I haven’t seen a whale from San Francisco lately.
Click to expand
Posts Tagged ‘presidio’
The Grey Whales of San Francisco’s Baker Beach – Another Great Capture from Nature’s Lantern
Tuesday, April 2nd, 2013A Brief History of Foxes in Golden Gate Park – Looks Like They’re Not Around Anymore
Monday, April 1st, 2013Here are some recent reports of fox encounters in San Francisco:
2010 at Strybing Arboretum in Golden Gate Park
Another one in GGP
2010 in the Parkside near the Zoo
2009 at Strybing Arboretum in GGP
It was a lot easier to spot foxes back in the Aughts, back in the first decade of the 2000′s. But then poison got a few of them (and one got hit by a car on Crossover Drive, I think).
And native gray foxes are probably up there in the Presidio still, but I can’t point you to photos to show that. Oh well.
Here’s a report from Joyce W., who saw a Fantastic Mr. (or Mrs. Fox) back in 2009:
“It was about 4:00 pm and the fox was within 15 feet of JFK BLVD at the far West end.
It was intently watching a gopher hole on a wide open patch of mowed lawn.
Two cars stopped and watched in silence which didn’t seem to bother the fox.
It wasn’t until a jogger came by that the creature dashed into the woods.
I am 90% sure it was a Red Fox and not our local Grey Fox. Very striking colour combination with the red, black and white.
How did these creatures end up in the park? Amazing.
I regret that my cell phone was tucked away. I was mesmerized by the vision before my eyes and didn’t want to divert my gaze for a second.
I watched it be absolutely still for at least three minutes.”
Here are some of the red foxes I’ve photographed in GGP over the years:
The last fox I photographed in Golden Gate Park. A wispy blur:
From about 175 feet away in Strybing Arboretum. She’ll see you before you see her:
A kit (or pup or cub) with its mom:
Keep a look out.
Photo: California Quail of Golden Gate Park Out on a Date
Friday, March 29th, 2013Hello!
Presidio Update: Say Good-Bye to the Sports Basement and Hello to a New Use for the Old Commissary Building
Wednesday, March 6th, 2013Ooh, it’s a beauty contest to see what’s going to replace the Sports Basement near Crissy Field.
I’ll tell you, the proposal from George Lucas stands out, does it not?
Check it:
He’s all, “There is a world of young people who need to be inspired” ‘n stuff.
Consider him a front-runner.
All the deets and info from the 16 contestants:
“CONCEPTS ABOUND FOR RE-USE OF PRESIDIO’S FORMER COMMISSARY BUILDING - WIDE RANGE OF PROPOSALS TO BE CONSIDERED
Presidio of San Francisco (March 5, 2013) – The Presidio Trust announced today that it has received 16 concept proposals for repurposing a stunning site on Crissy Field in the Presidio of San Francisco, a national park site and national historic landmark district just south of the Golden Gate Bridge.
“We are encouraged with the number and quality of responses and look forward to engaging the public and evaluating concepts over the coming months,” said Craig Middleton, the Trust’s executive director. “Finding a new purpose for this incomparable site clearly has stirred the imaginations of teams from around the country.”
The 16 concepts are:
|
Tom Hanks Gives a Shout Out to Our Disney Family Museum and The Presidio on the David Letterman Show
Wednesday, October 24th, 2012Right around the 4:00 minute mark:
He says he recently spent four hours at the Disney Family Museum in the Presidio.
Here’s the calendar.
And oh, get ready for the DFM’s First Major Exhibition coming up starting November 15th, 2012 – it’s all about Snow White…
OMG, Goats Take Over MUNI’s Presidio Yard! Goats, Goats, Goats, Goats, Goats, Goats, Goats! By Bluoz
Thursday, October 4th, 2012Once again, from out of nowhere, it’s Bluoz.
The Presidio Yard, perched on Mervyn’s Heights just below the deadly Masonic Trader Joes (Store #100):
Here’s the mugshot. You are guilty of being adorable:
See you next year!
President Barack Obama Picks Paula R. Collins and Alex Mehran as New Board Members of the Presidio Trust
Tuesday, August 14th, 2012Here’s the news of the day from our Presidio Trust, or perhaps it was last week’s - I’m kind of slow on the the uptake sometimes:
“PRESIDENT OBAMA TAPS BUSINESS, CIVIC LEADERS FOR PRESIDIO TRUST BOARD – NANCY BECHTLE RE-APPOINTED BOARD’S CHAIR
Presidio of San Francisco (August 14, 2012) — President Barack Obama has named two prominent Bay Area leaders — Paula R. Collins and Alex Mehran — to the Presidio Trust Board of Directors. The White House also re-appointed Nancy Bechtle as board chair. Ms. Collins and Mr. Mehran are replacing outgoing board members J. Michael Shepherd and Bill Wilson.
