Short Takes

Of Parks and Projects
The residents' group Friends of Noe Valley will tackle two hot topics this month, at two separate meetings at the Noe Valley Library.
The first meeting, co-sponsored by the East & West of Castro Street Improvement Club, will take place on Wednesday, April 2, at 7 p.m., and will bring the neighborhood up to date on a development proposed for 3953 24th Street, across from Bell Market. Lou Blaszes, who is representing the project's investors, will discuss details of the plan, which calls for razing an unoccupied, one-story residence and replacing it with a four-story building that would have four condominiums, two businesses, and an underground garage. (A feature about the project appeared in the Voice's February 2003 issue.)
"We'd like to ask everybody to attend because, since the project is on 24th Street, which is our shopping and walking street, it's important to take an interest in good planning on this site," says Jeannene Przyblyski, president of Friends of Noe Valley.
The second meeting, slated for Thursday, April 10, at 7:30 p.m., is the Friends' general meeting. Special guest will be Elizabeth Goldstein, general manager of the San Francisco Recreation and Park Department. Goldstein will share plans for capital improvements to Noe Valley's three parks, as well as talk about how city budget cuts might affect Rec and Park's programs and services.
The Noe ValleySally Brunn Library is at 451 Jersey Street. For more information, call 282-4334.
San Francisco History Hunt
To commemorate 25 years of giving free history and architecture walking tours throughout the city, the San Francisco City Guides will hold a "Great City Guides History Hunt" on Sunday, April 27. The event, which is also a benefit for the volunteer guides group, should satisfy history buffs, people who love puzzles and riddles, and those who just want to support a worthy cause.
The atrium of the One Market building at the foot of Market Street will be hunt headquarters for the afternoon (enter on Mission Street), and you can sign up starting at 12:30 p.m. Participants will be organized into teams to comb the hunting grounds, which will stretch from South of Market to Union Square, and Jackson Square to the Ferry Building.
Each team will depart at 1 p.m., armed with a map, a list of about 15 clues, and an answer sheet. Some clues will have obvious answers; others will require collaboration and brainstorming. Many will evoke characters from San Francisco's past and lead participants to hidden views and historical sites. Hunters will reunite at headquarters at 5 p.m., at which time prizes for the top teams will be awarded.
San Francisco City Guides offers more than 25 different walking tours, at a pace of about 100 walks each month throughout the year.
Hunting license per participant is $25. Advance registration is requested. For more information, call 557-4266 or go to City Guides' home on the web: www.sf cityguides.org.
Totally Teen Talent
Six young artists, four from Noe Valley and two from the Mission, will be hanging their artwork on Friday, April 18, in Gallery Sanchez. Their show, titled "Teen Talent in the Hood," will run through the end of May.
The show's opening reception will be Sunday, April 27, from 2 to 4 p.m. The artists include Miles Ake of Gateway High School, Clay Cardozo of Lick-Wilmerding High School, Jeff Castleman from School of the Arts, Amos Goldbaum of Urban School of San Francisco, David Levine from Lowell High School, and Annie Terpstra of Drew School.
"Gallery Sanchez is very supportive of artists of every stripe, and I am thrilled to present these talented teens to the public," says Betsy Bannerman, the show's curator. "The show will be individualistic, expressive, surprising, and amazing."
Works of art available for purchase will have prices and artist phone numbers posted beside them. Gallery Sanchez is on the second floor of the Noe Valley Ministry, located at Sanchez and 23rd streets.
Flowers, Birds, and Butterflies
Get your fill of nature on Saturdays and Sundays this month by taking advantage of free events in nearby parks sponsored by the San Francisco Recreation and Park Department.
A perennially popular Glen Canyon Park wildflower walk will start at 10 a.m. on Saturday, April 12.
"We'll probably have two groups, one led by Richard Craib, president of Friends of Glen Canyon. The other will be led by myself," says Jean Conner, vice president of the organization. "Richard will take one group on a hike up into the hillsides, and I will take a group along level areas for people who aren't ready for a strenuous walk. Lupines should be in bloom, and there will be poppies, columbine, buttercups, yarrow, and probably blue dicks."
Also in Glen Canyon Park will be a bird walk led by David Armstrong on Sunday, April 13, beginning at 9 a.m. "We'll have some extra pairs of binoculars, but people should bring binoculars if they have them," notes Conner.
Participants for both Glen Canyon walks should meet by the picnic tables behind the recreation center off Elk Street. For more details, call 584-8576.
Another wildflower walk will take place on Bayview Hill on Saturday, April 26, from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. This hilltop park supports more than 140 native plant species. Walkers should hook up with leaders Margo Bors and Jon Campo at the park gate at Key Avenue (off Third Street). Call 824-0471 or e-mail mbors@ attbi.com for more information.
Corona Heights Park will be the site of a wildflower and insect walk earlier that morning (April 26), from 9 to 10 a.m. Walk leader Thomas Wang will meet participants at the front of the Randall Museum at 199 Museum Way (off 14th Street and Roosevelt Way). For information, phone 621-3260 or e-mail jstemmler@ sfneighborhoodparks.org.
For a final dose of natural wonder, you can learn how to attract butterflies to your own garden in a workshop at Precita Park on Sunday, April 27, from 10:30 a.m. to noon. Participants will have a chance to learn what types of butterflies are most likely to come to their gardens, plus the plants and conditions needed to get them there. Advance sign-up is recommended. Call 753-7274 to register.
Party with the Gay Freedom Band
They practiced their first whistle commands on a disco dance floor. They marched for the first time in front of former San Francisco supervisor Harvey Milk's convertible. They were the first openly gay band in the U.S.
They are the San Francisco Lesbian/ Gay Freedom Band, and they are having their 25th anniversary celebration and concert on Saturday, April 26. Dedicated to making music that builds understanding between gay and non-gay communities, the band performs not only in the street for throngs of thousands, but also in concert at schools, parks, and special events throughout the Bay Area.
The music will begin at 7 p.m. in the Everett Middle School Auditorium, 450 Church Street, at 16th Street. In addition to cutting-edge modern band music, entertainment will include a performance by band alumni, documentary footage, sing-alongs, a Hawaii vacation raffle, and special guests including Trauma Flintstone.
Tickets are $20 for adults; $15 for children and seniors. Forty dollars will get you into a gala VIP reception at Bethany Gardens, as well as into the show itself. For more information, call 255-1355. Group rates are available.
Annual Glen Park Festival
On Sunday, April 27, you can enjoy yourself in the balmy breezes of Glen Park while supporting local activities for children. How, you may wonder? Just attend the seventh annual Glen Park Festival, running from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The center of the action will be on Diamond Street between Chenery and Bosworth.
Admission to the festival is free, but proceeds from any arts and crafts you buy will go toward scholarships for Silver Tree Day Camp (held in Glen Canyon Park each summer) and for children's programs at the Glen Park Branch of the San Francisco Public Library.
Highlights will include more than 40 booths staffed by local artists and craftspeople. Also well represented will be vendors of food and beverage, including Chenery Park Restaurant and several restaurants from Noe Valley. Music will start off in the morning with the Gaeto Quartet. Later you'll hear the Latin sounds of Mestizo. The day's entertainment will end with Pamela Rose Blues.
For more information, call 835-2112 or visit www.glenparkfestival.com.
This month's Short Takes were written by Laura McHale Holland.