San Francisco Housing Market Back on Track

From the Real Estate Channel,

San Francisco, CA

All-cash buyers and a fresh wave of investors are stimulating the San Francisco housing market.

Home sales activity in San Francisco is returning to a healthy pace, according to the latest Market Focus report issued jointly by the Rosen Consulting Group of Berkeley, CA and the San Francisco Association of Realtors.

The report finds that by some estimates, all-cash buyers represent 20-30 percent of homebuyers in the San Francisco market; resulting from more stringent mortgage lending practices, as well as a growing demand for investment opportunities as yields for many common investments remain unattractive.

Single-Family Sales Rise by 20.7 Percent Year-Over-Year in January 2011

Completed single-family home sales in San Francisco rebounded during the month of January by 20.7 percent.

Read more at The Real Estate Channel

Victim of Potrero Hill Homicide Identified

From SF Appeal,

A man who was shot and killed Saturday night in San Francisco's Potrero Hill neighborhood has been identified by the medical examiner's office as Aldo Hernandez.

Hernandez, a 25-year-old San Francisco resident, was shot at about 7:40 p.m. Saturday on Dakota Street near 23rd Street, police Sgt. Mike Andraychak said.

Officers arrived and found Hernandez sitting in the driver's seat of a parked car. He was pronounced dead at the scene, Andraychak said.

No arrests have been made in the case, police said.

The homicide was San Francisco's second on Saturday. Earlier in the day, 24-year-old Aldo Troncoso was fatally shot in the city's Mission District.

Troncoso was shot at about 2:25 a.m. near the intersection of 17th and Mission streets. He was taken to a hospital where he died at about 4 a.m., Andraychak said.

A black SUV-type vehicle was seen leaving the scene, but no arrests have been made and no other suspect information was immediately available, police said.

A third shooting on Sunday night in the Mission left a 27-year-old man seriously injured.

That victim was sitting in a car in the 1500 block of Alabama Street, near Cesar Chavez, at about 10:20 p.m. when suspects approached and shot him multiple times then drove away, Andraychak said.

He was rushed to a hospital with injuries that may be life-threatening, police said.

Investigators believe the shooting could be gang-related and are asking witnesses to come forward.

Anyone with information any of the shootings is encouraged to call the Police Department's anonymous tip line at (415) 575-4444 or send a tip by text message to TIP411.

California College of Arts buys 2.5 acres in Mission Bay

From SF Business Times,

California College of the Arts has bought the 2.5-acre former Greyhound maintenance yard on the Western edge of Mission Bay, a $8.4 million acquisition that will allow the arts school to grow its San Francisco campus.

The 102,000 square foot expanse of weed-choked pavement is bordered by 7th, Hooper, and Irwin Streets, and sits directly across the Caltrain tracks from a new Mission Bay park that includes a dog run and courts for tennis, volleyball, and basketball. It also sits next to CCA’s main San Francisco building at 1111 Eighth St.

Read more at San Francisco Business Times
(h/t T.W. Yip, Potrero Neighbors Yahoo Group)

Update: Quint Ave under the tracks

A follow-up to my post the other day about my walk to work and the homeless encampment under the tracks on Quint Ave.  I contacted Officer Matt Balzarini of the Bayview Station, and he went out to the site to let the inhabitants know that they were being evicted from under the tracks.  Wednesday, we hope to see some movement and improvement.

NASA Ames Research Center to Host Science Festival for Hunters Point Students

All are invited to the 10th anniversary of the Reachout for the Rainbow After School Science Festival on Sunday, Feb. 27, at the Bayview Opera House in San Francisco.

Festivities include presentations and musical performances by students; interactive science projects from NASA's Ames Research Center featuring the Traveling Space Museum, the San Francisco Exploratorium and the Museum of African American Technology (MAAT) Science Village; and a special guest appearance via Skype by former astronaut and NASA's Associate Administrator for Education Leland Melvin. State Senator Leland Yee, San Francisco Mayor Edwin Lee and other civic leaders have been invited to attend.

This free family community event supports NASA's science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) efforts to reach out to underrepresented Bay Area students. Reachout for the Rainbow After School is a nonprofit faith-based program located in the Bayview Hunters Point community and housed in the Seventh-day Adventist Church.

WHO: State Senator Leland Yee, San Francisco civic leaders, including San Francisco Supervisor Malia Cohen, San Francisco Schools Assistant Superintendent Cynthia Gray, and NASA officials.

