NVV April 2018: 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 notable highlights from the latest issue. Links are to stories we've covered here on NVSF or other resources. Follow the NVV link at the bottom for full articles and all the ads.

April 2018

Front Page: There's new sand in the giant sandbox and new gravel at the dog run at Upper Noe Rec Center, among other improvements; The owner of a local pre-school lost her Sonoma home in the wildfires and the community has rallied to help; Interview with Jennifer Katz, a local child speech therapist; Group drumming and dancing is on deck for the Town Square every second and fourth Sunday from 3-5pm.

Letters: An ActionSF member loved last month's ActionSF profile; Word Week was a success; An odd note from neighbor Sharon who wants another overly solicitous neighbor to leave her alone.

Feature: Two remodels, one at 79 28th Street [Ed.--permit application withdrawn 3/9/18] and another at 505 Grand View face hurdles from the city and planning commission.

Cost of Living in Noe Valley: Four super luxury homes sold in February, all between $4.9 and $5.5 million which pushed the average value of a Noe Valley home close to $3.6 million. Condo sales averaged $1.6 million.

Short takes: The Noe Valley Garden Tour is looking for volunteers [Ed.--website not updated]; Curry Without Worry is celebrating its 10th anniversary with a free party on April 14 in the Town Square from 3-5pm; Candidates for the mayor's race and the District 8 supervisor seat will speak on April 28 from 2-4pm at St. Aidan's Church.

Store Trek: Azil Boutique, 4010 24th St. at Noe

Rumors and Tidbits: Roughly 200 people showed up for the first Noe Valley Town Square movie night (The Princess Bride) - the next movie night will be July 7 at 7:30pm for a showing of Tortoro. Subscription artisan box company Globe In is moving into the former Cliche Noe space and hopes to open their showroom in May. Upscale Vive La Tarte bakery and cafe is moving into the former Bliss Bar space and will serve lunch including a tacro (a taco crossed with a croissant) in a few months. Sultan's Kebab moved into the former Lazeez space and the owner reports 70 percent of their business is pick-up and take away. Douglas Fir is a new market opening soon in the former Bom Dia space soon (possibly by the end of the month). Pete's Laundry and Cleaners is closed after 30 years on 24th St. after being priced out. Rabat on 24th at Noe is closing by this summer after 47 years and retrenching to their Berkeley store. The Podolls at 3985 24th St. is closing soon, perhaps as early as this summer. The Harry Aleo parking lot on 24th near Castro will soon be getting a collection box for recycling shoes, clothes, bedding and textiles.

[The Noe Valley Voice]

This Week in Noe Valley: More Housing, Green Streets and What to Do About Old People and Their Valuable Homes

The latest news from, about and for Noe Valley from around the interwebs:

• Giant ficus falls on a home on Dolores at Clipper and only the railing is hurt [SF Examiner]
• Noe Valley Garden Tour starts June 3, tickets on sale now [Friends of Noe Valley]
• The rare rotting rodent blooms of spring [@KristinHenry]
• Greening the neighborhood, one nook at a time [@Tint]
• Spotted: Star Wars street art [@adamephoto]
• Think parking protectionists are the worst? There’s a petition for that [@NeverSassyLaura]
• Noe Valley. Presented without comment. [@nickshearer]
• David Talbot: Old people of SF, your time is up [SF Chronicle]

[Photo: Alley via cmason4]

This Week in Noe Valley: Town Square in Phase 2, Uma Casa's Opening Moves to Fall + Fun Photos

The latest news from, about and for Noe Valley from around the interwebs:

• VoilaSF is open in the old Video Wave space on Castro St. [cindyloughridge]
• Phase 2 of construction for the Noe Valley Town Square is underway [SF Rec & Park]
• Uma Casa (a new modern Portuguese restaurant) now plans to open this Fall in the old Incanto space [SF Chronicle]
• Overhead shot of one of the Noe Valley Garden tour yards [adbonifacio]
• The Podolls and Rare Device get a stylish shout out in the June issue of In Style magazine #shoplocal [In Style]
• The current state of the Mission in one photo [@NoeValleySF ]

[Photo: Pretty in Pink via jaytay]

NVV May 2016: 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 notable highlights from the latest issue. Links are to stories we've covered here on NVSF or other resources. Follow the NVV link at the bottom for full articles and all the ads.

