Ask Not What Bernal Hill Can Do For You, But What You Can Do For Bernal Hill

/ Todd_Lappin / 1 Comment

I live in one of the most densely populated cities in the country; yet somehow this is my backyard.

Let us pause for a moment to remember those famous words John F. Kennedy uttered almost exactly 50 years ago, on January 20, 1961, during his Inaugural address. JFK said, “My fellow Bernalians: ask not what Bernal Hill can do for you — ask what you can do for Bernal Hill.”

Okay, so he didn’t quite put it that way. Nevertheless, in that spirit, let us instead recall the words Gabriella West shared yesterday on the Examiner’s community website, bringing news of a volunteer work day on January 16 to do some cleanup and native plant restoration on Bernal Hill:

For years, flyers were posted on the bulletin boards at Bernal Heights Park with a list of work dates for native plant restoration. Now, I’m happy to report that these work dates are continuing, despite the deaths of the couple who organized them for many years. Roland Pitschel, who died in August of 2009 and his wife Barbara, who worked at Strybing Arboretum and who passed away last year, were longtime Bernal Heights residents who were among a group of people involved in the preservation of the park as a natural area in the early 1970s. Their efforts over the years went into removing nonnative species such as fennel, wild radish and other weeds so that the hill could remain in its natural grassland habitat.

For anyone interested in doing some gardening on Bernal Hill in the brisk January weather, the next workday is Sunday, Jan. 16 from 11am-2pm. The traditional meeting place is at the bottom of the road that goes up the hill to the radio tower.

If you can’t make it this month, there’s information on additional volunteer opportunities, here.

Photo: Chris Brennan

A Missed Connection Outside Wild Side West

/ Todd_Lappin

the wild side west since '62

Will the “dashing architect” who had a conversation outside Wild Side West last week please pick up the white courtesy phone?

Hi, I met you outside of Wildside West on the night before New Years Eve. We discussed raw denim, architecture firms, etc. I felt like we had a connection, but I stupidly forgot to get your number. I would love to reconnect and go out some time. This is my first foray into Craigslist “missed connections,” but I am putting my faith into modern social networking. Here goes nothing!

Photo: Lindsay & Ashleigh

Yahoo Says: “If You Are Older, Like to Party, But Prefer a Classy Environment, Cortland Ave Is Right for You”

/ Todd_Lappin / 3 Comments

Our friends at Yahoo recently unveiled a new “Local” news page for Bernal Heights. It contains content from a variety of questionable sources that range from the merely dubious (such as Bernalwood) to the inadvertently hilarious.

The latter category includes a recent piece by Maryam Louise, in which Maryam evaluates the bar scene on Cortland Street from the perspective of someone who would probably rather be in South Beach, Miami. The result is an article that reads as if it could have been written by Lindsay Lohan during one of her drinky relapses:

To summarize the bars in Bernal Heights on Cortland Ave in a nutshell, they are geared toward people over the age of 25 that love budget happy hour specials. In addition, these bars close at 2 AM and offer a party animal spirit without the wild bar fights of the Mission District. If you are older, like to party, but prefer a classy environment, Cortland Ave is right for you.

In some neighborhoods, nightlife is hard to find. Bars are scattered throughout the community and make it difficult to browse. Typically, most alcohol drinkers love to move from one bar to the other within walking distance. It is always nice to start at one place that is quieter and then move on to food or dancing.

On Cortland Avenue in Bernal Heights, bar hopping is an easy task to accomplish. Within 2 blocks, there are over 4 different bars to choose from. Sadly, there is not a bar that specifically focuses on being a nightclub seven days a week, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t dancing and dance music playing.

It’s now only a matter of time until Cortland is overrun with Hummer limousines and underage kids waiting in line behind velvet ropes to enter the Stray Bar. But in the meantime, if you see a slightly tipsy young woman in a cocktail dress wandering Cortland in search of a techno beat, approach her gently and ask if her name is Maryam. If she says yes, urge her to call her mom to come pick her up.

Space-Time Rupture Reveals San Jose Boulevard In 1929

/ Todd_Lappin / 6 Comments

Bernal Cut Bridges

Bernal Cut Dig
Through the miracle of Photoshop, Bernal resident Craig Butz has created a series of images that superimpose historic photographs over contemporary shots.

These depict the Bernal Cut — a major infrastructure project completed back in the days when we still attempted major infrastructure projects. The Bernal Cut lowered the grade of the southwest corner of Bernal Hill to make way for the San Francisco and San Jose Railroad — effectively opening up the Peninsula to routine transit. The cut was first carved out in the 1860s, but in 1929 it was widened to make room for an automotive roadbed — and today’s San Jose Speedway Boulevard.

The 1929 project is what Craig shows us here, via his spooky time portal that combines then-and-now photos in a single view. In an email to me, Craig explained how he does it:

Creating the montages requires finding the exact spot the original photo was taken, observing how tiny details line up in the scene, and ideally getting the camera within a few feet of where the old camera was situated. Then it’s photoshop layers and masking. The biggest thing I’ve noticed in taking these shots is how many more trees there are today. Several photos I wanted to recreate were impossible because the current view is just a lot of branches and leaves.

Images: Craigiest

Parking Problem on Prospect Prompts Poignant Post About Proper Notification Procedure (and a Not-Nice Neighbor)

/ Todd_Lappin / 18 Comments

Bad Parking

There’s been a parking problem on Prospect Street this week which highlights a few of the themes we’ve touched on recently here at Bernalwood; namely, The Essence of Neighborliness, and the Fine Line Between Engaged Activism and NIMBY Narcissism.

