Alemany protected bike lanes OPEN! Pedestrian Improvement in 2022!

COMMUNITY TO CELEBRATE NEW ALEMANY MAZE BIKEWAY 

SAN FRANCISCO, CA—On Sunday, February 28, District 9 Supervisor Hillary Ronen, community members, and state and local transportation agency representatives will gather to celebrate the installation of protected bike lanes along Alemany Boulevard and San Bruno Avenue at the US 101/I-280 interchange. The Alemany Interchange Bike Lanes Project includes new crosswalk striping, protected bike lanes, green painted bike left-turn boxes, and a lane reduction on Alemany Boulevard, making it safer and easier for people to bike and walk between the Portola and Bernal neighborhoods. 

These improvements were suggested by area residents from the Portola Neighborhood Association and later planned through the Alemany Interchange Improvements Study, a community-based effort funded by Caltrans and the SFCTA, which led the study.  The Phase 1 project was delivered by the SFMTA in partnership with Caltrans and SF Public Works. Funding for the project was provided by San Francisco’s half-cent sales tax for transportation.  

This celebration will mark the completion of the first phase of the Alemany Interchange Bike Lanes Project. The second phase of improvements, which includes a multi-use path and new signalized crossing of Alemany Boulevard near the Farmers Market, is scheduled for completion later this year.

What: Alemany Maze Bikeway Celebration and Bike Tour

Who: District 9 Supervisor Hillary Ronen, Portola Neighborhood Association, SF Bicycle Coalition, SFMTA Director Jeff Tumlin, SFCTA Director Tilly Chang, Caltrans 

When: Sunday, February 28th, 2021 at 11:15 a.m. 

Where: Meet at Alemany Farmers Market Entrance at 11:00 a.m. Brief remarks will begin at 11:15 a.m. This will be followed by a community bike ride to the Lunar New Year Celebration hosted by the Portola Neighborhood Association at 2675 San Bruno Ave. 

COVID Precautions: Please remember your mask and maintain distance with others at this event.

For More Information Contact: Paige Miller paige.miller@sfcta.org or 415-930-3132 

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.