NVV Dec 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.

December 2012

Front Page: Life at the local Fire Houses (the kind that still have active crews); A profile of Upper Noe Neighbor's Vicki Rosen; A profile of local bars, bistros and wine shops that seeks to dispel the belief that Noe Valley is full of sleepy old people.

Letters: One resident is unhappy with the NVV's recent "good report card" for Scott Wiener; Another appreciates coverage of families dealing with recent fires.

Feature: Local senior centers keep their doors open through tight times.

Cost of Living in Noe: "There's not of lot of [sales] difference to report this month." Still expensive. Solution: "Buy a condo."

Store Trek: DAVIDsTea.

Rumors: A promo for 24 HoliDAYS on 24th St; A promo for the recently released Noe Valley Guide to promote the neighborhood to tourists; Cliché Noe owner wants to create a Noe Valley Museum and bring back the Pioneer - "the first motor car built on the West Coast" to the shop where is was built on 24th St and that could house it permanently [Ed.--cool!]; Someone cleaned Harry Aleo's plaque; Election results ("Maintaining an Election"); The Tech Search Party is February 2nd; Bidding farewell to Claire Pilcher, founder of Friends of Noe Valley, who died recently at the age of 73.


[The Noe Valley Voice]

NVV Sept. 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 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.

September 2010

Front Page: A love note to high-end modern homes in Noe; notes from the Town Square meeting on July 15; the plaza proposal is dead, now the debate is where to put (or nix) the parklets.

Letters: A 16-year Noe resident on the mob-rule mentality that shut down the plaza proposal: "Are these people not homeowners or do they simply not realize how much more desirable their homes would become were they lucky enough to live on a newly dead-ended street?"; thanks to the person randomly planting poppies on Elizabeth St.; hi and we miss you from the Andiamo Deli brothers; Robert Roddick, president of the Noe Valley Merchants and Professionals Association distances himself from the NVMPA support for the plaza trial now that it's been squelched.

Features: Billy Goat Hill gets a $50,000 facelift this month – improvements include path updates, erosion control and native plant restoration.

Cost of Living in Noe: Market cooling but the average home in Noe still costs more than $1 million. Rents are up slightly year over year.

Short Takes: Supes debate coming on Sept. 16 at Upper Noe Rec Center; Harvest Fest will be on Saturday Oct. 23, including some local music talent you'll recognize from the farmer's market; cops close Noe murder case.

Traveling Voice: Consumer confidence is up - this summer the the Voice made it to South Africa for the World Cup, Cinque Terre and Paris.

Store Trek: Heliotrope SF; The Little Chihuahua.

Rumors: The Plaza to Parklets drama continues – the NVMPA says merchants want a say in where the parklets will be located, with several retailers vowing (off the record) to fight them outright. The locations being considered are: 24th Street in front of Martha's, Noe Bagel,Toast, and the Noe Valley Ministry lot near Vicksburg. [Ed- Fasten your seatbelts… it's going to be bumpy.] The next Friends of Noe Valley meeting will be on Sept. 28 at James Lick where you can vote on the officers and board. There will also be a presentation on the Town Square and supes candidates have been invited to weigh in. The Noe Valley Farmer's Market board had a "special meeting" in August to discuss market vendors and volunteers supporting supes candidates (not allowed). Rebecca Prozan opened her campaign headquarters a block away from the Market in July. Harry Aleo's Twin Peaks Property is becoming a music store – opening date is mid Oct. The colorful Twin Peaks/Aleo memorabilia went to family, Noe Valley archivists Bill Yenne and Joel Panzer, an estate seller, and to the NVMPA. Accent on Flowers (next door to the future music store) is consolidating to Flowers of the Valley across the street; Blue Bottle Coffee and Design Quarter open.

[The Noe Valley Voice]

Coming Soon: Russo Music in the Old Twin Peaks Property Space

That was quick: Harry Aleo's former Twin Peaks Property office at 4072 24th Street is papered over and a sign in the window announces Russo Music is coming soon. The space will offer "vocal instrumental lessons, sales & rentals, sheet music, reeds and accessories. All ages and experience levels welcome."

So it won't be Lululemon after all, at least not in this space. And Noe will soon have 2 music stores on 24th Street (the other is Noe Valley Music at 3914 24th St).

(Cool aside for Noe history fans: Behind old the Twin Peaks Property sign which has been removed, you can see the word Groceries painted on the store's transom windows.)

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]

For Lease: Twin Peaks Properties

Harry J. Aleo's colorful Twin Peaks Property office at 4072 24th Street (between Castro and Noe) is for lease by Gordon Property Management. The office is closed and we overheard someone out front saying "it'll probably become a women's clothes store or a chocolate shop, the way things are going around here." In the meantime, some of the President Reagan and period memorabilia is starting to disappear from the window; unclear what the lease means for the proposed Harry Aleo museum.