Tag Archives: San Francisco CA

CitySmart: Dolores Heights – July 2026

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This month, we embark on a new partnership with CitySmart — a free weekly briefing that covers key Board of Supervisors votes, decisions, and what’s coming up next, in plain language to keep San Franciscans informed and engaged with what their government is up to. Let us know how you like this new feature!

1. Cliff’s Variety Turns 90, With Your Supervisor in the Room

On June 23, President Mandelman suspended the rules to grant privilege of the floor and personally presented a Certificate of Honor to Cliff’s Variety, accepted by Terry Asten Bennett, marking the beloved Castro Street hardware-and-everything-else store’s 90th anniversary and its run as a neighborhood fixture since 1936. It’s the kind of item that never makes an agenda headline but says something real about District 8: a five-minute ceremonial resolution, sandwiched between charter amendments and lawsuit settlements, honoring a business that generations of Dolores Heights and Castro residents have walked to for a lightbulb, a garden hose, or a Halloween costume. Small institutions like Cliff’s are exactly what keeps a hillside residential neighborhood functioning as a walkable one.

2. The Board Authorized a $200M Lifeline to Keep MUNI Running

The Board voted on June 16 to let SFMTA borrow up to $200 million from the Metropolitan Transportation Commission for transit operations over the next 12 years. That’s not a glamorous vote, but for the Mission it matters: the 14-Mission and 14R Rapid are two of the highest-ridership surface bus routes in the entire city, running the full length of Mission Street and carrying tens of thousands of riders daily. Add the J-Church along Church Street through Dolores Park, the 49 along Van Ness and Mission, and BART at 16th and 24th Streets, and the neighborhood has more transit infrastructure per block than almost anywhere else in SF. The loan is a stopgap against service cuts while SFMTA works through a long-term structural deficit — the kind of behind-the-scenes fiscal move that doesn’t make headlines until the buses stop showing up.

If you care about what happens at City Hall, CitySmart makes it easy to stay informed — including what the Board passed this month to make Dolores Heights a better place to live.

The Magic of San Francisco Pride

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DHIC marched with other D8 residents and Supervisor Mandelman in the 56th Pride Parade.  The annual SF Pride celebration is one of the largest LGBTQ+ gatherings in the world, bringing over a million people to Market Street for our multi-day parades and festivities.  Here are a few photos of the Parade. 

Save the Date: Community Transit Forum on Thursday, October 15

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Did you know that we have an initiative on the November ballot to raise $1 billion annually to fund Bay Area transit via sales tax increases across five Bay Area counties? 

The funds are dedicated to averting massive service cuts and funding capital improvements for BART, SF Muni, Caltrain, AC Transit, and the San Francisco Bay Ferry.  Locally in San Francisco, this regional effort is complemented by a proposed SFMTA Muni parcel tax. The city’s measure seeks to raise $160 million annually specifically to protect Muni bus and cable car operations from fiscal cliff cuts.

Without new sources of revenue, the lost revenue from the pandemic and lower ridership in the past five years will cause severe service cuts for the agencies listed above.  For SF Muni that translates to:

  • 50% cut in Muni services 
  • Elimination of fare discounts and pass programs for youth and seniors
  • $322-$398 million budget deficit (25% of Muni’s operating budget)

Supervisor Mandelman and transit officials provide more details and have extended Q&A with attendees.

Mark your calendar for Thursday, October 15th, from 6-7:30pm, in Ellard Hall at Most Holy Redeemer (100 Diamond St in the Castro).

