It Must Be The Weather

Blue skies and seventies. Great day for a walk in the nude:

At the intersection of 24th Street, a heavyset woman stood wrapped in a blanket, surrounded by medical personnel. A J-Church train was stopped, with passengers crowding and trying to see what was happening.

Suddenly, the woman whipped the blanket off and threw it at the medics, revealing that the only item of clothing she had on was a pair of closed-toe shoes, Knight said. And then she turned around and noticed Knight, still stopped and now shocked behind the wheel, about 50 feet away.

“She walks directly to me,” he said. “She walks up the hood of my car. And she begins stomping on my windshield, completely naked.”

Update (2/24): SFist received a NSFW photo of the lady in action from a Noe neighbor.

[SFGate: Heavy crime in the naked city]

Tidbits: 24th St Happenings

SEAN opened two days ago at 4080 24th St (quite a makeover of the old Accent on Flowers space). What is SEAN? "SEAN is the only US retailer providing men of all ages timeless contemporary fashion choices designed exclusively by French menswear designer Emile Lafaurie."

The Planning Commission will consider issuance of a Conditional Use Permit on March 8th for a cafe called "Sweep Spot" at 4028 24th St (formerly Cosmic Wizard). Grub Street believes it's actually a "Pinkberry-esque frozen-yogurt shop moving in called Sweet Spot." More details when we get them.

Posters have popped up in windows around 24th and Church announcing the efforts of The Noe Valley Traffic Safety Project "to work with the community and city government to implement short and long-term solutions aimed at making the intersection safer." Check it out.

4027 24th St (formerly Hot Headz) is under wraps, the For Rent sign is down and painters are inside. Anyone know what's going in there?

Haven't been able to find a new iPhone case since Radio Shack shut due to fire/water damage? Problem solved: iPhone accessories are now available at Pete's Cleaners & Laundry (3859 24th St).

Finally, Cookie Time Truck found out last week that they aren't allowed to block a federally-mandated handicapped parking space and is now located at the back of the parking lot. Considering the lawsuits filed against other Noe Valley merchants for ADA violations we'd say Cookie Time got off easy.

Home Buyers Heart Noe Valley

Feeding the Facebook millionaire frenzy, SFGate follows this story in the NY Times about the California real estate market bracing for higher home prices with a story titled "Yes, Yes, Noe Valley." And yes, yes, it's a love letter to Noe. The article is full of observations like: "In a still-moribund real estate market, Noe Valley stands out as a neighborhood buoyed by positive fiscal forces," citing "its fortuitous location for Peninsula, South Bay and downtown commutes" as well as the fact that the "private bus routes sponsored by tech firms are a draw." Lots of local name-dropping, and stories of multi-million-dollar homes going for over asking with a zillion all-cash offers. Some of the photo examples (like 725 Elizabeth, above) are from properties that sold (or didn't) in 2010 and earlier - but whatever. You get the idea. Noe Valley real estate is red hot.

Snark aside, the money quote came from Carol Yenne, 36-year Noe resident and owner of the children's store Small Frys: "When we bought our (Noe Valley) house in 1975, it cost nothing compared to nowadays. But my mother back in Montana cried because we could have bought 10 acres and a ranch house there for the same price, and here we got a 25-foot-by-100-foot lot with an old, crummy house."

[SF Gate: Yes, yes, Noe Valley, say eager S.F. home buyers]
[NY Times: California Housing Market Braces for Facebook Millionaires]

Rebirth Of Cool

In 2009, Gerry and Lisa lost their newly-constructed house to fire while on vacation. No one was hurt. "The first thing Lisa and I realized is that within the grand scheme of things, we have lost little.... Our children are here and well today. The rest is stuff, and most of it can be replaced, and of what cannot, we have memories."

And boy did they replace. All the details that bothered them from the first go-round were fixed: plaster instead of drywall, marble and granite instead of quarzite, a fire-vulnerable master suite moved to a lower level.

Today the New York Times profiles the rebirth of the 27th St house:

Gerry Agosta, who has spent 30 years in the Bay Area as a general contractor and developer, said there’s a hard truth in his line of work: “You never get a chance for a do-over. Every site commands a different design, so you’re always doing things for the first time.”

[NYT: From Ashes, Upgrades]
[NVV: Love Eases Heartbreak After Fire on 27th Street]

Closing: Ladybug Ladybug

Via Twitter we learned today that Ladybug Ladybug at 3870 24th St is moving to Sacramento: "Super sad that this cute gift store is leaving Noe Valley." FWIW, the Sacramento store has been open since November of 2010 and the owner lives there. At the time it was reported that she "wants to focus on the Sacramento store and eventually make it the base store."

Noe Valley Good Samaritan Honored As District 8 Woman of the Year

Catherine Bergstrom

No good deed goes unpunished – and we mean that in the nicest way. Noe neighbor Randy sent us this note:

I would like to bring to your attention that Supervisor Wiener is honoring Catherine Bergstrom as one of the District 8 Women of the Year for her role in coordinating the Noe Valley fire fundraiser. The Women of the Year commendations will be held during the Board of Supervisors meeting in room 250 of City Hall on March 6th, at 3:30pm.

