We have not one, but two big Easter celebrations going on this Saturday here in the neighborhood. Take your pick!

Spring Eggstravaganza in Golden Gate Park
Saturday, 11am – 3pm
Sharon Meadow in Golden Gate Park (near Stanyan)
The SF Recreation and Park Department invites you to their annual Eggstravaganza, where there will be egg hunts, carnival rides, giant inflatable, arts and crafts, entertainment, and food for sale. Cost is $5 per person.

Richmond District YMCA Family Fun Day
Saturday, 10am – 2pm
Meet at YMCA, 360 18th Avenue, then hike to Mt. Lake Park
All families are invited to meet at the YMCA at 10am, where you’ll make Easter Egg baskets and bonnets. Then at 11am, a Golden Gate National Recreation Area Ranger will lead the group on a guided tour to Mountain Lake Park where you’ll learn about the Anza Trail and much more. Picnic lunch at noon (pack your own) followed by an Easter Egg Hunt at 1pm. Cost is $10/family. For more information call 666-9603 or email mroth-cramer@ymcasf.org.

Happy Easter everyone! I hope your basket is filled with lots of pretty eggs. And if it’s not, poach some from someone else’s basket. It’s how I used to boost my egg stats as a kid.

Sarah B.

9:15 am | Posted under Events, Golden Gate Park, Kids, Parks | Comments Off

Thanks to all the awesome volunteers that came out to clean up Ocean Beach and Golden Gate Park on Saturday as part of a Starbucks 40th Anniversary community service event.

According to the Chronicle, the work the volunteers accomplished translates to 3,000 hours and $90,000 worth of work that would otherwise fall on the Department of Public Works.

Volunteers picked up trash, planted, and painted over graffiti. Joining them was Richmond District Supervisor Eric Mar.

Thanks to all the green shirts that helped beautify our neighborhood!

Sarah B.

3:57 pm | Posted under Eric Mar, Events, Golden Gate Park, Ocean Beach, Parks, Volunteer | Comments Off

The final rendering for the new Fulton Playground.

Last June, we reported on the renovation plans for Fulton Playground, located on a lot that spans between 27th and 28th Avenues, midway between Cabrillo and Fulton Avenues.

The project has been spearheaded by a group of neighbors working with the SF Rec & Parks Department.

In December 2010, a building permit was filed for the project, which includes a completely new playground, resurfacing of the basketball and tennis courts, and upgrades to the park’s clubhouse. The park will also showcase a unique, kinetic sculpture from artist Moto Ohtake.

Construction documents were completed earlier this month, which will be followed up with comments from the SF Building Department. From there the project will go out for bid in June.

Rec & Park Project Coordinator Paulina Araica estimates that construction will begin in August 2011 and should last about 10 months. During that time, the park will be closed.

Given this timing, the re-opening of the park is scheduled for June 30, 2012. This is a delay of a few months from initial estimates. In an email to the Yahoo! group of neighbors that are working on the project, Araica explained that “the project schedule has experienced a delay to due to review/coordination of the clubhouse historic preservation issues and issuance of building permit.”

In her communication, Araica also included the final rendering of the playground, pictured above.

The total budget for the Fulton Playground renovation is $4.2 million, 100% funded by the 2008 Clean and Safe Neighborhood Park Bond passed by voters.

For more information on the renovation, visit the Fulton Playground Renovation page on the SF Rec & Parks website.

Sarah B.

1:15 pm | Posted under Parks | 3 comments

There’s a new neighborhood group that is working to renovate Mountain Lake Park’s children’s playground. It’s called Friends of Mountain Lake Park Playground (FMLPP), and it’s comprised of a local group of volunteers.

Mt. Lake Park’s playground received a “C” on the most recent Recreation and Parks playground assessment, one of the two lowest grades among the Richmond District’s network of parks. The FMLPP is spearheading the effort to renovate the playground because of its concerns with the park’s safety:

The playground, created nearly 30 years ago, contains deteriorated wooden structures that may contain arsenic and other hazardous materials once used to treat lumber. Children playing on the structures can be exposed to the toxins in the wood. Furthermore, the large amounts of sand surrounding the structure are difficult to keep clean and the playground lacks proper boundaries between both the nearby lake and busy streets.

FMLPP volunteers are working with the Neighborhood Parks Council, Friends of Mountain Lake Park and the San Francisco Recreation and Parks Council to raise the necessary funds for the renovation, which they hope to complete by 2013. FMLPP volunteer Jennifer Fetner estimates that the renovation budget will be in the range of $1.5 – $2 million dollars. The group hopes to raise half of the money in grants and the other half from private donors.

