Great news! Travel + Leisure Magazine has just named Golden Gate Park as one of the world’s most beautiful city parks. Here’s to all of you who love your city parks, and here’s to all of the men and women who work every day to keep it sparkling. Get out … Continue reading
http://glenparkassociation.org/2013/04/16/a-canyon-wedding/
Check out this Glen Park Association news feature on a recent wedding in our own Glen Canyon Park, where Natural Areas volunteers exchanged mustard sheaves for a bouquet of ornamental flowers and said “I do.” Continue reading
Outside Lands has announced its lineup for this year’s concert, August 9-11, in Golden Gate Park. Tickets go on sale on Thursday, April 18, at 12 noon PST. Log onto http://lineup.sfoutsidelands.com for more information. Paul McCartney Red Hot Chili Peppers Nine Inch Nails Phoenix Kaskade Vampire Weekend Pretty Lights Yeah … Continue reading
The Weather Channel has just released its list of America’s Best Public Parks and our very own Golden Gate Park makes the list! “An oasis in the city, Golden Gate Park offers trails to walk or hike, playgrounds, picnic areas, lakes, dog-friendly areas, museums, a carousel, and even Segway tours … Continue reading
The new Philosopher’s Way trail, dedicated Saturday in San Francisco, meanders through McLaren Park, weaving onto vistas of the city and the Bay Area and into groves of redwoods and cypress… The 2.7-mile trail loop holds expansive views of the region, including Mount Diablo, Mount Tamalpais, Angel Island and the … Continue reading
Even though the colder weather is upon us, the kids can still go outdoors to play. The San Francisco Recreation and Park Department has started a program designed to bring some extreme sports to local neighborhoods for youngsters to try out… On Saturday, Mobile Recreation will visit Crocker Amazon Park in … Continue reading
See CBS-5′s report on Rec and Park’s 83rd Annual Holiday Tree Lighting, which was held on Thursday, December 6, 2012. More than 500 revelers came out to enjoy carnival rides, arts and crafts, live entertainment and a visit from Santa. See the entire report here.
By John Cote Balboa Park, dedicated in 1910, was a destination spot on San Francisco’s southern side for generations of children. Thanks to a wave of efforts, including a recently completed $3.5 million renovation, it is once again. Over the years, the park had fallen into disrepair. Playground equipment wore out and … Continue reading
Best known for its world-class attractions – the de Young Museum, the California Academy of Sciences and the Conservatory of Flowers – the east end of Golden Gate Park is a great place to spend an afternoon even if you can’t afford any admission tickets. Rich in history and filled … Continue reading
SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS)— The city of San Francisco is inviting the public to a couple of Summer Olympics viewing parties at Civic Center Plaza next week. Three Olympians were on hand to help make Tuesday’s announcement from the steps of City Hall. The parties will be held next Tuesday and … Continue reading
Dolores Park Works and Helen Diller Playground are both nominees for SF Beautiful’s 41st Annual Beautification Awards, which will be announced tonight. Dolores Park Works is a nonprofit park advocacy and service organization that’s been tending the park since 2009; Helen Diller Playground opened to great fanfare in April after … Continue reading
When you took over the seemingly tranquil Recreation and Park Department, did you ever imagine it would end up being so high-profile and occasionally contentious? Well, I had already spent some time watching Amy Pohler in “Parks and Rec,” so I knew what I was in for. … It’s exactly … Continue reading
The Chinese Recreation Center, known for years as Chinatown’s unofficial backyard, will reopen Saturday with a new name and a sparkling $21 million building, but the same commitment to providing a spot for sport, play and relaxation in one of the nation’s most densely populated communities. The center “is at … Continue reading
By John Wildermuth After years of wrangling, the various groups that call Dolores Park home have agreed on a plan to remake a city green space that has been a victim of its own popularity. “Is everyone happy? It’s San Francisco and there are always a lot of different opinions,” … Continue reading
