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What is Oral History?

Sat, 16 Aug 2025 14:00:02 GMT

Oral history is one of the ways we keep the spirit of Russian Hill alive. Instead of relying only on formal records, we listen to the memories and stories of neighbors who’ve called this hill home for many years. While the voices of the very first readers have been lost, we carry their tradition forward by recording and sharing interviews with longtime residents. These conversations let us pass along the everyday experiences, colorful anecdotes, and personal perspectives that make our neighborhood’s history feel alive and close to home.

WHY DO WE NEED ORAL HISTORIES OF RUSSIAN HILL?

Because if stories aren’t shared, they’re lost, and with them go the small details that give a community its soul. History isn’t just about famous names or landmark buildings; it’s about the people who shop at the corner market, chat with their neighbors on the sidewalk, and watch the neighborhood change year after year. These everyday voices give us a sense of belonging, of roots, and of how Russian Hill has grown and shifted over time.

Libraries are full of San Francisco’s citywide history, but neighborhood stories are often missing — even though this is where life truly unfolds. Capturing these local memories helps us understand our past, stay connected in the present, and create a record future generations can lean on. Plus, the process itself is joyful: oral history invites conversation, sparks connection, and strengthens the fabric of our community.

Home Drug Company, an Oral History

Sat, 16 Aug 2025 03:16:03 GMT

This oral history was written in the summer of 1997, and Home Drug Company closed in July of 2000.

(This history of a bygone Russian Hill institution was written by Russian Hill Neighbors VP Jack Casford in Spring, 1997. Home Drug Company has since closed, and the site is occupied by a gift and home furnishings shop. The stained glass signs have been preserved.)

For historical longevity, Home Drug Co. rates second only to the celebrated cable cars that rumble through the intersection of Hyde and Union. Anchoring the northwest corner, this venerable and much-loved institution has provided hands-on, neighborly pharmacy and drugstore sundries since Merle C. Smith started it in 1911-1912.

The Victorian-style shingled building was built quite soon after the Earthquake and Fire, about 1908. Three generations of the same family continued to operate it: first Merle Smith, known as “Doc” as many pharmacists in the U.S were known; then his nephew, Edwin Merle Glasgow (from the late 1920s until his retirement in 1953); and then his sons, Ted and Don. As boys (born in San Francisco and raised in Burlingame), they clerked and made deliveries for their father and great-uncle.

Ted went to pharmacy school after obtaining his degree from Oregon State and took over Home Drug in 1956. His younger brother, Don, got a Bachelor of Science degree in pharmacy from the University of the Pacific in Stockton and joined his brother in 1969. The brothers retired quietly in 1995, but they still own the shingled building with a one-bedroom apartment on the second floor. The present pharmacist, Eugene Malmquist, who holds a pharmacy degree from the University of Colorado, leases the space from the Glasgows.

Malmquist is very sensitive to the historic and traditional nature of Home Drug. He has done some remodeling and upgrading, particularly in the back, elevated area where the pharmacy operations take place. He recently removed signs that once held neon tubing and revealed the beautiful green, white, and amber-stained glass HOME DRUG CO. signs over each of the display windows.

In the basement, fragments from the past remain. Boxes hold scores of brown glass bottles with original Home Drug Labels: Arsenic, Cinchona Bark (quinine), Mercury Bichloride, White Cyanide, and various bromides. Copies of old licenses and certificates remain, authorizing the store to sell prophylactic products; also, a Medical Spirits Stamp tax receipt; a document called Retail Dealer in Opium; a permit to sell coca leaves and to mix certain laxatives; a stamp authorizing the use of Cocaine, Quinine Sulfate, Oil of Wintergreen, and Pilocarpine Hydrochloride.

Other boxes hold old prescription slips, back to 1917, from physicians all over San Francisco, who listed their home telephone numbers and addresses. They scribbled their orders using “apothecary indications,” or Latin abbreviations for amounts and directions on how to use, and symbols giving the quantities, expressed in grams, drams, grains, etc.

A dusty, moribund Underwood portable typewriter tilts on the shelf above a number of old cash registers, from the oldest with keys, bell, and a pull-out drawer, to early electric versions.

Several scales – shallow bowls of dull silver metal with hanging weights and counter-weights – accumulate dust and rust, while two sets of marble mortar-and-pestles recently made their way back to the pharmacy department for display.

A venerable black machine called an “Automatic Electric Carbonator” sits forgotten in a dark corner. It was used to add the carbonation to the syrup for Coca-Cola.