The FMLPP is also closely associated with another park group, the similarly named Friends of Mountain Lake Park, which was was formed in 1980 to help maintain the park; they also work with the Neighborhood Parks Council. If there are additional funds leftover in that group’s budget, they will also be put towards the playground renovation.

The main play structure at Mt. Lake Park Playground

“Mountain Lake Park is a San Francisco treasure,” said FMLPP volunteer Jennifer Fetner. “The playground and greater Mountain Lake Park have the potential to be a unique destination because of their unusual pairing: great play structures, hiking trails around the lake and open meadowland; there is really no other place in San Francisco quite like it.”

Mt. Lake Park would join the ranks of other neighborhood parks which recently renovated or are in the process including Lincoln Park Playground, Fulton Playground and Cabrillo Playground.

For more information on the Mt. Lake Park project, visit the FMLPP website. If you are interested in donating to the Mt. Lake Park Playground renovation project, you can donate online or mail a check to the address below (it MUST have the project name on it – Friends of Mountain Lake Park Playground):

Neighborhood Parks Council
451 Hayes Street – Second Floor
San Francisco, CA 94102

Good luck to the FMLPP with their fundraising efforts!

Sarah B.

The lower part of the playground which includes slides, swings and a sand area.

5:15 am | Posted under Parks | 1 comment

I headed out to Lands End late on Saturday afternoon to catch the sunset. I wasn’t the only one with that idea.

This morning, a 25 year old man was rescued off the cliffs after hiking during last night’s sunset and breaking his ankle in a fall. The victim did not have a cell phone and it wasn’t until early this morning that his cries were heard by passing hikers.

Firefighters eventually used a Jet Ski to transport the man to a rescue boat. One firefighter also injured his ankle during the rescue operation. Read more at sfexaminer.com

Sarah B.

3:19 pm | Posted under News, Parks, Photos | 1 comment

Photo by Adam Chin.

2:30 pm | Posted under Parks, Photos | 2 comments

Whether you enjoy the outdoors and history, or like to spend time with fine art, you’ll be interested in two events taking place in the neighborhood this Sunday. Please read the following closely and don’t show up naked at either event, ok?

On Sunday at the Legion of Honor, Watson Adventures is offering “The Naked at the Art Museum Scavenger Hunt”.

Throw down $20 (plus museum admission) and join others to search for nudity in art through the centuries at the museum:

You’ll scrutinize provocative paintings, startling sculptures, dazzling decorative objects, undclad athletes, vixen-like Venus, a hunky Hercules, bathing beauties, striking stargazers, sultry Shades and more. No previous experience with art, or nudity, is required.

The scavenger hunt begins at 2pm. Buy your tickets online; 21+ only. These are naked bodies after all.

If you’re into hunting but prefer the outdoors, check out the free Shipwreck Hunt Hike at Lands End, led by San Francisco Hiking.

The hike is scheduled specifically during a time of low tide when tops of two drowned ships can be seen. One ship is during the middle of the hike and the other ship is at the end of the hike.

There were three ships that we know of that met their fate off Lands End. The freighter Ohioan struck Point Lobos on a foggy night back in 1937, illuminating the night sky with sparks as it hit the rocks hard. And in 1922 and 1937, the Lyman Stewart and the Frank Buck each ended their days on the exact same rock off Lands End. (Source: GGNRA)

The 4 mile hike/hunt runs from 11:30am until 1pm (you can go to the Legion right afterwards for more hunting!) and meets at 870 El Camino Del Mar (map; just inside the Lands End trail entrance near 32nd Avenue and El Camino). Dogs are welcome as are kids, but both should be on leash (ok, just the dogs but close supervision for kids is requested!).

Happy hunting! Bonus points if you can find nudity and a shipwreck at the same time, which really is possible at either event I think…

Sarah B.

P.S. – If you can’t make the Lands End hike, this GGNRA website has some good tips on how to spot the shipwrecks (scroll down to the bottom of the page).

[via sf.funcheap.com]

5:05 am | Posted under Art, Events, Free stuff, Parks, Recreation | 2 comments

Karen of the BoulevardNeighbors Yahoo! Group sent a note about her early morning encounter with two coyotes:

This morning about 6:50am two coyotes were roaming on the 100 block of Funston greenway while a neighbor and I were walking our dogs.

Her dog tried to chase them off and he and the two coyotes went across PPB. One coyote was hit by a car and the other is unaccounted for. Two SFPD cars responded and confirmed we were dealing with coyotes.

Both dogs are home safe but please be warned that there really are coyotes out there, perhaps going to and from either Mt. Lake Park (where they have also been sighted) or the Presidio to sleep in the daylight hours.

Keep your eyes open out there and if you’re with your dog in that area, be sure they’re on a leash.

Sarah B.

9:31 am | Posted under Parks, Pets | 27 comments