Happy Friday to everyone! Here are some local links to take you into what we hope is a great weekend. – Sarah B.
State Senator Mark Leno was in the neighborhood last Saturday. While here, he honored Green Apple Books and Joe’s Ice Cream as Small Businesses of the Year for 2013. Congrats to both of them!- Next Tuesday, Blondlogic, a purveyor of new and consigned women’s clothes and accessories at 792 Arguello, will celebrate their third birthday. To celebrate, stop by for some late night shopping, wine and live music from Em K from 5pm to 10pm (music starts at 7pm). Ever wonder why they called the store Blondlogic? Owner Sally Hanley says because that’s how smart they were to open a new business in what was then a depressed economy…
- Reader Gabriel reports that there is a notice for change of ownership at Fredy’s Deli out on La Playa. Look for a new name – Kawika’s Ocean Beach Deli – in the near future.
- The ban on overnight parking for large RV’s and campers in the outer Richmond and other areas is working ao well that there are plans to extend the affected area. “Along La Playa Street and the Great Highway, for example, 21 oversize vehicles were known to park. But after three months of enforcing the new law, just two were counted in October.” [SF Examiner]
- Paul’s Hat Works is about ready to open their second location – in Kentucky! We wish them well on their November 22 grand opening, and loved their new commercial… “It’s Your Head, Put a Hat on It” – makes perfect sense to us 🙂
- And as it turns out, we do live WAY out here… The new bike sharing program that the city started is doing well, but project manager Heath Maddox told the SF Bay Guardian that expansion to the west side will never happen. The reason? “The eastern side of the city has more economic and population density, making for more bike usage. As for the west side, he said, “the economics aren’t there.” Perhaps the bike rental company in GGP wouldn’t take kindly to it either…
- The Western Neighborhoods Project, a non-profit dedicated to preserving the history of the western parts of San Francisco, recently moved their headquarters into the neighborhood at 4016 Geary. Director Woody LaBounty tells us “we’ll likely get a spiffy sign or two to announce our presence.”
- We love Golden Gate Park but so do butterflies apparently. A recent SF Chronicle article profiled the efforts to restore healthy habitats for butterflies in the park. Project co-founder Liam O’Brien calls Strawberry Hill a “singles bar” for butterflies. Boom chicka boom.
- Want to get your groove on? Then head over to the Shan-Yee Poon Ballet School on Arguello near Clement for the Mission Groove hip-hop dance class taught by Jenya Lum. It’s every Monday night from 7pm until 8:15pm, all levels welcome.
I’ve seen a few of the bike sharing bikes riding through GGP and the Richmond District so either their riders weren’t aware of the fine print and time limits for return or else the tourists don’t care and have money to burn.
I believe there would be great value to the public (including tourists) of extending bike sharing to GGP (and bumping up the time limit to one hour). While the bike rental concession in GGP might produce a lot of revenue for the operator I bet it produces hardly any for the city. Does anyone know how much the concession pays a month/year?
Agreed – could they not just put a Bike Share station out by Cliff House or Beach Chalet? It would at least allow tourists to leave a bike out at the beach, if they didn’t want to make the return trip, and might attract those already out there to ride back? GGP is such a prime east-west bike corridor (I ride it every day) and it seems a shame to totally rule out seeing it and the western part of the city by bike.
Great idea Caitlin! Andy maybe they could put at couple of Bike Share stations at each end of the Golden Gate bridge.
Agree with above comments, I’m confused how the “Economics” of GGP bike share could possibly NOT work… maybe the tourism industry disapproves?
Hello everyone,
I just wanted to add that Supervisor Mar is committed to making sure that Bike Share expands City-wide, including into the Richmond for many of the same reasons people are stating here.
Funding all future phases of the bike share expansion remains a challenge, and as a Supervisor, Director of the Bay Area Air Quality Management District, and as the Chair of the Plans and Programs Committee of the Transportation Authority will continue to get the most robust program we can.
As always, feel free to reach out to me for more information!
Peter Lauterborn
Legislative Aide
Supervisor Eric Mar, District 1
Peter.Lauterborn@sfgov.org
Office: (415) 554-7411
Is the reason really that the “eastern side of the city has more economic and population density, making for more bike usage”? I sincerely doubt that the Richmond has less economic and population density than, say, Redwood City.
Also, I’m baffled that they can’t find a corporate sponsor. New York got $40 million, paid for the whole thing, and had a very successful launch. With all the fancy tech companies around here, they can’t find someone to underwrite the program? Last I heard, the BAAQMD, which is managing the program, was looking to hire someone to head the effort to write the proposal to find a sponsor… honestly.