Five years after asking voters to approve a $185 million bond for parks, The City once again plans to court voters with a planned November bond measure to fix up parks, playgrounds, restrooms, athletic fields and the waterfront. With $1.6 billion in deferred maintenance needs, the Recreation and Park Department … Continue reading
At a Wednesday night Open House, the Dolores Park community gave the complete Mission Dolores Park Rehabilitation Plans two thumbs up–for accurately representing all the community’s decisionmaking and for bringing together everyone’s ideas into a beautiful design. Community members also provided dozens of comments confiming their support and suggesting further refinements. … Continue reading
By Tom Stienstra What you’ll see: Lake Merced is San Francisco’s backyard lake, park and fishing hole, yet it’s worth the trip from anywhere in the Bay Area. It is a great destination for jogging, easy bike rides with kids, picnics and golf. Lake Merced is near the San Francisco … Continue reading
On Wednesday, February 29th everyone in the Dolores Park community will have an opportunity to review the complete park rehabilitation plan and the proposed construction calendar. Please join us at the Mission High School Cafeteria at the corner of 18th St. and Dolores St. anytime between 5:30 and 8:30PM on the evening on of the 29th. The location is … Continue reading
By Gerry Shih After listening to more than an hour of tributes and emotional testimony Thursday morning, the San Francisco Park and Recreation Commission voted unanimously to rename Speedway Meadow in Golden Gate Park in honor of Warren Hellman, the ailing financier who has long been one of the park’s … Continue reading
By Robin Wilkey Last week, famed skateboarder Tony Hawk kept skating in San Francisco alive with a $10,000 donation to the San Francisco Recreation and Parks Department to support the construction of the new SOMA West Skate Plaza at Mission Street and Duboce. The park is part of the SOMA … Continue reading
By Joe Rosato, Jr. Far longer than there’s been a Golden Gate Bridge, Treasure Island or Coit Tower, there were bison roaming Golden Gate Park. The first herd moved into a pen in the park’s Music Concourse in 1891, and to its current west-end digs in 1899. But following the … Continue reading
In San Francisco, our park gardeners are some of the hardest working city employees out there, helping to maintain our park spaces at an extremely high level. Volunteers are crucial to our success. Last year, we relied on 141,000 hours of volunteer time to improve our parks and programs. Here’s … Continue reading
KCBS’s Barbara Taylor reports: SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) – A red-tailed hawk that was found shot in the head with a nail gun in San Francisco last month was released back into the wild Wednesday after recovering at a San Jose animal hospital. The injured hawk, a female juvenile that … Continue reading
Bike About Town: Golden Gate Park on 2 Wheels What’s the best way to see Golden Gate Park? On a bike, naturally. Just ask the hundreds of tourists who take to the park on their rented bikes each weekend, the surfers who ride through the park with boards attached to … Continue reading
What’s the best way to see Golden Gate Park? On a bike, naturally. Just ask the hundreds of tourists who take to the park on their rented bikes each weekend, the surfers who ride through the park with boards attached to their beach cruisers and the kids who learn to … Continue reading
(via Bay City News) The San Francisco Recreation and Park Commission approved Thursday to name a Chinatown recreation center after a local Chinese-American flight attendant who died in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. According to department officials the commission unanimously approved to name the center at 1199 Mason St. as … Continue reading
(via SF Chronicle/SFGate) This week’s dining escapades took me from a lunch at the Stow Lake Boathouse to dinner at the refined Acquerello. A few of the places aren’t worth mentioning, but a couple are worth mentioning again and again, starting with Park Tavern, home of the dancing chicken. I’ll … Continue reading
Congratulations to the Sharon Art Studio in Golden Gate Park for winning Bay Area Parent Magazine’s Silver Award for Best Art Class in San Francisco and the East Bay. The Sharon Art Studio provides an array of affordable classes in ceramics, glass, jewelry, drawing and watercolor for youth (ages 5 … Continue reading