May 2016

Front Page: Bingo night at St. Paul's is a six decade tradition; The Noe Valley Town Square is on track (and maybe even under budget) - plus the new choices for the owl sculptures are open for comment; The Folio Books book club is a hit.

Letters: A neighbor asks Noe Valley residents to do their part to keep the neighborhood clean and litter free; A resident since 1985 suggests the new Town Square should be an eco-playground (while past the planning stage); A poem about Noe Courts.

Features: Noe Valley Garden Tour is back on May 21st; neighbors are lobbying force neighbor notification when "major changes are made to a project midway through the design process.".

Cost of Living in Noe: Only six single-family homes sold this March - half the number that sold in the same time last year - because of low inventory. Meanwhile, a 1904 Edwardian on Fair Oaks sold for $5 million.

Store Trek: TMI Colonics, 1478A Church St.

Rumors and Tidbits: The  NVV canvassed people on 24th St on April 21/22 and discovered that among 50 Noe Valleyeons that 56% were for Hilary, 34% were for Bernie, 6% were undecided between the two and 2% (aka one person) was voting for Trump; Again, the Noe Valley Town Square is on track; The Luxe on 24th Street condos now have sales pending. VIP Scrub Club opened in the former K9 Scrub Club spot on Church (no remodel necessary); Robin Shered of Blue Ova Health was rated a top acupuncturist by Bay Area A-List; Noe Valley comedian Mike Capozzola is selling hand-painted drawings of kid's names for gifts; Congrats to NV resident Felicia Lowe for the success of her film Chinese Couplets.

[The Noe Valley Voice]

NVV Dec 2014: 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 notable highlights from the latest issue. Links are to stories we've covered here on NVSF or other resources. Follow the NVV link at the bottom for full articles and all the ads.

December 2014

Front Page: A profile of the Tom and Jerry Holiday House at 3650 21st. St; Plans move forward at the former Real Food space (you can see our take and comments from Scott Wiener here); Renovations - and temporary classrooms - commence at James Lick High School and should take about two years.

Letters: Castro Computers thanks everyone who donated recycled electronics to the recent recycling drive for the NVMPA - it was a huge success; A Clipper St resident beseeches you not to donate to local panhandlers - your taxes contribute to the $167 million spent annually on homeless programs; Gwen Anderson of Video Wave writes that the video store's lease is up in July - she asks fans of the store to watch their website and storefront for meetings about how you can help keep the 20,000 piece video collection in Noe Valley.

Feature: Details about holiday festivities in Noe Valley this month (aka 24 HoliDAYS on 24th); Scott Wiener held a local town hall with District 8 residents to discuss rising crime in Noe Valley and surrounding neighborhoods.

Short Takes: Looking for places to do good for the holidays? Folio Books is having a fundraiser for the Children's Book Project, and SF firefighters are taking food and toy donations for the needy (as are several other local businesses); The dog park at Upper Noe Rec Center will be closed on Thursdays for maintenance and to "give the turf a day off"; The Noe Valley Ministry is raising funds for a new stained glass window; The Garden Tour is looking for nominations for its 2015 event.

Cost of Living in Noe: 18 single family homes changed hands in October, all for over $1 million. The most expensive was a $4.85M home on Jersey.

Store Trek: Mapamundi Kids (1306 Castro St at 24th); Ambiance is combining two small stores into one big one in the former Sway and Streetlight Records space at 3979 24th St; An eco-friendly clothing store called Podolls will be moving into one of the spaces Ambiance is vacating - the other is still for rent.

Rumors: The former Pasta Pomodoro space will become a new restaurant serving an all-day menu of American/Mediteranean food called NōVY and will be run by the owners' daughters who also live in Noe Valley; The UPS store has temporarily moved into the Cardio-Tone space while their current space undergoes ADA and seismic work - they expect to be there until mid January; The towering retail space across the street from Shufat on 24th St is listed for $16,000 per month; L'Atelier Artist Collective is open for business - as is a new hair salon called Mio Mio on Castro above Subs, Inc; Not everyone is happy about the location of the new city carshare parking spots in front of LaBoulange because...parking. Bill Yenne (and his new book Beer: The Ultimate World Tour) was the guest of honor at Folio's one year anniversary; Porcellino is closed for good; There's a gorgeous new mural on 24th St.

