Next Steps....
City Operations and Neighborhood Services Hearing
Monday, February 28, 10:00 AM
City Hall

We want to thank the hundreds of supporters who turned out for the hearing on February 14th. Over 50 of you spoke eloquently and heartfully (it was Valentine's Day after all) about why the Recycling Center and Native Plant Nursery is an important neighborhood resource and should not be evicted. Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi, who called for the hearing, did an outstanding job of questioning the representatives from the Rec and Park Department and the Department of the Environment. Through his questions it became painfully apparent that neither department has thought through or made workable plans to address the recycling needs of local neighbors and business, or of Golden Gate Park for that matter, if the Center is closed. Additionally, the financial benefits that would be lost to the City and residents ($1.5 million) in this cash strapped time were spelled out.

Following the hearing Supervisor Mirkarimi introduced a resolution to the Board of Supervisors (see below). The Board referred it back to the City Operations and Neighborhood Services committee who will hold a hearing on it on Monday, Feb 28 at 10 am. We believe that committee will recommend that the full Board pass it when it goes to them on Tuesday, March 1.

We are asking our supporters to attend the February 28, 2011 meeting. This will be your last chance to testify about the Center and Supervisor Mikarimi's resolution. Once it goes to the Board for a final vote there will be no additional public comment. If you are not able to make the hearing please contact the Board of Supervisors and the Mayors office voicing your support.

You can send emails to: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

The Mayors Office: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Or to individual Supervisors at:

Supervisor Mark Farrell: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 544-7752
Supervisor David Campos: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.4
Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.0
Supervisor Sean Elsbernd: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 554-6516
Supervisor Scott Wiener: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 554-6968
Supervisor Jane Kim: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 554-7970
Supervisor Malia Cohen: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 554-7670
Supervisor Eric Mar: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.0
Supervisor David Chiu: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.0
Supervisor John Avalos: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 554-6975
Supervisor Carmen Chu: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.0

Draft Resolution Callings for the Creation of A Neighborhood Planning Process for the Creation of a Golden Gate Park Recycling Center, Native Plant Garden and Neighborhood Buy Back and Recycling Center.

WHEREAS, Objective One, Policy I of the Golden Gate Park Master Plan Objectives and Policies calls upon the Haight Ashbury Neighborhood Council (HANC) Recycling Center " to increase its benefits to the Park" by focusing "on the recycling needs of Golden Gate Park and the immediate neighborhoods" and no where calls for the removal of the HANC Recycling Center; and,

WHEREAS, the HANC Recycling Center has, over the last decade paid for, at no expense to the City and County of San Francisco, the development of a Native Plants Nursery, which is the principle supplier of native plants to various parks and open spaces maintained by the Recreation and Parks Department; and,

WHEREAS, since 2004, at the City's request, the HANC Recycling Center has been the fiscal agent and interim funder for the Garden for the Environment at 7th and Lawton in the Inner Sunset and has assisted, at no charge to the City, in providing both native plants and cardboard for various community gardens projects throughout San Francisco showing that recycling and gardening are mutually supportable; and,

WHEREAS, according to Mayor Newsom's Press Office, between 2007 and 2010 homeless San Franciscans camping in Golden Gate Park declined from 300 to 25 during a period of full operation of the Recycling Center, thus showing no relationship between the existence of the Center and the number of campers in the Park, contrary to the Mayor's, RPD staff's and Commissioner's charges; and,

WHEREAS, AB 2020, The California Recycling and Litter Reduction Act of 1986 ( the" Bottle Bill") requires the City to provide easy access to residents to redeem recyclables a requirement not met by curbside-pick up; and,

WHEREAS, the issuance of an eviction notice to the HANC Recycling Center by the RPD, and the approval of a concept to create a gated and limited public access "garden" at 780 Frederick Street by the RPD on December 2nd, 2010 was done without regard to the polices of the Department and Commission as outlined in the "Recreation and Park Outreach Policy" and the" Community Garden Policy" and was done without consultation with or information from either the "Kezar Citizens Advisory Committee" (charged by Commission resolution with advising on changes in Kezar Stadium operations) or the "Parks Recreation and Open Space Advisory Committee (PROSAC)" (charged by the Parks Code with advising, in writing, on all changes of park operations); and,

