A couple of weeks ago, I saw a flyer posted on Nextdoor for a town hall about the proposed development of the La Playa Safeway in the Richmond District. The Planning Association for the Richmond was hosting it at St. John’s Presbyterian Church, not far from me. I thought the project was already a done deal, so I was curious what was left to talk about, and I decided to walk over and listen in.

The flyer made a few key points that were repeated by the speakers at the town hall before opening it up to residents for comments. The first concern was that 80% of the units were market rate apartments and only 20% would be affordable. Secondly, the development would demolish the Safeway with no guarantee of it returning. And finally, no public hearings would be required.

After about two hours of presentations and public comments, I came away thinking their objections were less about affordability and groceries, and more about residents losing their leverage over the process. Here's what I heard at the town hall and what I found when I looked into each concern.

Last Wednesday, we were lucky enough to visit Pier 15 on the Embarcadero to see something special: the docking of the celebrated ARM Cuauhtémoc training vessel and flagship of the Mexican Navy. The ship docked at Piers 15-17 after sailing under the Golden Gate Bridge. After docking at the Embarcadero on September 23, it remained through Saturday, September 26, offering a public viewing schedule before its “Farewell at the Dock” ceremony on Sunday, September 27.

Tori Beer, the sister restaurant to BUBU on Fillmore, is a new izakaya on Geary Boulevard, which opened on July 1 of this year. We noticed their menu advertising $1 Japanese beers and made a mental note to stop in. You just don’t see happy hour deals like that very often anymore. The casual dine-and-drink style of an izakaya happy hour is appealing because you don’t have to spend a large amount of money on drinks, and you can also get some tasty small bites.

Last Thursday, I stopped by the new permanent home of HI NRG, which previously occupied the High Treason wine bar space as a coffee pop-up. The new location in Central Richmond is a large, airy space with a turntable, a disco ball, green-and-white checkered flooring, a central coffee counter, and plenty of seating for guests to linger. During my visit, they were playing classic country records while serving up espresso drinks. I ordered my favorite drink on the menu: cafe de olla, made with espresso, milk and cinnamon syrup.

Since transitioning to their new space, HI NRG is now operating as a cafe and wine bar. Coffee, wine and light snacks are now served all day, Wednesday through Sunday, 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Page Street Live and Rossi Ave Block Party

San Francisco has been overflowing with block parties and street fairs, some of them even happening at the same time. On Sunday, we stopped by Page Street Live!, a small block party at Page and Schrader. A woman was handing out copies of Lower Haight Local, a hyperlocal zine now on its 12th issue. The September cover story is about a stick library for dogs, and inside there's a piece on live music returning to The Mellow.

On Saturday, residents gathered for the Rossi Block Party (bottom right photo) on Rossi Ave between Turk Blvd and Anza St. Neighbors celebrated with DJs, live music, tacos, arts & crafts, and kids’ games.

Cole Valley Street Fair

We also stopped by the annual Cole Valley Street Fair, which happened the same weekend. Cole Street was busy with street vendors and musicians performing on multiple corners. We noticed a bunch of "No on G" and Gary McCoy signs on one corner, and a couple of people holding Manny signs on the corner across the street. We also noticed many cool classic cars that were on display as part of “Cars on Cole”,

Some nearby homes have begun to put up their Halloween decorations. One that stood out was named Cole Valley Castle. It had 2 skeletons, a skull archway, and a big dragon. Many people were stopping by to take photos. We look forward to checking out all of the over-the-top decor as spooky season approaches.

Lyft Bikes, Muni Art Show, and Mission Local’s Follow the Money Event

Elsewhere in the city, Larry has been riding around town on Lyft Bikes trying to figure out whether the monthly subscription is worth it or not. He also stopped by the Muni Pop-Up Art Show at the Salesforce Transit Center, where local artists were selling prints, cards, and other pieces of art that celebrate our streetcars and buses. More on these stories, and on a few other stops, in our next issue, which will focus on transit.