WHAT: Numerous exhibits and hands-on science and technology activities, including the opportunity to remotely operate a real NASA rover.

WHEN: Noon to 5 p.m. PST, Sunday, Feb. 27, 2011.

WHERE: Bayview Opera House, 4705 Third Street, San Francisco, Calif. 94124

For more information about NASA Ames, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/ames

For information about NASA and agency programs, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/home

Recchiuti Opening a Cafe in Ex-Piccino Space

From SF Weekly,

It's no secret that Dogpatch is becoming one of the coolest playgrounds for food in San Francisco. And ever since Piccino announced last year that it would move to bigger and badder digs around the corner from its current location, there has been a good amount of speculation about who would take its spot along 22nd Street.


Yesterday, confection maker Michael Recchiuti confirmed that he and his wife, Jacky, will be opening a cafe in the Piccino space at 801 22nd St. (at Minnesota), later this year, they hope. The details are still being worked out, and the Recchiutis say that timing will depend on when Piccino makes its transition, which is expected for March.

Read more at SF Weekly

My walk to work this morning...

I'm tired of this....I've tried Caltrain, the City's 311, and no one seems willing to help. Supervisor Cohen, time to put on that Wonder Woman cape, climb into your invisible jet, take out your golden lasso and clean up this town!!

3rd Street Youth Center & Clinic hopes to expand

From SFGate,

In the former All Night Market, a liquor store in San Francisco's Bayview-Hunters Point neighborhood that once served as a notorious breeding ground for graffiti and crime, teens now come to get health care.

The market turned not only into a teen health clinic, but also a community youth center that offers youths counseling sessions, dance and other classes - and a place to simply do their homework.

Over the past five years, the 3rd Street Youth Center & Clinic has grown from having just a handful of patients and a small part-time staff to one that has served more than 1,600 kids. The idea for the combined clinic and youth center came out of efforts by residents to provide something the neighborhood needed.

Read more at SFGate

Single-Family Sales Rise by 20.7 Percent Year-Over-Year in January 2011

From Business Wire,

Completed single-family home sales in San Francisco rebounded during the month of January by 20.7 percent. Year-over-year single-family home sales rose at a noticeably accelerated pace in Districts 2 (Inner Sunset, Central Sunset, Outer Sunset, Parkside, Inner Parkside, Outer Parkside, and Golden Gate Heights)—72.2 percent and District 10 (Potrero Hill, Central Waterfront, Dogpatch, Bayview-Hunters Point, Bayview Heights, India Basin, Silver Terrace, Candlestick Point, Visitacion Valley, Little Hollywood, Sunnydale, McLaren Park, and part of Portola)—46.7 percent where the median sales prices in January 2011 were $619,000 and $414,250, respectively. Pending single-family home sales also increased by an impressive 37.5 percent year-over-year in January 2010, leading the Rosen Consulting Group to believe that the upward trend observed in property sales should continue at least through the early part of 2011.

At the current pending sales rate, this equates to a 2.9 months of supply inventory. By price segment, the months of supply inventory for homes priced less than $700,000 remains narrow at 2.3 months, while homes within the $700,000 to $1.2 million price range had 3.6 months and the supply of homes priced greater than $1.2 million edged upwards slightly from January 2010 to 4.6 months.

Lennar Bets on Ex-Officer Housing ‘Party’ as California Rebounds

From Bloomberg News,

Emile Haddad, a former Lennar Corp. executive, sold 12,000 acres in California for a $277 million profit at the housing market’s peak four years ago. He and his partners then reacquired it at half the price in 2009. Now, Haddad says, it’s time to build.

Haddad, chief executive officer of FivePoint Communities Inc., is developing four new master-planned communities with a combined 45,000 residences, two in the Los Angeles area and two in San Francisco. Construction of the first homes is scheduled to begin in the second half of this year. Investors including Lennar, Michael S. Dell’s MSD Capital LP, Ross Perot Jr.’s Hillwood Development Co. and Rockpoint Group LLC are banking on the projects as the state emerges from a five-year housing bust.

Read more at Bloomberg

District 10: 2009 vs 2010 Median Price and Price Per Square Foot

Matt Fuller of Jackson Fuller Realty writes, 

% Change

 In comparing values in 2010 to 2009, only 2 (real estate district) D10 neighborhoods saw an increase in median home price, and that was in Bayview and Bayview Heights.  All of the other neighborhoods were down, with Mission Terrace being just slightly down (-1.5%) and Hunters Point being substantially down (-46.5%).