Scott Weiner confirms:

Correct. I will be honoring Catherine Bergstrom and also two women (Kate Ryken and Beth Spotswood) who, similarly, stepped up and raised funds for the tenants who were burned out of their apartments by the series of arsons in the Castro last year. These three women, on their own initiative, went above and beyond and asked for nothing in return. They showed what neighborhoods and communities are all about - pulling together and being there for each other.

Congratulations, Catherine. Thank you.

[Image: Twitter] 

Moving: Loft 1513 Boutique

Loft 1513 on Church Street

A prime empty retail space on 24th St has filled quickly: A sign in the former Urban Nest storefront announces Loft 1513's move from 1513 Church St. to to 3927 24th Street. The sign reads:

LOFT 1513 is a new kind of Boutique and art gallery. It houses one-of-a-kind local and international designers… bringing you unique, innovative and eco-friendly designs.

LOFT hosts monthly parties and events, both open to the public and private. We feature artist and designers with fashion shows, DJs, art installations, and live demos. We also offer one-on-one fashion consultations, workshops and custom designs.

We are thrilled to be able to showcase our designs in a more accessible neighborhood for our customers and for the opportunity to gain new fans. We are currently located a few blocks away at 1513 Church.

We will re-open our doors on this new location March 1st. Stay tuned for our upcoming events.

All my best,
Larissa Verdussen and LOFT Crew
www.loft1513.com

Heliotrope, the natural skin care products store which is currently next door to LOFT 1513 on Church St, will also have a presence in the new space with a shop-within-a-shop.

[Top image: LOFT 1513 Blog]

NVV Feb 2012: We Read It So You Don't Have to

The Noe Valley Voice is published ten times a year and has been a neighborhood fixture since 1977. Here are highlights from the latest issue. Links are to items we've covered here on NVSF or outside sources as the Voice doesn't post stories online until mid-month.

February 2012

Front Page: Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi visited Noe Valley on January 11 for 90 minutes to shop, talk to merchants about the economy and stump for Obama's American Jobs Act. Among the places she visited were Peekaboutique, Just for Fun, Noe Valley Deli, Gallery of Jewels, Chocolate Covered, When Modern Was, and Subs, Inc. Also on the cover: a recap of the community response to the Fair Oaks rape case; Urban Nest closed on 24th St. - and so did a number of other businesses in 2011, while others are hanging on (Small Frys, SwatDee Thai, and Joe's 24th St Cafe) or thriving (Two Birds, Cliché Noe, Phoenix Books).  

Letters: Beware of plant thieves driving gold BMWs; a baby welcome basket from a Mom was stolen off a stoop on 29th St.; Ruth Asawa SF School of the Arts is opening a production of The Producers on Feb 23; if you posed with Dancer and Prancer on Dec 15 at Just for Fun this year, don't forget to claim your reindeer photos.

Features: Noe Valley documentary filmmaker Debra Chasnoff is a member The Academy - and watching a lot of films at the moment.

Cost of Living in Noe: 20 single family homes sold in November and December - matching 2010 - and all sold for over $1 million. The biggest sale was $12.1 million for a 40 unit building on Cesar Chavez, bought by an investment company.

Store Trek: K9 Scrub Club, Kama Sushi

Rumors:  Nancy Pelosi's visit; results of a Friends of Noe Valley and Noe Valley Association survey are in and the 65 people who answered said their most desired new restaurant types would be Indian, seafood, and Italian, most desired new businesses were a wine bar, a micro-brewery, and a penny candy/ice cream/soda fountain; they love the Farmer's Market, want a Noe Valley Art Fair, and like the idea of a February Love Fest. A full 69% also said parking was very important or somewhat important - and 60% of respondents listed their household income as "greater than $200K." Lost of traffic on 24th St. this holiday thanks to Whole Foods; celebrity sightings of Jake Gyllenhaal and Tracy Chapman at WF; and the most popular items at WF during the holidays were walnuts, avocados and coconut water; a haberdashery called Sean will open his third SF store in the former Accent on Flowers space on 24th St in Feb or March; Noe Valley Wine Merchants is also opening this month and will have wine tastings several times per week; and the corner grocer at 1001 Castro at Alvarado has changed hands and added more wine, fresh produce and self-service laundry; Video Wave and other merchants continue to fight the ADA complaints.

[The Noe Valley Voice]

Open: Saru Sushi Bar

Saru is now open at 3856 24th St for lunch and dinner every day except Monday. They aren't online ("yet") but they're happy to fax a menu if you call. The beer/wine license is active. Outdoor seating will be available next week.

Saru Sushi Bar
3856 24th Street
San Francisco CA 94114
(415)400-4510

Open Tuesday-Sunday
Lunch: 12-2pm
Dinner: 5:30-9:30pm

[NVSF: Closed: Tamasei Sushi]