Home Drug Co. briefly had three stores: the original, at 1200 Hyde, a second called Home Drug Co. No. 2 at Hyde and Jackson, and Home Drug Co. No. 3, at Pine and Jones. “Doc” Smith was in partnership with a Mr. Seebold and a third man whose name is lost in memory. Smith bought out Nos. 2 and 3 at some point. Home Drug bought out Alhambra Drugs, which for many years operated at the northeast corner of Green and Polk. It even had a tiny branch post office in the back, manned by a cranky clerk who posted a large sign announcing the services it did NOT provide: “No Packages Accepted!”

Home Drug used to be open seven days a week, and deliveries were made by motorcycle. Crime did not touch them, except for one remembered break-in (unsuccessful – the narcotics safe remained untouched) and one walk-in weaponless robbery.

Two former customers, who once lived together on Greenwich Street, were O.J. Simpson and a pretty, slim girl in her teens named Nicole Brown.

Don and Ted see each other frequently (one lives on the Peninsula and one lives in the East Bay). They don’t miss the commute and the pressure of work, but they do miss the customers and the neighborhood. Certainly, the neighborhood missed them when they “disappeared.”

But Malmquist continues the tradition of personal, friendly service. Even his fluency in German comes in handy with the scores of tourists who pass the corner looking for “The Crooked Street” and Fisherman’s Wharf. And he says Home Drug now provides prescriptions at the low price allowed by insurance companies under most plans. He insists they are competitive with Walgreens!

With Home Drug dating back to 1911-12, the venerable Searchlight Market (also dating back to 1912), Swensen’s (1948), and Vern’s Shoe Craft (in the 1950s), the intersection of Hyde and Union remains a historic center for Russian Hill.

Fellowship Church, an Oral History

Wed, 13 Aug 2025 14:41:32 GMT

This oral history was written in the fall of 1997 by Russian Hill Neighbors VP, Jack Casford.

Do you know how many churches there are on Russian Hill? Within our boundaries (Van Ness, Pacific, Taylor and Bay) there are only two: the Norwegian Seaman’s Church and the Church for the Fellowship of All Peoples, popularly called Fellowship Church. Both churches are interesting historically and culturally. In this article we feature the Fellowship Church at 2041 Larkin Street near Broadway.

Fellowship Church is unique in the nation, recognized as the first intercultural, interracial, interfaith and interdenominational church organized in the country. From its formal inauguration on October 8, 1944, it brought together, for the first time, races and cultures pledged to each other in a common commitment. World War II was raging in Europe, with no end in sight. There was in the United States much talk about the Four Freedoms, religion being one of them, and a celebrated poster by Norman Rockwell portrayed several people of different races and ages and in various attitudes of worship – with rosaries, breviaries, Bibles, Torahs, veils, and so forth – indicating the various faiths worshipping together in an idealized world.

Fellowship Church’s origins lie in San Francisco’s Fillmore District, where an ordained Presbyterian clergyman and professor of philosophy at San Francisco State College (now University), Dr. Alfred Fisk, started a “Neighborhood Church” as a bi-racial institution. A group of about 40 persons, under the ministry of Dr. Fisk and the Rev. Manly Johnson, an African American (then “Negro”) student at the Berkeley Baptist Divinity School, began meeting in private homes in 1943. Later the Presbyterian Board of National Missions provided, rent-free, the use of a former Japanese Presbyterian Church, at 1500 Post.

At that time, the Fillmore sector of San Francisco had been largely emptied of its majority – Japanese-American citizens – by the infamous Relocation Order of 1942, which sent some 100,000 Japanese-American residents to holding centers. The vacuum left by these residents was filled by large numbers of African Americans, drawn from Texas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas, by promises of wartime employment in the Bay Area shipyards.

In 1944, Dr. Howard Thurman, Professor of Theology and the Dean of Rankin Chapel of Howard University, was invited to serve as pastor of the Church. Dr. and Mrs. Thurman had studied nonviolent resistance to institutionalized race discrimination with Mahatma Ghandi in India in the late 1930s.

Dr. Thurman and his wife moved from Washington, D.C. to take the pastorate. For a time the church held services in a former theater on Sutter Street. Dr. Thurman and Dr. Fisk wrote a formal set of guidelines and goals for the church, and the formal inaugural ceremonies were held in the First Unitarian Church, the only white church in the City that would lend its endorsement and its sanctuary for the event.

From 1944 to 1949, Fellowship Church met variously on Sutter, Pierce, and then Washington Street. Its membership included an active congregation locally, but it drew support from national “associates” such as Eleanor Roosevelt, author Alan Paton, actor-singer Todd Duncan, and individuals in Japan, South Africa, India, Iran, Formosa, and the British Isles.