Paula R. Collins is the chief executive officer of WDG Ventures, Inc., a real estate development company in Northern California, and president of Portfolio Real Estate Consulting.
Part of the original project development team for the Moscone Convention Center, Ms. Collins is a founder and director of Presidio Bank in San Francisco, a member of the national board of the Automobile Association of America and has served as an appointee to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Visiting Committee for the Department of Urban Studies and Planning. In addition, she is co-chair of the Board of Directors for the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco, a member of the board of the Special Olympics for Northern California and has served on the Board of Directors of the BRIDGE Housing Corporation. Ms. Collins has been awarded the prestigious Silver Spur Award by the San Francisco Planning and Urban Research organization, in honor of her dedication to improving the quality of life and economic health of San Francisco; and has been honored by the National Coalition of 100 Black Women and the San Francisco Business Times. She graduated cum laude in urban studies from Mt. Holyoke College in Massachusetts and received her master’s degree in city planning from MIT. Ms. Collins replaces Mr. Shepherd on the board.
A Bay Area native, Alex Mehran is the president and chief executive officer of Sunset Development Company, a San Ramon based real estate development, investment, construction and management company founded by his father almost 60 years ago.
Mr. Mehran is chair of the Contra Costa Economic Partnership, a trustee of the San Francisco Ballet and a member of the University of California, San Francisco Chancellor’s Associates. In addition, he is a past chairman and current executive committee member of the Bay Area Council and is a former trustee of the Urban Land Institute and the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco. Mr. Mehran received his bachelor’s degree from Harvard College, where he graduated with honors. He earned a law degree, also with honors, from England’s Cambridge University. Mr. Mehran replaces Mr. Wilson.
“Alex and Paula are joining the board at a very exciting time – the Presidio Trust is now financially self-sufficient and we are seeing the benefits of a decade worth of investments in the park,” said Craig Middleton, Presidio Trust Executive Director. “Alex and Paula will be instrumental in helping us expand the public benefit of the Presidio to the local community and the nation.”
A fourth generation San Franciscan, Nancy Bechtle grew up across the street from the Presidio, and, as a child would scale the base’s walls to play in Julius Kahn Park. Once, she was even kicked out for riding her horse on the base. Appointed to the Trust’s board by President George W. Bush in 2008, Ms. Bechtle was first elected chair in 2009. She is chairman of the board of the Sugar Bowl Corporation, serves on the board of directors for the Charles Schwab Corporation and is a former chief financial officer and director of J.R. Bechtle and Company. A past president and chief executive officer of the San Francisco Symphony, Ms. Bechtle has served on the symphony’s board of governors since 1984 and has also served on the board of the San Francisco Opera Association. In addition she has served on the board of the National Park Foundation, holding the board’s citizen chair from 2005 to 2007. Ms. Bechtle recently received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Commonwealth Club of San Francisco and has received a Lifetime Achievement in the Arts Award from the California Arts Council and the Investment in Leadership award from the Coro Foundation, among her many other honors.
“I am pleased to welcome these very talented and accomplished people to the board,” said Nancy Bechtle. “The experience that Paula and Alex bring will be great assets as the Trust expands its public-serving programs while continuing to keep an eye on ensuring the park’s self-sufficiency.”
The Presidio Trust is governed by a seven-member board of directors. Six members are appointed by the President of the United States. The seventh is the U.S. Secretary of the Interior or his designee. An executive director reports to the board and oversees a staff with expertise including environmental science, historic preservation, operations and maintenance, landscape design, planning, resource management, real estate development, public affairs and programs, law, and finance.
Biographies of all Trust board members are available at www.presidio.gov
The Presidio Trust was established by the United States Congress in 1996 to administer the Presidio of San Francisco, an urban national park site that is located at the base of the Golden Gate Bridge. The areas overseen by the Trust include expansive open space and spectacular views, a 300-acre historic forest, and rare and endangered plants and wildlife. The park comprises nearly 6 million square feet of buildings, including 469 historic structures that contribute to the Presidio’s status as a National Historic Landmark District.”
OMG, OMG, Meet Hundreds of Adorable Goats Today at the Presidio! Nature’s Lawnmowers Come to the Golf Course
Tuesday, August 7th, 2012Get on up to the Presidio today at 1:00 PM to see hundreds of goats being delivered to clean up the areas surround our Presidio Golf Course. Deets below.