by Rachel Gordon With a newly sanded and stained dock, a fresh fleet of boats and a revamped menu featuring vegetarian spring rolls and Salvadoran pastries, the new vendor who took over the food and boat rental concession at Stow Lake in Golden Gate Park is set to open Wednesday. … Continue reading
A new bicycle rental program is launching in San Francisco on Tuesday. The launch of ParkWide Bike Rentals, which is launching five bike rental sites around the city, will be celebrated with an inaugural ride in Golden Gate Park with Mayor Ed Lee and other city officials. Bike rentals will … Continue reading
SF’s Potrero Hill Playground Reborn Nita Winter / Trust for Public Land Playing in Potrero Hill City and county officials gathered last week to celebrate the grand re-opening of the Potrero Hill Playground, the newly renovated play area found in a corner of the Potrero Hill neighborhood park. “We are … Continue reading
SF’s Largest Urban Farm To Celebrate 20 Year Anniversary Today by Bay City News October 8, 2011 9:58 AM In the shadow of Interstate Highway 280, for the past 20 years people have been tilling the land on a steep hillside below St. Mary’s Playground in San Francisco. Alemany … Continue reading
The Park That Almost Never Was The tale of Sue Bierman Park By Joe Rosato Jr. | Tuesday, Oct 4, 2011 | Updated 4:53 PM PD If ever a piece of land had the odds stacked against it, it would be San Francisco’s Sue Bierman Park. Just over two decades … Continue reading
Located on the corner of Steiner and O’Farrell Streets, Raymond Kimbell Park is one of the most highly used play areas on the north side of San Francisco, and until recently it was one of the most dilapidated, due to constant overuse of the fields combined with the abusive weather … Continue reading
By Eileen Keremitsis, Special to The Chronicle Above the Haight is Buena Vista Park, San Francisco’s heavily forested hill and a favorite with dog walkers. It’s as old as its famous near-neighbor Golden Gate Park, and both have significant stands of coast live oak forest – a refreshing retreat from … Continue reading
by Stephanie Lee The windmill at the southwest end of Golden Gate Park is, at long last, getting the wind back in its sails. After undergoing nearly a decade of restoration, a shiny copper dome weighing 64 tons was placed atop the Murphy Windmill on Monday. The act capped off … Continue reading
San Francisco — The longtime vendor of the Stow Lake boat rental and snack bar concession said Thursday he will end operations at the close of the busy Labor Day weekend, handing the city a victory in a protracted legal and public relations battle. “Monday’s it. We’re shutting down,” said … Continue reading
A baseball signed by the mayor, a Muni bus pass, a beaded coin purse, photos and a gold coin are just a few of the mementos that will be tucked into a time capsule buried at the Chinese Recreation Center, which was razed and is being rebuilt. City officials will … Continue reading
The longtime vendor of the Stow Lake boat rental and snack bar concession said Thursday he will end operations at the close of the busy Labor Day weekend, handing the city a victory in a protracted legal and public relations battle. Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/09/01/BAFO1KV0I6.DTL#ixzz1WkPvQWQ4
Back in 1959, Jack Hirose partnered with the Recreation and Park Department to become the Japanese Tea Garden concessionaire. While his official business concluded in 1992, he remained active in supporting the garden. On Aug. 18, the Rec and Park Commission unanimously approved of renaming the tea house the Jack … Continue reading
By Ken Garcia Most everyone agrees that San Francisco is a small town, so it might surprise you that its eastern border is 180 miles away. That would be the area that houses The City’s oldest building, a magnificent outpost that is home to bears, coyotes, lush meadows, dramatic waterfalls … Continue reading
RPD General Manager Phil Ginsburg explains how partnerships are preserving our city parks and programs and dispels the myth that access to our parks and facilities is somehow limited because of them. For the complete op-ed, visit here: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/08/10/EDRP1KL1DT.DTL
August 10, 2011 By Margaret Baum Like other parents of autistic children, classical musician Stephen Prutsman faced the challenging task of finding summer activities for his son to participate in. So he came up with the idea of a camp suited to such children. Prutsman, who approached the San Francisco … Continue reading