WHEREAS, the RPD has refused to adopt a Golden Gate Park recycling program for itself , causing public expense to clean up and attracting "gleaning" opportunities for the un-recycled redeemables left in the Park which have been the source of constant complaint by neighbors of the Park;

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the Board of Supervisors calls upon the Mayor to direct the General Manager of the RPD to begin a planning process involving the HANC Recycling Center and neighbors of the Park, aimed at devising a comprehensive Golden Gate Park recycling program, native plant nursery, and neighborhood serving buy-back and drop-off center which meets the clear intent of the Golden Gate Park Master Plan to be placed before the Recreation and Park Commission for public hearing and action, and,

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED , that the eviction of the HANC Recycling Center from 780 Stanyan be rescinded.

After a year of being closed for renovations, the Park Branch Library (1833 Page, between Cole and Shrader) will reopen. Reopening ceremonies begin at 1:00 p.m. on February 26, and have been planned to include Library, City, and State officials, as well as lion dancers, musicians, and circus performers. Library services are scheduled to resume at 2:00 p.m. on February 26.

The Park Branch Library, which opened in 1909, is the oldest operating branch library in San Francisco. The renovation includes a new teen area, more computers, two new restrooms, improvements to the community room, a reconfigured children's area, new shelves, new energy-efficient lighting and heating, and improved electrical and ventilation systems.

Come join your HANC neighbors and celebrate the reopening of this valuable neighborhood resource.

City Operations and Neighborhood Services Committee Hearing

Monday, February 14, 2011

10:00 AM, City Hall, Room 250

The Board of Supervisor's City Operations and Neighborhood Services Committee will be holding a hearing on the role of recycling centers in San Francisco's over all plan to reach zero waste goals. The Committee will specifically be looking at the eviction of the HANC Recycling Center. We are asking the Centers supporters to testify if they are available and to send emails and/or phone the Supervisors in support of the Recycling Center. Below is the contact information for the Board.

Supervisor Mark Farrell: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 544-7752
Supervisor David Campos: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 554-5144
Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 554-7630
Supervisor Sean Elsbernd: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 554-6516
Supervisor Scott Wiener: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 554-6968
Supervisor Jane Kim: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 554-7970
Supervisor Malia Cohen: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 554-7670
Supervisor Eric Mar: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 554-7510
Supervisor David Chiu: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 554-7450
Supervisor John Avalos: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 554-6975
Supervisor Carmen Chu: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 554-7460

Check back here for more information.

HANC Presents a Slideshow on San Francisco's Natural History.

HANCs January meeting is a wrkshop co-planned with Nature in the City. Greg Gaar will be presenting his popular slideshow on SF's Natural History. He will show more than 100 historic images documenting the evolution of San Francisco's landscape over the last 150 years. The presentation will display San Francisco's diverse native plant communities--sand dunes, coastal prairie and scrub, the trees, the creeks, lakes and the bayshore. Greg will discuss the efforts of government agencies, non-profits and volunteers to preserve and restore our natural heritage.

Read more ...

By  Calvin Welch, HANC Board

Haight Ashbury voters showed more interest in the November election than did San Franciscans or Californians and voted to the "left" of both on all statewide candidates and measures. We also defeated the hottest local ballot measure- Proposition L ("Sit/Lie") to the embarrassment of new resident Gavin Newsom and the consternation of various nabobs of the chattering conservative class from Arthur Evans to CW ("Consistently Wrong") Nevius.

Read more ...

Save The HANC Recycling Center and Native Plant Nursery 12.7.2010

HANC Meeting Thursday, December 9, 7pm - Urban School, 1563 Page Street, SF.

The next HANC meeting will be a report on the Rec and Park Commission meeting and what the next steps are to save the Center.  A report on how the neighborhood voted in the last election will also be presented.

