Potrero Hill, San Francisco

Donors Choose is a non-profit organization that makes it easy for anyone to donate to public school projects in need of funding.

The Blogger Challenge runs through the month of October and we’ve selected a few projects that were requested by teachers from Daniel Webster Elementary School in Potrero Hill.

One of the teachers has the following to say about the school in their proposal:

We are a STAR school which means we are one of the under performing schools. Our students are from low-income families and many speak a second language such as Spanish and Cantonese. Our students are challenged socially as well as academically.

Please help us fund these projects by clicking on the green ‘donate to my challenge’ button.

Lots of event happening on the Hill this month, so mark your calendars (click on the links for more info):

Sat Oct 13
Potrero Hill Festival 2007

Sat Oct 27
Farley’s 17th Annual Pet Fest + PhotoBooth
8th Annual Potrero Hill History Night

Speaking of the Potrero Hill History Night, Channel 7 recently featured the Potrero Hill Archives Project.

Peter Linenthal of the Potrero Hill Archives Project, on how this piece came to air:

Channel 7 held an ABC Listens meeting at out 20th St. library in July looking for overlooked neighborhood stories. One ABC reporter assured the audience of about 20 that Channel 7 avoids the “drive-by shooting du jour” format of much local TV news. There were several interesting suggestions for stories. A childless couple trying to improve the local public schools for their future children. And there was a member of a local rowing club. Who knew? I told Channel 7 about the Potrero Hill Archives Project.

The piece on the Archives aired on the 6 o’clock news, Friday Sept. 7. I was impressed by all the work that went into it. Channel 7 interviewed me and Abby Johnston of the Archives, Keith Goldstein, president of the Potrero Merchants Association, and Lia Hillman, our librarian. Vintage video clips were included, one by Thomas Edison, and a great bit with Hill artist Charles Griffin Farr. And lots of historic photos. The result was a real overview of our project. It’s even generated the donation of photo-digitalizing services from a local company. Thank you, Channel 7 !

Dr. Frank Gilson of Potrero Chiropractors is spearheading a school supply fundraiser for Starr King and Daniel Webster elementary schools.

We’re helping out with the effort, by collecting funds online. Help support our local schools by making a donation to purchase basic supplies such as clipboards, binders and dry erase markers.

You can make a donation by clicking on the orange ChipIn! button below or visiting this page (all donations are tax deductible).

Dr Gilson is also hosting a fundraiser party on Wednesday July 11 from 6 - 9pm at 290 Division St. Suite 400, San Francisco, CA 94103. View map. There will be plenty of food (catered by Klein’s Deli), beer and wine.

The SF Chronicle reports that the Slow Club will be taking over 2495 Third St., the space formally housing the Third Street Cafe.

Owner Erin Rooney got the keys to the space — it formerly housed the Third Street Cafe — just last week. She’s hoping for a Sept. 1 opening.

Slow Club chef Chris Kronner, a 2007 Chronicle Rising Star chef, will oversee the menu at the new location.

“It will be the same Slow Club style,'’ says Rooney. That means stylish California/American comfort food on a daily changing menu, with ingredients sourced directly from local ranches and farmers.

In the meantime, she says, there’s some remodeling to do. Eric Heid, who designed Range, Spork and Citizen Cake, is in charge of creating a look that takes advantage of the 18-foot ceilings and exposed brick walls. When the remodel is complete, the restaurant — which is still unnamed — will have 50 seats, about the same as Slow Club.

“We’ve been looking in Dogpatch for two years,'’ Rooney says. “It’s a very comfortable move for us because the neighborhood feels similar to the Slow Club neighborhood'’ — with a mix of artists’ and designers’ lofts, light industry and some residential buildings.

The folks at Tablehopper are also reporting that:

The A16 folks are currently incubating a concept that they hope to launch next year in the Esprit Park complex, a project from developer Build Inc. at 900 Minnesota. The concept is still quite up in the air (like which region they even want to focus on—I cast my vote for Calabria) and they are working out preliminary permitting matters, so stand by for more later.

• Area restaurants branch out [ SF Chronicle ]

This weekend was the first public open house of The Potrero, the Hill’s newest condo development with a ground floor tenant of Whole Foods. This got me thinking about what the potential impact of Whole Foods might be on Potrero Hill.

I’ve posted the following question on LinkedIn Answers (it’s a site where you can post your business-related questions and receive answers from your friends and other members of LinkedIn):

Economic and environmental impact of Whole Foods?

My neighborhood of Potrero Hill, San Francisco will soon be home to San Francisco’s largest Whole Foods.

• What impact, if any, will this have on the surrounding neighborhood, as well as mom and pop stores?
• Will the value of commercial real estate increase in the surrounding areas?
• Will this impact parking and traffic? (They’ve allotted 100 parking slots for Whole Foods customers)

Both first hand observations or hard data would be great.

Answer this question or view answers

For some tips on using LinkedIn, check out My LinkedIn Life (a 9 week side project of mine).