DHIC Fall Gathering September 26

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Save the Date:  Saturday, Sept. 26 at 11am – 2pm

DHIC’s Fall Gathering

All Are Welcome

You are invited to DHIC’s Fall Gathering

on  Saturday, September 26 from 11am to 2pm

at Sanchez Street between 21st and Hill Streets

Meet neighbors, learn about DHIC’s work 

Meet the candidates for D8 Supervisor

Enjoy snacks and refreshments

Enter our raffle for fun prizes 

Dolores Heights Neighbors Fund Three Mission Scholarships

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Thanks to your generosity, our neighborhood just awarded $5000 each to three amazing Mission High 2026 graduates!  These “no-strings attached” grants will ease their transition into their futures as college students. As parents of college students know, the incidental expenses (dorm gear, technology, travel) really add up. These impressive Mission High grads have already received scholarships for tuition.  They will truly benefit from this help paying for the incidentals.  This reduced financial stress is made possible by all of you. (Note: donors sent their contributions directly to the Mission High Foundation, a 501-c-3 non-profit.)

Celeste Perron Oberfest, Peter Harris, and Michelle Cox, the Scholarships Committee members,  thanks the donors for being truly great neighbors.  Click here [insert link]  to learn about the Mission High students receiving these scholarships.

Kaeloni Parks, heading to UC Davis with plans to study biology and art:

“My love for art recently merged with my passion for science through the Cellular Construction Workshop (CCW) at UCSF. Working in a lab, programming robots to mimic cell behavior, and observing scientists opened my eyes to the incredible intersection of art and biology. Translating complex biological concepts into visual representations, like modeling immunotherapy with colored pucks, inspired me to want to become a medical illustrator, using my artistic skills to make science tangible and understandable. Art has been many things for me: a way to express myself, a source of joy, and a path to connect with others. Now, it also represents my future-an opportunity to combine creativity and scientific precision, to explore problems visually, and to tell the stories of science in ways that inspire.”

Cesar Roque, heading to UC Irvine to major in Mechanical Engineering, due to a love of cars from his childhood and a love of math which he acquired at Mission High

“As the oldest son in a Hispanic family, I am responsible for translating all the legal papers, school letters, bills, and other documents that come to my mom, me, and my two sisters. As a beginning reader, I struggled to understand the meanings in the lengthy pages. Translating my parents’ legal papers … seeing my mother’s reactions to her letters gave me a keyhole view into messy adult problems I could not understand. Over time, it taught me how to code switch between cultures, and to lead my family by patiently explaining outside rules. But toggling between languages and cultures made me feel lonely. Being the first to try something new has never been easy but being able to succeed meant my sisters would. I’ve become essential to my family, which makes leaving them daunting, but I’ve been a good example and know they can thrive independently.”

Oscar Morales, heading to UC Berkeley to major in Legal Studies

“Going to college is my way to debunk the current political myth that immigrants are a threat, while in reality, we are really just people looking for better lives. I was born in El Salvador and lived there until I was 5. In that country, education was a privilege that only those with money could afford. Now I am a co-teacher in the AVID ELD Senior Seminar course that is specifically designed for newcomer students. Being a native bilingual Spanish and advanced English speaker, I’m able to help many students with translating their homework and providing them with resources only available to them in English. I have motivated and empowered students to apply to universities and continue their education, and helped students get financial aid through the CA Dream Act. I feel proud of being able to lead a program that helps my community of immigrant students get informed and prepared for college.”

Join Our Neighbors for a Congressional Forum, May 6

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We’re proud to be co-sponsors of a forum with all the leading candidates vying for San Francisco’s U.S. House seat, featuring Saikat Chakrabarti, San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan, Marie Hurabiell, and State Senator Scott Wiener .

Eleven neighborhood groups across District 8 are hosting the forum to address issues that matter to neighbors and households across the Castro, Noe Valley, Glen Park, Duboce Triangle, and Cole Valley. 

District 8 Neighbors Congressional Forum

7 pm, Wednesday, May 6 (doors open at 6:30 pm)

Randall Museum Theater 

199 Museum Way

San Francisco, CA 94114

Open to the public with first-come seating

RSVP for updates 

San Francisco Standard reporter Joe Fitzgerald Rodriguez will moderate the forum, which will feature questions from neighborhood groups. With mail-in ballots arriving the same week, the forum is the perfect time to make your final choice for the June 2 primary in this once-in-a-generation race.

