots and vacant about butterflies without mention- overhead that drips water is ideal. lupines, the only plant the species uses sites cleaned up and planted with the ing this iconic species, endangered by Butterfly Basics: Butterflies lay eggs for eggs and the tiny green larvae. But host and nectar plants. The Green climate change, herbicides and loss on plant leaves, which hatch and turn you can still help by supporting the Hairstreak thrives there. of habitat. However, according to the into larvae (aka caterpillars), which Mission Blue Nursery—their aim is to Western Swallowtail. This U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, we can then eat the leaves. The caterpillars restore the mountain's Mission Blue gorgeous black and yellow creature all help by planting native milkweeds, enlarge through molting and finally habitats. And it's a great place to buy survives happily in downtown San such as Asclepius californica, and other turn into tougher chrysalis (aka pupa), native plants for your butterfly garden. Francisco because of the efforts of native plants. which often hang down under a leaf or Green Hairstreak. This bright green experts such as Liam twig. Inside the chrysalis, a metamor- butterfly is included to illustrate the O'Brien and Amanda phosis occurs. A week or two later, the concept of corridors. Butterflies are Hasselbring, who exquisite butterfly emerges, stretches on the move fairly constantly. They advocated against its wings in the sun and flies off to will have a better chance of survival if destruction of habi- sip nectar and mate. Some adults may they can travel through your garden tat including the migrate for hundreds of miles. Here are and then visit your neighbor’s garden, London plane trees some of our local favorites: then a vacant lot or alley planted with on Market Street. West Coast Painted Lady. A large suitable plants. The local organization They have worked orange and black butterfly with white Nature In The City has helped create a with the City and markings, this migratory butterfly lays Green Hairstreak habitat in the Sunset businesses to plant eggs on a wide range of plants, includ- district. With the help of neighbors butterfly-friendly plants. This Tiger, which has a wingspan of 4 inches, lays its eggs on tree leaves, The endangered Monarch Butterfly. and sips nectar from Photo courtesy of Creative Commons user donsutherland1 many flowering plants Resources: Variable Checkerspot. Sometimes •fws.gov/savethemonarch/ seen in local gardens, this lovely, endan- •natureinthecity.org. Butterfly corri- gered butterfly is brilliantly patterned dors and more. in brown, white, red and black. At •baynature.org. Magazine website, about 2 inches across, this tiny butter- super illustrations. fly is a treasure. The adults enjoy nectar •mountainwatch.org. San Bruno plants such as yerba santa (Eriodyction mountain information (with links to californicum) and lay their eggs on the Mission Blue Nursery, where butterfly- coastal sticky monkey flower (Diplacus attracting native plants are sold). auranticus). •www.butterflyidentification.com. Red Admiral. An elegant small black •butterfly.ucdavis.edu. Art Shapiro's and red butterfly often seen in our Butterfly Site. Useful list of plants. S gardens all year round. The adults prefer to lay their eggs on nettles and Kay Hamilton Estey is the Glen Park sip nectar from asters, goldenrod and Garden Club columnist. For more infor- The black and yellow Western Tiger Swallowtail. milkweed. The pupa live in nests of mation about the garden club, contact Photo courtesy of David A. Hoffmann/Creative Commons folded leaves, tied together with silk. her at [email protected]. Spring 2021 | Glen Park News 17 Richland Bridge Restoration Underway

he Richland Avenue Bridge is San Jose Avenue with native plants, Bernal Glen,” Constantinou said. March update by Public Works puts the now closed for railing repair, pav- informative signs and solar lights, will Meanwhile, snarled traffic will likely anticipated time closer to a year, with T ing the way for a mural on the begin outreach about the mural. unite the two sides. According to the bridge reopening next March. concrete piers that suspend it over San “This was put on hold because of the Grace Moore of Public Works, the San For more information, visit the Public Jose Avenue. pandemic, but we’re ready to start back Francisco Municipal Transportation Works website’s project page or contact Working under the management of up again,” said Sophie Constantinou Agency is working on a plan to detour the contractor, Gordon N. Ball, Inc. at San Francisco Public of the association, which also hosts traffic to Randall and Bosworth streets. 