[The Noe Valley Voice]

This Week In Noe Valley: No More Historic F Trains On Church St, Real Estate Agents Gone Wild, #uluvmusicday

News from, about and for Noe Valley from around the interwebs:

• Noe Valley's next teardown flip thwarted [Socketsite]
• SFMTA is moving the historic F line Muni cars off J Church tracks [SFMTA]
• Noe Valley realtor Lamisse Droubi sells her local home for $7.5 million (a record $3386 per square foot) [Curbed]
• Avg. $ per sq. foot of houses in Noe Valley, SF = $1188 Avg. $ per sq. foot of brand new 16GB iPad Air = $1160 [@bcrypt]
• Thanks to Yo, Noe Valley house prices will go up another notch [@nszombie]
• Cyclist who hit jaywalker on 24th St aquitted [KTVU]
• Richard May won the Noe Valley Garden Tour raffle [Stephanie Johnson SF]
• … and the Garden Tour raised money for the 22nd St Jungle Stairs [Jungle Stairs]
• Real estate agents in SF have lost their minds – and other wisdom from a seller [Left Coast Cowboys]
• The NV Library was part of a Carnegie gift to the city (and it was built for just $37,499) [Loud Latin Laughing]
• Kif Bender, the local 13-year old singer-songwriter and guitarist will be at the SF Free Folk Festival [SF Gate]
• Lola is the textile queen of Noe Valley [Racked]
• Scott Wiener's latest newsletter [Scott Wiener]
• Few challenging Scott Wiener for the District 8 Supes seat [Bay Area Reporter]
• Noeteca is Bernal Heights' best brunch spot? [Thrillist]
• Philz: Put away your phone before ordering your coffee [willolovesyou]
• Spotted: Noe Valley’s Banksy [cms100]
• We need one of these at the top of Sanchez [Bold Italic]
• Nailed it! [@TheRealWWBTC]

[Photo: #uluvmusicday dedward007]

NVV June 2014: 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 notable highlights from the latest issue. Links are to stories we've covered here on NVSF or other resources. Follow the NVV link at the bottom for full articles and all the ads.

June 2014

Front Page: Summerfest and a day of petting zoos, jumpy tents and activities is coming on Saturday June 14 to 24th St.; maggots at Whole Foods have been cleared, plus a poor health score at Safeway in Diamond Heights; remembering the sandlot at 30th that became the Upper Noe Rec Center.

Letters: A reader wants to know why Chloe's on Church is packed for brunch when the excellent Fattoush down the street is empty; a first-world problems poem about Noe Valley (first line: Eat organic, stay focused); resentment for an ad for Google Shopping Express in the May issue that lists all the "wonderful mega-chains one can order from" instead of shopping locally (meanwhile, real estate ads = 17).

Short Takes: The Noe Courts plan was approved; 5 paintings of the Golden Gate Bridge will be at Hill & Co. until the end of July; Noe Valley Garden Tour is this Saturday, June 7; Bethany United Methodist Church will be celebrating Pride with a BBQ at noon on June 29 following the morning service.

Cost of Living in Noe: The Cube House on 26th Street sold for $5.25 million; everything is going for over asking. Average rent for a 2 bedroom? Still $4542.

Store Trek: Holy Kitchen (4166 24th St at Diamond)

Rumors: The Noe Valley Town Square grant was approved; NV resident Mike Adamick published Dad's Book of Awesome Projects which is for sale at the local Folio bookstore; thanks to the residents who helped with the CATs fundraiser on May 15; the old La Sirena Botanica space on Church is for rent again; the Valley Tavern patio and beer garden is open for business; a for rent sign is up at the former Global Exchange space; renovations are planned for the former Sway/Streetlight space; permits should soon be issued for what was Bliss Bar at 4026 24th St. (unclear if Bliss is rebuilding); and in non-news the Asian fusion mystery restaurant is (as always) still a mystery; Daniel Perea, a Noe Valley native is the new police chief at Mission Station.

