CVIA Blog
CVIA Endorses Interim Plan for 730 Stanyan Street
Representing its 600+ members in the Greater Haight-Ashbury, Cole Valley Improvement Association (CVIA) has endorsed an interim use proposal issued to the Mayor's Office of Housing in cooperation with the Haight Ashbury Improvement Association (HAIA) and the Buena Vista Neighborhood Association (BVNA). Below is the text of the proposal. If you are a CVIA paid member and would like to become active with CVIA in fighting for an interim use plan for 730 Stanyan that benefits all of the Haight-Ashbury residents, please send us an email.
Overview
Building affordable housing at 730 Stanyan is a boon to the Haight-Ashbury and to the City at large. However, a proposed three-to-five year planning period raises the question: what is the best use of this space during the interim period?
Below is a proposal to use this site in the interim pre-construction phase as a community gathering space for residents and visitors. We seek to provide an organized but flexible home for food, art, cultural events, commercial vendors, community amenities and other various attractions.
To make such a space a reality, we need a comprehensive approach. The development of the site should be orchestrated by a single entity empowered to take bold, timely and decisive action to develop a major civic attraction. We propose a framework by which the City leases the property to a non-profit management organization, which would then sub-lease to various vendors and groups based on the goals of the project. This experienced non-profit firm would work with architects, designers and the City to ensure that a plan is implemented to make the site into the best possible resource for the neighborhood, its residents and visitors, with the least amount of lead time possible. The goals of this project are ambitious: a total transformation of this area into a place of great civic pride. As a model, the semi-permanent design of the PROXY SF space in Hayes Valley (which also sits on land earmarked for eventual housing) and Bryant Park in New York City serve as viable examples.
A Transformative Change for a Troubled Corner
730 Stanyan sits adjacent to the natural entrance to Golden Gate Park, the neighborhood’s largest grocery store and a historic hotel. The site has the potential to be a major civic gathering space; however, a cursory review of news stories about this intersection would reveal years of incidents involving drug dealing, shootings, stabbings, robberies, assaults and other violent crimes.
Thankfully, the City is already underway with a revitalization project along the Stanyan edge of GG Park to make improvements and “activate the area with positive park-related activities.” Turning 730 Stanyan into a community gathering space will compliment this effort, integrate the space with the park and transform the area from a blight into a desirable community asset. This will dramatically increase foot traffic and activate the area by creating a space where residents and visitors want to gather, rather than walk through speedily or avoid altogether.
Although the neighborhood has many parks, there is no meaningful opportunity for people to congregate in a public, urban setting. Residents are desperate for a safe and fun space that this area could provide. 730 Stanyan would be a place for meaningful engagement with civic life - a rotating, curated and stimulating mix of food, art and culture.
Amenities
As soon as it was announced that the City would purchase the McDonald’s site and eventually build housing, the neighborhood was abuzz with ideas for interim uses. Below is sample of some of the proposed ideas, all of which could be incorporated into this space:
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Community Garden |
Outdoor Theater |
Children’s story time area and library |
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Ice Rink in Winter |
Food Stands |
Drink Stands (juices, coffee etc.) |
|
Biergarten |
Rotating Art Installations |
Games (board games, ping pong, etc.) |
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Craft Fairs |
Flower and Plant market |
Enjoying-a-sunny-day-in-a-chair space |
Future of Haight and Stanyan
The City should not forget that the ultimate goal of acquiring 730 Stanyan is to provide affordable housing to those who otherwise would not be able to afford it. Any plan for interim use must improve the area dramatically so that the eventual residents of 730 Stanyan live in an area that is safe and thriving. No matter who ultimately lives at this location, the City must ensure that the crime and violence that have plagued the Haight/Stanyan intersection are eliminated and replaced with a thriving urban environment.
Inclusive – A Space for Everyone
The goal of this space is to create an environment that serves a civic good for all residents of the neighborhood, as well as visitors. One strength of our neighborhood is its social and economic diversity. There are families with children, seniors, single people, etc., as well as a distinct homeless population. This space should offer something for everyone—from story-time activities and games for children to a biergarten for adults.