Price/Sq Ft

The least expensive D10 neighborhood was Hunters Point, with a median price of $110,000, while Mission Terrace came in as the most expensive with a median price of $571,500. If we try and attempt to adjust for difference in average size by neighborhood and look at price per square foot (which has other issues, as I’ve discussed), then we see the exact same results with Mission Terrace coming in at $459 per square foot and Hunters Point coming in at $94 per square foot.

District 10 has never been known as housing expensive neighborhoods, but I do think that these neighborhoods are where San Francisco has seen some of the greatest impact from the fallout of predatory and just-bad-idea loans that have led to a significant number of short sales and REO properties.

For real estate district D9, which includes political D10 neighborhoods Potrero Hill, Dogpatch, Matt Fuller writes the following,

Parks94124 Kick-off next Saturday

From the San Francisco Examiner,

Lafayette Park has a neighborhood group that advocates for it. So does Glen Canyon Park. And Dolores Park has several.

But the 11 parks in the Bayview-Hunters Point area have not had a loud advocating voice, and local resident Geoffrea Morris wondered if that was why those other parks are getting renovated while the parks in her neighborhood seem to be in a state of perpetual disrepair.

Morris, who was a District 10 candidate in the last San Francisco Board of Supervisors election, and three other women from the Bayview decided to remedy that problem by forming the new group Parks 94124. The group aims to secure new funding to rehabilitate what the group describes as “the  many neglected and dilapidated parks in the 94124 ZIP code.”

In addition to advocating for The City to maintain the parks more, the group will take matters into their own hands and organize cleanup efforts, as well as conduct outreach on park stewardship.

The group will officially launch next Saturday, Feb. 26, in an event supported by themayor’s office, Supervisor Malia Cohen, among others. Then they will take up trash bags and scrub brushes for some community park cleanups in March and April.

The three highest priority parks will be Hilltop Park, Hunters Point Youth Park, and Gillman Park.
These parks are in such bad shape that they “really should have been in the 2008 bond measure” – but  in fact, none of the parks in the neighborhood were, outside of a handful of bathroom renovations.

“That’s why the group really started, is to push the agenda of the parks in the Bayview. Since we have the most kids in our neighborhood, we need our parks to be safe, clean and usable,” Morris said.

The community kickoff will take place at 1 p.m. on Feb. 26 at the Joseph Lee Recreation Center.

Let's increase pedestrian access to Alemany Farmers Market

For those who live in the Portola and Silver Terrace neighborhoods, pedestrian access to the Alemany Farmer's Market would be great.  Parking there is a bear, and really, who wants to drive to such a close local gem when we could walk?  Bernal Heights residents already have relatively easy pedestrian access, but because of the freeways, those of us just south of the farmers' market are made to feel like we need to drive.

Stuart Brady, a neighbor who wrote into The Portola Yahoo Group, recently wrote Supervisors Cohen and Campos about the possibility of increasing foot traffic to the market via a new walkway and some additional minor changes.  All seem like relatively low-cost, high-benefit ideas.  I hope this gains traction! 

In his letter to the Supes, he writes,

Dear Supervisor Campos & Supervisor Cohen, and all who help to make San Francisco a more pedestrian friendly city, I would like to propose that a walkway be built to connect the Portola District to Farmers Market in Bernal Heights.

Currently,  to walk from the Portola District to the Farmers Market,  you have to walk at least half a mile under the freeway, then sandwiched between the 280 fwy and 6 lanes of Alemany Blvd , only to be forced to cross Alemany Blvd at a freeway off-ramp.  I believe we can make a much safer and more pedestrian friendly connection between the two neighborhoods by adding a walkway between San Bruno Ave, under the South 101-280 connector, and into a new pedestrian gateway, at the East end of the Farmers Market.

In its simplest form this would require 4 main components:

-         Add striping for a crosswalk between the West Side of San Bruno Ave to the area under the freeway (crossing Alemany Eastbound).
-         Pave a pathway under the South 101-280 connector
-         Install a new traffic signal and crosswalk between area under the freeway and the East end of the Farmers Market, (crossing Alemany Westbound, approximately where Peralta Ave and Tompkins Ave meet).
-         Removal of some fencing between the Farmers Market and Alemany Blvd

Additional improvements that could be incorporated initially or in the future:

-         Grand Pedestrian Gateway for the "East" entrance
-         Landscaping along pathway
-         Improving walkway from the new "East" entrance of Farmers Market and Bayshore Blvd, at Cortland.