In 1949, the congregation paid $35,000 to St. John’s Reformed and Evangelical Church at 2401 Larkin Street for its structure with church tower, sanctuary, meeting rooms, and offices.

In 1951, Fellowship Church had 283 active and 62 associate members in the Bay Area. From the first, it drew Russian Hill neighbors, but that membership is now small, albeit welcome.

Dr. Thurman was most active as pastor in the early 1950s. In 1953, he was pictured in Life magazine as one of the outstanding clerics in the United States. He wrote over 130 works during his lifetime, primarily books on theology, including The Renewing of the Spirit and The Negro Spiritual. He spoke worldwide and received formal tributes and commendation from many national and international religious, social, educational, and civil rights groups. Dr. Thurman contributed a considerable portion of his earnings from his U.S. lecture tours to the Fellowship Church building fund.

Dr. Thurman left in 1954 for a tenured position as Dean of Theology at Boston University, but returned to serve as Minister Emeritus until his death in 1981.

The widow of Dr. Thurman, Sue Bailey Thurman, herself an outstanding figure in African-American activities nationally, died at the age of 93 in December 1996. Her funeral services were held at Fellowship Church, and the music came from the historic, German-made organ still in use for services.

The current presiding pastor is the Rev. Dorsey Blake. There are presently less than 100 members, many longtime, active supporters. The rather austere, off-white stucco façade is embellished with only an upper window, the church tower, and three street-level arched inset doors.

Neighbors are familiar with its use as a polling place for local, state, and national elections. Russian Hill Neighbors has held meetings at the church, as have other groups. During the 1980s and early 1990s, there was an active theater group that performed here. Performances included I’m Not Rappaport and An Evening with Martin and Langston, with Danny Glover appearing as Langston Hughes.

On October 12, 1997, the Howard Thurman Convocation was held at Fellowship Church, with a panel discussion called “The Luminous Darkness,” the name of one of Dr. Thurman’s many philosophical books. Bishop Chester Talton presided. On Sunday, October 13, the Convocation presented “An Unfinished Future: Rekindling the Search for Common Ground,” with featured speaker Dr. Allan Boesak from South Africa, where he was active in the struggle against apartheid.

Notice of Potential Rezoning of Height and/or Density

Tue, 12 Aug 2025 23:54:00 GMT

San Francisco Planning Commission Hearing

Under San Francisco's 2022 Housing Element and state law, the City is required to expand housing affordability and availability. This proposed citywide rezoning may increase the height and/or density limits of your property or others in your neighborhood.

Date : Thursday, September 11, 2025

Time : Not before 12:00 p.m (noon)

Location : City Hall | 1 Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Place, Room 400

Case type : Planning Code and Zoning Map Amendment

Project name : San Francisco Family Zoning Plan (Housing Element Rezoning Program)

For those who can't attend live, hearings can be viewed live on SFGovTV and will be re-broadcast per SFGovTV program scheduling.

The Fay-Berrigan Residence

Tue, 12 Aug 2025 16:32:39 GMT

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Norwegian Seamen's Church, an Oral History

Thu, 31 Jul 2025 16:14:12 GMT

The Norwegian Seamen’s Church, perched high above the northeastern waterfront of San Francisco, is one of a network of 30 churches and 16 mobile services worldwide, established in 1864 to serve the moral and religious needs of Scandinavian seamen as well as a place to speak Norwegian with fellow countrymen in the faraway places their seafaring took them. Today, the churches serve about 7,000 Norwegians annually who are travelling abroad and want to read a newspaper from home, buy familiar food, and find general respite in a welcoming environment. In places where consular services are not available, the churches and traveling pastors can assist with such things as marriage and birth certificates, and general travelers’ aid services.

Several institutions in San Francisco served Scandinavian sailors, beginning in the 1890s with the Lutheran Seamen’s Mission, open to Norwegian, Swedish, and Danish seamen, into the 1940s. In 1898, the Norwegian Club was founded to promote fellowship among the Norwegian-American communities in the San Francisco Bay Area. The Club still exists and is located at 1900 Fell Street.