[The Noe Valley Voice]

This Week In Noe Valley: The Housing Crisis Explained, First Review Of Porcellino, And A Rare Green Tesla Spotted

News from, about and for Noe Valley from around the interwebs:

• Porcellino is open in the old Incanto space and the first review is in [Inside Scoop SF]
• Easter decorations Noe Valley style [Robbie Miller]
• Noe Valley Steelhouses hit the market [SocketSite]
• Noe Valley Garden Tour coming on June 7 [FONV]
• Does your laundromat do this? [@spincitycoffee]
• Rare lightning green Tesla Roadster (with a handicap tag) spotted in Noe [Tesla Motor Club]
• SF's housing boom repeats an old story [KQED]
• The median rent in SF is $3200 - in Noe Valley it's $3700 [Curbed]
• And what $3200 gets you in Noe Valley (and around the city) [Curbed]
• The best encapsulation of the SF housing crisis you'll ever read [TechCrunch]

[Photo: @PamelaKSantos]

NVV June 2013: 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 notable highlights from the latest issue. Links are to stories we've covered here on NVSF or outside sources as the Voice doesn't post stories online until the middle of the month.

June 2013

Front Page: Local travel guru Chris McGinnis offers travel tips; A Noe Courts update; Profile of Mike Adamick, author of Dad's Book of Awesome Projects.

Letters: Praise for Scott Wiener's response to every day minutia; Recycling thieves' idling cars causing smog; Praise for the Noe Valley Garden Tour from a volunteer; 1220-1222 Church St is painted but still empty; Does AT&T pay fees for new cabinets on the sidewalk? [Ed.--yes]; In Memory: Jack Garvey.

Features and Short Takes: SummerFest is June 15th; A rundown of the various utilities digging up Noe Valley streets; New manager at the NV/Sally Brunn Library and possible new hours (PDF).

Cost of Living in Noe: Super expensive flips raise the average/median home cost.

Rumors: A detailed history of the Noe Valley Town Square starting with the firing of Real Foods employees 10 years ago to the launch of the farmer's market to the crazy meetings about the Plaza to the founding of Parklets to today's effort to preserve public space; Griddle Fresh opened; Noe Valley resident and founder of Code Pink Medea Benjamin who repeatedly shouted down Barack Obama on May23rd; "I wish this was..."; Kale Chips at Luva Java; That great photo of Drewes before they were always going out of business.

Notable Trend: Realtor ads are taking over the NVV.

[The Noe Valley Voice]

This Week in Noe Valley: Mystery Blackout, La Nebbia Love, And Honor For Victims Of Violent Crime

News from, about and for Noe Valley from around the interwebs:

• Omnivore's May newsletter wants you to learn how to cook [Omnivore]
• A $780,000 shack is reincarnated as a $3.1M home with a cottage [California Home & Design]
• More La Nebbia love from the interwebs [Zagat]
• The garden tour is coming May 11 [FONV]
• Hog and Rocks chef moves to Potrero and misses Noe Valley – a lot [7x7]
• Yellow is the "it" color of the moment for Noe dining rooms [Home Design Lover]
• Total blackout in Noe Valley for 13 minutes on Thursday night – confusion ensues [@rsarvar, @KristinHenry]
• Victims of the 24th St rapist honored by DA Gascon for their courage in testifying against assailant [SF Appeal]

[Photo: Campoy83]

NVV July/Aug 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 notable highlights from the latest issue. Links are to stories we've covered here on NVSF or outside sources as the Voice doesn't post stories until the middle of the month.

July/August 2012

Front Page: Noe neighbors nix the idea of losing a Muni stop at 30th; First Republic approved for 24th St; merchants are noticing an uptick in petty crime, shoplifters and "unbalanced homeless men" in the neighborhood as beat cops are spread too thin.
 