Inner Sunset Meeting.

Residents of the Inner Sunset are organizing another community meeting in support of the Center. Check back here for more information.

Board of Supervisors Hearing.

Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi is scheduling a hearing on the closing of the Center and Nursery for sometime in January. We will let folks know the date as soon as we hear from him.

Rec and Park Commission Votes to Evict Recycling Center and Native Plant Nursery - 12.3.2010

Update - 12.1.2010

At a Tuesday, Nov. 30th meeting between HANC,  Supervisor Ross Mirkirimi, Rec and Park, and other City departments, Rec and Park Director Phil Ginsberg stated that they wanted the Recycling Center and Native Plant Nursery out by "the first of the year".  This rush  to evict before Mayor Newsom leaves office is  because no incoming Mayor would support such an absurd idea as reducing the number of recycling centers in a city that already has too few of them to begin with.  In their drive to push this through, Rec and Park  has held NO public meetings on the proposed change of use, despite that being their normal operating process.

Help Stop the Eviction of

The HANC Recycling Center and Native Plant Nursery!

The Recycling Center and Native Plant Nursery is under threat of eviction by the Rec and Park Commission. We need your assistance to help us save this long time community resource.

The SF Rec & Parks Department (RPD) proposes to evict the recycling center operated by the Haight-Ashbury Neighborhood Council (HANC) for the last 36 years from its location on the southwest corner of the Kezar triangle in Golden Gate Park.  The proposal is set for hearing before the Rec Park Commission on December 2, 2010.

There has been no community wide discussion of the eviction.  The proposal has become very divisive in our neighborhoods. In the interest of a broader discussion of this proposal, a number of local residents organized this forum for a full public debate and discussion prior to the Dec. 2 Commission meeting. Representatives from both sides including the Rec & Park Dept. have been invited to speak.

Turn out for the Rec and Park Commission Meeting

Thursday, December 2, 2:00pm / City Hall, Room 416

 It is imperative that we need have a large turn out of supporters at this meeting who will speak in support of the Center and Nursery. The Recycling Center is number 12 on the Agenda for the meeting. Here’s a link to the agenda:  December 02, 2010December 02, 2010

Send Letters and Emails

We need our members, neighbors and friends of the Center and Nursery to show their support by sending letters and emails to the Recreation & Parks Commission and to the Board of Supervisors before December 2, 2010.

Here are a couple of sample letters / E-mail texts.  It’s better if you can write your own letters explaining why you oppose evicting the Center and Nursery and replacing it with a "Garden Center", but here are two sample letters that you can cut and past and build your own on. We need to focus on the Rec and Park Commission so send your letters/ emails to the first three officials right away. Then send the letters and emails to the Supervisors.

Letter #1

I am writing to oppose the proposed re-use of the HANC Recycling Center and Nursery as a community garden and resource center. For over 36 years the Recycling Center has lead the fight for environmental sustainability in San Francisco. The Recycling Center is an intrinsic component in achieving the goals the City has set for itself in terms of recycling. The fact that over 150 tons of recyclable materials comes through the Center every month is proof of that. It is the only place in the Haight Asbury /Inner Sunset where bottles can be redeemed for cash as mandated by state law.

The repurposing of this site as an urban garden and resource center is redundant and disingenuous as there is already an existing community garden space in the area. The Native Plant Nursery providers a far greater service to the neighborhood and entire City through its educational programs, partnerships and native plant advocacy than any “garden center” could do.

Please reject this ill considered attempt to drive out a thriving non-profit that provides decent jobs, community benefits and is such a leader in making San Francisco more environmentally smart.

Letter #2

Please do not evict the Haight Ashbury Neighborhood Council Recycling Center and Native Plant Nursery from its present Golden Gate Park Location. I cannot understand why the Commission would chose to replace a vital environmental, non-profit resource that provides educational program, native plants and state of the art recycling for what appears to be a vague “garden center”. The HANC Recycling Center has proven itself over it’s 36 years. It pays rent to the Park, provides decent jobs with a living wage and health benefits for people who might otherwise be on the streets and has the support of the vast majority of neighbors in both the Inner Sunset and Haight Ashbury neighborhoods.