Serious discussions about establishing a Seamen’s Church in California began as early as 1936, as the Norwegian merchant fleet grew and more sailors were arriving here. The southern California location of San Pedro was chosen for the site of the first Norwegian Seamen’s Church in 1941. Six years later, in 1947, a San Francisco committee was formed with the support of then Norwegian Consul General J. Gable. They eventually located a suitable property at 2454 Hyde Street, a private residence built in 1937. Funds were raised, a loan was taken, and the property was purchased for $47,500. An additional $10,000 was spent on remodeling. The official opening came on October 15, 1951. In addition to its magnificent view of San Francisco Bay, the location had the important advantage of having easy access to the seamen whose mission it was to serve.

The ground floor of the building features a chapel for weekly worship, weddings, and other celebrations. It is also available for nonprofit meetings, and RHN held its 2022 Annual Meeting there. The Francisco Park Conservancy held its meetings at the Church throughout the years of planning for the new park. The second floor has a terrace with a commanding view, a comfortable lounge, kitchen facilities, and a gift shop with Norwegian crafts and specialty foods. There are also on-site living quarters for resident pastors or location hosts who take multi-year assignments to oversee the activities and mission of the Church.

Currently, Pastor John and his wife Julie are residing at the facility, and the newly arrived host couple, Hildegunn and Trond, live close by in the neighborhood. RHN was honored to have them attend our holiday party and get to know them better. If you are walking by the Church, consider dropping in and introducing yourself. On a Saturday, you might find yourself enjoying Norwegian porridge. There is a reading room, a variety of holiday activities, and Sunday worship services. You can find more information at the Church’s website, which is in Norwegian, but there is a tab for English translation: San Francisco | The Norwegian Seamen’s Church (sjomannskirken.no) .

RHN has long recognized the importance of the Church to our neighborhood. In the 1980s, then RNH Newsletter editor Jack Casford wrote:
“One of the most spectacular panoramas in any American City – San Francisco Bay, Golden Gate Bridge, Marin Hills, as seen from the corner of Hyde and Francisco Streets – there flies incongruously yet somehow wonderfully, the flag of the Kingdom of Norway. It has, since 1951, been the home of the Norwegian Seamen’s Church. Although it occupies a handsome, white neoclassical mansion and is passed by a multitude of tourists, it remains an undiscovered jewel in the neighborhood. A retaining wall, broken only by an iron grill and a brass address sign, obscures it from all who pass by – unless they look up – the Norse have, indeed, landed! Next time you climb the hill on Russian Hill, look up and note the flags.”

Better yet, climb the stairs and find yourself welcomed in for a cup of coffee, a waffle, and interesting conversation.

What a delightful resource that we as Russian Hill residents are privileged to enjoy!

The Alpheus Bull and Bertram Alanson Houses

Wed, 30 Jul 2025 16:29:05 GMT

A Tale of Two Houses

The house has a rich history which is described below by historian William Kostura.

Address: 828 Francisco
Years Built: 1863, 1929
Owners:
Alpheus Bull (1863 Italianate House)
Bertram Alanson (1929 Tudor House, Architects Samuel Hyman and Abraham Appleton)

Two of the finest residences ever built on Russian Hill occupied the same location at the northwest corner of Francisco and Leavenworth Streets, one house replacing the other in 1929. The first, built in 1863, was a white Italianate with a wraparound porch, widow’s walk, and bracketed eaves; it was otherwise unornamented. This was the largest house of a type once common on the north slope of Russian Hill. Admired for their simplicity, of them the artist Ernest Peixotto wrote in 1893: “This simple type made an eminently habitable home, with its wide veranda and heavy shutters, and was devoid of all ostentation.” Its successor, 828 Francisco, is a Tudor home of superb detailing and composition. Each house had remarkable owners and events associated with its history.

The older house had the more colorful builder. This was Alpheus Bull, who as a youth had traveled through the Midwest as a fervent, itinerant preacher of the Universalist religion. The Universalists believed that there was no Hell, and that God would ultimately save all people. In the Gold Rush, Bull came to California and prospered as a merchant in Red Bluff and in Shasta, where his small brick store still stands. He also built a flour mill, engaged in banking, skirmished with Indians, and was involved in the vigilante hanging of a mule thief. Moving to San Francisco in 1858, he made an astonishing occupational leap, becoming president of several major Nevada silver mines and Vice President of the Fireman’s Fund Insurance Company.

The attainment of great wealth and construction of a mansion with a view did not bring tranquillity to Bull’s personal life. In 1871, his wife Sarah hung herself in the attic of their Russian Hill home. The Alta California newspaper attributed the suicide to insanity. Two years later Bull became the leader of a new Universalist Church in San Francisco, but its pastor was accused of “amorous irregularities,” causing a split in the congregation. A letter from 1884 reveals that in addition to the headaches and respiratory problems he had experienced for many years, Bull suffered from severe mental depression. His death in 1890 occurred during a family outing to Fort Point. As his second wife Jennie and their daughters walked ahead, Alpheus lingered behind to enjoy the sea spray. He apparently became faint and pitched over the sea wall. At age 74, he left a fortune of over a million dollars.