Letters: A reader opines that 24th and Church needs a traffic light for pedestrians; a plea for Noe Valleyeans to be Town Square heroes; Liberty resident alarmed that Muni wants to nix the Liberty St stop (reason: it's a scary blind corner if Muni doesn't pause there); the 2012 Noe Valley Garden Tour sold 200 tickets this year and the winning garden was Jana and Geoff King on Cesar Chavez; a Valley St resident rails against the white dots requiring sidewalk repair (choice quote: "the blinding white of replacement squares is a physical annoyance..."); a fan of First Republic chimes in; a Duncan neighbor warns of the perils of rat poison to other local pets (use traps instead); more Examiner grumping; SF Girl Scouts (Ed.--and more likely their parents as anyone who works in an office knows) are the top Cookie sellers in Northern California; and farewell Miss Kit, the much-loved "oldest dog in Noe Valley."

Cost of Living in Noe: Buyers are routinely paying 5% to 10% over asking. It's hot out there. Good luck renting.

Store Trek: Philz Coffee (4298 24th St.)

Short Takes: A $1700 sandbox cover was installed at Upper Noe Rec Center to keep out the late-night feline visitors using it as a litter box. (Ed.--It's an old problem not likely to go away.)

Rumors: La Boulange is now owned by Starbucks; Radio Shack will open "sometime toward the end of August" and the 2 upper units will be ready for renters in July; Tuggey's is closing at the end of the summer at which point the new tenant will be revealed ("in negotiations"); rumors that First Republic could have moved into the Real Foods space are wishful thinking so Real Foods remains a black hole; Noe Valley Town Square needs $3.6 million and so far Patxi's has pledged the most at $24,000, matching grants are materializing and residents are organizing house parties "hosted by people who work for for large Silicon Valley companies;" US DHS director to speak July 18 at St. Philip's Church; news from the blogosphere covered here at NVSF and elsewhere; and kudos to the St Philip's baseball team for 1st and 3rd places in the citywide tournament.

[The Noe Valley Voice]

Noe Valley Garden Tour 2012: Tickets Sales Start Saturday

Nine gardens, six hours, one shuttle bus. Tickets will be available at the Farmers Market and at (unnamed) merchants for the 2012 Noe Valley Garden Tour starting this Saturday. Online tickets are available now. (That list of addresses? We're told it's inaccurate and shouldn't be published.)

Here's the tease:

The gardens range across Noe Valley, from 23rd Street to 30th, Hoffman to Dolores. Six are owner designed and maintained and three are professional gardens by Janet Moyer Landscaping, Michele Schaal and Shape of the Earth. Most are well established but one is brand new, showing you how to be realistic about where your new garden will start as well as what it can become.

As in past years, profits go to beautifying Noe Valley. This year funds will be directed to improving the garden at Alvarado School and trimming the trees at Upper Douglass Dog Park. Past Garden Tour fundraising brought street trees and flower baskets to 24th St.

Pro tip: can't afford the $18 entry fee? Sign up to volunteer--a 2.5 hour shift gets you one free ticket.

Update (4/28): We were told that the list of addresses available on the Constant Contact order page was inaccurate and shouldn't be posted online. That list has now been updated, and since it's public we've put together this map to help you plan your tour.

What: Noe Valley Garden Tour
When: May 19, 10AM-4PM 
Where: Buy tickets for official map
Cost: $18, $14 for seniors over 65

[FONV: 2012 Garden Tour]
[Photo: Flora Grubb]

Pizza Day and Mayoral Forum

Two upcoming neighborhood events via the Friends of Noe Valley:

Pizza Day - August 24 

As you may recall, Friends of Noe Valley organized the Noe Valley Garden tour earlier on this year. Part of this event, which raised money to benefit James Lick School and the Upper Noe Recreation Center Garden, was also a commitment by Paxti’s Pizza to sponsor the event by hosting a Pizza Day. The day has arrived!

Mark your calendar – Wednesday, August 24th to order or stop by Paxti's on 24th Street for a delicious pizza pie! Ten percent of all proceeds will be added to the money raised by the Garden Tour.

Mayoral Forum - August 25

You are invited to the Mayoral Forum hosted by the Noe Valley Democratic Club, Friends of Noe Valley, Upper Noe Neighbors and the Noe Valley Merchants & Professionals Association.
      Date: Thursday August 25th, 2011
      Time: 7:30-9:30 PM
      Place: James Lick Middle School Auditorium, 1220 Noe Street
For more information about this event, email Hunter Stern.