This note was posted yesterday on the Bernalheights mailing list, and is reprinted in its entirety here by permission:

Subject: I’m pretty bummed at some Bernal “Neighbours” this Holiday
Date:     December 27, 2010 1:02:54 PM PST

I just placed my third phone call to yet another very grateful neighbour whose car has been tagged on the 100 Block of Prospect for towing, despite a note that they were happy to have someone move the car while they were visiting relatives for the holidays. In each case, the cars have been moved within hours.

My understanding is that all taggings are the result of a neighbour specifically calling the license plate number into DPT.

Really, neighbour, is it easier to deal with 311 and smack a fellow resident with a 90-dollar fine than it is to place a simple phonecall to a human being and say, “Yes, I need you to move your car, please?” (Though I would love to hear your reason for needing these cars moved so desperately, as they aren’t even on the side of the street that’s got homes on it, so it’s not like they are blocking your driveway.)

It would seem we’ve got a neighbour who has added “checking cars for movement like a hawk” to their Holiday to-do list, as these cars are getting tagged so fast that I swear I’ve never even seen some of them before they turn up with a tag on ’em- and my front window overlooks them all. In fact, I woke to a start this morning realizing I hadn’t had reason to leave the house since Christmas eve, and worried that maybe mine was already gone. This is just silly. It’s the holidays! Even people who are at HOME aren’t driving around every day.

Also, it makes our street look super junky and like it’s a dumping ground when you come home to 5 perfectly cared-for, non-abandoned cars chalked to all hell with WARNING notices taped to the windshield. It’s just an eyesore.

So, neighbours, can we talk this through? Can we find a way to work this out as neighbours without involving DPT? I should think a simple courtesy call is the least we can do this time of year.

Amen.

Photo: A demonstration of proper Bernal Heights parking-notification technique. Photo by Tucker Perry, via the Bernalwood group.

Go Team! Vote for Bernal Heights vs. The Lower Haight in the Curbed Cup Final Four

/ Todd_Lappin / 3 Comments

Bernalwood Cheerleaders

After two rounds of digital combat, Bernal Heights has made an impressively strong showing in the 2010 Curbed Cup, an online competition in which the CurbedSF blog pits neighborhoods against one another to claim bragging rights and possession of a pixel-based trophy. Now, wouldn’t this look lovely perched on our virtual bookshelf? (At least we won’t have to fight over who gets to keep it.)
To recap the competition thus far: Bernal Heights was initially ranked as the 11th seed in the Curbed Cup competition. Oh, how they underestimated us. To the great surprise of the pundits and wags, Bernal surged ahead to defeat the swanks of Nob Hill in the first elimination round. Then, in round two, we squeaked past the dotcommers of SoMa to eke out a narrow victory that catapulted Bernal into the Final Four.

Our next challenge will take place tomorrow — on Tuesday, December 27, 2010 — when Bernal will go head-to-head against The Lower Haight.

Obviously, any Bernal resident could go on and on about the aesthetic and moral reasons why we deserve to vanquish the Haight. But frankly, none of that matters. What matters is votes, and specifically, YOUR vote (and the votes of your loved ones, children, distant relatives, Facebook fwiendz, Twitter minions, work colleagues, pets, or anyone else with a unique IP address).  In other words, the Curbed Cup plays well to another of Bernal’s historic strengths: our indomitable spirit of can-do activism.

So you know what to do: Tomorrow, visit CurbedSF and place your vote for good ol’ Bernal Heights. Then tell lots of other people to do the same (and tell them to do the same). Let’s defeat those rascals from the Lower Haight to make it into the finals. Mark your calendars. Monitor your social-networking feeds. Vote early and vote often, and LET’S DO THIS THING. Onward!  To glory!

Crime Blotter: Bad Dad Commands Clueless Kids to Steal from Your Mailbox!

/ Todd_Lappin

Good Morning, Officer

Looks like a certain someone is unlikely to win the Best Dad of the Year Award. But he remains a very viable candidate to win Stupid Douchebag Dad of the Year. From the San Francisco Examiner:

Three days before Christmas, an allegedly bad dad made his son and nephew swipe mail from mailboxes in Bernal Heights, police said.

Cops say a suspect who was booked at Ingleside Station Wednesday gave the young boys plastic bags with instructions to steal mail from mailboxes, then showed them how to use a stick to reach mail in some boxes, police said.

A citizen reported the thefts to cops, who said the trio possessed a “copious amount” of mail. The mail reportedly came from several residences in the area.

Photo: Troy Holden

Terrible News for Bernal Heights and Mission District Jews Seeking the Traditional Christmas Dinner

/ Todd_Lappin / 2 Comments

Bad News for Jews
Devastating news for any Bernal Heights or Mission District Jews who planned to mark Christmas Day with a traditional feast of Chinese cuisine: Mission Chinese Food, the area’s most amazing Chinese restaurant (within a Chinese restaurant), is closed until Sunday, December 26. Oy! So so sad. And so unsettling for the Sino-Judaic Christmas alliance.

As a backup, might I suggest Z and Y Restaurant in Chinatown? Good luck.

Photo: Telstar Logistics

The Lowrider Scene Outside the Precita Center Toy Drive

/ Todd_Lappin

Toy Drive

Toy Drive

Toy Drive

They held a charity toy drive at the Precita Valley Community Center last weekend, and a bunch of the fellas from a few of the local car and motorcycle clubs showed up to be charitable. Everyone was in good spirits — according to one attendee, “we all got to know each other while working on the movie” — and a colorful time was had by all.

Lots more photos, here.

Photos: Testar Logistics