LETTER FROM PHAN PRESIDENT
CHARLIE FERGUSON
Presidio Wall Playground and Other Developments
December 2019

Dear Neighbors,

This letter will serve as my Fall/Winter 2019 report to you on current developments in our neighborhood.

Halloween in Presidio Heights
I will begin with some high praise for our neighborhood from outside our neighborhood. If you missed it, our professional basketball team’s leading defensive player, Draymond Green, had some very positive things to say about Presidio Heights in a video interview made public by Draymond on YouTube , shortly after Halloween.

Latest Neighborhood Investor
In addition, as some of you undoubtedly have already heard, the Queen of England gave us a boost by investing some of her money in the TMG housing development on the old CPMC site in our neighborhood. Obviously, her investments are managed by others while she attends to matters of state, but her investments around the world are deemed well thought out and conservative, so we can take pride in the fact that her advisors have chosen our neighborhood among thousands around the world she could otherwise have invested in.

Presidio Wall Playground
I am including in this newsletter a picture of the new sign that went up in what was Julius Kahn Playground and now is named Presidio Wall Playground, or “PWP” as some are already calling it. After much debate, the PHAN board narrowed about a dozen and half suggestions down to three names and those three names were then submitted to all who attended our annual me for residents this year on June 11. The voting there indicated that “Presidio Wall Playground” was a clear favorite, with “West Pacific Playground” and “Rhoda Goldman Playground” more or less tied for second but far behind the first-place vote-getter.

The official naming of the playground took place throughout September. In public sessions, the Commissioners of the Recreation and Park Commission settled on Presidio Wall Playground after questioning me twice about how the name came to be suggested and debating names that they themselves came up with. In the end, I emphasized what I said at our annual meeting on June 11 – this facility is a playground for children and there is no reason that it should saddle with names that derive from debates on social issues. There will be time enough for the kids using the playground to tackle important social issues when they mature, for now let them have a space named for something they can relate to. (In fact, there was a gentleman from another neighborhood in the City who grew up playing in PWP and at the second Rec & Park hearing he told a charming story about his encounters with the Presidio Wall itself on his way to the playground.) So, I think we came up with the right name in the end. Thank you to all of you who contributed suggestions and those of you who voted.

Real Estate Developments
With respect to the two big housing projects, I have these developments to report.

The 3333 California Street project has been fully approved by both the Planning Commission and the Board of Supervisors. Both approvals included alternate plans, one for about 550 residences and the other for about 744 residences. The space to be occupied by the difference of about 200 units of housing would be used for an additional 20,000 square feet of retail space; in other words, if 740 units of housing are built there will be 35,000 square feet of retail space, but if 550 residences are built, there will be about 55,000 square feet of retail space. I suspect the developer will go for the 744 units of housing, but time will tell. And as for the time to build the project, most of us on the PHAN board believe it will take about seven years to completely build out the project. For those of you along California Street across from the project, PHAN will continue to monitor the project construction, once it begins, to ensure that the developer adheres to the construction plan it described in its permit application. That plan involves deep digging initially to develop the underground parking structure and then using it for staging construction equipment onsite. We are unsure of the start date for the project because the Laurel Heights neighborhood association may sue the developer for environmental and historical preservation reasons. It could be several more years before those legal issues are resolved. Meanwhile, Mayor Breed has signed the development deal with the developers, allowing them to begin construction.

The 3700 California Street project (the old CPMC site) is somewhat behind the 3333 California Street project in terms of permits for demolition and construction. As far as PHAN board members know, the City is generally in agreement with the developers of the 3700 California Street project with respect to size and design of the various buildings. I met with TMG, the developer, at their request in early December to discuss the current status of that project and will report on it in the Spring newsletter. Our current understanding of the project is that it will be 250 - 275 units of housing and no retail. Final approvals from the Planning Commission and a sign-off by the Mayor should occur in early spring of 2020.

Upcoming Project
During the winter months, the PHAN board will be refocusing on matters that have understandably been on the back burner while we have concentrated on the two housing projects and the renaming of the playground. One important project we will undertake involves revisions to the Neighborhood Commercial District ordinance that governs what kinds of retail outlets are to be encouraged and discouraged on Sacramento Street. We invite your comments.  

Another effort will be to upgrade our website and means of communicating with residents electronically. Again, if there are those who have skills to contribute to the project, we welcome all the help you can provide. And, as I mentioned on June 11, we will also concentrate on getting out a set of guidelines for house renovations and other construction projects undertaken by Presidio Heights residents on an individual basis.

In the meanwhile, please check our website for updates and please send in your dues payments ($40/year/residence). None of the officers or directors are paid anything. We are all volunteers, but the organization does have bills to pay.

Finally, my best wishes to all of you for a safe and happy holiday season.

