Local links: Lincoln Park steps, plant sale, your Chariot awaits!, Dragon Beaux, funny camp, health fair & more

The freshly tiled Lincoln Park steps. Photo by @RecParkSF

Happy Friday Richmond District! Here are some local links to start your weekend…

• The tiling on the Lincoln Park steps, located at the end of California Street near 32nd Avenue, is finally done! The beautification project has been underway since 2007 and features handcrafted tiles from local artist Aileen Barr. Some donors also gave $500 or more for named tiles which will appear throughout the design. Thank you to the project organizers for all their hard work! See more pics
• This Saturday is the Richmond Community Health Festival at at George Peabody Elementary School (10am – 2pm). The event includes a variety of activities such as free health screenings, medication review, and access to various community-based organizations.
• The Conservatory of Flowers in Golden Gate Park got a brand new coat of gleaming white frosting this month. The frosting, which resembles “liquid chalk” more than traditional paint, is brushed on by hand so as not to be applied too thickly. It dries on their glass panes and protects the plants inside from getting too much heat and sunlight.
• Your chariot awaits! Chariot commuter vans now have a route for the Richmond District. For now, it’s westbound only in the evenings with pickups downtown (Pine & Front, Pine & Montgomery) and drop-offs starting at California and Laurel out to 5th Avenue. First two rides are free. Reader Connie L. took a ride this week and said it was on-time, pleasant and affordable (~$4 a ride when you buy packages).
• Saturday is the SF Botanical Garden’s Annual Plant Sale. This year’s sale, which runs from 10am to 2pm, features an array of drought tolerant plants and flowers, plus Australian and South African species, water conserving succulents, native plants, cottage garden flowers, ferns, orchids, alpines, houseplants and more. The sale takes place in the SF County Fair Building located in Golden Gate Park at 9th Ave at Lincoln Way.
• Dragon Beaux was reviewed by two food critics recently – the Chronicle’s Michael Bauer and SFWeekly’s Pete Kane. The oddest mention in both reviews was that the servers often wear Michael Jackson-style facemasks. Read the synopsis of their reviews here, which is summed up with “Overall, Kane says “I really can’t complain,” while Bauer’s headline “Dim sum dims some at Dragon Beaux” will make you groan all the way down the page until you hit the two stars rating.”
• Summer camps can be the butt of many jokes, but this one is actually about making jokes. Comedy Playground Bootcamp encourages youth ages 10-18 in the development and delivery of stand up and improvisational comedy. It will take place daily 10am-1pm from July 27 through July 31 at the Westside Art House (540 Balboa).
• 7×7 published “A Modern Guide to San Francisco’s Inner Richmond”. “Once written off as “outside lands,” today’s Inner Richmond has all the making of the next hip San Francisco neighborhood. Delicious, cheap eats abound; Asian markets promise a diverse shopping experience; and proximity to Golden Gate Park and the Presidio are plus. Get to know what some call SF’s real Chinatown.” In another article, they dubbed the Outer Richmond as the best neighborhood for families: “The far-flung borough may have a reputation for fog, but the neighborhood delivers on the family-friendly front.”