This should be a bustling space that is both safe and fun—for everyone.
Civic Spaces to Emulate
Seven years ago, the land that PROXY SF occupies in Hayes Valley was blighted and a hotbed for drugs and crime. Today, it is one of the most vibrant areas in the City. PROXY SF did not dictate a particular use for the site; instead, they created an instant and impermanent infrastructure that made it easy for innovative business and cultural ideas to take root on the site. PROXY SF is now a safe, thriving site, expertly managed and curated. It offers rotating cultural displays and activities, an outdoor theater, a range of food/beverage stalls and a biergarten. None of the structures at PROXY SF are permanent, but crucially, they are designed to be there long enough to attract businesses that need to build a reputation and a customer base. This semi-permanent structure is the key to the success of the site. Simply having a few rotating food carts and booths is not enough to “activate” the area. Businesses and organizations that are fully committed to making this an engaging civic space are needed.
New York City’s Bryant Park serves as another interesting model as it utilizes a fair amount of paved space in addition to its large lawn area. For the concrete ground space, that park has ample movable chairs, a small story time space and library for children, ping pong tables, board games, an outdoor theater and other amenities. While 730 Stanyan is not a park, Bryant Park’s utilization of outdoor paved space inspires worthwhile recreational uses.
Safety
While we believe this space should be inclusive, we also strongly believe that residents and visitors should feel safe when coming to 730 Stanyan. For such a vision to work, safety will be of paramount importance. Drug dealing, substance abuse, dangerous dogs, exposed knives, sexual harassment and other safety concerns are real issues in our neighborhood and are not compatible with our vision of this new community space. A concrete plan for dealing with these issues should be a part of the design and must include vigilant security, maintenance and retail workers to provide a deep sense of safety and community.
Employing the Homeless
By creating a community space such as this, the City would bring many jobs to the neighborhood. We believe the firm designing this space should make an effort to have the subcontractors employ the homeless youth in the neighborhood. Programs like “Taking It to the Streets,” which employs homeless youth to perform street cleaning and graffiti abatement in exchange for housing and services, shows that many of the homeless youth in the neighborhood want to make meaningful strides to get off the streets.
In an effort to address some of the homeless needs in the neighborhood, a portion of the jobs associated with this project could be reserved for the neighborhood’s homeless youth. This would also provide a unique opportunity to teach additional job skills. Further, from a financial perspective, this would save the City money since the homeless youth would receive wages from the vendors, as opposed to assistance that solely comes from the City’s budget.
Expense
By leasing the property to a non-profit management entity, this site could be a source of revenue for the City, as opposed to an expense, through various payroll taxes, sales taxes, etc. Additionally, this would bring many new jobs to the neighborhood. By saving money and generating revenue, this could afford the City more financial resources to streamline the construction process of the ultimate affordable housing project—potentially making the affordable housing available sooner.
Community Outreach
Community meetings are an important tool for government officials to communicate their intentions to the neighborhood and solicit feedback; however, the City should be careful not use the opinions gathered at such forums as the only basis for deciding true community support for a given interim use (even this one). In addition to holding community meetings, the City should supplement its outreach process by establishing an online survey where everyone with a verifiable address in the neighborhood can easily express an opinion regarding potential interim uses. Just because someone is not skilled at public speaking or community organizing (or is too busy working or taking care of children to attend multiple multi-hour planning meetings) doesn’t mean they shouldn’t have a say in this process. Without supplementing the community meetings, the interim use selection process will quickly become susceptible to vocal minorities dictating policy for the quiet majority.
Conclusion
The best use of 730 Stanyan is an engaging community space that serves everyone. The City has the opportunity to transform this area from long blighted magnet for crime into a bustling space that brings people joy and provides a safe space for the community to interact with each other. This interim use will set the stage for successful affordable housing that benefits everyone by maintaining diversity and improving the quality of life at Haight and Stanyan streets.
