Hello, Citizens of Bernalwood!
This is a public service announcement to remind you that today is an Election Day. Get thee to your local polling place, and vote!
UPDATE: The scene was typically Rockwellesque this morning on Precita Avenue:
PHOTO: Telstar Logistics
In hindsight, the Occupy movement was a big disappointment. When the movement first took hold last autumn, Occupy’s clever framing of economic issues as a contrast between the uber-affluent 1% of America’s population and the remaining 99% was a masterful piece of sloganeering that generated widespread public sympathy. Over time, however, Occupy devolved into a self-indulgent spectacle of pointless grandstanding and ineffective wankery, punctuated by occasional bouts of anarchic violence. As Occupy sank into self-parody, public opinion plummeted and the movement became largely irrelevant.
On the bright side, our homegrown branch of the movement, Occupy Bernal Heights, has managed to avoid the ignominy of the rest of #occupy. Occupy Bernal’s secret: a tight focus on tangible goals and tried-and-true protest tactics. As the SFWeekly writes:
Back in December we told readers about the newer, much more civilized arm of the local Occupy movement, dubbed Occupy Bernal Heights. The goal of this new Occupy group was not to pitch tents on public property, but to stop foreclosures and help troubled homeowners get affordable refinancing.
So how successful has Occupy Bernal been over the last five months? We checked back with the group’s leaders, who tell us they’ve been able to stop one foreclosure and helped postpone plenty of others.
That may not sound like much, but it’s more than what some other Occupy groups have accomplished.
PHOTO: Lily Rothrock
Here’s how one Bernal Heights household celebrated President Obama’s endorsement of gay marriage this week. Wooohooo! Finally!
Meanwhile, Bernalwood’s political analysts calculate that if Obama were to also a) endorse the decriminalization of marijuana, and b) criminalize carrying dogs in car-top carriers, he might have a halfway-decent shot of winning election as our next District 9 Supervisor someday. Maaaybe.
PHOTO: Joe Thomas
This week the progressive Bernal Heights Democratic Club issued a resolution in support of Ross Mirkarimi, the San Francisco Sheriff who was suspended from his post after pleading guilty to one count of false imprisonment stemming from a dispute he had with his wife on New Years Eve. The Huffington Post carries the tale:
In a resolution passed earlier this week, the Bernal Heights Democratic Club has officially come out against Lee’s filing of misconduct charges against Mirkarimi and called on the mayor to reinstate the suspended sheriff to his post.
The resolution passed immediately following an appearance by Mirkarimi at the club’s Tuesday evening meeting.
“A friend of Mirkarimi’s called us up and asked if we would invite Ross to come speak. We extended an invitation for him to come and he accepted,” club president Tom Gallagher told The Huffington Post. “He talked about the whole story and how he was going to keep fighting…He seemed determined although he did break down a couple times. It seemed like a very difficult performance for him. It may have been one of the first times he’s really talked about what happened in a public setting like this.”
Noting San Francisco’s long-standing reputation for tolerance and forgiveness, the club argued in its resolution that, “the alleged misconduct stems from an incident that took place prior to Sheriff Mirkarimi taking office and was not in relation to his duties as Sheriff…Whereas Sheriff Mikarmi and his wife and child have been publicly humiliated and disempowered by a criminal justice system that seemed more intent on getting a conviction then helping a couple that was having marital problems.”
The resolution goes on to state, “the charge of ‘conduct that falls below the standard of decency, good faith and right action impliedly required of all public officers’ is vague on its face and would leave a cloud of fear and suspicion over every elected and appointed official in a City that has a legacy of free speech and action.”
So to review: The progressive Bernal Heights Democratic Club believes that the problem in the Mirkarimi case is the “vague” wording of the misconduct charges, NOT the behavior of an elected law-enforcement official who became a criminal after he admitted guilt in an unfortunate case of domestic violence. It is tempting to call this sort of logic self-parody, but that would be deeply unfair to many of Bernal’s hard-working comedians.
PHOTO: Luke Thomas via Fog City Journal
In the comments to our recent post about the redistricting proposal for the Dominion of Bernalwood and District 9, Neighbor Erika posted an excellent summary of the final redistricting plan — and why it’s a welcome thing for Bernal residents who live between Mission Street and the Bernal Cut. Her summary was so good, in fact, that we are reposting it in its entirety here:
What Beyond Chron called “Glen Bernal” is really the College Hill neighborhood of Bernal Heights. We mostly ID as Bernal, but so many Bernalwood denizens have snorted at our historically accurate claim that we College Hill residents have jokingly nicknamed our hood “Glernal.” And it’s particularly apt now that we’re part of Supervisor Wiener’s D8. Yep, we joined D8. Here’s the final map, settled over the weekend and published today.