SF CHRONICLE Foes of new North Beach Library – enough already! C.W. Nevius, Chronicle Columnist Thursday, August 4, 2011 The opponents of the new North Beach Library have gone through an unfortunate progression. They began with legitimate concerns, fell back to thoughtful disagreement, and now they’ve moved on to tin-foil … Continue reading
EXAMINER Booting crazy measures takes all the fun out of San Francisco ballot By: Ken Garcia | Columnist | 08/04/11 4:00 AM University New Mexico football player Deshon Marman was arrested in June over his allegedly inappropriate low-hanging pants on a US Airways flight, sparking debate over freedom of fashion. … Continue reading
MISSION LOCAL Pulling Weeds, Pretending to Be Bats — Immigrant Kids Experience a Year of Firsts On Billy Goat Hill, it’s radish pulling time. By: Heather Smith | August 1, 2011 – 7:25 am | Filed Under: Education, Front Page When teaching elementary school, Ricardo Cortés is careful around these … Continue reading
CBS 5 Soccer Fans Descend On SF Civic Center For World Cup Viewing July 13, 2011 2:15 PM SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) – Bay Area soccer fans braved wind, fog and mist Wednesday in San Francisco’s Civic Center Plaza to watch the women’s World Cup semifinals. About 100 people had … Continue reading
KCBS San Francisco Parks Receive Major Donation From Coca Cola July 5, 2011 2:50 PM SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS) – The San Francisco Parks Trust Fund received a major shot in the arm on Tuesday, as city officials were presented with a check for $250,000 from Coca Cola. The San Francisco … Continue reading
EXAMINER Purists want San Francisco Rec and Park to pull cash off trees By: Examiner Editorial | 07/04/11 9:44 PM California’s brand-new budget is set to shut down 70 state parks. Oakland has virtually abandoned dozens of its parks and San Carlos outsourced its park maintenance last year. In San … Continue reading
SF CHRONICLE CITY INSIDER BLOG Bison euthanized, but seven more on the way One of the five bison living in Golden Gate Park was euthanized today, after suffering an apparent illness, zoo officials said. But seven new buffalo will join the herd by the end of the year, bringing the … Continue reading
EXAMINER Baseball star Henley playing out her dream with San Francisco Fillies By: David Liepman | 06/26/11 5:00 AM Rachelle Henley, who played professional women’s baseball with the Colorado Silver Bullets in 1994, is currently with the San Francisco Fillies.Rachelle “Rocky” McCann just wanted to play baseball. This was back … Continue reading
SF Chronicle Battle over preserving North Beach Branch Library John King, Chronicle Urban Design Critic Sunday, June 26, 2011 Last year, as San Francisco’s Historic Preservation Commission called for the North Beach Branch Library to be declared a city landmark, I argued in print that the structure was nondescript at … Continue reading
BAY AREA REPORTER SF rec and park adds rainbow flag to logo in honor of Pride weekend Thursday, June 23, 2011 San Francisco’s Recreation and Parks Department is showing its Pride this week in honor of the annual LGBT celebration. It has changed the background of its logo – which … Continue reading
SF Chronicle Pop-up SF skate park preview of bigger project Rachel Gordon, Chronicle Staff Writer Wednesday, June 22, 2011 Word spread quickly among San Francisco skateboarders Tuesday that city officials had unpacked a “skate park in a box” on the eastern end of Golden Gate Park, providing a preview of … Continue reading
KCBS Radio San Francisco Launches ‘Safe Summer Park’ Initiative June 21, 2011 8:49 PM SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS) – San Francisco police and city officials are kicking off a safe parks and streets program, officially launching the “Safe Summer in the Parks” initiative on Tuesday. Part of the program is a … Continue reading
SF CHRONICLEHayes Valley Playground revamp caters to children John King Wednesday, June 22, 2011 The best public buildings, no matter how modest their size, accomplish two things at once. They do the job that people expect and then they go beyond expectations. The new 2,500-square-foot clubhouse at Hayes Valley Playground … Continue reading
EXAMINER The Gull Wing Group donates 125 scholarships in honor of 50th anniversary By Cathy O’Brien, San Jose Charity Examiner June 16, 2011 8:59 pm PT The historic Fort Point, which was built during the Gold Rush as a defense location to protect the San Francisco … Continue reading