It appears to me that the move to evict may only be payback by political opponents of the Haight Ashbury Neighborhood Council for positions HANC has taken. This is a shame because the many benefits that the Recycling Center and Native Plant Nursery provide to both the neighborhood and the City of San Francisco should not be threatened by petty, short term political bickering.

Our neighborhood and City will be greatly depleted if this attempt at political revenge is allowed to close such an important environmental resource. I urge you consider the important services the Recycling and Native Plant Nursery provides to the neighborhood and City and to reject this proposal to replace it with a garden center.

Contact information:

Mark Buell, President, RPD Commission, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Mayor Gavin Newsom: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Recreation & Parks Director Phil Ginsburg: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Supervisor Michela Alioto-Pier: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 554-7752
Supervisor David Campos: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 554-5144
Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 554-7630
Supervisor Sean Elsbernd: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 554-6516
Supervisor Bevan Dufty: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 554-6968
Supervisor Chris Daly: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 554-7970
Supervisor Sophie Maxwell: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 554-7670
Supervisor Eric Mar: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 554-7510
Supervisor David Chiu: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 554-7450
Supervisor John Avalos: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 554-6975
Supervisor Carmen Chu: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 554-7460

Check the HANC website for more infromation late breaking updates.

The continuing saga of the 36 year old HANC Recycling Center & Native Plant Nursery got a new installment recently. HANC staff learned of discussions held by the Recreation and Parks Department (RPD) to close this valuable neighborhood resource.

Members of San Francisco’s urban agriculture community were called into Mclaren Lodge to give input on a plan RPD was developing. The plan was to replace HANC with something called a “Garden Resource Center”. A site specific drawing was produced. RPD staff seemed to dismiss the concern raised by a community member that their proposal was highly duplicative of both the Garden for the Environment located nearby at 7th and Lawton and the Native Plant Nursery itself.

When notified of the discussions, I was struck by the irony of San Francisco’s Green Mayor, who is running for Lieutenant Governor on a platform of green jobs and promoting the green economy, attempting to shut down a recycling center that employs ten people in his own neighborhood. How is that for “thinking globally and acting locally”?

Read more ...

Haight Ashbury Neighborhood Council’s April 8^th general meeting will feature an informational presentation and discussion on the Skate Board Park that is proposed for the Waller Street cul de sac off of Stanyan Street in Golden Gate Park. The Board of Supervisors, lead by Ross Mirkarimi, unanimously approved the park’s creation and passed an ordinance to that effect. The Planning Commission has approved it and there is $80,000 allocated for its design. Compared to other sports, skateboarding is an underserved sport and a park gives skaters a place to skate off the streets.

A group of neighbors adjacent to the proposed site and the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition oppose this use. The Bicycle Coalition presently has developed the site for safe bicycling training and riding for children. A number of neighborhood events are held there including the annual Haight Ashbury Children’s Halloween event. In addition there is the proposed seasonal Ice Skating Rink and the ever elusive Farmers Market, both of which are slated to use the site. The site has also been mandated to provide overflow parking for events with over 5,000 expected attendees at Kezar Pavillion. A number of neighbors feel that the park will create an undue noise pollution burden for them and fear increased traffic congestion in an already congested area.

HANC has invited representatives from San Francisco Rec and Park, San Francisco Bicycle Coalition, The San Francisco Skateboarding Association and neighbors opposing and supporting the proposal to come and provide the community with more information and to have a discussion about the proposal.

Also on the agenda for April 8^th will be a presentation from representatives of the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission CleanPowerSF program. CleanPowerSF is the City’s program to provide an alternative to PG&E as a source of electrical power under the “community choice aggregation” program. CleanPowerSF must come up with a final plan this year on how to do that and this is an informational presentation. For more information on-line, go to http://www.CleanPowerSF.org