This boundary shift into D8 was consciously requested by several neighbors and the College Hill Neighborhood Association for a few reasons:
1. Now we have one supervisor covering both halves of the Bernal Cut greenbelt path, the paved walking and biking trail that runs above both sides of San Jose Ave. On the Bernal side, it starts at St. Mary’s and climbs up and past College to Richland, Park, and Highland, and then back down to Appleton at Mission. It has great potential as a free community recreation resource (see our “Heal the Cut” efforts here), but for years it’s been tough coordinating cleaning-and-greening efforts because it was split between both D8 and D9. (The trash and crap—literal crap—are mostly on our Bernal side of the path, but Glen Park residents have to look at it). Neighbors have enjoyed working with both Supervisor Wiener’s and Supervisor Campos’s offices and with DPW on clean-up efforts, but we look forward to the entire Cut falling within just one supervisor’s district.
2. Now our D8 boundary at Mission St. better mirrors SFUSD’s “neighborhood school” boundary, which points College Hill kids who want a local English (instead of immersion) program to Glen Park Elementary instead of to nearby J. Serra Elementary (which was “redistricted” in September 2010 to soak up more kids in South Bernal). Here’s SFUSD’s Attendance Area map.
3. Now South Bernal has two supervisors covering its streets and its denizens, and we like the thought of 2 supervisors (Supervisor Wiener and Supervisor Campos) caring about our corner of the city.
Bravo Neighbor Erika! Her excellent executive summary clarifies the logic of moving College Hill into District 8, while also affirming the area’s longstanding allegiance to Bernal Heights. (The SF Chronicle also has a political analysis of the final redistricting plan.)
One final note. To be clear: The Dominion of Bernalwood does proudly include The Lost Tribe of College Hill in our sovereign domain, independent of any divergent supervisorial allegiances, and even as we apologize for any inadvertent periods of neglect. Bernal Über Alles, and all that.
It’s been a decade, so the City is now finalizing a redistricting plan for our Supervisors that will likely have some interesting political implications for Bernal Heights.
The crux of the plan would revise boundaries of the current district by adding the northern half of The Mission and the southern half of The Portola to our District 9, creating a contiguous band of awesomeness that stretches from McLaren Park to Rainbow Grocery — with Bernal Heights occupying the strategic highlands in the middle. The downside is that the Dominion of Bernalwood may lose some of our brothers and sisters from the Bernal Cut in the D9 reshuffle.
It’s all rather geeky and complicated, but fortunately the scribes at Beyond Chron have been paying attention:
The most controversial move – about whether to put Portola in District 9 or 10 – has been partisan, with moderates advocating for D10 and progressives pushing for D9. But at this point, a majority of Task Force members appear to want it in District 9 for a non-partisan reason: math. D10 and D11 must lose people, and D9 has to grow. Because everyone agrees we must make Portola “whole,” moving a neighborhood with 16,000 people into District 10 would require moving Potrero Hill out of D10 – causing a ripple effect at this late hour.
Last week, the Task Force made no major changes to the Draft Map – but instead had extensive debate about various district boundaries, balancing neighborhood unity with an attempt to “equalize” the numbers. Legally, all 11 districts must be within 5% of the population median (73,203 people.) And while the Draft Map has all eleven districts within that deviation, there’s a consensus among Task Force members to avoid too much “imbalance” – so tweaks have been, and will be, made.
So that’s why the entirety of The Portola is likely to join us here in glamorous District 9. But to make the population numbers work out, one part of Bernal Heights may be moved out of District 9 and into Glen Park’s District 8. Beyond Chron, again:
With Portola currently in District 9, the Task Force has focused on wanting to make the neighborhood “whole” by putting as much of it into D9. At the same time, they have tried to “re-unite” the Mission District – by moving up D9’s northern boundary with District 6, with the current Draft Map putting the boundary at 14th Street. As a result, D9 is dangerously close to being 5% above the median – currently at +4.7%.
So the Task Force has considered removing parts of District 9, and one logical place would be “Glen Bernal” – the neighborhood between Mission Street and San Jose Avenue, just north of the I-280 – by putting it in District 8. The Task Force did not do this last week, but competing priorities might make such a move inevitable.
I rode my bike down there this weekend, just to get a feel of the area. On Bosworth Street, I asked a resident what neighborhood he lived in – and he said, “Glen Park.” If we moved that area south of St. Mary’s Avenue into D8, it would shift 940 people. Moving everything south of Richland would move 1,560 people – but I don’t think anything north of Richland would be appropriate. People up there told me Bernal Heights ends at Mission Street, but that they have less in common with Glen Park.