Noe Valley Garden Tour Tickets on Sale

Via the Friends of Noe Valley we get this notice that tickets for the Noe Valley Garden Tour are now on sale:

The 5th Annual Noe Valley Garden Tour is set for Sat., May 21, 2011 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. 9 private gardens across Noe Valley will be open to the public. Tickets are $15 for adults under 65 and $10 for seniors. Children under 18 are free. Donations from net proceeds will go to Noe Valley beautification projects.

The two neighborhood beautification projects donations will be made to are re-landscaping the Sanchez St. side of the Upper Noe Rec. Center and proving shade structures for the James Lick Middle School garden.

Tickets are available at Independent Nature, Omnivore, Wink, Noe Valley Bakery, Small Fry’s, Patxi’s Chicago Pizza Noe and Urban Nest – and on weekends at the NV Farmer's Market.

NVV May 2011: 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.

May 2011

Front Page: St. Paul Church is 100 years old; local artist Eli Noyes designs a sheet of green stamps; car vs. ped accident at 24th and Church spurs local resident Kevin Daniels to pursue better enforcement (or lights) at the 4-way stop.

Letters: Cover to Cover closure lament; Gallery of Jewels adds a ramp for handicap access.

Features: Local resident opens mail-order basket business - the Noe Valley Day Break basket features Noe Valley honey, coffee beans, pastries and a Cafe XO mug; more ADA lawsuits targeting Pasta Pomodoro, Bacco Ristorante and Mailboxes Etc.; food gardening will be showcased at the Noe Valley garden tour on May 21; and 32 AT&T communications boxes are headed for Noe sidewalks if the supes vote yes on May 24 (for more info email AT&T's Mark Blakeman).

Cost of Living in Noe: Zephyr reports 13 homes changed hands in March, including 3 for over $2 million.  High-end homes are hot again in Noe.

Store Trek: Tango Advanced Nutrition (1311 Church St. at 25th); The Urban Chair hair salon (3650 24th St @ Fair Oaks) 

Rumors: None. Mazook's on vacation.

[The Noe Valley Voice]

Noe Valley Garden Tour 2011: Nominations Wanted

Never mind the rain, Noe trees are budding and Spring is on the way. A reader writes:

The Noe Valley Garden Tour 2011 is set for Sat., May 21 from 10 am to 3 pm. Gardens for the tour are being selected now. If you would like to nominate your garden or the garden of a friend, please contact Richard May. Gardens must have direct access from the street and be within Noe Valley boundaries: 30th St. on the south, Guerrero on the east, Noe [Ed.--21st St?] on the north and Market/Diamond Heights Blvd. on the west. Gardens will be selected by the Garden Tour committee by February 28.

Proceeds will go to a beautification project in Noe Valley. Access to the completed project must be open to the public. If you’d like to nominate a project, contact Richard. The selection of the project will be made by the Friends of Noe Valley Executive Board. The Noe Valley Garden Tour is produced by the Friends of Noe Valley.

NVV July/August 2010: 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 notable 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 until the middle of the month.

July/August 2010

Front Page: Summer issue - Voice writers, editors and photographers are asked to "put away their communication devices and find a way to play" until September; Elizabeth Crane ("farmer's market queen") shares jamming recipes; Noe Valley photog Leo Holub died at 93 years old in April.

Feature: Traveling Voice, a retrospective.

Letters: Last month's mockingbird (and apparently the only one in the neighborhood) is now serenading the easily riled Jersey St. residents; Noe St resident enlists Bevan Dufty to reverse a street sweeping ticket); Joel Panzer tries to sound more rational about keeping Noe St open than he did at the June 30th meeting; A "thanks" for the Noe Valley Garden Tour, and another for Rebecca Prozan's campaign kick-off on June 12th.

Cost of Living in Noe: 9 homes sold in May, high price for a SFH was $3.3M (skewing the mean).

Store Trek: Joseph Andrade Floral (3961 24th St) is intent on providing "affordable elegance;" Sway (3979 24th St) is woman's clothing that is "not to cool for school."