San Francisco Standard reporter Joe Fitzgerald Rodriguez will moderate the forum, which will feature questions submitted by the neighborhood groups. With mail-in ballots arriving the same week, the forum is the perfect time to make your final choice for the June 2 primary in this once-in-a-generation race. 

Forum co-sponsors:

  • Buena Vista Neighborhood Association
  • Cole Valley Improvement Association
  • Corbett Heights Neighbors
  • Diamond Heights Community Association
  • Dolores Heights Improvement Club
  • Duboce Triangle Neighborhood Association
  • Duncan Newburg Association
  • Eureka Valley Neighborhood Association
  • Glen Park Association
  • Mount Olympus Neighbors Association
  • Upper Noe Neighbors

Gearing Up for Second Year of Dolores Heights Scholarship for Mission High

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Last year we kicked off a meaningful neighborhood initiative, the Dolores Heights Scholarship for Mission High.. Thanks to the generosity of this community we were able to give three seniors from the class of 2025 $5000 each to help with the expenses related to heading off to college. All three were the first in their families to attend college, all headed to UCs. We recently heard from Flory Lopez, now in her first year at UC Berkeley, who told us:

“The scholarship was very helpful for me during my first year of college. With the money that was provided, I was able to buy a new computer, which has been really important for keeping up with my coursework, writing assignments, and staying organized with my classes. The extra financial support also helped relieve some of the stress that comes with starting college and paying for school supplies and other academic needs. It made my transition into my first year much smoother, and I’m really grateful for the support from the community.”

We’re now raising money for the 2026 scholarships! 

The Dolores Heights Scholarship for Mission High School

These $5000 scholarships will be awarded to three 2026 Mission High graduates who have been accepted to four year colleges, to help them cover the incidental costs and life expenses that might otherwise stand in the way of helping him or her get there.

Donate Now

It takes only seconds to donate here with Paypal, Venmo, or a credit/debit card, and if you’d like to donate through a DAF we can quickly connect you with the Mission High Foundation.  Email info@doloresheights.org to connect with the Mission High Foundation. 

Upzoning Legislation Pending at the Board of Supervisors

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The legislation codifying the proposed upzoning map and specific code changes is pending at the Board of Supervisors.  These changes will have a major impact on San Francisco’s built environment over this and the coming decades.  To see the proposed heights for your and adjacent properties review the Family Zoning Plan map with the “Local Program” heights.  Developers can “opt in” to this program as opposed to participating in the State Density Bonus program.  Besides increased heights, the SF Local Program provides key revised objective standards that allow more density on a lot. 

The impact of the Family Zoning Plan is the de facto elimination of the 45 year old Dolores Heights Special Use District.    

  • Our heights are currently 35; new heights allowed  can be 40, 50, or 65 feet.  
  • The rear yard open space is currently 45% of the lot depth, or 51 feet for a 114 foot lot.  The plan allows new properties to expand 20 feet further into the rear yard (18% more of the lot depth), eroding our unique mid-block open space benefits
  • Properties on any corner can be up to 65 feet high.  This 65-foot height also applies to lots that are 8000 square feet (less than the size of three merged standard lots or an apartment building-sized lot.)
  • Other recent amendments that allow for height and square footage “bonuses” and more rear yard reductions, some for defined changes and a a “catchall” request for up to 15% reduction of any objective standard 

DHIC is opposed to the plan in its current form as it provides significant benefits to market-rate developers without comparable benefits to SF’s Housing Plan – especially for more affordable (from moderate to very low income) housing units.  DHIC is also concerned that historic buildings aren’t sufficiently protected and that tenants and small businesses can be displaced with inadequate relocation benefits.  This SF Planning website has more documents to educate the public.  However, it doesn’t assess the impact of all these combined changes on our neighborhoods. 

