CA Supreme Court Kills Revelopment

The fate of the SF Redevelopment Agency has been part of our discussion ever since we started this project. It will be really interesting to see how creative the city can be in it's attempt to make up the shortfalls in the now (I'm assuming) non-existent redevelopment funding for the Central Market project. We'll keep you posted.

State wins right to abolish redevelopment agencies Marisa Lagos, Chronicle Staff Writer Thursday, December 29, 2011 Tomas Ovalle / Special to The Chronicle  View Larger Image (12-29) 10:31 PST San Francisco -- The California Supreme Court dealt a death blow to the state's decades-old redevelopment program, ruling today that state lawmakers did have the authority to eliminate the economic development program, but striking down a law that would have allowed the agencies to exist in a smaller form.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/12/29/BA6R1MI73D.DTL#ixzz1hygBq0CL

Welcome to San Francisco Mr. Ray

Nice article from SFGate about the San Francisco Film Society's new Executive Director Bingham Ray. SFFS is our Fiscal Sponsor and we're honored to be a part of the Society's Project Development program.

Bingham Ray brings indie force to SF Film Society Meredith May, Chronicle Staff Writer Tuesday, December 20, 2011

Russell Yip / The Chronicle

Among the films Bingham Ray has helped promote, distribute and produce are "Hotel Rwanda" and "Bowling for Columbine."

 View Larger Image

It's a familiar story. An out-of-work actor with a movie star name like Bingham Ray gets by trading stocks on Wall Street during the day and waiting tables at night, hoping for his lucky break.
It never comes, so he quits, spends his days at the movies, and gets a job selecting obscure samurai films for the artsy Bleecker Street Cinema.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?

Central Market @ Work For You

Nice promo piece from the Central Market CBD and our friend Rick Bacigalupi at www.bacipix.com

Above the Street

Part of our project is to introduce the people who live in the area. In the film we hope to bring to focus a central Market Street that is more than a collection of SRO's and boarded-up buildings. We will be highlighting those affected by the revitalization whether business owner, tenant resident or homeless. In the following piece from KQED radio, Augustus Vargus tells his story...

Above the Street
Augustus Vargas hustled life on the streets until he decided it was time to get a life.

By Augustus Vargas

I started selling pot at 7th and Market when I was jobless and behind on rent. The plan was to sell in the morning, take a break, fill out job applications, sell some more in the evening, and call it a night. My goal: make enough money to breathe and then fly straight.

It didn't work out that way.

Listen to his whole story here

Curbed Mid-Market vs Russian Hill

Looks like mid-market could use some serious vote getting!

CURBED CUP 2011

Curbed Cup First Round: (2) Mid-Market vs. (15) Russian Hill

Thursday, December 15, 2011, by Sally Kuchar

15

The Curbed Cup, our award to the San Francisco neighborhood of the year, is kicking off with 16 'hoods competing for a glorious JPEG of an illustrated trophy. This week we'll have two matchups per day, and all the results and full tournament bracket will be reviewed on Friday. Voting for each pairing ends in the wee hours the next morning. Let the eliminations commence!... 

Read more and vote here 

[Market Street Blooms via Sergio/russian hill via Jason Rosete]

Illegal Hotel Conversions Sweep San Francisco

BEYONDCHRON SPECIAL REPORT: Illegal Hotel Conversions Sweep San Francisco 
by Randy Shaw‚ Dec. 12‚ 2011 

Residential hotels across San Francisco are openly operating as illegal tourist lodgings, depriving legitimate tourist hotels of business and removing nearly one thousand units from the rental market as demand for housing skyrockets. Lawbreakers increasingly rely on Internet web sites to steer illegal business to their hotels, flagrantly and brazenly violating restrictions on tourist rentals that have been in effect since 1979. In 1990, the Tenderloin Housing Clinic (THC) sued and obtained preliminary injunctions against over two dozen hotels engaged in illegal tourist rentals. Hotel after hotel then filed lawsuits to challenge restrictions on tourist rentals, a process culminating in a decisive victory for San Francisco in the California Supreme Court. The ruling, combined with a declining tourist economy, largely eliminated illegal conversions, but the situation has dramatically changed. A THC investigation (THC publishes Beyond Chron) in recent weeks has found that hotels across the city are operating as if no restrictions on tourist rentals existed. THC has filed suits against four hotels in the past two weeks, with many others being prepared. But civil lawsuits have their limitations. The District Attorney’s office must prosecute blatant violators for unfair business practices, and activists should initiate ongoing protests in front of hotels with a long history of illegal conversions to deter tourist business.

