THE EXAMINER’S WEEKLY GUIDE TO SAN FRANCISCO HOMES ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT | SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 13, 2009 Gracious Noe Valley Craftsman For more information on our featured property, please see www.1825castro.com Stefano DeZerega’s ad on page 3. SAN FRANCISCO’S TOP PICK NEIGHBORHOOD SPOTLIGHT: South Beach NEW! EXPANDED OPEN HOMES Page 4 Page 5 Pages 6–12 FHA Direct Lender 3.5% down gets you into your dream home. RPM Mortgage San Francisco Pacific 580 Pacific Avenue • San Francisco, CA 94133 Call Us Today! 415.355.0000 138779 2 SA | SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 13, 2009 THE EXAMINER www.ardenestatesluxuryhomes.com NEW HOMES IN WEST PORTAL GREEN CONSTRUCTION WITH LUXURY FINISHES OPEN Sat/Sun 1-4 PM 15th Avenue (between West Portal & Wawona) 3 Levels of luxury living with over 3,000 square feet of living space Luxurious bathrooms, sophisticated kitchens with high-end appliances 3 Bedrooms + 4th bedroom/family room with full bath West Portal Shopping District, easy access to freeway and MUNI Energy efficient features: solar available on most homes, radiant Close to Sigmund Stern Grove - trails, dog park and outdoor concerts Office: 415-566-1112 heat and High Green Ratings (per City of San Francisco scale) Homes prices starting at $1,699,000 139865 138463 THE EXAMINER SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 13, 2009 | SA 3 TALKING REAL ESTATE Gracious Noe Valley Craftsman What is “historic?” Offered at $2,395,000 a seemingly insignifi cant private home the ground fl oor of the new Fairmont Is it the Tonga Room? Is it is deemed historic. So you can’t really condo tower — the bar equivalent of gut- depend on me to tell you what is and isn’t ting a Deco movie palace, installing a Park Merced? Maybe we need historic. Walgreen’s and leaving up the marquee Instead, I’ll ruminate on the value to advertise this week’s specials — only to to revisit this powerful term. of preserving “low” culture — like the realize, thirty years later, that Polynesian Tonga Room. Th e aggregate total of life Pop style has real artistic, architectural Should we save experiences that have taken place there and historic value? the Tonga Room, since 1967 does have value — but is that A similar argument is brewing at Park or does its value enough? My 1982 Toyota Tercel was Merced, the 50s-era apartment complex exist only in the overfl owing with life experiences, but I located outside of “real San Francisco,” minds of kitsch- sold it for $2,000 to fi nance a trip to Aus- near San Francisco State. Are Park Mer- loving, nostalgic tralia anyway. ced’s low-rise, tilt-up buildings worth locals? Fairmont Th ere is an unfortunate sense of low saving? To someone they are. Larry Rosen Examiner Real Hotel owner Mar- self-esteem at the root of the dismissal Th e trick is to somehow look into the Estate Writer itz, Wolff & Co., of recently-produced American cul- future and guess how things will hold believes the lat- ture. Whether this is because it’s “new,” up. Westlake Doelgers? Once a scourge; ter. Th ey would like to replace it with because it (in many cases) was mass-pro- now, slowly gaining value. “Richmond a tower of far-more-profi table condo- duced or because it’s often gaudy and Specials?” No value; can’t be torn down miniums. Some would like to “save” the optimistic, our initial reaction to what fast enough. Tonga Room, however. Local architec- we’ve made seems to be a dismissive wave We have depended on a pat defi nition tural historian Chris VerPlank has been of the hand. for “historic” for too long, leading to the quoted as calling it “the best example of Over time, this can change; witness preservation of some questionable build- the Polynesian Pop style ever built in San the diff erence between the status of a ings and the demolition of some with Francisco.” row of San Francisco Victorians, circa value. Maybe it’s time to re-visit “historic.” I love the Tonga Room. I agree with 1962, and the same row today. We’ve [email protected] Chris VerPlank, and I know basically come to appreciate our creations as they nothing about historic and architec- age. What if we knock down the Tonga tural value. I’ll admit to confusion when Room, build a clean new version of it on ON THE MARKET byyy Larry Rosen Gorgeous 5 bedroom, 3 1/2 bath Noe Valley Longtime peninsula mortgage pro Michaelchael one of the fi rst apartment buildings to convert to condominium, home. Extensively renovated, expanded, and Haigh (and his eponymous group) has in 1963. Legend says there was once a miniature golf course in emerged at the W.J. Bradley Mortgage GGrouproup. its backyard. modernized. Open floor plan and