925-838-5675. To learn more about the by Works, contractors regular cleanups along both sides of “There will not be traffic detours mural, visit BernalCut.org. S Heather Gordon N. Ball, Inc. the roadway known as the Bernal Cut. permitted onto Arlington Street, except World plan to demolish and In 2019, the group won a $150,000 for pedestrians and bicyclists,” Moore rebuild the bridge’s Community Challenge Grant to paint said. At present, Arlington is part of the crumbling north and south railings a mural on the 40-foot square piers City’s pandemic-induced Slow Streets Please and patch its substructure. At the end supporting the bridge. They will work program, meant to give street space of the project—which is estimated to with muralist André Jones of the Bay to pedestrians and bicyclists, although support our take between six months and a year— Area Mural Program. neighbors have complained that it is the streetlights on the bridge will be Community meetings, held virtu- not well enough marked as such. Advertisers; replaced, according to Public Works. ally and outdoors, are being planned The Richland Bridge’s smaller cousin The work, which began April 6, has to review the designs and ideas for the to the north, the Highland Bridge, long been planned, and nearby neigh- mural. underwent the same repair six years they support bors saw an opportunity for beautifica- “Hopefully we’ll build some deeper ago. That work took approximately tion. The College Hill Neighborhood connections across the span of San Jose six months, which was also the time us! Association, which transformed the [Avenue] with the hope of truly bridg- frame initially quoted by the contrac- pedestrian path above the east side of ing the Cut between Glen Park and tors for the Richland Bridge. A late-

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San Francisco Nutritional Therapy & Theraphi Center www.sfnutritionaltherapy.com • www.theraphisf.com The Richland Bridge over San Jose Avenue, top and its broken railing, above. [email protected] Photos by Gail Bensinger 18 Glen Park News | Spring 2021 Local BART Station a National Treasure hile the jury of popu- lar opinion may still be W out, the Glen Park BART Station has been nationally recognized for its distinctive architectural design. Lovers of the style known as Brutalism and the Bay Area’s by Modernist architecture Hannah have long championed Simonson this building as exem- plary of how infrastruc- ture and functional buildings can be elevated through thoughtful design. Some BART riders may find the exposed, board-formed concrete to be cold or imposing, while others will note the artistic details—the warm brick paving at the entrance, and the light-filled space and multi-colored marble wall that greet you as you rise up on the escalators from the train platform. The butterfly roof stands dramatically above the on-ramp to I-280, while the siting of the station on The lobby at Glen Park BART Station. Photos courtesy of Creative Commons user Pi.1415926535 the hill allows the scale of the building to feel appropriate for the surrounding historic places, maintained by the Corbusier of leaving concrete unfin- According to VerPlanck’s account in neighborhood context of Glen Park National Park Service. ished, revealing the methods of con- the National Register nomination, the village. Local architectural historian struction. Glen Park BART Station was Born’s John King, the San Francisco Christopher VerPlanck, who wrote The Glen Park BART Station cer- crowning in his own view, Chronicle's eminent architecture critic, the National Register nomination, tainly has the distinctive qualities of and Born retired, feeling accomplished, has called the Glen Park Station the states that “Glen Park BART station Brutalist design. Riding on the esca- when the station was completed. best in the now 50-station BART sys- is widely recognized as the jewel lators, you can see the texture of the Although it opened to the public tem, describing it in his book Cityscape: of the BART system and also as one wood grain imprinted from the wood with the entire BART system on Nov. San Francisco and Its Buildings as of the finest examples of Brutalism in board formwork when the concrete 5, 1973, the Glen Park station was “tucked deep inside the earth, under San Francisco” and that “it remains as was poured. However, as VerPlanck years in the making. After decades of a raised muscular shell, [where] trains visually powerful today as the day it observed, some of the features of Glen planning for the system, excavation rush in and out through a brooding opened in 1973.” Park station—such as the butterfly began at Glen Park in September 1969 grandeur of rough concrete against Some may guess that the term roof with its projecting steel beams— and construction was completed by the polished stone, blunt structural beams, “Brutalism” has to do with the impos- demonstrate the influence of a more spring of 1972. and sharp shafts of light.” ing nature of many large institutional regional flavor of Modernism, known Because of the pandemic, most of In October 2019, the Bay Area concrete buildings. However, the term as the Second Bay Regional Tradition. us are not riding BART as