Fellow neighbors chimed in with some very worthwhile responses offering advice, information on other people to contact and projects that are being proposed.

Hopefully Ms Cohen and Mr Campos are reading this and can offer some advice on how to proceed with this great idea!

San Francisco, Waste, And Environmental Discrimination At Hunters Point

From SFGate,

Readers of this space know that I have been following the landfill contract process in San Francisco for some time now. Until a few weeks ago it was a battle between two companies. The winning bidder, a local employee-owned company, Recology, had a far more economical bid and a superior environmental transportation mode by taking the hauling of the trash out of trucks and putting it onto trains.

The losing bidder is the current service provider, Waste Management of Houston, Texas. Waste has worked tirelessly to keep the business after submitting a bid that was more than double Recology's and approaching ten times their current price.

It even bought off typical opponents like the Sierra Club, creating an environmental industrial complex in the process by creating an economic incentive for them to keep receiving waste at the Altamont landfill through a open space mitigation fee overseen by the club.

Somewhat expectedly, the City's Budget and Finance Committee rejected Waste's tactics agreeing that there is no disputing the facts that Recology is cheaper and more environmentally superior option.

Case closed, right?

No. We forgot that this is the San Francisco Board of Supervisors where closing simple matters is no simple task. Instead of moving forward with the clear winner of their competitive bidding process, the B of Supes took a big two-month time out.

Why, you ask?

Well, because a company named Waste Solutions - that makes a living hauling toxic waste out of San Francisco on Port property in the Bayview - had an idea.

So what is the big idea to warrant this delay?

What is the earth shattering revelation that disrupted a multi-year competitive bid process raised by a company that did not even put forward a bid in the process?

Geniuses really, move the dump to the Bayview and barge it to Pittsburgh. Huh? Move the dump to the Bayview, next to the sewage treatment facility. Move the dump next to the power point that the community worked to close for more than 20 years. Move the dump to the Bayview where Lennar is expected to invest billions of dollars into building out the shipyard.

I don't get it. The community will not get it. Apparently the City of Pitsburgh and the Port of San Francisco will get the trash and the revenue that comes with it.

Nice, right?

But what will the Bayview get? More environmental justice issues to deal with in a community that has struggled with every environmental impact the fair City of San Francisco has had to offer for the past 50 years.

One would hope that someone, somewhere, would actually bring this to the community for their discussion before derailing the rail option of the winning bidder that saved the City $130 million before they lose that offer in the City's continued pursuit of environmental terrorism residents of the Bayview.

SF Officials Going Door To Door In Fight Against Illegal Dumping

From SF Appeal,

San Francisco city officials are going door-to-door in the city's Bayview-Hunters Point neighborhood this afternoon to educate business owners and residents about the effects of illegal dumping.

The San Francisco Department of the Environment and Department of Public Works are collaborating on the outreach effort, which is focusing on an area of the city that is a known hotspot for illegal dumping, public works spokeswoman Gloria Chan said.

The departments are about halfway through a six-week campaign targeting industrial and other businesses that dump waste and residents who leave bulky items like couches and mattresses on city sidewalks and streets, Chan said.

Read more at SF Appeal

Packers Player From Bayview Honored At City Hall

From SF Appeal,

A San Francisco native who plays for the Super Bowl champion Green Bay Packers was honored at today's Board of Supervisors meeting for his accomplishments.

Desmond Bishop, 26, is a linebacker on the Packers, which won the NFL championship over the Pittsburgh Steelers on Feb. 6.

Bishop is also a native of San Francisco's Bayview-Hunters Point neighborhood with a large family still living in the area. Many of his family members showed up at today's board meeting, where he was honored along with other community members as part of Black History Month commendations.

Read more at SF Appeal

Men Behind SF Funeral Home Charged With Fraud, Theft

From KTVU.com,

Two men have been charged with grand theft for allegedly misappropriating funds at a funeral home in San Francisco's Bayview neighborhood, District Attorney George Gascon said Tuesday.

Derek Washington, 38, of Oakland, and Donald Rollins, 56, of Fairfield, allegedly accepted advance payments for funeral services by their company, Funerals by Washington, and then used the money inappropriately, Gascon said.

"This is a very despicable crime" that involved "taking advantage of some of our most vulnerable" community members, Gascon said.