beautiful Is this an indication that, after two years of finishes. Oversized chef’s kitchen and family clearing out the dead weight of the mort-- The Housing Leadership Council will take room flows seamlessly into the serene backyard. gage industry, established professionals over a part of Oracle HQ October 23 when fi nally have something to think about Michael Haigh they hold their annual Housing Leadership Four bedrooms and two baths conveniently beside the last two years’ barrage of new Day, a conference open to “community located on the second floor. Private upper rules, regulations and programs? It could very well be. Haight leaders, housing industry professionals, level features a master suite with a patio and can now be reached at [email protected]. advocates, business people and residents.” stunning views. If you fi nd yourself included in one of those FoFor all you wags who think Realtors spend categories, you’ll want to be on hand. This ththeir spare time counting money, try this one year’s conference, which runs from 7:00 am — 3:30 pm, will The great layout and design combined with the oon for size: McGuire agent Victor Zolezzi is focus on “opportunities for a sustainable economic recovery excellent condition and location truly set this the co-chair of the 2009 Festa Coloniale in a topsy, turvy market.” Fasten your seatbelt and see www. home apart. Italiane, which takes place September hlcsmc.com for more information. 19 in North Beach. Please forgive him For more information visit www.1825Castro.com for not holding his listings open that Are 54,790 new housing units really going to join the San Victor Zolezzi weekend, as he will be up to his eyeballs Francisco real estate market over the next fi ve to seven years? It in Italian food and culture. Don’t believe seems completely daffy, but 1825 Castro Street me? Go to www.sfi ac.org/festa.html for more information. that’s what the San Fran- Open House: cisco Planning Department Sun, Sept 13, 2-4pm Not all notable listings are mansions. estimated as part of its En- Thu, Sept 17, 5:30-7pm Take, for example, the latest studio at vironmental Impact Report Proposed Treasure Island 631 O’Farrell Street, the Alexander (EIR) for its 2004 and 2009 Development Plan Hamilton Hotel. Herth Real Estate agent Housing Element. Before you get claustrophobic, consider that Stefano DeZerega (and Hamilton resident) Tom Cacciotti 11,000 of those housing units are slated for Candlestick Point, 415.987.7833 [email protected] placed unit #906 on the market recently, while another 6,000 are planned for Treasure Island, and 6,000 www.stefanodezerega.com asking $299,000. The Art Deco Hamil- more for Park Merced. Will this ever come to pass? The Planning ton, opened in San Francisco in 1930 631 O’Farrell Department refers to trends of the previous decade to estimate Serving Clients & Community as a residential hotel (mostly occupied by “theater types”), was that approximately 85-90% of these proposed homes will be built. Please send your real estate insider news and tips to [email protected] CONTACTS Sonya Winterhalder San Francisco Maryann Bologna Peninsula Larry Rosen Reporter 415 359 2776 415.359.2652 415.359.2754 [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Please send press releases and news to: 71 Stevenson Street., San Francisco, CA 94105 or email: [email protected] or fax 415.359.2660 139824 4 SA | SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 13, 2009 THE EXAMINER SAN FRANCISCO’S TOP PICK Room to grow and gatherings, it overlooks a private Already-inspired Craftsman (and level) backyard. Too often, vintage San Francisco offers solutions for expansion homes suff er through misguided remod- els, their details and fi nishes removed in By Larry Rosen the interest of modernity. Fortunately, Examiner Staff Writer 156 Grattan has not endured this. Its liv- ing and dining rooms still boast built-in So much of the work on 156 Grat- shelves and cabinets. Th e original wood- tan Street has already been completed, burning living room fi replace has been it’s surprising that the home’s sellers have restored. Large, simple Craftsman trim thought of more to do. Spread out across is intact. the dining room table of the attractive, An elegant staircase leads to the sec- shingle-sided Cole Valley Arts & Crafts ond fl oor, which has (at present) two home at a recent open house, however, bedrooms, including the master. An were plans to add a third bedroom to the interesting, bright dressing room or home’s second fl oor. A proposed budget, offi ce is abuts the master, which also has completed by Timberline Construction, a remodeled (or recently added?) bath lay neatly next to the plans. with a soaking tub and shower.