much as we Rapid Transit station was listed in the is understood to be derived from the The Second Bay Regional Tradition used to—if at all. But the next time National Register of Historic Places, French term béton brut, meaning “raw blended the machine-age aesthetic of you do venture downtown or to the known as the National Register, which concrete”—referring to the practice the International Style of Modernism airport on BART, stop to appreciate is an official list of the nation’s most popularized by architects such as Le with a more woodsy aesthetic, local the light filtering down through the materials and sensitivity to the local butterfly roof and pause to take in environment of the Bay Area. the beautiful selection and composi- The station is the work of San tion of the red, green and gray-hued Francisco-born architect Ernest Born, marble panels along the southwest with the local firm Corlett & Spackman wall. You may just fall in love. At the and landscape architect Douglas Baylis. very least, you may gain a new appre- Born was first hired by BART in his ciation for the history of architectural capacity as a graphic designer, working design and transportation infrastruc- on graphic identity and programmatic ture right here in Glen Park. S design for the initial 33-station system. Although he was incredibly gifted as a Hannah Simonson is an architec- designer and an architect, few of Born’s tural historian, the current president designs were ever constructed. His of the Northern California chapter of other notable works include the North Docomomo US, and on the advisory com- Beach public housing project (since mittee for the Glen Park Neighborhoods demolished), several homes designed History Project. In recent years, in the mode of the Second Bay Region Docomomo US/Northern California has Tradition, and the Balboa Park BART organized a number of “walking” tours of Station (which has seen more alteration the BART system. You can learn more at The marble mural, by Ernest Born, in the lobby of the Glen Park BART Station. than the Glen Park station). docomomo-noca.org. Spring 2021 | Glen Park News 19 A Pandemic Plan: Walk Every SF Street s we near the one-year anniver- Their origin story is one that’s familiar sary of pandemic quarantines, to all immigrants. Her father Romolo A lockdowns and stay-at-home emigrated from Northern Italy. Then orders, many of us have come to know 17, he came in 1922 to find work, first what lies outside our own front doors in a lumber yard in Weed, near Mt. better. We’ve gone for walks close to Shasta, then in San Francisco as a dish- home, hoofed it to stores we might washer at Vanessi’s restaurant in North once have driven to and Beach. Eventually, he became owner of by generally focused on Caruso’s on Taylor Street, then worked Murray local neighborhoods. into his 70s as a delivery man for iconic Schneider But however deeply San Francisco bakeries Boudin and we delve into Glen Park Parisian. and environs, the palimpsest that Joy His wife Maria arrived in 1950. Durighello, 68, sees brings a richness Primarily a homemaker, she also col- that she recently shared with the Glen lected subscription money for the daily Park News. Her roots go back more San Francisco Call Bulletin, which than 60 years, and the changes she’s ceased publication in 1965. The couple seen make a few slow streets added here purchased their Martha Avenue home and there seem like nothing. when Joy was 11 and her brother Paul The Durighello family home was was 13. originally at 580 Bosworth St. “Our Young Joy attended St. John the Bosworth house was built by an Italian Evangelist’s Grammar School, across builder in the 1930s, and there was a the Bernal Cut from Glen Park, and wine cellar in the basement in addition then the now-closed St. John Ursuline to a recess in the floor of the garage Girls Catholic High School at Mission where someone could work on the and Bosworth Streets. undercarriage of a car while standing Joy Durighello found a child’s delight up.” roaming Glen Park, a neighborhood On Google Maps, though, that then much wilder than today. On address is located under the I-280 free- Martha Street in the mid-’60s, lots way underpass, because in 1964 gov- remained empty and automobile traffic ernment officials seized the land their was practically nonexistent. house stood on under eminent domain There were many more butterflies to build the freeway. The house itself then, she recalled. “There were swal- Joy Durighello prunes eucalyptus branches at the base of the Detroit Street steps. was relocated to the Bayview district. lowtails, buckeyes, admirals, probably Photos by Murray Schneider Remarkably, it wasn’t the first time because there were so many undevel- the Durighello family was forced to oped city lots and other open spaces.” She went on to earn a BA from neighborhoods are created equal. The move. In 1956 the City commandeered Once, when she was 6 or 7, she Berkeley in Italian