Posts Tagged ‘Add new tag’
Thursday, May 21st, 2009
Here it comes from the We’re-from-the-Government-and-We’re-Here-to-Help-You people. Brace yourselves:
“The DRAFT Japantown Better Neighborhood Plan is ready for your review!”
O.K. then. But the problem is that some of the people involved in this process from the get-go now use the term “complete disaster” to describe it today. Let’s journey to Akit’s Complaint Department to get the reaction from Paul Osaki, Executive Director of the Japanese Cultural and Community Center of Northern California. It’s under “SF Japantown Crisis” – check it out, if you want.
Tearing down those malls on Post Street – is that a good idea? I don’t know. But keep in mind that these are the same people that sold you the “Great Street!” of Octavia Boulevard, which turned out to be a scar upon the land. (In mitigation, the Japantown “B”NP lacks the complicating factor have having architects designing like-nowhere-else-in-the-universe boulevards. Sorry, “Great Boulevards!”)
Anywho, check out the latest news and the meeting sked below, and check out the notes from a meeting with Mayor Gavin Newsom and Ross Mirkarimi after the jump. Things were so much happier back in 2007.
See if you agree that this plan is simply “a road map for developers.”
To Be Continued.
LATEST NEWS
The DRAFT Japantown Better Neighborhood Plan is ready for your review!
After several years of analysis and community process, the Draft Plan phase is ready for your review. The Draft Plan will be presented to the Planning Commission for Commission endorsement at the end of June 2009. Prior to endorsement, we will hold two informational hearings at the Planning Commission, and one hearing at the Historic Preservation Commission. In the upcoming month, please review the Draft Plan, attend any or all of the hearings to provide feedback , and send us your comments.
You can review each chapter individually by
clicking on the links below:
If you would like to purchase a hard copy of the Draft Plan, they will be available beginning May 26th in the Japantown Planning Room during our office hours (2nd floor of the Miyako Mall) or at Japantown Task Force at 1765 Sutter Street. We will also have free CDs and free copies available that you can read on site.
We will present the Draft Plan to the Planning Commission in May and June to seek endorsement. Please attend to express your opinion of the Plan’s recommendations.
The Draft Japantown Plan is currently on the Planning Commission’s calendar for:
- Thursday, May 28 (Information Only)
- Thursday, June 4 (Information Only)
- Thursday, June 25 (Anticipated Endorsement of Plan)
The hearings begin at 1:30 p.m. in the Commission Chambers – Room 400, San Francisco City Hall, 1 Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Place. Check the Planning Commission calendar at sfplanning.org (under “Calendars”) as the dates get closer; calendars are subject to change.
We will also present the Japantown Historic Resource Survey Findings and the Context Statement to the Historic Preservation Commission on June 3, 2009.
Want to discuss the Draft Plan or ask questions? Visit us during Office Hours in the Japantown Planning Room:
- Monday 11:00 am – 1:00 pm
- Wednesday 4:00 – 6:00 pm
- Thursday 11:00 am – 1:00 pm
If these times don’t work for you, please schedule a different time by contacting Rosie Dudley at 415-575-9068 or via email at rosemary.dudley@sfgov.org.
Send your comments to Rosie Dudley at 1650 Mission, Suite 400 San Francisco, CA 94103 or email them to rosemary.dudley@sfgov.org.
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Tags: Add new tag, akit, akit's, better neighborhood plan, brt, bus, bus rapid transit, department, DPT, fillmore, gavin newsom, geary, government, Japanese Cultural and Community Center, japantown, Mayor, Muni, Paul Osaki, Planning, planning commission, ross mirkarimi, San Francisco, street, sutter, traffic
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Saturday, May 16th, 2009
The Church of Scientology brought it today in a march from Justin Herman Plaza to Moscone Convention Center. Also involved were 20,000 souls at the American Psychiatric Association as well as the Group known as Anonymous.
A brief showdown in the SoMA. From left to right: a column of SFPD, Howard Street, 470 Scilons (capped with about 30 Anonymice at the far end), the shutterbugs, the shuttle buses, and then the amused shrinks on the right.
Anonymous dogged what some consider a multifacted transnational corporation at every turn. The March on Market:
“CHANTS FOR MARCH”
And oh yes, the C.O.S. has a little clubhouse on Howard Street now. Stay tooned…
Tags: Add new tag, American pychiatrict association, anonymous, apa, church, convention, cult, drugs, howard, march, parade, police, religion, San Francisco, scientoligists, scientologists, scientology, SFPD, soma, street
Posted in protests | Comments Off
Thursday, March 26th, 2009
Well the T. Boone Pickens medicine show came to town yesterday, so San Franciscans got the chance to see details of the Pickens Plan at the Commonwealth Club, the Western Hemisphere’s oldest and largest public affairs forum.
The Plan is another one those ever-popular ”public private partnerships,” which in this case has the federal government paying a couple hundred spare billion dollars to build electric transmission lines for proposed windmills in the Midwest.