Ho! Ho! Ho! Photos With Santa on Cole St December 3rd!
It's that time of year again to start thinking about - dare we say it - holiday cards! Join CVIA for our annual Santa photo shoot! Avoid long lines and busy malls and places that require and advanced reservation... Plan to come to the Postal Chase for that classic holiday photo of your child (or your pet, or just wonderful you) with the jolly guy in the red suit.
Santa on Cole
Sunday, December 3rd
Postal Chase, 912 Cole St
11 a.m. – 5 p.m.
A professional photographer — CVIA member and Cole Valley resident Loic Nicolas — donates his time and talent to create a memorable photo for you. This is a fundraiser supporting the Clean Cole Street project, which pays to have Cole's commercial corridor sidewalks swept free of debris, leaves and trash on a daily basis.
Photo sitting fee is $20. Online orders start at $1 per photo and $15 for the photo file. See below for details.
Please pass it on to your neighbors! Santa and his CVIA elves would love to see you there!
Party Time: Summer Social is August 19th!
You won't want to miss this year’s Summer Social and Annual Meeting on Saturday, August 19th at Kezar Bar & Restaurant from 1-4p.m.! This is a time to meet your neighbors while enjoying appetizers and libations.
We will also have SF Chronicle columnist David Talbot as our special guest and speaker. He is also the author of several books, including "Season of the Witch: Enchantment, Terror, and Deliverance in the City of Love" a chronicle of the cultural history of San Francisco and from the late 1960s to the early 1980s. The "Season of the Witch" storyline takes place around Buena Vista Park and is available at Booksmith on Haight.
We have many new members thanks to our partnership with Lavation and we hope to see you there!
RSVP to cviasf@aol.com. $10 per person at the door.
Want to get active with our organization? Make sure to introduce yourselves to the Board members at the meeting. We have lots we want to do and never enough people!
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Funds Available for Sidewalk Landscaping!
Have you and your neighbors been wanting to beautify your little corner of the neighborhood? Friends of the Urban Forest has received funding from Supervisor Breed's office to do a sidewalk landscaping project in the Haight/Cole Valley area! That means you can do this project with zero start-up costs! Here's the scoop:
How Does It Work?
FUF is currently looking for "block captains" to help organize proposed area projects. The first step is to start talking with your neighbors and gather interest for sidewalk landscapes. Once you have a set of dedicated neighbors on board, FUF needs a list of contact information for at least 10 interested properties (on your block or your block plus another around the corner, for example). Once this list is provided, the next step is scheduling a community meeting.
What Are The Criteria?
FUF's criteria for choosing its project sites are:
1. Number of properties (around 10 is ideal);
2. Density of properties (logistically, it is better to have all properties on the same block, but there is some flexibility);
3. Potential concrete removal (all properties must want concrete removal for new garden area).
The deadline to submit your list of neighbors is June 15, 2017. Please submit to Madalyn@fuf.net.
Please visit Fuf.net/sidewalk for more information and check out some of FUF's sidewalk landscapes here.
Save The Date! Santa on Cole Returns
It's that time of year again to start thinking about - dare we say it - holiday cards! Join CVIA for our annual Santa photo shoot! Avoid long lines and busy malls... Plan to come to the Postal Chase for that classic holiday photo of your child (or your pet, or just wonderful you) with the jolly guy in the red suit.
Santa on Cole
Sunday, November 27th
Postal Chase, 912 Cole St
11 a.m. – 5 p.m.
A professional photographer — CVIA member and Cole Valley resident Loic Nicolas — donates his time and talent to create a memorable photo for you. This is a fundraiser supporting the Clean Cole Street project.
Photo sitting fee is $20. Online orders start at $1 per photo and $15 for the photo file. See below for details.
Please pass it on to your neighbors!
CVIA Members Get Discount at Lavation Studio!
CVIA and Lavation Studio have teamed up to offer CVIA members an incredible discount.