and French, then an Outer Sunset district, for instance, the flat they rented on 17th Street remembers seeing a white horse on MA in Teaching English as a Second can be as mind-numbing as count- near Guerrero to make way for the the Glen Park canyon hillside close to Language at San Francisco State ing grains of sand, which is what the Columbia Park Boys and Girls Club Portola Drive. University, which led to a position tightly packed, nondescript rowhouses that still fronts Guerrero. “Kids used pieces of cardboard to teaching English at City College for are built upon. slide down the slope more than 25 years. She walked back “I prefer quirkiness,” she said. “I look between San Jose and forth to work until she retired in forward to exploring Bernal Heights or Avenue and Bosworth. 2017. Precita Park, which have narrow roads, Part of the slope is During the pandemic she has spent lots of hills and views, interesting archi- still there, just past the time caring for her 100-year-old tecture, cul-de-sacs and alleyways, little I-280 overpass,” she mother, and helping spruce up the surprise staircases and small, family- said. 186 treads of the Detroit Street steps owned businesses.” Walking to school, in the Sunnyside neighborhood, off She has a few more areas to finish up, she passed the Ray Monterey Boulevard. She’s been volun- including the outlands of the Richmond Oil Burner Company teering twice a week to help keep the and Marina districts, and the slopes of on San Jose Avenue stairs looking good. Pacific Heights and Russian Hill. between Milton and But her most ambitious pandemic And she’s found that traveling Rousseau Streets. A plan, launched in April 2020, is to walk through space can sometimes feel like metal sign affixed every street in San Francisco. “It’s easy, traveling through time. “I didn’t know to the brick façade needs no planning or equipment, costs I’d enjoy the Excelsior as much as I offered a $25 reward nothing, and almost always pays off have,” she said of the neighborhood for information lead- with visual stimulation or interesting that lies south of us, between Glen Park ing to the arrest of chance encounters,” she said. “I’ve met and McLaren Park. People still sit in anyone vandalizing so many neighbors while walking to front of their homes, there are unique the red brick. “I used work over the years, even been invited houses, and it’s bubbling with demo- Joy Durighello holds a San Francisco map, indicating which to dream about what to their parties.” graphic diversity. streets she has walked to complete her goal of walking I could buy with Her journeys have taken her far and “It reminds me of Glen Park growing every city street in one year. $25!” wide—and taught her that not all up.” S 20 Glen Park News | Spring 2021 Pickleball Phenomenon Perks Up Players wo years ago, serendipity enriched Newport Beach to compete in his first Paul Johnson's life, catapulting professional tournament—Johnson is T him from a pickleball amateur looking forward to volleying at Golden to a professional ranking and national Gate Park’s newly opened Lisa and recognition as a top-tier player. Douglas Goldman Tennis Center, “I was walking in Glen Canyon, which includes five pickleball courts. an absolute secret gem The Sutter and Goldman courts by where it’s hard to believe evidence of the sport’s growing Murray you’re in the middle popularity, particularly engaging mid- Schneider of San Francisco, and dle-aged-and-up men and women. In I stumbled upon the 2015, numbers showed that 68 percent Recreation Center’s gym,” he said. “I of pickleball players were over 60. But thought I’d go inside and have a look.” Wellington Chen, who kickstarted the He came upon three courts accom- Glen Park Rec Center's paddle sport in modating a dozen pickleball players. 2017, said the player demographic is “I’d never heard of pickleball,” he getting younger. continued. “The next thing I know, I Prior to the pandemic, Friday night hear from a friendly voice, ‘Come in indoor participation at the Rec Center and grab a paddle.’” surged to 50 players or more an eve- The game is played on badminton ning. The sport has become so popular courts and utilizes a specially manu- that after a completed match, waiting factured ball. “Pickleball is the fastest courtside for a rematch often took an growing sport in the country,” he told hour or more. Before the March 2020 the Glen Park News in an interview in lockdown, the Rec Center scheduled March. six-plus hours of pickleball weekly. Johnson, a Detroit Street resident, “The increasing access to recreational emigrated to the United States seven facilities is encouraging,” said Johnson. years ago from Pershore, England, a “I spent my life playing tennis, and provincial town near Birmingham. now several days a week I find physical He founded and operates Lemonaid exercise, mental release, friendship, fun Health, an online health provider that and community on outdoor pickleball employs 