The redistricting process is now in the final stretch, and most of the work will wrap-up this weekend:
The Redistricting Task Force meets tonight at 6:00 p.m. in Room 416 at City Hall, and again on April 11th at 6:00 p.m. in Room 416. The final meeting is on Saturday, April 14th at 10:00 a.m. in Room 400 – with a midnight of deadline of completing the map. For more details, check for updates here
Likewise, be sure to explore the interactive redistricting map to take a closer look at the proposed district boundaries.
We bring interesting news.
In a political development that is, at once, hilarious, absurd, and yet eminently serious, Mission District blogger Kevin Montgomery has announced plans to run against David Campos, our incumbent District 9 Supervisor.
As you’ll see in Mr. Montgomery’s announcement video, Bernal Heights sits squarely at the center of his decision to run for office:
A few notable things about the video. First, nice pop-culture nod to Herman Cain at the very end. Second, we did not know that Mr. Montgomery owns a collared shirt. Third, he raises some pointed questions about the priorities of Supervisor Campos and much of San Francisco’s Progressive establishment, particularly as they relate to the development of the infrastructure we need to maintain our City’s economic vitality.
Mind you, Mr. Montgomery made this announcement on April Fool’s Day. Yet Bernalwood’s political analysts nevertheless believe he is at least 87% serious about his proposed Supervisorial bid. Our estimate is derived from a longstanding acquaintance with Mr. Montgomery, his blog, his passions, and his preparation for the campaign.
Long story short, Kevin Montgomery usually goes by the handle KevMo. (HINT: Visualize the sign outside the store on Bayshore.) His blog, The Uptown Almanac is an anthropologically revealing chronicle of 20something Mission life, as told from the point-of-view of the crowd that enjoys drinking beer and/or energy drinks while lounging on the grass in Dolores Park. We mean this affectionately.
Indeed, KevMo is Bernalwood’s standing archetype of the mythical Mission hipster, even though he actually can’t stand hipsters — which sort of proves our point. Bernalwood has teased him at times, with jokes about hipster ennui and fixie bikes, and delightfully, he sometimes rises to the bait. But he’s got a great sense of humor, a sharp wit, YIMBY sensibilities, and a deep interest in civic engagement.
It’s not yet clear if KevMo will, you know, actually run. He says he’s waiting to see how the whole redistricting thing shakes out. Yet Bernalwood hopes he does. There are some interesting cultural and economic trends coalescing in this particular place at this particular time in the early 21st century. Win or lose, it would be fantastic if a KevMo run for the Board of Supervisors helped energize that conversation within District 9.
Occupy Bernal Heights was joined by several City Supervisors — including David Campos — for a rally on the steps of City Hall to combat home foreclosures. Fog City Journal was there:
The rally on City Hall steps, organized by Occupy Bernal Heights and the Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment (ACCE, formerly known as ACORN) featured several “foreclosure fighters,” residents who are on the verge of losing their homes.
“We are not asking for a handout, we’re just asking for modifications of our loans,” said Ernesto Viscaro, a struggling homeowner and member of Occupy Bernal.
The article also details a legislative effort by Supervisors John Avalos and David Campos to halt further foreclosures:
Following the rally, Supervisor Avalos introduced a resolution – co-sponsored by Supervisors David Campos, Christina Olague, Jane Kim, Eric Mar and David Chiu, “Urging city and county officials and departments to protect homeowners from unlawful foreclosures.” The measure also urges mortgage and banking institutions, “especially San Francisco-based Wells Fargo,” to “suspend foreclosure activities and related auctions and evictions.” […]
“A postponement is not enough,” said District 9 Supervisor Campos. “We need a moratorium on foreclosures in San Francisco. We are asking all city agencies to not play any role” in administering foreclosures, he said.
PHOTO: Bernal resident Ernesto Viscaro, by Christpher D. Cook for Fog City Journal
This week, Bernal resident Peephole checked in on on the protests that sometimes take place in front of the Planned Parenthood clinic on Valencia Street in the La Lengua Autonomous Zone.
The Planned Parenthood on Valencia had protestors again yesterday. Mysteriously, they all disappeared except this one when I stopped by on my way home.
They had three lounge chairs, a table, multiple stacked plastic boxes, an ironing board, and a sandwich board. If any residents find the sidewalk to be obstructed, they can call the SFPD’s non-emergency line, and someone will come out and make sure the sidewalk is passable. (That’s what happened today after I took this video– they had to relocate and consolidate their furniture and signage.)