2025 Fall Gathering Recap – Neighbors Meet New Police Captain & Legislative Aide

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On a warm sunny Saturday, Dolores Heights neighbors socialized and then met Captain Sean Perdomo, the new head of SFPD Mission Station.  They discussed safety concerns – the disruptive and illegal dirt bikes in the Dolores area, the  loud after-hours parties at Dolores Park, and speeding on neighborhood streets.  The Captain took notes and on Monday, Oct. 6 responded with these actions [excerpts from his email of October 6]:  

  1. Dirt Bikes. The Department’s using technology to aid in the apprehension of dirt bikers. At the station we have followed up and obtained an arrest/search warrant for a dirt biker on a previous incident at Dolores Park using the technology. I am tasking my plainclothes officers with more arrest/search warrants for those dirt bikers we can identify. Please encourage your members to call 911 to report a gathering of dirt bikers so that we can coordinate the drone.
  2. Traffic. Dave Burke identified the trouble areas and the intersections have been added to the Traffic Unit’s (motorcycles) daily enforcement activities. Please let me know if you see them in the area  … they are short staffed and are tasked with many dignitary visits. Captain Peter Shields of the traffic unit was notified. If they aren’t in the area much, I can assign a traffic car when staffing allows.
  3. Dolores Park Noise. I contacted Chief Murphy to have him evaluate placing rangers in places where they are most visible. The current challenge is the shift change that occurs at 2200 hours when the park closes. I’ll keep you posted on further. 

Supervisor Rafael Mandelman also spoke and took questions from neighbors.  And he introduced Sophie Marie (sophie.marie@sfgov.org), his newest Legislative Aide and our contact when we need assistance getting City action on filed complaints or finding out “who to contact” for a specific issue.  

We held our annual raffle and Fiona, a young resident, drew the winning tickets.  Neighborhood merchants donated eleven gift cards and bottles of wine & liquor which made the raffle a “hot ticket.”   Please patronize these donating businesses and thank them for their support:  Absinthe Restaurant Group, Poesia Restaurant, Canela Bistro and Wine Bar, Hot Johnnies, Castro Coffee, 17th Street Market, and a kind neighbor who donated two bottles of premium wine and tequila. 

Cork Oak Tree Garden at 20th & Noe Streets

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The hillside garden at 20th and Noe Streets is renamed the “Cork Oak Tree Community Garden” in recognition and celebration of its official San Francisco Landmark Tree No. 15 (Quercus suber), at the top of the garden.  After one year of working with SFDPW’s various departments and SFWD, the garden has a new water supply for irrigation.  And the garden is responding like crazy with new growths. Three tree ferns-Australia Lacy Tree Fern (cyathea cooperii) and Tasmanian Tree Fern (dicksonia antarctica) that were dried out and almost dead are now rebounding with new fronds.  The large Giant Bird of Paradise on the left of the garden is also flowering.  Be sure to look for the old cuckoo clock that’s converted to a birdhouse!

The Wine Barrel Garden on the sidewalk at the base of the garden has been very successful.   The African Euphorbia Milk Tree (Euphorbia trigona) from Central Africa was rehomed from a business in the Fisherman’s wharf area 2 years ago.  There’s five barrels of Golden Bamboo.  The barrel garden has recent arrivals:  a young olive tree from a good friend,  a wonderful Hercules Aloe, and finally the Life Plant (Kalanchoe pinnata) from another good friend in the Castro.  It propagates by having hundreds of baby plants on the edge of its leaves which is why it’s  known as “Mother of Thousands.”  And a newly arrived Pencil tree (Euphoribia tirucali) joined the collection.

Next phase for the garden: a mural project for the blank walls that retain the roadway going to “upper 20th” Street!  Stay tuned for more details.

DHIC thanks Dave Dea and the other volunteers who maintain this and other gardens alongside the seven stairways in our neighborhood!  You are great stewards of our green outdoor spaces that enhance the beauty of the neighborhood.