The partnership supports CVIA's mission to champion neighborhood-serving businesses while offering CVIA members who are focused on a healthy lifestyle special pricing on single classes and monthly unlimited memberships. Lavation Studio provides indoor cycling classes and HIIT classes (High Intensity Interval Training) with San Francisco's top fitness instructors.
DETAILS:
Discount is 50% off for CVIA members in good standing.
Classes: Regularly $30 per class, $15 for CVIA members.
Monthly Unlimited Membership: Regularly $220/month, $110/month for CVIA members.
CVIA membership is $25 a year and includes a quarterly newsletter focusing on neighborhood issues and email updates of important news and happenings. CVIA also has an annual "Summer Social" for its members. Members are invited to join the monthly board meetings and are encouraged to announce neighborhood concerns and successes. If you are not already a CVIA member and would like to take advantage of this member discount, visit our Membership page to join.
TO SIGN UP:
1. Go to lavationstudio.com and create a new account. If it is your first time on the site, a free class will be placed in your account.
2. Schedule your free class. (If you already have a Lavation account, skip to step 3.)
3. Bring proof of your CVIA membership with you to your first class (your new member letter, an email from CVIA, or a copy of the CVIA newsletter mailed to you).
Lavation Studio, located at 784 Stanyan St., is locally owned and operated by Jason and Erica Kajdasz and Mien Faville. The three partners also own MidLIne personal training and Pilates studio at 515 Frederick St.
Get to Know CleanPower SF & SFCUU!
CVIA is proud to present an educational evening of presentations about two very important city issues:
First, San Francisco’s upcoming switch to CleanPower SF, a new, green energy power program that will be rolling out soon, and second, SF Coalition to Underground Utilities and their fight to get City Hall to finish undergrounding power lines in order to aid public safety, prevent power failures, and beautify San Francisco.
Get to Know CleanPower SF and SFCUU
Wednesday, August 3rd
7:00 – 9:00 PM
The Waller Center
1525 Waller Street (at Belvedere)
If you are interested in learning more about CleanPower SF, and/or if you are tired of seeing our beautiful city skyline and streets streaked black with overhead power lines, this night is for you!
Please tell your neighbors and friends about this event and invite them along!
What's Up With Cole Valley Antiques?
You may have noticed some movement at the Cole Valley Antiques location at 90 Parnassus. What you probably don't know is that there were two antique businesses operating there! Cole Valley Antiques owner Angie Petit-Taylor has moved Cole Valley Antiques a few blocks away, into the new Past Perfect located at 854 Stanyan St at Frederick. Past Perfect recently moved from it's Marina location and is a popular collective of 10 merchants specializing in vintage, antique and modern fare. Jerry Emerson and his business Jerome's Antiques, specializing in antique furniture and fine decor, is staying put at 90 Parnassus. Lucky us to have so many antique options in our neighborhood!
Impact: Cole Street Merchants & Seismic Retrofits
THIS ARTICLE WILL BE CONTINUALLY UPDATED. The Mandatory Soft Story Retrofit Program (MSSP) was created in 2013 to ensure the safety and resilience of San Francisco's housing stock through the retrofit of older (before 1978), wood-framed, multi-family buildings (5 or more residential dwelling units) with a soft-story condition. A "soft story" is either a garage or an open-space storefront on the first floor of a building, which leads to greater potential for damage to the building as a whole in the event of an earthquake, unless seismic reinforcements have been made.
Here’s what we know about the businesses affected in Cole Valley – we’ll continue post information as we get updates:
Update March 12, 2016:
- Tantrum has closed due to the construction. Visit them in their temporary (we hope!) space at 248 Clement Street beginning April 1st.
- Padrecito's, Lavande, and Mane Attraction will stay open during construction, thanks to the owner of the building looking for alternative ways to do the work and keep the businesses open. Work is estimated to begin in January 2017.
Information as of March 1, 2016:
- Tantrum, the shop curated with “whimsy filled with kid-centric well-designed gifts for kid’s and grown-ups alike” needs to vacate their space in March for 5-6 months. There’s more than seismic work that needs to be done there.