130 people across the United courts that allow for both walk-ons and States. reservations.” No stranger to court sports, Johnson Johnson’s first officially sanctioned has become a celebrated pickleball pickleball meet was the West Regional player, now at a level that allows him Paul Johnson stands, center, beams after winning his first tournament, the West Regional Pickleball Tournament in Southern to participate in professional tourna- Pickleball Tournament in Southern California. Photos courtesy of Paul Johnson California in 2019. He won a gold ments. in the singles competition at the 4.5 “My father used to say I played Well before Covid-19 changed our 2020, with the closure of indoor facili- level, the second-highest level. He tennis before I could walk,” he said. lives, the Glen Park Recreation Center ties, pickleball has been outsourced to and his doubles partner competed at Exchanging a childhood tennis racket had extended a hospitable hello to pick- several outdoor City courts, including the Newport Beach Tournament in for a pickleball paddle was a no-brainer, lers, encouraging them to share the Rec Louis Sutter Playground in McLaren December against brothers Ben and especially since Rec and Park has been Center gym with basketball, volleyball Park, where two underutilized tennis Collin Johns, two of the most respected so welcoming. and badminton players. Since March courts have been transformed into six competitors in the country, and won courts dedicated to pickleball. one game of a three-game match. As Covid-19 raged last year, Glen Johnson modestly acknowledges that Park’s indoor recreation facility was his burnished skill set is above that of converted into an Emergency Child typical Glen Park players. “When I and Youth Care Center to provide a began playing there several years ago, safe place for children of first respond- I was one of the worst players,” he ers, health care workers and essential acknowledged. “A combination of ten- City employees. nis and competitive zeal has made me a Pickleball players have found havens better player. at Louis Sutter, Upper Noe, Stern “The camaraderie among Glen Park Grove and Presidio Wall playgrounds. players is praiseworthy,” he said. “We Players adhere to courtside Covid pro- structure the court play by skill levels, tocols such as bringing sanitizers to use as we want to be seen as welcoming, after touching surfaces, wearing masks, not intimidating. Advanced players can remaining six feet from others, and still work on technique playing against even returning a ball by hitting it with a a less-skilled competitor,” he noted. “I paddle or rolling it without touching it. can work on my defense and my court Accustomed to roaming as far afield angles, which allows me to develop to Paul Johnson chats about pickleball with Toby Wiley, Recreation and Park supervisor. as Palo Alto and Concord to find players another level.” Photo by Murray Schneider at his skill level—and in December to CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE Spring 2021 | Glen Park News 21 Is your home prepared for spring?

2021 Spring Cleaning Checklist

1. Wipe Down/Dust

Living Room Bedrooms Kitchen Other

2. Vacuum/Mop

Living Room Bedrooms Kitchen Other

3. Re-Organize & Fix-up

Living Room Bedrooms Kitchen Other Paul Johnson discovered pickleball at the Rec Center in Glen Canyon Park.

CONTINUED FROM PREVIOUS PAGE and families can attend. Because of On Feb. 25, Johnson momentarily Covid restrictions, though, Johnson’s 4. Let Judy Be put aside his pickleball paddle and swearing-in took place in the Federal Your Guide picked up an American flag. “I became Building, without onlookers. an American citizen,” he said. “I stud- “I’d guess there were 12 of us raising Contact Judy ied civics books.” our right hands that day from all over The U.S. citizenship examination the world and representing many dif- poses a limited number of questions ferent ethnicities. When the ceremony Is this part of the preparation for from a pool of 100 possibilities. Johnson was over, I was handed an American selling your house? I can help with answered questions orally at the Federal flag and I became a bit emotional! Building on Sansome Street. “The “I felt extremely proud the moment Compass Concierge; just ask me how! Immigration Service official asks 10 I became an American,” he said. questions during an interview, and you “I moved to the U.S. in 2013 to are expected to answer six correctly,” he found Lemonaid Health, which explained. makes health care more affordable Johnson aced the examination, albeit and accessible. Over the past seven Judy Marocco with a moment of panic. “The exam- years, Glen Park and California have 415.407.2572 iner asked who was president during become my home, and my life has [email protected] the First World War,” he said. (It was been built around the fantastic com- judymarrocco.com Woodrow Wilson.) “I took a stab and munity in San Francisco. DRE 01919006 got it right.” “Being a citizen solidifies my time In normal times, the naturaliza- here,” Johnson said, “emotionally mak- Compass is the brand name used for services provided by one or more of the Compass group of subsidiary companies. Compass is a real estate broker licensed by the State of California and abides by Equal Housing Opportunity laws. tion ceremony occurs a while after ing me feel like this truly is my home License Number 01866771. Home must qualify under Compass Concierge guidelines. Subject to additional terms and the test so that new citizens’ friends and that I belong.” S conditions. 