EXAMINER Bella sings a swan song, leaving Palace of Fine Arts lagoon By: Bay City News 06/17/11 8:40 AM SAN FRANCISCO — Bella the swan is moving out after receiving a less than gracious reception from her brother and sister-in-law at the lagoon near San Francisco’s Palace of Fine Arts, … Continue reading
SF CHRONICLE CITY INSIDER No swan song – Bella back on feet Rachel Gordon, Stephanie Lee, Heather Knight Tuesday, June 14, 2011 Bella the swan is back paddling the waters at the Palace of Fine Arts after a six-week stay at a Point Reyes exotic bird-breeding compound, where she went … Continue reading
KQED Forum Bay Area Parks in Trouble Mon, Jun 13, 2011 — 10:00 AM Recent budget cutbacks around the Bay Area are threatening regional park operations. We check in with East Bay, San Francisco and San Mateo County park officials about the extent of the problems facing our public parks. … Continue reading
SF Chronicle Interior Greenbelt Park at top of Mt. Sutro open Kelly Zito, Chronicle Staff Writer Sunday, June 12, 2011 For generations, a flight of rickety steps squeezed between two Cole Valley homes seemed to belong to no one and lead to nowhere. This month, however, San Francisco unlocked the … Continue reading
EL TECOLOTE Mission construction starting soon By John Nuño 1:40 pm Friday June 10, 2011 The lazy hazy days of summer are fast approaching, but the air of the Mission District will soon be abuzz with the rattle of jackhammers and the roar of tractors. The face of the Mission … Continue reading
ABC 7 Stinky flower in full bloom at SF Botanical Garden Thursday, June 09, 2011 SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) — San Francisco Recreation and Parks Department is urging people to take the time to smell the flower — the stinky flower. The dead horse lily opened up this week and if … Continue reading
ABC 7 San Francisco street artist creates mural Wednesday, June 08, 2011 SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) — If you can’t beat them, join them. That’s what San Francisco officials figured when they hired a street artist to combat a persistent graffiti problem. An enormous mural now graces a giant wall at … Continue reading
KCBS Radio Officials Begin San Francisco Marina Harbor Facelift June 8, 2011 4:52 PM SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS) – The San Francisco Marina Harbor will figure prominently in the upcoming America’s Cup yacht race, but it’s been in a state of disrepair for decades. That’s all about to change with the … Continue reading
SF APPEAL San Francisco Celebrates Opening Of Historic Trail And Long-Closed Park San Francisco is celebrating National Trails Day this morning with a grand opening of a historic trail and an open space that have been closed to the public for 50 years, city officials said. The San Francisco Recreation … Continue reading
SF APPEAL Martha, The Palace Of Fine Arts’ New Baby Swan “not afraid to get her feathers ruffled” With three more eggs to go, the first of the Palace of Fine Arts’ latest residents has been hatched. Martha, a baby swan or cygnet, was hatched on Memorial Day. Martha’s mother … Continue reading
Dolores Park Playground Construction Means Less Park Play for Seven Months By: Octavio Lopez Raygoza | May 22, 2011 – 6:19 am Almost half of the south end of Dolores Park will be closed to the public for seven months while a new state-of-the-art playground is installed, beginning June 1 … Continue reading
BAY CITIZEN: Know Your Neighborhood Coyote By Annette Fuentes|May 12, 2011 1:34 p.m. |In Wildlife San Francisco has many interesting residents and none more fascinating, perhaps, than the coyotes who have for the last few years taken up residence in Golden Gate Park and other patches of parkland around … Continue reading
SF APPEAL: Specialists To Teach Local Residents How To Live With Coyotes by Bay City News May 12, 2011 11:14 AM San Francisco residents will be given a rare opportunity to learn how to cohabitate with coyotes at a free educational talk this evening in Golden Gate Park, according … Continue reading
BEYOND CHRON Reviving San Francisco’s Failed Civic Center by Randy Shaw‚ May. 10‚ 2011 In her 1961 classic, The Death and Life of Great American Cities, Jane Jacobs observed of San Francisco’s Civic Center that “people stayed away” from it “to a remarkable degree.” Jacobs felt the Civic Center … Continue reading