- Urban Mercantile, a “unique purveyors of sublime and refined goods and gifts” is scheduled to close in April for 3 months. Their annual January sale will run longer this year to reduce inventory to pack up.
- Vierra & Friends, a popular hair salon, may have a pop-up space outside the neighborhood, thanks to their landlord.
- A permit has been filed for the building La Boulagerie is in, but we don’t have information about when the work will be done.
- Padracito’s, Mane Attraction, and Lavande are in one building together and will hear soon what their fate is.
- Peet’s and MadKat’s building is on the list but we have no other information.
- Crepes on Cole is not affected because there are fewer than five residential units in their building.
Imagine what closing a small business means! Packing up the inventory; finding an alternative location and unpacking or storing the inventory; laying off employees for a short time with the hopes they’ll return – or paying them; losing money; losing customers… Yikes! Let’s hope we don’t lose our favorite Cole Valley business.
What can we do as a community to show our merchants? Support these businesses before they close and when they reopen.
Be Prepared: Street Closures for "420 Day" Surrounding Golden Gate Park
So heavy are the crowds around the east end of Golden Gate Park and surrounding streets on April 20 (National Cannabis Day), that the SFPD will prohibit automobile traffic from most of the area. Below is their plan.
“4-20 Day” Street Closures
Sharon Meadow Area Closures
WB Fell @ Shrader Street – Vehicles traveling WB on Fell Street will be diverted from Fell Street onto NB Stanyan Street.
NB Stanyan @ Fell Street – Vehicles traveling NB on Stanyan Street will not be able to use Fell Street loop to WB Fell Street. All vehicles will be directed to stay on NB Stanyan Street.
WB John F. Kennedy Drive from Stanyan Street – No vehicular traffic allowed EB
EB Lincoln Way @ Kezar Drive – No vehicular traffic allowed WB
WB Frederick Street at Kezar Dr./Lincoln Way – No vehicular traffic allowed.
NB Stanyan Street @ Frederick Street – No vehicular traffic allowed.
Haight Street Area Closures
(Residents on the following streets will be allowed access with proof of residency)
Waller Street @ Shrader Street - No NB traffic allowedai???
Waller Street @ Cole Street – No NB traffic allowedai???
Waller Street @ Belvedere Street – No NB traffic allowedai???
Waller Street @ Clayton Street – No NB traffic allowedai???
Waller Street @ Ashbury Street – No NB traffic allowedai???
Masonic Ave. @ Haight Street – No WB traffic allowed on Haight
Masonic Ave. @ Page Street – No WB traffic allowed onto Page
Oak Street @ Shrader Street – No SB traffic allowed on Shrader Street
Oak Street @ Cole Street – No SB traffic allowed on Cole Street
Oak Street @ Clayton Street - No SB traffic allowed on Clayton Street
Oak Street @ Ashbury Street – No SB traffic allowed on Ashbury Street
N Judah Sunset Tunnel Work Details
The Sunset Tunnel construction is scheduled to take place on 15 weekends between November 2014 and June 2015. So far we have worked on three weekends. The next tentative dates are the weekends of Jan. 23 and Jan. 30, 2015.
What to Expect during Weekend Construction:
- Crews will work continuously from approximately 8 p.m. on Friday until 5 a.m. on Monday.
- The majority of the work will take place inside the Sunset Tunnel and at the tunnel entrances.
- Noise can be heard in the surrounding areas, especially when the trucks move the gravels in and out of the portal. We will balance this work between the east and west portals to make it less disruptive for one neighborhood.
- Majority of gravel moving will take place from Friday night until Saturday afternoon at the west portal near Carl and Cole streets, and from late Saturday until Sunday afternoon at the east portal near Noe Street and Duboce Avenue.
- We will do our best to keep the noise down, but the work will be audible throughout the weekend.
- The streets near the tunnel entrances will remain open.
- To accommodate the tunnel work, parking restrictions will become effective from Friday 12 a.m. to Monday 5 a.m. on both sides of Duboce Avenue from Steiner to Scott Street, and on both sides of Carl Street from Clayton to Cole Street.
