There was sadness in Bernal Heights when we learned that Miss Heather had to sell the Rock Candy Snack Shop on Cortland so she could spend more time caring for her mother.
But we are very happy to report that the store is in good hands, as it prepares to morph into the Little Bee Bake Shop — a project of Bernal Neighbor Stacie Pierce, who was, until quite recently, the pastry chef at Chez Panisse.
Little Bee is so excited to be opening a shop in the Bernal Heights neighborhood of San Francisco!
Come over and visit us at 521 CortlandAvenue right after Labor Day.
The shop will be a family friendly place for neighbors to come and enjoy ice cream treats, fruit tarts, cookies, and cakes. Little Bee will also offer take home and bake cookie and tart doughs, special occasion cakes, cupcakes, candies and tarts. Aside from the ice cream, all dessert items will be made in house with locally sourced and organic ingredients and can be eaten in the shop or taken away and enjoyed while strolling through the neighborhood.
Tierra Mia Coffee has opened a store in San Francisco. We have taken over the space that was previously the Way Out Café and Caffeinated Comics (and previously Taco Bell!), at 3188 Mission St, on the triangle corner where Mission and Valencia intersect.
Tierra Mia stands for “my land” or “my earth”, people will use it to describe where they are from in Latin America (town, city, state or country). Tierra Mia Coffee as a company is an artisanal coffee roaster who’s mission is to provide the freshest and highest quality Latin-inspired coffee, beverages, and pastries in a setting that is comfortable, contemporary, and highly reflective of Latin American culture.
Although the meathead-induced brush fire and other assorted acts of unpleasantness on Bernal Hill left a bad taste in many mouths, we should also remember that the weather on the evening of July 4 was uncommonly great, and the fireworks display(s) were rather fabulous. Thankfully, we have these photos of the show from Flickr user zoxcleb to remind us of that.
Another feel-good note: The Bernal Go Team deployed on Bernal Hill Saturday morning, and they made speedy work of the post-Fourth clean-up effort. Go, Go Team, G0!
Plans are afoot to beautify the La Lengua homeland by redeveloping the streetscape around Valencia Street between Mission and Cesar Chavez Boulevard, as well as Tiffany, 29th, and Duncan Streets.
The effort has been undertaken by SFPUC, the SF Planning Department, and SF Department of Public Works. The project website is here, and there’s a community open house scheduled for this Tuesday, July 9, to review proposals. Here are the deets:
We want your input on the SFPUC Mission and Valencia Green Gateway! Join us anytime during the Community Open House to provide your feedback on the project design and review the expanded project area to bring more stormwater benefits and streetscape improvements from Valencia to neighboring streets of Tiffany, 29th, Duncan, and San Jose.
Our doors will be open between 4:00 – 8:00pm, and the project team will be giving 10-15 minute presentations every 30 minutes (4:30pm, 5:00pm, 5:30pm, 6:00pm, 6:30pm, 7:00pm, and 7:30pm) to briefly summarize public feedback and discuss the expanded project site and design concepts.
See how the public input from the first open house and online helped to shape the project concepts.
Provide feedback on the design concepts and green infrastructure for streetscapes and plazas at Mission & Valencia and Valencia & Tiffany.
Help shape planning for the expanded project area to neighboring streets: Tiffany, 29th Street, Duncan and San Jose.
Speak one-on-one with the project team – a partnership of the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, SF Department of Public Works, SF Municipal Transportation Agency, and SF Planning Department.
IMAGE: Rendering of proposed Mission/Valencia intersection improvements, via SFPUC
The weather last night was uncommonly warm, fog-free, and wonderful for the City’s annual July Fourth fireworks display, and Bernal Hill was packed with spectators to watch the show.
The official fireworks went off without a hitch, but later in the night, some of the unofficial pyrotechnics went awry. Just as feared, someone touched off a brush fire on the eastern side of Bernal Hill.
Thanks to Neighbor Bernard, for capturing the dramatic photos you see above.
I visited the scene this morning, and I’m relieved to report that the burn zone was actually relatively modest in size:
Whew! We got lucky, and we can all be grateful that the San Francisco Fire Department is so damn good at doing their job.