22 Glen Park News | Spring 2021 The Woman Behind Glen Park Strong needed a broom,” Madison has one heart, hers boasts three. That’s what she told Glen Park who come to Higher Grounds regu- Hatfield explained. Now 22, “We were all so scared a year ago,” she Hardware management when she was larly,” she continued. “I overhear them “IHatfield arrived in the Bay said this spring. “I wanted to design an called for an interview. “Working in gabbing about light bulbs, history and Area in 2016 and began scouting San encouraging reminder that we have a a hardware store is really no different politics.” Francisco neighborhoods for a job when strong community, that we could sur- than graphic design,” she said. “I’m a She loves her job at the hardware she enrolled at City vive this crisis, and that it will pass.” problem solver for customers, assisting store, which has been accommodat- by College of San Francisco. Hatfield was born in Eastern Oregon them in simplifying their lives. It’s the ing and flexible, allowing her to work Murray When she paid for and raised in the town of Baker City, lat- same with graphic design. How will I around her class schedule. Those classes Schneider the broom at Glen Park est population 9,828—“the Queen City help clients market themselves with web include visual design, visual commu- Hardware, she asked: of the Inland Empire,” where ranch- design, logos, branding, messaging and nication, language arts and all sorts of “Do you guys need help?” And so, for ing, mining and social media content computer skills necessary to navigate the the past three years, Hatfield has worked timber support the creation?” digital age. 35 hours a week at the Chenery Street local economy. The She started out She routinely spends two hours a day store. Oregon she grew up living on Rotteck glued to her laptop, perfecting all ele- After completing her courses at City in couldn’t be more Street, just across ments of design that include balance, College she transferred to the Academy different than Glen I-280 from Glen symmetry, line, even gaining expertise in of Art University. In 2022 she hopes Park, said Hatfield, Park, but has since how to lay out a newspaper. to finish her final year, majoring in in who’s a descendant moved out to the And she’s watched Glen Park slowly advertising and minoring in graphic of Devil Anse Hatfield of the famous Sunset District. “I hop the N-Judah, coming back to life, as more San design. Hatfield-McCoy feud in West Virginia. then transfer to the 44 O’Shaughnessy,” Franciscans are vaccinated after a year- Shoppers have become familiar with She attended a high school that topped she said. “For me, a small-town girl, it’s a long hiatus. “The neighborhood’s wide Hatfield’s graphic work during the pan- at 400 students, and knew early on that dream come true. It’s exciting to think I awake,” Hatfield said. Her lunch break demic: It’s on display in windows along she wanted to study art. In high school can make a name for myself, a small fish over, she handed in her Higher Grounds Chenery and Diamond streets in the she sold bicycle pumps, tire tube repair in a big pond.” glass mug, then ordered a bagel to go stand-out sign she designed that pro- kits, duct tape and Allen wrench sets at Anyone familiar with Glen Park, before returning to work in a hardware claims GLEN PARK STRONG. The her parents' bike shop. though, knows that our local pond store that is always fully stocked and Glen Park Merchants Association dis- “I’ve been working in retail since I was isn’t all that deep, and the small-town, presents its merchandise on manicured tributed them. 14,” she said. “I really love small busi- friendly aura that Hatfield brings to it shelves. Hatfield’s sign drew inspiration from nesses that have a sense of community fits well with the neighborhood’s village Before graduation she hopes to land an an iconic New York City counterpart. and where you get to know familiar ambiance. internship in an advertising agency, then While the Big Apple sign, I LOVE NY, faces.” “Glen Park is so inclusive,” she said, a job. Like Glen Park Hardware, any “and to all walks of life. I’ve made business that has the good sense to hire friends, all extraordinary people.” Madison Hatfield will be a lot stronger “There are these three elderly guys for it—GLEN PARK STRONG. S

