UNN May 18 , 2022 Meeting Summary

Dear Neighbors,

We had a good participation for our community meeting via Zoom despite the absence of our headliners. Recently installed State Assemblyman Matt Haney got off to a busy start in his new post in Sacramento and had to cancel. Supervisor Mandelman was traveling in Israel.

We were fortunate to have District 8 Legislative Aide Jacob Bintliff join us to fill us in on some of Sup Mandelman’s activities. A prime focus for the District 8 office is Mandelman’s “A Place For All” plan that would require San Francisco to offer every homeless person a safe place to sleep. The legislation is meeting resistance from The Coalition on Homelessness and mixed support from fellow supervisors. It is frustrating.

Public Safety Liaison for District 8 David Burke is a civilian employee of the SF Police Dept. His job is to work with citizens on policing issues. He says SFPD is looking to increase staffing but if you are unsatisfied with police support, he can help. dave.burke@sfgov.org , 415-932-9379. He urges residents to leave front lights on all night to increase sidewalk-level visibility and inhibit crime.

Ryan Patterson introduced himself as a candidate for UNN Board. He has lived and biked in Upper Noe for about two years and has experience with nearby neighborhood associations. Ryan is a lawyer who represents all sides of housing issues. He recently worked with UNN on the 1900 Diamond development. His background lends itself to the Land Use Committee but he is also interested in addressing quality of life issues, transit, safety, and filling vacant storefronts.

Treasurer Report: Erin says we have $1883 in the bank. Currently, this pays for zoom meetings and our website. It will also cover refreshments when we are able to return to in person meetings, as well as our block party and community projects. Please go online to https://uppernoeneighbors.com/ to Join or Renew membership. While we include all subscribers within our neighborhood as members, dues are appreciated.

Upper Noe Block Party 2022, September 24 at UN Rec Center. If you are interested in helping, please contact info@uppernoeneighbors.com. Neighborhood and citywide organizations are encouraged to participate.

Upper Noe Merchants: Judy Marrocco is working to find grant money to beautify Church Street. If you know of any grants available, please share that info.

Land Use Committee: Andy Levine is currently working up sketches to develop branding for Upper Noe along the commercial section of Church St, between Cesar Chavez and 30th St. He envisions lights, signs and plants to distinguish Upper Noe as a destination. This committee can also provide help getting a project thru city bureaucracy. Anyone interested in participating on this committee is welcome.

Parking Meters: We are exploring options to provide more short-term parking on Church Street to assist merchants and institutions. One potential solution is to install meters on the block of Church St between 29th St and Valley. Input is welcome.

Church St Paving: Jacob is helping us to push SFMTA and DPW to get this project in motion. Currently, the pavement beside the MUNI tracks on Church St and on 30th St is not on any schedule for maintenance. This looks to be a long-term project.

Vacant Storefronts: Veterans Liquor at 1710 Church St has been empty since 2008, and several others, like Hall Realty, seem perpetually empty. They could be adding to the vibrancy of our neighborhood if property owners were willing to lease the space. Parties are interested in doing so. Jacob is helping us to find ways to encourage occupancy.

J-Church Restoration in trouble: Kathy Setian and Karen Kennard reported for the Restore The J workgroup (RTJ), which has monitored the J’s return to downtown subway service since Feb 19. They expressed concern that SFMTA is fabricating data to support kicking the J out of the tunnel again. A memo “SFMTA Pilots Surface-Only J Church Line to Address Subway Congestion” cites results from a supposedly public survey to support removal. RTJ had been anticipating that survey last fall but cannot find any evidence that it was ever administered. Furthermore, the published result do not support the memo’s conclusions. This is breaking news. A story on this is expected in the June Noe Valley Voice.

Slow Sanchez Community Guidelines: Bryan Klofas presented the DRAFT Slow Sanchez Community Guidelines as recently released by the UNN Slow Sanchez Committee. The Guidelines originated through task force discussions with Friends of Slow Sanchez last summer when the community raised concerns with how the street was being used, how that was affecting residents, and concerns for the consequences of a public street where right-of-way and official expectations were unwritten and/or blurred. View the Guidelines.

Our next community meeting is May 18.