This is also all the more reason to show Bernal Hill some extra love on Saturday by participating in the Bernal GO Team’s hillside cleanup, starting at 10 am… because the alternatives look much, much worse.
On the Broke-Ass Stewart blog, writer Stephen Jackson likes to pair scenic hilltop vistas around San Francisco with contextually appropriate beers for in situ enjoyment. In his most recent installment — and just in time for July 4th! — Stephen selected an ideal beer for taking in the view from atop Bernal Hill.
He chose Moylan’s Irish Style Red Ale. Here’s why:
I even bought the beer at a great store on Cortland called Discount Club Liquors. They had a great selection–check ‘em out.
Very thoughtful. A historically well-informed choice. Just remember, kids… leave no trace! Enjoy your brewskis responsibly, and haul out those empty bottles with you when you leave Bernal Hill, please.
One of the many things that makes Bernal Heights rather awesome is the fact that the people who live here are actively engaged in our community. Witness the formation of the new Bernal GO Team, a group of neighbors who have organized to take on various projects around Bernal Heights on an as-needed basis.
The Bernal GO Team will deploy for the first time on Saturday, July 6 at 10 am to tidy up Bernal Hill after the inevitable revelry that will take place there on July Fourth, and you are invited to participate.
The best explanation is our tagline: Neighbors in Action. We tackle quick-strike projects to make life a little bit better in the neighborhood. Come meet your neighbors and be part of Bernal’s long history of community activism and action. Sleep well at night knowing that you’ve worked to keep our neighborhood amazing. We’re a grass-roots group and not affiliated with any organization, though we’re happy to help other neighborhood groups with their projects.
How do I join?
Anyone can join the GO Team – just show up for a project! You can work on a single project or more. Look for announcements on the new BernalBernal calendar, follow us on Twitter, and check out our website.
Join the GO Team in Action!
July 6 Bernal Hill Cleanup
Our fair Bernal Hill has amazing views – which means it attracts a crowd on July 4. There’s always a great deal of detritus left over after the official and unofficial July 4 celebrations – fireworks, wrappers, bottles, cans, etc.
Let’s keep our Hill healthy and clean by meeting to pick up the garbage. As with all Bernal GO Team projects, you’ll also get to meet your neighbors and know that you are part of what makes this neighborhood great.
THE DETAILS:
Saturday, July 6, 2013
Meet at 10am at the south gate/entrance, which is just west of the intersection of Anderson and Bernal Heights Blvd. We will be done by 12 noon at the latest.
Bring work gloves and a couple of garbage bags – and bring extras if you have them so that you can share with anyone who doesn’t but who wants to help.
This should be OK for school-aged kids, but please keep an eye on them – there will likely be broken glass, used fireworks, or other potentially dangerous items.
USE COMMON SENSE. Avoid steep slopes or anything that looks unsafe, and stay on paths as much as possible to avoid damaging fragile plant life. Rec & Park can follow up to remove any debris we are unable to clean up safely.
Single-family home prices in Bernal Heights went through the roof last month setting a new record high for this neighborhood in 2013. The average sale price during May cracked the $1 million threshold and came in at $1,088,417.
Home prices in this increasingly popular neighborhood have steadily moved up during 2013. The average sale price in April was $910,559, in March it was $938,091, in February it was $829,429, and in January it was $820,125.
With more and more buyers flocking to Bernal Heights the number of transactions spiked last month. 23properties traded hands spending an average of 40 days on the market before going under contract. 12 of the 23 homes sold for more than $1 million.
Downing & Company has a more detailed breakdown of the properties sold during May on their website, if you are so inclined.
Bernal Neighbor Jon Mooallem’s new book is called “Wild Ones,” and it takes a thoughtful (if bemused) look at mankind’s awkward relationship with the creatures of the Animal Kingdom.