Smoke detector give-away tomorrow

Inspiration for 161 Gambier - 1960 Quesada

A few days ago, I posted about 161 Gambier St and what the neighbors have had to go through to get the city involved in order to get the owner to take responsibility for his property.

One neighbor wrote into the Portola Yahoo group concerned about monster homes going in, owners being pushed off their property by "busybody" neighbors, and the diverse character of the neighborhood being compromised. Well, one thing she forgets is that the house in question, like many in the city, were built in the '40s, and the city is very keen on maintaining old neighborhoods in their historic appearance (a double-edged sword, as anyone who's tried to update their home has found out). So, I think that her fears are misplaced about a giant McMansion being built on the site.

In my Silver Terrace neighborhood, we had a similar house that was uninhabitable and a danger to kids looking for a spot to play - the windows were boarded up, the roof was missing, and the garage door unsecured and inviting to a curious child or shelter-needy homeless person.

Over the course of the past couple of years, the property slowly transformed, and now there is a family living in the house. Through observation of the people on the block who seemed most interested in the property, it looks to me like a resident who owns a house up the street also owned this derelict property and ended up restoring it so that their parents could live in it.

So (duh!), a property owner who cares about the neighborhood that they're living in can make a huge difference.

Bayview Newsletter from Captain Greg Suhr

Bayview District Weekly Newsletter

BAYVIEW POLICE STATION 201 WILLIAMS AVE S.F. 94124 (415) 671-2300

Captain Greg Suhr
February 11, 2011
CAPTAIN’S MESSAGE
HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY WEEKEND!
SAN FRANCISCO POLICE COMMISSION

SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT

The San Francisco Police Commission has begun the process of selecting
nominees to submit to Mayor Edwin Lee for the position of Chief of
Police for the San Francisco Police Department. The Commission invites
public participation in this process, including input from the public
on preferred qualities and characteristics for the next Chief of
Police.

Members of the public are welcome to provide public comment at the
Commission’s regularly scheduled meetings, and to submit written
materials to the Commission.

In addition, the Commission has scheduled the following events where
Commissioners will meet with members of the public and listen to input
regarding the qualities and characteristics sought in the next Chief of
Police. Two or three Commissioners will attend each event, which are
scheduled on these dates and locations:
•
Thursday, February 17, 2011, from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.,
at the Southeast Community Facility located at 1800 Oakdale
Avenue.
The Southeast Community Facility Commission is providing the use
of the Alex Pitcher Jr. Community Room for the event.


• Thursday, February 24, 2011, from 6 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., at the San
Francisco LGBT Community Center located at 1800 Market Street. The San
Francisco LGBT Community Center is providing the use of its facility
for the event.


All members of the public are welcome to attend one or more of these
community events. REQUEST ACCOMODATION? For questions, please
contact the Police Commission Office at 415-553-1667.

_____________________________________________


Bayview Station holds community meetings with Captain Suhr on the first
Tuesday of each month. All are welcome to attend!


The next meeting is on Tuesday,


March 1st, 6:00 pm


Bayview Community Room, 201 Williams Ave. (cross street Newhall )


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

Incidents of Interest:

Woman Wounded In Shooting Crossfire In SF's Dogpatch...er, Bayview

Multiple local news outlets ran this story, but all failed to realize that Third and Quesada is about a mile-and-a-half south of the most generous definition of San Francisco's Dogpatch neighborhood. It's Bayview folks!

A woman was shot and injured in San Francisco's Dogpatch neighborhood Thursday afternoon, according to a fire dispatcher.

Ambulances responded to reports of a shooting at 5001 Third St. at about 2:35 p.m., the dispatcher said.

The woman was apparently walking into a store near Quesada Avenue and Third Street when she got caught in the crossfire of a suspect who was allegedly shooting at someone else, San Francisco police Officer Eric Chiang
said.

A bullet struck the woman's arm, and she was transported to San Francisco General Hospital for treatment of injuries that were not believed to be life threatening, Chiang said.

Police were still searching this afternoon for the suspected shooter, who was described as a man in his early 20s wearing a gray short-sleeve shirt and black pants.

Anyone with information about the case is encouraged to call San Francisco police at (415) 553-1651.

Read more at the San Francisco Examiner



View Larger Map

A Hulluva Find - SFGate

From SFGate,

When engineers working near Candlestick Park last March drilled deep into the ground for soil samples, they pulled up chunks of wood and figured it was an old pier.

They had no idea it was a century-old ship, let alone two.