Charlie Ferguson
President
Join PHAN. We Need Your Support!
PHAN is open to all residents in Presidio Heights. Our strength is in our numbers, and we keep our membership dues at $40 a year to encourage as many residents to join as possible. If you aren't yet a member of PHAN, it's easy to sign up. Go to our website www.phansf.org to pay via PayPal or send a check to PHAN at P.O. Box 29503, San Francisco, CA 94129.
The First Step in A Remodel Is
Being A Good Neighbor

Home renovations are a fact of life all over San Francisco, but in Presidio Heights, you can often find more than one project per block. We are always happy to see homes maintained, refreshed and renovated, and we also know that a key component of a remodel is being a good neighbor. With that in mind, as Charlie notes in his President's Letter, PHAN is considering adopting guidelines for neighborhood construction. In the meantime, here are a few suggestions from PHAN on how to make your construction project run smoothly.

Communicate!  Let your neighbors know what is going on with your project by sending them a note, email, text or call. Also, consider either posting contact information for you or your project contact at the construction site so that you or the team working on your project can be reached in case an issue arises. Finally, if the project is going on longer than expected (which is often the case), keep the neighbors up to date. And don't forget, neighbors include the people on either side of you as well as neighbors who live behind and around your home.

Construction materials:  We have increasingly seen projects that are spilling out on to the sidewalks and blocking the right of way. Sometimes this is for an hour or two. In other instances, we have seen paths blocked by equipment and materials for several days. Needless to say, this creates a safety hazard for everyone. 

  • Please put up safety fencing when necessary to provide a safety feature for workers and the neighborhood;
  • Be mindful in staging, loading and unloading construction materials and equipment;
  • If your crew is going to be blocking a public right of way, make sure there are safe ways for people to get around the obstruction.

Parking : This is one of the biggest headaches in the neighborhood. With the increase in construction vehicles and the steady stream of UPS/FedEx trucks, traffic can feel congested. We have all seen or experienced double parking, blocked driveways, and larger vehicles parked so close to driveways that it is hard to see around them to pull out from garages. Please encourage your crews to be good neighbors. Don't block driveways. Leave a placard on the dashboard with a cell number in the event you are double parking. Encourage carpools. Do not be surprised if you get ticketed or towed if you block a driveway. Parking is frustrating for everyone, so please be aware.

Sidewalks and Roads:  Please work with your crews to keep sidewalks and roads clean and clear. 

Trash, Scrap and Debris:  Chances are you are not living in your house while it is being renovated so you might not see the trash or debris that is left in front of the job site that is your house. Please ensure that the construction crews are disposing of trash and debris safely and properly. If you have a skip or debris container in front or near your home, please make sure it's being properly maintained and that you have all the proper permitting for it. And if you are walking by someone's debris container, please be mindful that your neighbor's skip is not your own personal garbage dump. 

Portable Sanitary Facility:  We understand that they are necessary, but a block full of Port-a-potties is not a fun block to walk down. Contractors often have enclosures for these (we did a story in the newsletter about the first contractor to come up with the idea of enclosing them). If you can enclose yours, all the better for your neighbors!

Courtesy and common sense will help ease the stress of your renovation for you and your neighbors. Nearly everyone in this neighborhood has either renovated or lived in close proximity to a renovation so it's a sympathetic audience. Bottom line: Take a cue from Mr. Rogers, and Be A Good Neighbor!
Real Estate Roundup
by Bruce McKleroy
The market for real estate in Presidio Heights in late 2019

Residents of Presidio Heights (PH) are acutely aware that they live in an “upscale” neighborhood that is among the most expensive in the world. Great! If you are an owner, you have a big investment, and if you call PH your home, you are fortunate- it really is a nice place. Since the PH area is so small, the number of property transactions are relatively low. 

PH owners may take some pride in being wooed by real estate agents; prospective buyers are similarly valued by brokers. In this age of disruption and change promulgated by the internet, there is the expectation that all old models of commerce will be affected, including real estate. It is true that the real estate transaction process has sped up and it is much more convenient without fax machines, “wet signatures,” cashier’s checks, and even door keys themselves. You can buy or sell from your phone! An investment here is so important for the individuals and families affected. Many do think it’s money well spent to engage an experienced professional who understands the micro market and guides them through the process as a fiduciary agent. There’s room for old school too.

It may be fun to see how your property is doing just like you may check up on your stock, farm, private company, cryptocurrency or other marketable holding. It may be your ongoing interest to assess getting in or out of PH property. As an active real estate agent, I see most PH properties for sale on the multiple listing service, and some others for sale “off market.” As a native of PH, I have lived through many changes that I sometimes write about in Back in the Day with Bruce in the PHAN newsletters. 

Like Sea Cliff and many other SF neighborhoods, there are properties within the neighborhoods that command very different pricing. Our “gold coast” properties have major views, massive square footage, and room for grand parties. Our “great family homes” are many-roomed excellent places to live for generations. The “regular old houses” really aren’t so regular-they’re amazing. Our smaller homes may be “jewel boxes.” Our flats are often “house like.” Our large buildings run from “pied-a-terre” to luxury penthouses. Renters occupy every one of these categories, and often become buyers when the time is right.  