Making the pitch last month with Al Gore in Washington D.C.:
via the Center for American Progress Action Fund
But what about the Phil Anschutz (yes, the very same Anschutz billionaire dude with a longtime interest in the Bay to Breakers civic event!) Plan? Let’s see:
“On July 29, The Anschutz Corp.,through its affiliate Transwest Express LLC, said it had acquired the rights to develop a proposed $3 billion, 900-mile transmission line capable of moving 3,000 megawatts of power from wind farms in southern Wyoming to markets in Southern California, Las Vegas and Phoenix.”
See? Somebody is trying to get something done without asking for hundreds of billions of your money. And that brings us to the white elephant on the white mountain up in northern Northern California.
Back in the 1950’s, the Everitt Memorial Highway on Mount Shasta was built so that the Mount Shasta Ski Bowl resort could be built. Did that project make sense?
“The old Mount Shasta Ski Bowl had been built in 1958 in a huge open cirque much higher up on the southern flank of the volcano, with a lodge at 7,800 ft and lifts topping out above timberline at 9,200 ft. However, the ski area had often been in financial trouble over the next two decades, and a massive avalanche in January 1978 which destroyed the main chairlift was the finishing blow. The Ski Bowl closed permanently after that…”
So just as the risk of this Shasta project was building an expensive road to nowhere, one of the risks of the Pickens Plan is building power lines to nowhere.
How is the Anschutz Corporation’s wind energy project working out? That’s a good thing to keep an eye on when you’re considering building a Bridge to Nowhere, or a Pickens transmission grid, or things like that.
O.K. fine.
Oh, and speaking of the Commonwealth Club, its ridiculous website’s popup ads remind us all of the upcoming Distinguished Citizen Award Dinner, coming up on Fiday, April 17, 2009 at the Fairmont Hotel. Enjoy.
Each year, The Club honors individuals who have made significant and enduring contributions to the Bay Area and California community, and who embody the principles and values of The Commonwealth Club.
The Annual Dinner is also The Club’s most significant fundraising event, raising funds to support its important nonprofit public forum mission throughout the year.
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Tags: Add new tag, anschutz, commonwealth club, energy, natural gas, phil, phillip, pickens, plan, San Francisco, t boone, wind, windmill
Posted in Uncategorized | 2 Comments »
Sunday, March 8th, 2009
What used to be a Pontiac (a brand of car, kids, back when San Francisco had an Auto Row) dealership changed to Mitchell Brothers O’Farrell Theatre in 1969 and the Tenderloin hasn’t been the same since.
Did one of the brothers shoot and kill the other? Sadly, yes. Did Mayor Diane Feinstein drop by one day? Gladly, yes.
Just read the Yelp reviews to see if its worth your $40 to enter.
Click to expand.
Happy Birthday, MB!
Tags: $40, 1969, 2009, 895, Add new tag, Brothers, diane feinstein, larkin, Mayor, mitchell, mitchell brothers, o'farell, o'farrell, Polk, San Francisco, Senator, theater, theatre, year's
Posted in buildings | Comments Off
Wednesday, March 4th, 2009
Here’s something you haven’t done but you should do: Visit the Sky Terrace atop the Westfield Mall on Market Street. It’s a Privately Owned Public Open Space, so the Man has to let you up there whether he likes it or not.
Hey, why not visit all the POPOS in San Francisco by using this well-researched guide from the people at SPUR and this handy map from the San Francisco Chronicle’s John King and Marcus Chan?
Here it is, featuring the Emprioum Dome. Click to expand:
You’re up fairly high and you get an unusual view of the City:
If you look the right direction, you can forget the past 80 or so years of development. Here you can see UC Hastings College of Law and the highest dome in the Western Hemisphere, San Francisco City Hall:
But is this rooftop retreat hard to find? Not really. If you’re out on the street, just go into 835 Market (right next to the Bong Building), tell the security guard you want to go up to the Sky Terrace, and then you’re up there in no time. If you get hassled, keep yelling, “I knows my rights!” Repeatedly. That ought to do the trick.
Will you want to go back? Maybe, maybe not. A lot of these POPOS places aren’t what you call “destinations” – they’re just places to hang out if you’re around.
Anyway, check it out.
“The new Sky Terrace is the perfect setting for an exclusive and urban rooftop experience. It has a private entrance and overlooks the gorgeous dome and cityscape.
It’s perfect for a VIP lounge, wedding ceremony, film location, reception or intimate dinner. Combining the Sky Terrace with Under the Dome creates an event that flows in surprising directions.
Up to 300 guests for a cocktail reception, 175 for a sit-down dinner. 3,000+ square feet. Up to 2,500+ guests when spaces are combined.”
See you there!
Tags: 835 market, Add new tag, bong, building, center, centre, dome, emprium, nordstom, owned, popos, private, privately, privately owned public space, privately owned publice open space, public, San Francisco Planning + Urban Research. San Francisco , San Francisco Planning and Urban Research, shopping, sky, sky terrace, skyterrace, space, spur, terrace, urban research, Urban Research spur, westfield
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Monday, March 2nd, 2009
You’re probably thinking that converting the front doors of your car to Lamborghini style scissors would be pricey, but you’re wrong.