But that became clear this week when the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission uncovered what maritime experts believe are a pair of scow schooners, 90-foot-long workhorse vessels that plied the bay shallows in the late 1800s to deliver hay, salt, bricks, pork, coal, lumber and other cargo. Buried under more than 14 feet of sand and fill dirt, the 45-foot-long hull sections came to light at the mouth of an enormous trench that will house a new overflow sewage pipe for the Visitacion Valley neighborhood.

Read more at SFGate

161 Gambier - when neighbors are forced to take matters into their own hands

There's been a lot of discussion on the Portola Yahoo Group the past couple of weeks about 161 Gambier St. It is an address which, through two owners, has remained a blight on the neighborhood for, according to some who've lived on the block for some time, thirty years.  While technically outside of District 10, I'm pretty certain we'd all be able to find a house like this somewhere in our district, and this neighborhood's fight to abate one in theirs is inspiration to us all to try to do the same.

161 Gambier St

Due in part to the efforts of about 20 neighbors writing a letter and intervention from the Mayor's Office liaison, this issue went before the Building Inspection Commission (BIC) last year. There was a one-year abatement order issued; the property owner had until Dec. 16 to make significant upgrades to the property. January 11th was the first BIC Litigation Hearing since Dec 16 (they had to wait for the abatement period to end before they could make a decision).  The matter was referred to the City Attorney's office, as the BIC was able to determine that the owner has no funds for improvements.

Jana Clark in the City Attorney's office told one of the neighbors leading this effort that first they'll inform the property owner that the matter has been referred to their office, and was told that that's often enough to get the owner to improve the property or sell. If not, the City Attorney will sue the owner. Clark said that in her year in this position she's never had a case go to court, as it's resolved before that. The one big complicating factor is if the owner is incompetent.  This isn't going to be a fast process, but we're thinking more like 2 years than 20...which is an improvement over 30 years of neglect.

Apparently, the owner has turned down suggestions for help from Habitat for Humanity or any other agency.  Neighbors just want him to sell it, get what money out of it that he can, and let someone buy it who's going to be a good neighbor, either through tearing it down and putting up something nice, or by renovating it.

Although most of the neighbors in the Yahoo group cheered Lisa Campbell, who's led the effort to get the house cleaned up, one reader just didn't seem to understand the importance of, and legality of the city becoming involved in telling a homeowner they cannot allow their home to become a blight.  After referring to everyone as "busybodies" for getting involved in their neighborhood, and without any apparent knowledge of the long history of neglect at this house, the neighbor went ballistic on others whom she called, "folks like you that drag our lovely, diverse, urban neighborhood further and further toward the kind of elitist, narrow-minded suburbia atmosphere that I feared when I moved here."  After a great many respectful disagreements of her views in subsequent emails by others to the group, "spyderchyld" wrote in again to apologize, sort of, saying,

Supervisor Cohen Loses Home

Longtime readers probably remember me writing about this back in October, when Ms Cohen seemed to have been on a better track with regard to her foreclosure.

Ouch!  Sorry to read this today, Malia.  From SFGate's Matier & Ross

On the home front: San Francisco Supervisor Malia Cohen has joined the ranks of the foreclosed, having lost her $581,178 condo to the bank.

The 33-year-old Cohen was a community organizer and ran a social-media business before her election in November from District 10. She says she was the victim of a predatory bank loan on the two-bedroom condo she bought with no money down in 2006 at 501 Crescent Way just west of Candlestick Park.

Cohen said before the election that the foreclosure was being "rescinded." However, efforts to renegotiate the loan failed, and she moved out Jan. 4, four days before she was sworn in.
"It was underwater, so I let it go," Cohen said.

These days, Cohen says, she's living in a rented apartment in the district. She declined to disclose the address.

As for her former condo, Wells Fargo bank has put it back on the market for $314,900.

SF Board Opposes Elimination of Redevelopment Agency

From the Epoch Times,

Governor Jerry Brown’s “hammered out” budget proposal for California prompted the San Francisco Board of Supervisors to oppose the elimination of the redevelopment agency.

“I think the board spoke unanimously today of our opposition to the elimination of redevelopment,” said Supervisor and San Francisco Board President David Chiu following the passage of the resolution.

“Redevelopment has had incalculable positive impacts in San Francisco and to lose the sources of funding, the opportunity to use redevelopment law to move forward various communities and neighborhoods would be catastrophic,” he added.