Read full article here 

SF gets low marks for homeless care

Legal advocates give San Francisco low marks for penalizing homeless people

By 

 T.J. Johnston SF Public Press

 — Dec 8 2011 - 4:34pm

A national homeless advocacy organization says San Francisco continues to make criminals out its homeless population. The National Law Center on Homelessness & Poverty reported recently that the city and several other communities across the country penalize homeless people for behaviors related to their lack of housing.

The Washington, D.C.-based group studied 234 U.S. jurisdictions, finding that San Francisco places prohibitions on 10 of 14 behaviors. Another local advocacy group recently graded San Francisco with a “D” for its policing efforts.

The report, released in November, listed some of the most often cited prohibitions: sitting and lying on sidewalks, loitering, camping, sleeping, bathing and begging for money in public places.

In response to the law center’s report, a representative of the city-run court that specializes in diverting homeless people who are cite for so-called quality-of-life violations said the city is providing alternatives to punishment.

But not all organizations who work with homeless populations say the city’s efforts are sufficient. The San Francisco-based Coalition on Homelessness said the city is getting lower marks than two years ago in using law enforcement on its unhoused San Franciscans.

Read more here

A.C.T. Opens New Performance Space in Mid-Market Neighborhood

American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) is proud to open a new performance space, The Costume Shop. San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee helped celebrate this momentous occasion at the opening celebration event, which took place today from 4:30 to 6  p.m., and was attended by A.C.T.’s family of artists and supporters, as well as representatives from numerous arts organizations around the Bay Area. Located at 1117 Market Street (at 7th Street) in the heart of San Francisco’s Mid-Market neighborhood in the space below A.C.T.’s longtime costume shop, this flexible, 49-seat venue will be home to an eclectic lineup of professional and A.C.T. Master of Fine Arts Program productions. Solidifying A.C.T.’s presence in the rapidly developing and artistically vibrant Mid-Market neighborhood, The Costume Shop will connect A.C.T. to a community with a long, rich history as a center for the arts in San Francisco. Also available for rent, The Costume Shop will enable A.C.T. to partner with exciting local artists and performing arts companies, propelling the creation of transformative new work for years to come. With approximately 2,400 square feet, including a lobby space, backstage area, and dressing rooms, and located only steps from the Civic Center BART and MUNI stations, The Costume Shop is an ideal black-box theater and a very exciting addition to A.C.T.’s performance venues. The Costume Shop is made possible by a generous grant from The James Irvine Foundation. For more information on The Costume Shop and for a list of upcoming productions, please visit www.act-sf.org/costumeshop.

Read more: http://sanfrancisco.broadwayworld.com/article/ACT-Opens-New-Performance-Space-in-Mid-Market-Neighborhood-20111207#ixzz1gGrE6W6I

Multicultural Holiday Celebration and Finale Bash

Re-posting from the San Francisco Arts Commission:

Arts Market SF: Multicultural Holiday Celebration and Finale Bash

Where: U.N. Plaza, Market Street between 7th and 8th streets
When: Thursday, December 15, 11 – 4 p.m.
Cost: FREE

Clagnin & Bagnin

Fogo Na Roupa

The day will commemorate the San Francisco Arts Market 2011 season and welcome the holidays with tremendous music and dance performances. Powerful music will represent the cultural diversity that surrounds United Nations Plaza, and celebrate all the participants and supporters of this year’s market.

Performance line up and details:

11 a.m. – 12 p.m. : Clangin & Bangin – Two guys armed with an upright piano and a drum kit playing the blues, boogie-woogie and honky-tonk.

12 – 1 p.m. : Fogo na Roupa (Afro-Brazilian Carnaval DaDance and Percussion) is an award-winning Brazilian Carnaval dance and percussion company based in the San Francisco Bay Area. Fogo na Roupa encompasses a diverse community of dancers, musicians and carnavalescos rooted in the study of Afro-Brazilian dance and percussion. Mestre Aceituno developed one of the largest carnaval contingents (up to 200 dancers and drummers) that won multiple San Francisco Carnaval Grand Championships.

1:15 – 2:15 p.m. : TBD

2:45 – 3:45 p.m. : Adelante! (Salsa band) is a Mission-based band featuring salsa and other Latin rhythms. The band is led by Suzanne Cortez.