To snip out a few pieces of the enormous supply of statistics for this little “hood” probably won’t tell you the price of a property that you follow; I know about the reluctance of participants to be objective. It is a very hard thing to do; I get it. The values are made up by willing buyers and willing sellers. 

So, let’s look at the marketplace in PH: For buyers, it is unfortunate: I see that there are only 8 properties for sale on the MLS today-October 29 th ,2019. Four single family dwellings (SFD) have been on the market for an average of 28 days, so you might think that it’s not a hot market; but don’t be deceived, the good ones go in a matter of days or even hours. The other 4 on market are condos, and it’s slim pickings there. It has been a new normal summer and fall market with fewer sales: 5 pending or sold SFD, 11 pending or sold condominiums, 2 sold 2-unit flats, and no sold apartment buildings.

In the SFD sales or pendings, there were some really great properties, but they would have set you back $6.2 to $9.1 million. You’re in a lower price point in the condos where you see prices from $1 to $4.1 million. The 2 2-unit buildings were $2.370 and 3.950. The real temperature of the market is shown by the percentage of the offer price received, i.e., overbid or underbid, and the days on market (DOM), i.e., how long did it take to go from on market date to a pending date. For example, an off-MLS sale (never on MLS) can be 0 DOM, or a hot deal scooped up after a few showings and offered without contingencies can be 3 days. In PH, the median DOM for houses is 13 days- better be quick there! The median for condos is 12 days -several off MLS sales in that group. In determining whether the asking price is the real price, I note that most do sell over asking price in all categories, but it is not quite as wild as in the last few years markets. Oh, and one more fun fact about the Presidio Heights market I have been speaking about: the median lot size listing price per acre for single family houses is $76,943,589.74. Keep those smart phones charged up!
What Do You Love About Presidio Heights?
If you have tips, ideas and thoughts you want to share about this neighborhood, drop us a line at info@phansf.org . What's a favorite shop? A meal that we should order at one of our local restaurants? A suggestion about how to improve our neighborhood? We welcome the feedback and if you have any great photos of life in the neighborhood, please share them! We always need photos for the website and newsletter.
Getting Ready for the “Big One”
by Carol Solfanelli
 
San Francisco Bay Area’s two recent earthquakes – one a 3.5 just south of SF on October 5 and the other a 4.5 in Pleasant Hill on October 15 - literally woke everyone up again to the potential specter of the “Big One.” People are starting once more to pay attention to earthquake preparedness. I, for one, am having an engineer look at our two-unit condo building to determine if there is anything we need to do to make it seismically safer. I’m also looking into the cost of earthquake insurance. What are you doing? 
 
Here are six tips from the California Academy of Sciences on what you can do to prepare: 1.  Make a plan - Choose a meeting place and an out-of-area contact person to relay messages. 2.  Secure your home  – Retrofit weak spots, strap down heavy furniture and secure loose objects 3.  Get a kit  – Store supplies to get your family through at least the first three days after a quake. 4 . Drop, cover and hold on  – Drop down where you are and cover your head. If you’re near heavy furniture, take cover underneath and hold on tight. 5.  Check for hazards  – When the shaking stops, check for injuries and for damage to home electrical wires, gas lines, walls, floors and water pipes. 6.  Stay connected  – Get to know your neighbors now! For more information, check out the Cal Academy website.
For the Holidays:
Shop Local. Eat Local. Be a Local.
A key feature of what makes Presidio Heights a perfect city neighborhood is the ability to pop down to Laurel Village for groceries or to find a gift at Hudson Grace or to grab a coffee at As Quoted or to buy a book at Books Inc.

We have so many wonderful neighborhood shops that are unique and special, but as rent and other costs of operating a business rise and online competition intensifies, many of our favorite neighborhood haunts are closing. (RIP Osteria and Noah's Bagels.)

We all know how hard it is to survive as a business in San Francisco, and we have seen the empty storefronts in our neighborhood and around town where once thriving neighborhoods like Union Street or West Portal are now pockmarked by empty storefronts. None of wants that to happen here. So, this holiday season, and all year round, please consider catching a movie at the Vogue (instead of on Netflix), grabbing lunch at Picnix Bistro or Cafe Luna or one of the many local eateries or spend time and money shopping at one of the many fabulous stores along Sacramento Street like Goodbyes , Button Down or Golden Gate Needlepoint . We have included a mere handful of some of our local businesses, but there are so many more that make our neighborhood walkable and enjoyable for us all.

So, this season and in the new year: Be a local and shop, eat and play in Presidio Heights.
Find us on Instagram!
You can find us on Instagram @phan_sf! Follow our account to see pictures of our beautiful neighborhood. You can also find more information on our website www.phansf.org. And if you have a picture to share, send it to our email account: info@phansf.org.

(L-Presidio Heights Playground circa 1960, credit OpenSFhistory.org)
Comments? Questions? Concerns?
You can reach out to PHAN by emailing info@phansf.org . We welcome your feedback. Happy Holidays!