Crime Beat: Citrus Caper

Information is from Mission and Ingleside District San Francisco Police Station newsletters.

August 14

Theft -- 9:32pm. 300 block 29th St Officer Otaguro responded to a report of a theft. The victim told the officer that she discovered that her lemon trees had been stolen out of their pots in front of her house. The victim said she last saw the lemon trees on the afternoon of 8/14/09.

This better not be a desperate attempt to gain favor with the Noe Valley Exchange.

Notice Of Violation: 947 Church St

You know how your life is inconvenienced when someone crashes into your car in the middle of the night and you have to fight the insurance companies for 3 weeks and have no way to get to work? Consider what happened to the folks living just outside our coverage area at 947 Church St after a moving truck crashed through their garage on Thursday.

Violation Description: An automotive vehicle crashed into building, entering through garage opening at front of building and into rear wall of garage before coming to a stop. Impact has caused significant damage to front facade of building and compromising the structural integrity of building. Damage to utilities. Turn off and cap all utilities.

Corrective Action: ...permit application within 30 days with plans...permit within 60 days...complete within 90 days...Failure to comply will cause abatement hearings to begin... Consult with structural engineer to assess damages, provide shoring plan and implement plan within 24 hours. Also secure building and repair/board all windows. Obtain a building permit to repair damage.

Not enough of a headache? The building is now under "Restricted Use," which is to say "Do Not Enter" without consulting the Department of Building Inspection. Not even to get your toothbrush.

Violation? Who exactly is being violated here?

[CalBeat: PHOTOS: Moving truck crumpled after it slams into a San Francisco home]
[NVSF: Fun With Maps: Where is Noe Valley?]

Grand Opening: Tuttimelon. Again.

The Coming Soon signs are still posted inside, but there are banners all over the outside of Tuttimelon/Belgano announcing a "grand opening" this weekend - more than 9 months since they first opened their doors.

Festivities begin this Saturday at noon with free froyo. The first 50 people will get a door prize, and the first 500(!!) customers will be eligible for a raffle (Apple iTouch, Nintendo DSi, gift certificates). No word if the first 500 from last year are eligible (the counter help didn't know).

What: Tuttimelon Grand Opening
When: Saturday, August 8, 2009
Where: 3901 24th St @ Sanchez
Bonus: Free froyo from 12:00-2:00PM

[NVSF: Tuttimelon: What Gives?]

Photo: Countdown To "Late September"

[NVSF: Tidbits: Openings]

Film Shoot: Kilo

The fabulous buffet.

Kilo took over Royal Cleaners on Church St this morning for another day of filming what looks to be a crime drama:

Tired of being under-utilized, officer MIN LEE jumps at an opportunity to work undercover and finally prove herself. But when she and her partner Juan lose a kilo of cocaine, she becomes desperate to make up for the loss and convinces Kevin, her arrestee, to order up a replacement kilo. With less than an hour to make it all happen, Min finds herself in a moral tug of war with her career on one side and doing the right thing on the other.

Supported by the San Francisco Film Society, Kilo looks to be a pet project of a bunch of Pixar/Disney folk. We'll have to see how it turns out before officially calling it cheesy. At any rate, it's good to see crews filming in San Francisco again.

[Official Site: Kilo]

Comment: Support Local Businesses

Many strong opinions on the state/future of Noe Valley's retail/dining scene in the La Boulange comments. This one deserves its own post:

I don't think anyone is blaming the closure of Real Foods on the protesters, especially not me. I do think the fact that they didn't finish the work they had planned and won't give the space out to other renters has been influenced by the fact that people got involved, started marches, opposed permits for renovations, etc. without considering what a huge anchor store like Real Foods could do to the neighborhood if they boarded up their doors for over 5 years. Why they are continuing to be stubborn and not even feign a reopening plan is beyond all of us.

It's definite that laying off their workers was brash and shouldn't be condoned but you have to take multiple things into consideration and the effect that store has had on the neighborhood by being closed instead of getting even a small iota of support to get them back in the store to hire *new* or rehire old employees and bring shoppers back to the neighborhood.

At this point there is no panacea to fix Noe Valley. The simple fact is that customers are just not there. The best anyone can do is consider the local businesses if they want to keep the few that are holding on for dear life in business and shop with them whenever they can. It would also be good to consider circumstances, if you oppose a liquor license permit for a new local business (La Boulange is local with several stores, does that make it a chain?) a license that was already held by the previous tenant in that location does that hold the possibility that La Boulange will give up and look elsewhere opening the door to another nail salon or possibly a real chain like Gap kids?

LibertyHiller also has a point, people do talk big about support and at times do not stand true to that. But I have seen that Noe Valley customers are our saving grace, they do come to our aid in real times of need. Their support has kept us in business all this time. We shouldn't be chastising our Noe Valley customers in a crisis like this, we should be asking for their help.

As a small independent business owner I am asking, begging you all to support us to the extent you can. By shopping locally or by simply considering possible outcomes when you protest.

There is also another aspect of all this to look at, supporting your local business comes full circle when we in turn donate to the local schools and churches in their parades and auctions. We are also the ones turned to on Halloween when the schools and parent come to our doors with trick or treaters galore. You trust us to be there and we have been. But it is hard to hand out several hundred dollars of free candy to those innocent faces when we close at $32 or our personal worst, $13 dollar days.

Rumored: A Gardening Store

"We just learned today that a new gardening store, with exotic plants as well as gardening classes and more will be opened soon on the patio behind When Modern Was." We'll believe it when we see it, but we're feeling optimistic. We were excited at the prospect of Urban Nest when it opened (promised: "garden accessories"), but they have nothing practical. It would be nice to pick up dirt, seedlings, and a pitchfork within walking distance. Look for it it out in the yard behind When Modern Was on Church St.

[NFR: Scoop: New Gardening Store Coming to Noe!]

Announced: Noe Valley Glow Day Spa

We're hoping that day spa isn't a euphemism for nails/waxing but regardless that's what's going into the old Well's Fargo space at Riki space at 4037 24th St. After some serious work on the place, a A sign in the window (and an ad on Craigslist) announces the new spa and the need (requirement) for new staff ("aestheicticians & nail technicians "). No mention of massage therapists, herbalists, landscapers or any of the other arts we associate with a spa.

Stay tuned.

[NVSF: Closed: Riki]