Bus substitution service:
- Bus shuttles will substitute for the N Judah rail service between Church & Duboce and Ocean Beach.
- Bus substitution will start at about 7 p.m. on Friday and will operate during regular service hours until Monday morning.
- The bus shuttles will follow the N Judah Line making regular stops except for the tunnel portion where buses will be operated on Haight Street.
- Regular N rail service will continue to provide service between Caltrain Depot and Church & Duboce.
- The N Judah stops at Church & Duboce will provide a transfer point between bus shuttles and trains for Muni customers.
- The weekend N Judah Owl bus service will not be affected.
Other Ongoing N Judah System Improvement Projects:
Maximizing construction opportunities, the SFMTA has integrated multiple construction components under the Sunset Tunnel project in order to minimize the inconveniences for both N Judah riders and the community around the construction area.
The Transit Signal Priority (TSP) system upgrades are taking place at nine intersections sequentially along the N Judah Line. Currently a crew is working on Irving between 3rd and 9th avenues. On the January 9 weekend, crews will be installing signal loops between the tracks at the intersections of Irving and 7th Avenue and Irving and 8th Avenue. The work will start at approximately 7 p.m. Friday and will continue until Saturday night. We will schedule the work to avoid late night noise.
The TSP system will use technology to reduce dwell time at traffic signals for Muni light rail vehicles by holding green lights longer.
The construction of two new wheelchair accessible platforms on Judah and 28th Avenuehas been ongoing. Crews are working to reconstruct the inbound stop Monday through Friday. The stop is currently out of service. Muni customers can board N Judah rail car at the temporary stop at 27th Avenue. The work requires closure of traffic lanes.
The new platform will include longer boarding islands and ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) compliant curb ramps, making Muni Metro system safer and easier to use for all customers.
Thank you for your understanding and patience while we work to improve your Muni system.
For the latest project updates and weekend construction dates, visit www.sfmta.com/sunsettunnel. Public can also self subscribe to project updates on the project home page.
For concerns or assistance, please contact: Tess Kavanagh, Project Manager, at 415.701.4212, via email at tess.kavanagh@sfmta.com or Jay Lu, Public Relations Officer, at 415.701.4387, via email at jay.lu@sfmta.com.
Santa on Cole December 7th!
It's that time of year again! Avoid long lines and busy malls... Plan to come to the Postal Chase for that classic holiday photo of your child (or pet, or just wonderful you) with the guy in the red suit.
Santa on Cole
Sunday, December 7th
Postal Chase, 912 Cole St
11 a.m. – 5 p.m.
A professional photographer — CVIA member and Cole Valley resident Loic Nicolas — donates his time and talent to create a memorable photo for you. This is a fundraiser supporting the Clean Cole Street project.
Photo sitting fee is $20. Online orders start at $1 per photo and $15 for the photo file. See below for details.
Please pass it on to your neighbors!
Summer Social: August 23, 2014
You won't want to miss this year’s Summer Social and Annual Meeting on August 23 at Kezar Bar & Restaurant from 1-4p.m.! This is a time to meet your neighbors while enjoying appetizers and your choice of a beverage. We’ll have a speaker and a raffle! The raffle is a fundraiser for the Clean Cole Street project where the commercial area of Cole Street gets swept every day. Raffle tickets are $5 each or $20 for 5 tickets. You can pre-purchase them or buy them at the Social. Check out the great raffle prizes below!
This CVIA Members (and their guests) event is $10 per person. Please RSVP at cviasf@aol.com! If you can't attend the social on the 23rd, but would like to buy raffle tickets to support the Clean Cole Street project, send a check to CVIA, PO Box 170611, SF 94117 and we'll enter your name and send you tickets. You don't have to be present to win. Check back here and on our Facebook page for information on where we might be selling the tickets around the neighborhood.
* Raffle Sales on Cole Street Friday 8/22 between 4:30-6PM! Find our little card table and get yourself some raffle tickets! *
Thanks to our generous merchants for providing these fabulous gifts!