Mooallem, a contributing writer for The New York Times Magazine, seamlessly blends reportage from the front lines of wildlife conservation with a lively cultural history of animals in America, telling stories of people past and present whose concern for animals makes them act in ways that are sometimes unexpected, sometimes heroic, and occasionally absurd. Thomas Jefferson obsesses over finding an American mammoth; a “sharp-witted hippie” ignites a worldwide movement to save the whales; a man lives in a cage and learns to dance with a whooping crane. There is very little self-righteousness or sentimentalism here, just an intense desire to understand why we do what we do when it comes to wild animals in America. Mooallem, who observes conservationists at work from California to Manitoba, narrates his experience while questioning his own assumptions along the way. […]
But this isn’t “Wild America.” There are no lingering close-ups or hushed moments of thrilling intimacy with wild animals. Which is part of the point. The art critic John Berger has argued that looking at animals gives us access to an unvarnished truth, whereas Mooallem suggests that looking at animals is hardly an act of pure observation. “From the very beginning, America’s wild animals have inhabited the terrain of our imagination just as much as they’ve inhabited the actual land.” He calls them “free-roaming Rorschachs” and points to the instability of the stories we weave around them to underscore their fiction. Pigeons were once considered lovely but are now seen as a filthy nuisance. Bears were once regarded as monsters, but when Theodore Roosevelt refused to shoot a wounded bear tied up for his sporting pleasure, the country seized on this moment of mercy and the beloved teddy bear was born. Children are surrounded by imaginary animals — butterflies on pajamas, animal-themed classrooms, books and movies full of fish and foxes that behave like people. As Mooallem digs through the layers of meaning that have “been draped over animals, and on top of each other like translucent silk scarves,” one starts to get the feeling that maybe we have never been able to really see wild animals at all.
UPDATE:This post has been renamed, with credit due to Artifact Productions for the brilliant title.
The piano that appeared on Bernal Hill late last week had a magical effect upon our neighborhood. Almost instantly, the piano became a venue for ad hoc performances by local pianists, so there was much sadness when the City’s Department of Public works responded with atypical alacrity and hauled off the hilltop piano on Friday afternoon.
The removal of the piano was made worse by the fact that a group of pianists had planned to stage a formal recital on Bernal Hill on Friday evening. But in the spirit of “the show must go on,” a backup piano appeared on Bernal Hill just in time for the Golden Hour recital, and by all accounts it turned out to be a magnificent evening of music, good cheer, fireworks, and beautiful urban scenery.
Three hours before the recital is supposed to begin, it’s gotten out of control. Over 100 people have RSVP’d, and we’ve all invited other friends, too. Then the worst happens– we’re sitting in my RV working when Todd starts getting texts from every corner of the earth.
“The Piano is Gone.”
Some people might call off the event. Others might substitute a keyboard or some other lesser instrument. Not Todd. He’s on the phone with everyone on Craigslist selling a piano as well as several music shops. He finds a deal on a passable one and flies over to Oakland on his motorcycle to go rent a truck and bring it back over.
Right on time, fifteen minutes before the show is to begin, he pulls up to a dozen of us waiting, dressed in suits and tuxedos, ready to push the piano up the hill.
We offload the piano and repeat the process from two nights prior. Bernal Heights once again has a piano. As it should.
The joy of living in San Francisco is experiencing those magical moments that couldn’t happen in any other city. Tonight’s piano recital was one of those moments. When the first song was played, there were twenty people or so watching. By the end there must have been two hundred.
There were old people, young people, tech people, and people with face tattoos. Everyone sat on blankets or on the grass, listening to the pianists play. There was jazz improv and there was Rachmaninov. Jodi from tap twice tea brought a tea table out and served people oolong by candlelight. Passerbys walking with families and dogs stopped and enjoyed the music. The sun set over the city as we all sat there listening.
All of a sudden, during a rousing jazz piece, a firework exploded low over our heads. Then another and another. Someone lower down on the hill was providing a rogue fireworks display. People cheered. It was stunning, but it was also a beacon to the police.
Fifteen minutes later, the park ranger has made his way to the piano and is trying to stop the playing. It’s not working, because he’s not quite mean enough to slam the cover on the pianist’s hands. So classical music floats through the air as the finer points of symphonic law are discussed.
The piano continues. It’s hard to stop it, really. You can’t take the piano or unplug it. Finally Todd and Joe take responsibility for the piano and go to the back to get citations written and try to negotiate.