Madison Hatfield in front of Glen Park Hardware., with her Glen Park Strong sign above her. Photo by Murray Schneider Spring 2021 | Glen Park News 23 S NEWS FROM DIAMOND HEIGHTS S

The "1900 Diamond" proposal would replace these trees and hillside on Diamond Street. Photo courtesy of Steve Chaffin

proposed development of four want the development to be more in single-family homes and 20 scale and character with the neighbor- A townhouses, planned for the hood, while preserving the Monterey Saint Aidan’s steep hillside at the corner of 5367 cypresses, views and open space. Diamond Heights Blvd. and Diamond (Check the DHCA website, dhcasf. Episcopal Church Street, is causing quite a org, for Babsin’s March 4 slide presen- A Joyful Community of the Spirit by stir. People have trouble tation and meeting recording, as well Betsy visualizing the location, as Chaffin’s slide presentation with Holy Week and Easter Eddy wondering: Isn’t that concerns about the proposed develop- Interactive Online Worship hillside unbuildable? ment. Palm Sunday, March 28 Isn’t it City open space? Won’t it all be Diamond Heights is eagerly await- 8 am & 10 am affordable housing, since it is located ing the opening day of George Monday, Tuesday & Wednesday next to Vista Del Monte Affordable Christopher Playground, much of in Holy Week, March 29, 30, 31 Housing, owned by the Cesar Chavez which has been closed for construc- Evening Prayer at 7 pm Foundation? tion since November 2019. Already Maundy Thursday, April 1 Housing advocates strongly support in place are the new play structures Liturgy at 7 pm the proposed units, which are planned for younger and older children, an Good Friday, April 2 to sell for between $2 million and $5 imagination garden, tables and chairs Prayer & Meditation, Noon to 3 pm million. In contrast, some residents in for picnics, lovely landscaping, new Stay as long or as little as you like the neighborhood are concerned about fencing around the baseball , Good Friday Liturgy at 7 pm the impact of such a large develop- benches, an ADA-compliant public Saturday, April 3 ment. They do not want to lose the bathroom, a newly installed pathway Great Vigil of Easter at 7 pm entire view from Diamond Heights from Duncan Street to the park, and Easter Sunday, April 4 Boulevard, lose 27 healthy Monterey the relocation of three historic play Feast of the Resurrection at 8 am & 10 am cypress trees and lose the open space structures. A big thanks to Brynna that is a unique feature of Diamond McNulty of Friends of Christopher For connection information: Heights and contributes to the neigh- Park for her involvement in commu- email: [email protected] borhood’s quality of life. nity input and for leading the effort to With so many differing opinions, retain the play structures. Saint Aidan’s Episcopal Church the Diamond Heights Community Still to come are resurfacing of the 101 Gold Mine Drive, San Francisco, 94131 Association (DHCA) intends to pro- tennis court, and installation of new Phone: 415.285.9540 vide information to the public. It has lights for nighttime tennis. Many invited a representative of Emerald thanks to the SF Recreation and Park www.staidansf.org Fund, Marc Babsin, to several virtual Department staff for the planning, community meetings to explain the construction and allocation of addi- proposal and answer questions. To tional funding with the help of District present the anti-development side, 8 Supervisor Rafael Mandelman. S Glen Park: San Francisco’s Hidden Gem. the DHCA has scheduled a com- munity Zoom meeting with Steve Betsy Eddy is co-president of the Diamond Chaffin on April 22 at 7 p.m. Chaffin Heights Community Association. Contact Neighborhood Pride! represents a group of neighbors who her at [email protected]. 24 Glen Park News | Spring 2021 S GLEN PARK REAL ESTATE S ow a few months can change things. We have a new admin- Single-Family Homes H istration in the White House, ADDRESS SALE DATE DOM LIST PRICE SALE PRICE SP/LP coronavirus vaccines are getting into the arms of people all over the world, 2712 Diamond St. 11/23/20 97 $2,199,000 $2,150,000 97.77% the stock market is hitting all-time 27 Whitney St. 11/30/20 28 $2,300,000 $2,330,000 101.30% highs as of this writing, and the Real 1721 Sanchez St. 12/1/20 34 $1,995,000 $2,200,000 110.28% Estate market has never 95 Melrose Ave. 12/4/20 30 $1,598,000 $1,610,000 100.75% by been hotter. Marc I’ve been in this busi- 100 Farnum St. 12/8/20 35 $1,195,000 $1,230,000 102.93% Dickow ness my whole life, and 37 Arbor St. 12/8/20 45 $1,637,000 $1,550,000 94.69% I’ve never seen a more 3001 Castro St. 12/10/20 65 $2,050,000 $2,000,000 97.56% competitive or active market. We are 45 Bemis St. 12/17/20 50 $1,299,000 $1,450,000 111.62% seeing 20 to 40 offers on single-family homes and sales prices that are as much 122 Sussex St. 12/17/20 53 $2,895,000 $2,750,000 94.99% as 50 percent over asking. The soft 351 Surrey St. 12/22/20 5 $995,000 $1,300,000 130.65% condominium market of 2020 seems 50 Monterey Blvd. 12/23/20 35 $979,000 $990,000 101.12% to be over; now condos are back to get- ting multiple offers in most areas of the 535 Laidley St. 12/24/20 78 $1,875,000 $1,875,000 100.00% city. This has all happened in the past 119 Stillings St. 1/21/21 62 $1,490,000 $1,460,000 97.99% few weeks. 