Read more at Epoch Times

Bayview Newsletter from Captain Greg Suhr

BAYVIEW POLICE STATION 201 WILLIAMS AVE S.F. 94124 (415) 671-2300

Captain Greg Suhr
February 4, 2011
CAPTAIN’S MESSAGE

Bayview Station holds community meetings with Captain Suhr on the first
Tuesday of each month. All are welcome to attend!

The next meeting is on Tuesday,
March 1st, 6:00 pm

Bayview Community Room, 201 Williams Ave. (cross street Newhall )

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

Homicide:

On January 30th at 8PM, Bayview Officers responded to the 900 block of
Connecticut regarding a call of a shooting. Upon arrival they located
the 33 year old male victim with a gunshot wound to the torso.
Paramedics responded and rendered aid. The victim was transported to
SFGH where, unfortunately, his injuries proved fatal.

Bayview officers on scene conducted an investigation that led to the
arrest of the suspect and the recovery of the suspected weapon within
hours of the incident.

(SFPD Case # 110093238)

Third Street Banners are Now Up Along Third Street!

From the Bayview Merchants Association,

Last year, the San Francisco Redevelopment Agency awarded the Bayview Merchants’ Association funding to create, print, and install Third Street banners for Bayview-Hunters Point’s Third Street corridor.  And one year later, with the support and guidance of the BVHP Project Area Committee (PAC),  BAYCAT, artists Malik Seneferu and Juan Fuentes, local printing service Yes V Can, the Third Street Corridor Project, Renaissance Bayview,  neighborhood business owners other community stakeholders on the Third Street Marketing Committee, the Third Street banners are FINALLY (partially) up along Third Street!  This is a huge victory for the Bayview Merchants Association and the entire Bayview-Hunters Point community and we would like to thank everyone who was involved in the process for helping make this project a reality.

Read more at the BMA's blog.

SF EcoCenter wins EPA Award

Congratulations!!

From the Bay Citizen,

The EcoCenter at Heron's Head Park, operated by the Literacy for Environmental Justice (LEJ), is truly a diamond in the rough.

Nestled deep in the Bayview Hunters Point neighborhood among a tallow rendering plant, a wastewater treatment facility, a concrete plant, and one of the state's largest Superfund sites, the environmental justice education facility may just be the Bay Area's most innovative green building.

Solidifying the EcoCenter's spot as environmental jewel, it was awarded the Environmental Protection Agency's 2010 National Achievements in Environmental Justice Award. According to the EPA, the award "recognizes partnerships that address local environmental justice concerns and result in positive environmental and human health benefits in communities." Only five awards were given out last year.

Read more at the the Bay Citizen,

Grenades found in San Francisco neighborhood

According to someone who lives nearby, "someone was cleaning out a garage and found a bag full of grenades.  Bomb squad was out with robots trying to figure it all out." (h/t RF, Potrero Neighbors Yahoo Group)

From multiple news sources,

Possibly explosive devices were found Thursday morning in San Francisco's Potrero Hill neighborhood, prompting a closure of several surrounding streets, a police spokesman said.

Grenades were found about 7:15 a.m. in a building in the 600 block of Potrero Avenue, San Francisco police Lt. Troy Dangerfield said.

Bomb technicians were at the scene as of 8 a.m. to investigate the devices, Dangerfield said.

"We're not sure whether they're real or fake," he said.

Potrero Avenue has been closed between Mariposa and 19th streets, and 18th Street has been closed between Hampshire and Utah streets during the investigation, Dangerfield said.

SF Examiner

SF Appeal  Update 9 AM: Potrero Ave has been reopened.

SJ Mercury News

SF Chronicle

KTVU

Trash/ID Theives in Potrero Hill

UPDATE: I recieved this from Recology this morning:

"Thank you for contacting Recology Sunset. We do provide locking carts for our customers with a monthly access fee of $11.05 per cart. If you would like to order the locking blue cart, please contact our office at 415-330-1300 8am-4:30pm Monday thru Friday."

There've been a lot of posts recently on the Potrero Hill Yahoo group about people rummaging through trash bins late at night.  This happens all across the nation, so it's something all of us can help to keep an eye out for and help stop from happening.