And then, to make your day completely hurcine, go ahead and nosh on a warm Goat Cheese Naploleon at the popular Presidio Cafe:
GOAT CHEESE NAPOLEON – warm Laura Chenel goat cheese, puff pastry, sweet & spicy pecans, fresh berries & balsamic dressing
It’s the circle of life, or something, nom nom.
Oh, here they are:
Three Boer Goats via Jennifer Schwalm
(When young, these critters kind of look like dogs.)
All the deets:
“NATURE’S LAWNMOWERS” REPORT FOR TOUR OF DUTY AT PRESIDIO GOLF COURSE
Date: Tuesday August 7, 2012
Time: 1:00pm
Location: Presidio Golf Course; behind the clubhouse (300 Finley Road, inside the Arguello Gate)
Who: The Presidio Trust and Arnold Palmer Golf welcome a herd of goats to the Presidio Golf Course to tame the overgrown ivy, blackberry and hemlock that have popped up around the links. The goats will arrive at 1:00pm on Tuesday, August 7 and will be corralled at the clubhouse for about an hour when the public can “meet the goats.” After all the goats are unloaded, they will be shepherded by three border collies to a site near the driving range.
What: The 250-300 Boer goats begin their culinary odyssey in an overgrown thicket behind the driving range. The hungry herd’s two-week tour of duty will be spent chomping through weeds and transforming them into natural fertilizer, allowing native grasses to flourish. Once the unwanted vegetation has been eaten back, not only can errant golf balls be retrieved, but serpentine soil will be revealed. The hope is long buried seeds will sprout, enabling native wildflowers and grasses to once again take root and thrive. The goats’ next stop will be a wetland area near the 4TH hole now thick with thistle and hemlock.
The project is part of a broader effort to upgrade the course using sustainable means whenever possible. Improvements are planned for every hole and bunker on the course, including the creation of so-called “fuzzy bunkers” using native plants and grasses. The result will be a course that is both more attractive and more challenging, with a less manicured and wilder look evocative of traditional Scottish links courses.
Originally constructed in 1895, the Presidio Golf Course is the second oldest course west of the Mississippi. Long restricted to members of the military and the exclusive Presidio Golf Club, the course was opened to public play 1995.
The goats are supplied by California Grazing, a holistic land management company that provides brush and weed control through grazing.”
See you there!
Recalling the Time that Mary Jung, PG&E Manager and New Chair of the SF Dems, Threatened Me in the Presidio
Thursday, July 26th, 2012Here’s part of last night’s big DCCC meeting at the State Building. It’s very boring:
In years past, the election of Chair was a BFD, but this go-around was a done deal from the get-go. Mary Jung, Manager, Local Government Partnerships at PG&E Corporation will lead the San Francisco Democrats for the next couple of years.
Speaking of which, I was at some event at the Presidio a while back when I ended up asking a woman about seeing a 15-passenger van with Nevada plates parked in front of City Hall. (It seems that a local utility, one of the worst in the nation, had hired election workers from out-of-state. Or at least it looked that way to me. The workers told me they were from Reno and they wanted to know how to get to the Mission District.)
Actually, I had already posted the photo of the van in front of City Hall along with a few comments about Proposition whatever-it-was.
When the woman found out about that, she said,
“It would be in your interest to take that post down.”
Just like that.
And I thought, whoa, is she threatening me?
And then I realized she was.
So later on that evening I was pedaling up Arguello and she offered me a ride her Honda Civic(?) wagovan. At that point she was probably just trying to be nice but it reminded me of that van scene from Three Days of the Condor, the one where Max Von Sydow warned Robert Redford.
And here’s what’s spooky – a couple years later, the outfit she works for killed eight people in San Bruno.
Just like that.
The woman’s name is Mary Jung and the company she labors for is Pacific Gas & Electric.
Hey, do you think maybe that PG&E has a little too much influence on San Francisco?
I do.
PG&E doesn’t.
[UPDATE: Oh yeah, I took the post down later that night. Cause, you know.
This was the explanation I ended up getting about the van all the way back in 2008:
"We are renting vans and sometimes the rentals come from all over the place. we've had vans with canadian plates, too."
Fair enough, but I considered that horseshit at the time (and I still do now). And It seems odd that the gals themselves similarly came from the Silver State. I was shocked that it was worth their time to travel all that way just for PG&E's faux grassroots campaign.]