60 Surrey St. 2/1/21 1 $1,595,000 $2,000,000 125.39% The lack of inventory all over the 2555 Diamond St. 2/1/21 9 $1,295,000 $1,425,000 110.04% Bay Area, coupled with historically low interest rates, is certainly fueling the 924 Chenery St. 2/3/21 8 $1,295,000 $1,511,924 116.75% market. I also think the light at the end 10 Mercato Ct. 2/8/21 7 $1,975,000 $2,425,000 122.78% of the coronavirus tunnel is helping. 165 Moffitt St. 2/11/21 86 $895,000 $905,000 101.12% But don’t discount the renewed hope 61 Elk St. 2/18/21 13 $1,300,000 $1,452,000 111.69% that the Biden administration has given our country. 174 Arbor St. 2/18/21 2 $1,300,000 $1,510,000 116.15% Let’s look at sales in Glen Park over 230 Whitney St. 2/24/21 121 $2,215,000 $2,140,000 96.61% the past few months. Between Nov. 21, 187 Brompton Ave. 2/25/21 6 $2,495,000 $2,500,000 100.20% 2020, and March 13, 2021, 32 homes were sold in Glen Park—a 50 percent 506 Chenery St. 2/25/21 10 $1,495,000 $1,800,000 120.40% increase from the previous same period. 1760 Dolores St. 3/4/21 39 $2,125,000 $2,010,000 94.59% The median sale price for a single-family 157 Laidley St. 3/5/21 11 $2,195,000 $2,500,000 113.90% home was $1,800,000. The median list 1730 Sanchez St. 3/9/21 0 $4,350,000 $4,350,000 100.00% price was $1,598,000. The average over- bid was about 9 percent over the asking 191 Randall St. 3/12/21 7 $1,895,000 $2,200,000 116.09% price. The median price per square foot Condominiums/Multi Unit Buildings was $970. The average days on market was 24. As I write this, 10 homes are for ADDRESS SALE DATE DOM LIST PRICE SALE PRICE SP/LP sale in Glen Park, which is 40 percent 240-A Chenery St.- Condo 11/25/20 0 $2,450,000 $2,410,000 98.37% lower than last year at this time. 169-171 Randall St. - 2-Unit 12/9/20 41 $2,295,000 $2,355,000 102.61% The median sales price at the end of 235 Whitney St. - Condo 1/15/21 133 $1,595,000 $1,550,000 97.18% 2020 in Glen Park was $1,850,000. The median sales price at the end of DOM - Days on market SP/LP - % over or under list price 2019 was $1,850,000. Which means the pandemic didn’t hurt our home values at all! The number of homes sold actually up 2 percent from last year, fleeing the city while the pandemic is continue to follow all social distancing here in 2020 was 188, compared with at $3,723 a month. Three-bedroom going on. rules, including wearing a mask when 209 in 2019. Not bad considering we rentals are down slightly to $4,900 All cities experience ebbs and flows out of your house. We still have a ways could do hardly any business in March a month. There was a drop in one- of residents, and it’s completely nor- to go. and April when the initial lockdown bedroom rentals, about 18 percent mal. But a global pandemic is not I’m pleased that this is an interactive started. All in all, the market weathered to $2,500 a month. (These numbers normal, and those in the media should column answering your questions and the year well. come from the website Zumper.com). be much more cautious about what writing about topics that are of interest What about the rental market across There has also been a lot of talk they say during this time. Does our city to you as a reader. Send any questions the city? As a whole, San Francisco has about the mass exodus from the city. have problems? Of course we do—like or topic requests to me at marc@opni. seen a pretty significant drop in rental The current activity in the real estate all major cities. Can we do better at com. S prices, between 18 to 24 percent from market does not support such claims dealing with the issues? Yes, I know we 2019 prices. However, that drop is at all. While San Francisco did see a can. But that’s a topic for another day. Marc Dickow, a Glen Park resident, is mostly concentrated in certain areas drop in residents from March 2020 to I hope that you all have a wonderful the Broker/Owner at Core7 Real Estate. of the city: South of Market, South February 2021 of about 10 percent, spring and that by our next edition He is also the immediate past president of Beach and Downtown. Rental prices many of those surveyed said that it of the Glen Park News, a majority of the San Francisco Association of Realtors. in Glen Park haven’t seen such a sig- was temporary and that they would you will be vaccinated. It’s definitely a He can be reached at [email protected], or nificant drop. For example, the median be back. It seems irresponsible to me brighter year already. As the city con- by phone at 415-722-4018. His website price for a two-bedroom rental here is to make such broad claims of people tinues to relax Covid protocols, please is www.altrockrealtor.com.