Rumors: The Voice was unable to attend/report on the June 30th Community Meeting; Easily riled Jersey St residents now host the official bike route through downtown Noe Valley (complete with Sharrows); Cooks Boulevard? Still empty; Castro Nails? Now on outer Church. GNC/Aveda? "A number of inquiries." Twin Peaks Realty? The estate is looking for a tenant to make improvements (but the space does include parking); French Tulip lives; Garage Store under new management as Garage Store Merchandise Lounge and moving more upscale; Star Magic sticking around after all under the guise of Cosmic Wizard after a notice of "trademark infringement" from some fancy New York lawyer; Loft 1513, Heliotrope and Curator Boutique have made outer Church a "certified shopping destination;" A list of SF Weekly's Best Of including Elizabeth Street Brewery.

And finally... buried among countless realtor ads is another circa 1985 photo advertising Sue Bowie's Noe Valley expertise - still listed as a Prudential agent.

[The Noe Valley Voice]

NVV June 2010: 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 notable 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 until the middle of the month.

June 2010

Front Page: Memorial service for special police officer Jane Warner; Noe Street Plaza firestorm rages on; NV Garden Tour on June 12; a very useful roundup of Noe Valley guesthouses.

Letters: More about the the proposed Noe Plaza, including the formal "resolution" from Robert Roddick of the NVMPA in support of the plaza that was "leaked" to this blog; a reminder that there have been other recent homicides in Noe including one in 2004 on 26th Street and one 10 years ago in the upper Noe gym; a 6 paragraph love letter praising 24th Street Cheese Co.; and a quizzical letter from Chris Lohman on Duncan near Church wondering what the boop-boop siren bird is (it's a Northern Mockingbird).

Features: Look for a hayride and petting zoo on 24th Street on June 19 between 3 and 6 p.m. Starting point for the hayride is at Walgreen's on Castro at 24th (this does not replace the Harvest Fest--merely cashing in); the twin spires of St. Paul's are finished and in full view again; summer Camp at Upper Noe Rec Center.

Cost of Living in Noe: 10 Noe homes sold in April with an average sale price of $1.2 million; rents are climbing slightly.

Store Trek: La Boulange (3834 24th Street @ Sanchez) gives Noe a certain je ne sais quoi and Frenchy appeal (and then NVV pimps a La Bou online coupon for 20% off tickets to the d'Orsay collection at the de Young--re-pimped here: coupon code MBAKE); Dr. Robert Solley (1701 Church Street @ 29th) specializes in couples counseling, helping couples "cool the tensions and rekindle their love."

Rumors: Plazamania continues, and the plaza plans are still on the table- be sure to show up for the next meeting on June 23 at 6:30 PM at St. Philip's; the NVA has been active on 24th Street, putting in cherry trees at 24th and Diamond and strawberry trees in front of The Ark toy store, as well as wooden benches and planters along 24th Street. Debra Nieman also wants everyone to know that now that federal money has become available, the city is putting in ADA ramps which "will require removal and replacement of of the yellow duratherm crosswalks" at Castro and 24th. So maybe that means that the new crosswalks will align with the sidewalks and be somehow less seizure-inducing.

[The Noe Valley Voice]

2010 Noe Valley Garden Tour Needs You

From Richard May:

The 2010 Noe Valley Garden Tour will take place Saturday, June 12. Eight gardens are on the tour, including Japanese, Shanghai-style, four garden rooms up a slope, and a massive garden around a renovated farm house. Tickets are just $12 for 8 gardens. You can buy yours at Cover to Cover Booksellers, Independent Nature garden store, Just for Fun, Noe Valley Bakery, Omnivore Books on Food, Small Frys, Urban Nest, and Video Wave.

Or, you can earn a free ticket by volunteering to staff the entrance to one of the 8 gardens. Shifts are 9:30am to 11:30am, 11:30am to 1:30pm, and 1:30pm to 3:30pm. Volunteers check for tickets and sell more as needed. If you’d like to take a shift and get a free ticket, call Richard May at 298-2344. Volunteers are still very badly needed. Please help.

The Garden Tour is sponsored by Friends of Noe Valley. Proceeds go to "neighborhood beautification projects" like hanging flower pots, the garden in front of James Lick and the restoration of the Noe Valley Sally Brunn Branch Library.