SAN JOSE MERCURY: My Turn: Golf community, Pacifica residents, public officials rally over Sharp Park Golf Course’s future By Richard Harris Pacifica tribune guest columnist Posted: 05/10/2011 05:02:01 PM PDT Updated: 05/10/2011 05:02:01 PM PDT An overflow crowd of Bay Area public golfers, golf dignitaries, local residents, and political and … Continue reading
SF APPEAL: New Trash And Recycling Program Kicks Off At Dolores Park by Bay City News May 8, 2011 11:38 PM San Francisco’s Dolores Park kicked off an improved waste and recycling program this weekend, announced the program’s spokeswoman. San Francisco Supervisor Scott Weiner and San Francisco Recreation and Park, … Continue reading
SF EXAMINER: Golden Gate Park fly casting pools have resisted flood of change By: Ken Garcia 05/08/11 4:00 AM Columnist Golden Gate Park was built as a retreat from the pressures of urban life. Yet as we know from the traffic, sporadic crime and gathering of homeless tribes, it often … Continue reading
With the right focus, the right team and an ongoing commitment to the project and the partnership, the public and private sectors can join forces to tackle even the most vexing challenges facing large, urban municipalities. Partnering to bring sports fields to kids.In San Francisco, the shared vision of three … Continue reading
SF CHRONICLE Keeping up the San Francisco parks Wednesday, May 4, 2011 San Francisco’s Recreation and Park Department has been caught in a bind for the past two difficult budget years. Faced with consistent budget cuts, the department chose to cut some services – and a large portion of its … Continue reading
RICHMOND REVIEW (May 2011) Cabrillo Playground to get renovation The SF Recreation and Park Department (RPD) announced in April that a renovation of the 1938-built Cabrillo Playground would begin in 2012. In partnership with the City’s Neighborhood Empowerment Network (NEN), RPD helped facilitate a series of community meetings last year … Continue reading
Saturday, April 23, 2011 A great time was had by all at our Spring Eggstravaganza event on Saturday, April 23. Thanks to everyone who came out to enjoy egg hunts, magic shows, carnival rides, arts and crafts and some delicious ribs cooked by the men and women from the Fire … Continue reading
Tuesday, April 12, 2011 "The San Francisco Botanical Garden is among the crown jewels of Golden Gate Park. It offers residents and nonresidents alike the opportunity to marvel at and enjoy an encyclopedia’s worth of unusual plants and flowers in a lovely setting. Naturally, this privilege doesn’t come free. The … Continue reading
Wednesday, April 6, 2011 "Flowers are beautiful, but people in the plant world eventually go to the dark side," Amy Stewart says. "We’re drawn to danger, to killers … or at least I am." Stewart’s fifth book, "Wicked Plants" (Algonquin; 2009), a darkly whimsical encyclopedia of poisonous plants, chronicles these … Continue reading
Tuesday, April 5, 2011 We’ve had more than our share of fun with Amy Stewart’s book, Wicked Plants: The Weedthat Killed Lincoln¹s Mother & Other Botanical Atrocities. Now the San Francisco Conservatory of Flowers in Golden Gate Park gets a turn at it. From April 7 through October 30, they … Continue reading
Monday, April 4, 2011 The flora kingdom is a beautiful thing, but all that glitters is not gold. There are some truly evil flowers and plants out there in the big, bad world that have killed, injured and maimed unsuspecting victims. To warn the rest of us, local, award-winning author … Continue reading
April 2011 Potrero View’s Southside: New Effort Launched to Revive Bayview Parks By Sasha Lekach A group of women from Bayview-Hunters Point have teamed up to start an advocacy group focusing on improving parks located in the City’s southside. Parks 94124, which was launched just two months ago, has already … Continue reading
Wednesday, March 30, 2011 IN honor of President’s Day last month, Deb Winsor, a carpenter with a workshop in Brooklyn, led a crew in the construction of an 8-foot-wide model of the White House, complete with north and south porticos and two dozen hand-painted windows. News Source: The New York Times … Continue reading
Wednesday, March 30, 2011 2. San Francisco Botanical Garden at Strybing Arboretum, San Francisco, Calif. Every time, I head straight to the Garden of Fragrance and rub the leaves of scented plants, especially the pungent pelargonium that smell like chocolate, mint, and lemons. You are allowed, encouraged even, to touch … Continue reading
