Loud Green and Leafy: this week in Greenway news
We'll be heading the bill at Nerd Nite this Wednesday April 19th at 8:00 PM!
We’re happy to announce we’ll be topping the bill at this week’s Nerd Nite, located at the Rickshaw Stop! In keeping with the theme of Spring and the massive greening of California (thanks, rain!), we’ll be talking about the unquiet past and slightly tumultuous present of Parcel 36, another moniker we use to describe the former site of the Southern Pacific Old Main line and the future location of the Mission District’s latest garden/micro farm/ pedestrian greenway.
Join us this Wednesday at “Loud, Green and Leafy”. Doors open at 7. 12 bucks gets you all the history you can handle, plus a presentation on cannabis toxicology and the downlow on how to read a spectrogram (look it up).
But before you leave, make sure you have April 26th on your calendar! That’s the date of our Board of Appeals hearing. We'll be asking the Board to revoke the permit granted to Monkeybrains to build a private iron gate.
Here’s a recap: after purchasing the old Heinzer warehouse at 931-933 Treat Avenue - a warehouse adjacent to the parcel - Monkeybrains is trying to build a private gate in order to create a commercial parking lot and loading zone.
On March 2, Monkeybrains filed a building permit application with falsified information, namely a claim of ownership. If you’ve been following this saga, you know that there is no recorded ownership at all for the parcel.
We appealed the permit, and we need you to, as well. We’re confident we’ll win this appeal, and we think this hearing is the perfect opportunity to show the Board of Appeals and other city officials (we’re looking at you, Supervisor Ronen) how strong the Greenway support is. This is our moment to let the city know that we, as a community, want more green spaces in our neighborhood.
We encourage everyone to start by writing a letter of support to the Board of Appeals at boardofappeals@sfgov.org.
Here’s a sample letter. Feel free to personalize it. The deadline is Thursday, April 20th 4:30PM.
Subject: Appeal Number 23-008
I’m writing as a supporter of Friends of the Mission Greenway, a non-profit that is working with the Mission community to transform Parcel 36, a historic railroad right-of-way connecting Treat Ave to 22nd St., into a micro-farm supporting small-scale food production, education, and environmental stewardship.
Please immediately rescind the Department of Building Inspection permit #2023 03022910 issued on March 2, 2023. The applicant of this permit, Alejandro (Alex) Menendez, knowingly supplied false information when he stated that he is both “owner” and “owner's agent” of 957 Treat Ave (parcel 3639-036) through his LLC 17th & Peralta.
There are no owners on record for Parcel 3639-036, including Menendez, who lied in order to build a private gate to enclose property he does not own to build a 24/7 parking lot and loading zone for private use.
I support the restoration of public access to this parcel, as well as its transformation into a garden for the benefit of the neighbourhood and support the Mission Greenway’s efforts to that end.
Until legal ownership of this parcel is established, we insist that parcel 3639-036 and its three sub-parcels are red-flagged by the Department of Building Inspection in order to prevent other fraudulent permit applications. There should be no future permit applications for this parcel approved for Menendez, any of his LLCs, or for any other parties.
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We’d love it if you attended the meeting in person, online, or by phone. If you want to speak as a member of the public on the future of the greenway, come to City Hall on Wednesday, April 26 at 5PM. Want to join remotely? Click here for instructions on how to do that.
Many of you spent last year successfully arguing for Slow Streets, or Car Free JFK, measures that prioritized people over cars, slowed this city and advanced the idea that green spaces are not only possible but urgently needed. The Greenway is a part of that vision: pedestrian-friendly, open to the public and in line with the vision of a decarbonized San Francisco and restored natural landscape.
We can make this Greenway grow, and reclaim public access along with it. Have any questions? Just ask us on the Greenway, at themissiongreenway@gmail.com or send us a message on social media.
Thank you for your support!