In the end, some sort of agreement is reached. The police and ranger remain for another twenty or thirty minutes of music, supervise the removal of the piano, and even enjoy a round of applause from the audience for their understanding. Everyone is happy. As we roll the piano down the hill, one last song is played by a crabwalking pianist.
This wonderful video from ronaegis gives a terrific sense of the event:
Here’s another from ArtifactProductions:
And a third by Max Cowan, after the sun went down:
Here’s a compilation video, which dubs the event “The Great Bernal Heights Renegade Piano Recital” (and thus wins a nomenclature award). Let it be known as The Great Bernal Heights Renegade Piano Recital forever on:
But Duane works with Wildlife Emergency Services, and he’s very confident the decontextualized rodent will be safely captured. Soon. And then, after the marmot has been brought under control, Duane will gently return the cute animal to its native biome in the High Sierras.
The rodent, which is a member of the squirrel family, isn’t a city dweller, and experts want to get the little creature back home to the Sierra Nevada.
Experts set three traps Thursday afternoon, each baited with something different.
“We’ve tried a few things,” said Duane Titus, of Wildlife Emergency Services. “We’ve tried a little spinach. There’s some mixed nuts. There’s a little bit of apple pie. They’re omnivorous, so I have no idea which one will work, but it will be interesting to find out.”
(We might have suggested one of those yummy waffles from the new Suite Foods kiosk in 331 Cortland… because no omnivorous creature could possibly resist that.)
Anyway, Duane is requesting assistance from the Citizens of Bernalwood to help him figure out where exactly the marmot came from, so he/she can be returned to the very same place. “To its family,” as Duane told Bernalwood.
Based on various bits of evidence — namely, neighborhood sighting reports and marmot guano piles — Duane estimates the marmot arrived in Bernal Heights sometime around June 20. He also suspects the marmot’s home was somewhere around the 6500-foot mark in the Sierras.
So, If you live in Bernal, and you recently returned from a trip to the High Sierras; or, if you received a delivery from a vehicle that may have come from the High Sierras, Duane would like to hear from you, in case the marmot hitched a ride under the hood of your vehicle, as they are apparently wont to do.
Here’s how to help: If you returned to Bernal Heights from the mountains not long ago, please call Wildlife Emergency Services at (866) 945-3911. They’re eager to speak with you.
All that said, Bernalwood suspects that the marmot is no longer in Bernal Heights. Indeed, Bernalwood’s sources tell us the elusive marmot is actually holed up in the transit zone of the Moscow Airport, where it has been seen in the company of international fugitive Edward Snowden, while nibbling on apple pie.
Bernal Heights was aflutter yesterday morning, as a film crew was spotted shooting a big-budget production on the north side. So! Completely! Glamorous!
Boss‘ Kathleen Robertson and Private Practice‘s Taye Diggs have been tapped as the leads in Murder In The First, TNT’s drama from NYPD Blue co-creator Steven Bochco. Co-created by Bochco and Eric Lodal, Murder In The First is a murder mystery set in contemporary San Francisco. Said to be in the vein of The Killing, it centers on two SFPD homicide detectives, Terry Seagrave (Diggs) and Hildy Mulligan (Robertson), as they take on a case that seems more like a maze.
Anyone have any idea what the hell it’s doing there?
And/or, when do the ad-hoc ragtime hilltop sing-alongs begin? Because apparently, that kind of thing is encouraged:
UPDATE, 9:30 PM: Our local pianists are rising to the challenge. Neighbor Heinz reports:
Here is a picture taken today of a lady playing the piano on top of Bernal Hill.. She was playing in front of a small crowd of about 8 -12 people.. There was also another gentleman that played before her.
And check this out! Neighbor Christopher made a movie of someone performing the Star Wars theme!
Neighbor Ros captured another pianist in action at sunset:
Looks like the same pianist, but @ddotkdot captured this stunner:
UPDATE 2 (28 June)
Well, that didn’t take long. Neighbor Jonathan shows us that the Bernal Piano was tagged with graffiti overnight:
Tagging has no impact on the performance of the instrument. It actually adds character to the piano, in my opinion. I got a text about the piano yesterday and got to play a little today in the hot sun!
Bernalwood 