It took a year, an outcry, and a special piece of legislation to get the job done, but last Thursday the matter of Anonymous NIMBY vs. Bernal’s Vintage Coca-Cola Sign has been resolved, and the future of the sign is now secured.
Richard Modolo, the Bernal resident who owns the home at 601 Tompkins upon which the sign appears, sent Bernalwood this summary of last week’s Planning Commission meeting where the commissioners voted to allow the sign to remain:
I attended the Planning Commission meeting this afternoon and the Conditional Use Permit has has been approved. Next the Conditional Use permit will be recorded with the property deed, once that is completed I believe the final step in the process is pulling a sign permit. We are getting near the finish line. I might add that there were several Bernal Hill residents who showed up in support of the sign. I am thankful to them and you for all of the support. I will continue to keep you informed along the way.
The vote came as a great relief, but in some ways it was not a surprise. Indeed, the Executive Summary of the case written by Planning Commision staff advocated for the preservation of the sign, and for all the right reasons:
The news of the Planning Commision vote was picked up by many of our City’s mainstream media outlets, including The Examiner and The Chronicle. Here’s an excerpt from the Chron’s coverage:
The vintage Coca-Cola sign whose presence bubbled into a citywide debate about preservation and historic art can stay right where it is, the Planning Commission decided Thursday.
A year ago, the 15-by-7-foot sign on the wall of a Bernal Heights home became the subject of controversy when a group of residents said it was corporate advertising in a residential area and promoted obesity by advertising a sugary drink.
Those for the mural, which was probably first painted in 1930, before being covered with asbestos siding in 1956 and rediscovered in 1991, said it was a relic from Bernal Heights’ working-class past.
All well and good, but both the Chron and the Ex made a factual error by asserting that there was some balance of opinion within Bernal Heights regarding the fate of the sign. That is false. There was no “group of neighbors” that opposed the sign; As far as we know, there was exactly ONE neighbor who opposed it, and that lone neighbor managed to set in motion the chain of events that backfired very completely, such that the sign can now remain in place in perpetuity with the official imprimatur of Our City’s Government. (Also, the sign dates from the early 1940s, not the 1930, but who’s counting?)
But, hey, whatever. Victory is still victory, and still sweet, no matter how absurd the entire controversy might have been. So now let us just quietly enjoy the knowledge that Bernal’s vintage Coke sign can grace the neighborhood for 70 more trouble-free years.
PHOTO: Top, Richard Modolo. Below, Telstar Logistics
The Bernalwood Intelligence Agency has received numerous signals recently about wild parrot sightings around Bernal Heights. Our Political Unit analysts have determined that the parrots are refugees from Telegraph Hill who fled to Bernal Heights to escape the stultifying NIMBYism and shrill politics of that part of the City in general — and Aaron Peskin in particular.
Naturally, Bernal Heights has welcomed the dissident parrots with the warmth and neighborly tolerance for which we are famous. And now, Joe Thomas has captured video footage of the colorful birds frolicking in our midst. Joe says:
I’ve seen these guys around on the east side of the hill occasionally, since at least last March.
Today, I was finally quick enough with the iPhone camera to get a few shots of them. I heard them at about noon, outside my back door on Peralta. They were making kind of a “ha-ha-ha-ha” laughing sound, which you can hear in my video:
There were three of them, climbing around on a neighbor’s bird feeder and chattering. I’ve seen them in larger groups at the feeder, and in the trees next to the stairs from Esmeralda to Franconia. This was the first time I’ve seen them in 2012. I imagine they needed some extra calories after the cold night last night.
Next up, of course, comes the award-winning documentary: The Dissident Parrots of Bernal Hill.
PHOTO AND VIDEO: Joe Thomas
From the San Francisco Appeal:
San Francisco Supervisor David Campos will file papers on Tuesday to run for re-election in November.
Campos represents District 9, which includes the city’s Mission District and Bernal Heights and Portola neighborhoods.
A native of Guatemala who came to the U.S. when he was 14, Campos has passed legislation on various immigration issues, including on the city’s sanctuary policy. He has also been an advocate for the rights of workers, low-income residents and the LGBT community.
“I am proud of the work I have accomplished over the past four years,” Campos said in a statement. “District 9 is one of the most culturally diverse areas of our city. I am honored to represent the district and look forward to earning a second term.”
A second term for David Campos? Discuss.
PHOTO: SF LGBT Community Center
Neighbor Jean Pedigo was quite smitten by last night’s beautiful sunset:
Alas, only from my window on Bocana and with a point and shoot…but stunning!
Sure is.
PHOTO: Jean Pedigo
Bernalwood 