One resident posted the following useful information... From Steve S., 

Some information about the recycle bin thieves.  At last November's Booster meeting, we had a Bayview-Hunters Point police officer provide a neighborhood safety briefing for the Hill.  During that meeting I had inquired about what could be done to address the people rummaging thru our recycle bins.  Sgt. Dave O'Connor contacted me to get more information about this situation and to help us address the problem.  He indicated that he will be patrolling the neighborhood starting next week specifically looking for these folks.  He will also have the help of an additional car on regular patrol as well, and he will be informing the other officers in the district to be aware of this problem.  Their approach is to first inform/educate these people about the city's recycling laws, make note of who the culprits are, and to use their patrol presence as a deterrent.  If that doesn't work, then they can always start issuing citations to repeat offenders.  But their initial intent is to scare these people away by making their patrol presence known.  They will, however, be on the lookout for the larger recycle trucks that are trying to collect these recyclables and may be more aggressive with them.  In the meantime, if anyone sees this happening, you should call the non-emergency police line to the BayviewHunters Point station (415-553-0123) and report it, and ask them to let Sgt. O'Connor know that this is happening.  

You can also go to the Recology SF website to report recycling thefts.

According to this document, in San Mateo County, residents are allowed to purchase a lock and key from Recology.  Why not here in San Francisco?

Read more about recycling theft in San Mateo County at the SF Examiner 

New Visitacion Valley Greenway Website

The Visitacion Valley Greenway has gotten it's new website up and running.  Nice job!  Check it out for volunteering opportunity and news

Third Street Corridor Project Survey

The Third Street Corridor Project encourages you to take five minutes of your time to complete this survey for the Third Street Corridor Project. The purpose is to gather information and critical data needed to make recommendations for what types of businesses and activities the community desires along the Third Street Corridor. In addition, there are a few questions asking where you shop for goods and services and why.

The Survey will take 5 minutes to complete. All of your responses will be kept confidential. Only people directly involved with this project will have access to the surveys.

Online completion of this survey indicates voluntary consent to participate in this study. If you would like to participate in the $100 gift certificate drawing, you must provide contact information (name, telephone number and email) in the space provided.

Please follow the link below to begin your survey!

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/thirdstreetbusinessattractionsurvey

If you have any questions pertaining to the survey, please do not hesitate to contact Wendy Guzman at wendy@rencenter or 415-647-3728 ext.6409.

Unite Potrero: A community-wide get-together

Building on last weekend's 100+ strong Unite Potrero meeting, there will be a follow-up meeting this Saturday, February 5th at St Theresa's Church, 390 Missouri St. to move action items forward.

2011 Black History Month Kickoff

Revolutionary Soldier, 1994, Ed Dwight

“African Americans and the Civil War”

Thursday, February 3, 2011 at 12PM

San Francisco City Hall Rotunda
1 Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Place

Admission: Free / No ticket required

Please RSVP by email (info@sfaahcs.org), on Facebook, or by registering on Eventbrite

Featuring:
Mayor Ed Lee
Supervisor Malia Cohen
Keynote Speaker Bernard Kinsey

Presented by the San Francisco African American Historical & Cultural Society with support from San Francisco’s Grants for the Arts, the San Francisco Public Library, and the California Council for the Humanities.

For more information: (415) 292-6172 or info@sfaahcs.org

Online: www.sfaahcs.org
h/t Edie Epps

UCSF Medical Center at Mission Bay--RFQ for artists

UCSF has issued a “Request for Qualifications – Call to Artists for the Temporary Art Projects for the Construction Site Perimeter”; please read for details.

The RFQ can also be viewed at http://ucsf.rfq.gregoirebaer.com/

This temporary art project for the Medical Center at Mission Bay construction site perimeter will be the first project in an ambitious art program. It will reflect UCSF’s commitment to integrate art into the fabric of the new facilities as well as engage the surrounding community. The fence will be in use for approximately 3 years and the selected projects may be rotated or may remain for the duration of the construction process with the possibility of becoming a permanent art project within the hospitals.

Click to find out how to apply and to

For SF’s Chinese Landlords, Verbal Agreements Can Spell Trouble - Bay Citizen

From the Bay Citizen,

The case of a Visitacion Valley landlord who beat up one of his tenants has sparked a series of reports in the Chinese-language Sing Tao Daily newspaper painting the case as an example of a larger cultural problem.

Bo En Liu, 35, the landlord of an apartment building on San Bruno Avenue, was charged with assault with a deadly weapon after he brought five people and a shovel to beat up one of his tenants, reports the Sing Tao Daily. Liu is one of many landlords of Chinese descent in San Francisco who are accustomed to relying on verbal agreements. Experts say not asking tenants to sign written contracts can lead to trouble.

Read more at the Bay Citizen