What are you waiting for? Make sure to spring for the automatic option - you’ve got to keep things classy.
A stunning orange Chrysler 300C on 24th Street:
via fredsharples of Orange Design, Inc. Is this blushing orange, tangerine/cream triple beam lyrical dream Fred’s new company car? Let’s hope so.
Tags: 300, 300c, Add new tag, auto, blushing, car, chow, chrsler, church, conversion, district, dodge, doors, dream, mission, orange, scissor, srt, srt8, street
Posted in cars | 1 Comment »
Friday, February 20th, 2009
Of course last year’s Olympic protests around the Chinese Consulate at 1450 Laguna near Geary really livlied up the Western Addition / Japantown area in 2008. Let’s review and then see what’s coming up for 2009.
Did this really happen last year? Yes it did. It’s U.C. Davis grad / protest artist Nyendak Wangden hanging off the side of the gosh darn building. It’s supposed to look like she was hung by the neck, but she was safe under the robes in her climbing harness. Safe until somebody on the roof hacked at the red rope causing her to fall. Ouch. Click to expand:
Source unknown This could be a one-of-a-kind photo
How long a fall to the balcony would you say that was? 15 feet or so? Note the absence of the flagpoles in this later photo – those poles got nubbed shortly after the rope cutting incident.
The mise-en-scene from before the rope thang. (NB: The next time you illegally suspend yourself from a building to make a political point, do it above a balcony – it can be a long way to sidewalk otherwise:
But that was then, this is now. More recently, “serial package thrower” Aaron Bassler made the news by throwing items containing wacky stuff (something to do with the “Martian military”) over the fence of the consulate. These objects were treated as bombs by the SFPD. Thusly:
That crime wave is over. What’s coming up in 2009? Well, stuff to do with Tibet – read on after the jump.
And of course, the 20th anniversary of Tiananmen Square is coming up on June 4, 2009 as well. Just saying.
Concertina wire up on the roof and a decrease in flagpoles are two of the more obvious changes the past year. A recent photo:
(more…)
Tags: 2008, 2009, Add new tag, beijing, california, China, chinese, consulate, cut, free, Kendra Zanotto, Nyendak Wangden, Olympics, protest, rope, San Francisco, Square, team, Tiananmen, Tibet
Posted in politics | Comments Off
Friday, February 6th, 2009
As seen at Valencia Street and 24th Street in the Mission Mission District District.
It doesn’t get much more zig zaggy than that.
Click to expand
Tags: 24th, Add new tag, district, intesection, mission, roof, roofs, rooves, street, valencia
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Monday, February 2nd, 2009
Well, considering our balmy January, 2009 it’s only natural to expect the fruit trees of San Francisco, like your cherry and your plum, to start awakening for Spring. That’s good news for the wild parrots of Telegraph Hill, anyway.
Now the cherry trees near the Japanese Tea Garden in Golden Gate Park still have no buds, but a lot of other trees in the city are already going like gangbusters. Will we have cherry blossoms on Post Street this April, when the annual Japantown Cherry Blossom Festival rolls around?
This is what some trees near Stow Lake looked like in January, 2009
Only Punxsutawney Phil knows for sure.
Don’t tell the wild parrots about the blooms. The wild parrots of San Francisco love to eat flowers, num num:
Happy Ground Hog Day, San Francisco.
Tags: 2009, Add new tag, balmy, bloom, blossom, cherry, climate change, day, Festival, global warming, golden gate park, ground, groundhog, hanami, hog, january, Japanese, japantown, plum, post, sakura, San Francisco, spring, street, tree, warm
Posted in parks | 1 Comment »
Wednesday, January 14th, 2009
The answer to this question depends on how you look at it, of course, but it’s interesting to note that this new electronic sign was placed a mile away from the Music Concourse Garage, on a rainy weekday, during winter.
What’s going to happen this summer, when the California Academy of Sciences (CAS) is going to be even more popular, and when King Tut, the Boy King, returns to the de Young Museum starting June 27?
Empty streets, full garage, for some reason:
Click to expand.
Or for that matter, what about next month, when Evolve 2009 will attract Charles Darwin fans to the CAS?
Here’s what some of the neighbors think: the garage is an attractive nuisance that encourages visitors to queue up and idle in their cars all around the councourse on the weekends. If the garage were bigger, wealthy tourists could just drive in easily and be done with it. If the garage were smaller, maybe the tourists would find somewhere else to park.
(Next question: is it too expensive (three bones an hour, on the tweekends) or too cheap? Vested interests could make the case either way.)
Let’s all be patient during the upcoming Great Music Concourse Traffic Crisis of 2009. We’ll figure it out.
Eventually.
And aren’t we lucky to have such popular attractions in our backyard?
Yes we are.
Tags: 2009, academy, Add new tag, cars, CAS, de Young, full, golden gate park, healthy, museum, music concourse, parking, San Francisco, saturdays, science, streets, sundays, traffic
Posted in parks | Comments Off
4 MBChapter 2: Community Heritage - 