Mrs. Bull lived in the house only another three of four years before moving to Pacific Heights. Men of means occupied the house during its last three decades, but at last the day came when a new owner chose to demolish it and erect a modern building on the bluff.

Stockbroker Bertram E. Alanson began construction of an immense Tudor house in September, 1929. The architects Samuel Hyman and Abraham Appleton (along with Arthur Brown, Jr.) also designed the Jewish Community Center in 1932. Alanson was locally prominent, becoming President of the San Francisco Stock Exchange and joining with Timothy Pfleuger to hire Diego Rivera to paint the mural in the Stock Exchange Club. By 1929, he had already been a close friend of W. Somerset Maugham for thirteen years and had made Maugham a millionaire by investing $15,000 of his money in the stock market. Maugham made many trips to San Francisco, where he stayed at 828 Francisco for weeks at a time. In his biography of Maugham, Willie, The Life of W. Somerset Maugham, Robert Calder portrays the two as close friends until Alanson’s death in 1958.

About the author: William Kostura is an architectural historian who has conducted extensive research on Russian Hill since 1981. In 1997, he published the first of a series of histories on Russian Hill, Russian Hill: The Summit, 1853-1906, Volume I of a Neighborhood History. Mr. Kostura has researched over 600 houses on Russian Hill.

Neighborhood Clean-Up Reports and Next Steps for a Cleaner Community

nicole.flowers@rhnsf.org (Nicole Flowers) — Fri, 11 Jul 2025 02:48:51 GMT

This past March, our RHN Clean Up and Smile event coordinated with the SF Department of Environment for their audit of litter by neighborhood. Here are the results of their study, which highlight key findings and opportunities for action:

Common Litter Types

Soiled paper (receipts, napkins) and thin film plastics (food wrappers, packaging) were the most prevalent types of litter.

Cigarette Butts

While cigarette butts were tracked, they were excluded from the data analysis to avoid skewing results, as they far outnumbered other litter types.

Key Recommendations for Food Establishments

The audit suggests improving waste practices by focusing on better bin setups, switching to reusable items, and offering food and beverage accessories only upon request.

FINDINGS BY NEIGHBORHOOD

Insights & Actionable Steps

Increase Education : Encourage local businesses, especially food establishments, to adopt better waste practices.
Advocate for Reusables : Support the shift from single-use packaging and foodware to more sustainable options.
Community Involvement : Participate in the "Bring Your Own Cup" (BYOC) campaign and help reduce single-use cups.

SFE is also scaling their volunteer network and event programming. If you’d like to collaborate or help with outreach, reach out to SFEVolunteers@sfgov.org or kristen.law@sfgov.org .

Together, we can take action for a cleaner, greener neighborhood!

How to Report Illegal Dumping

nicole.flowers@rhnsf.org (Nicole Flowers) — Mon, 30 Jun 2025 02:30:02 GMT

See Illegal Dumping? Here’s How to Report It!

Let’s keep Russian Hill clean and beautiful. If you spot illegally dumped furniture, trash, or debris on our streets or sidewalks, report it quickly and easily (include the exact location and, if possible, a photo):

Call 311
Use the SF311 mobile app
Visit SF311.org

If you witness illegal dumping in progress and are willing to provide a statement, be sure to include your callback number.

Want to learn more about how the City is working to keep our neighborhoods clean? Visit the San Francisco Public Works Outreach and Enforcement Team at sfpublicworks.org/oneteam . Your quick action helps maintain the quality of life in Russian Hill!

Guidance for Planting Flowers in Empty Tree Beds

nicole.flowers@rhnsf.org (Nicole Flowers) — Tue, 24 Jun 2025 23:04:55 GMT

Empty tree beds offer a great opportunity to beautify our neighborhoods and support pollinators. Here’s how to do it responsibly and in line with city expectations:

General Guidelines

No permit is required to plant flowers in a tree bed without a tree.
Property owners are responsible for maintaining any flowers or plants in the tree bed. If you’re not the owner, please coordinate with them before planting.
Avoid obstructing sidewalks : If your plants grow into the pedestrian path or become difficult to maintain, the property owner may receive a warning letter, especially if ADA access is impacted.
Be aware : If the city or property owner decides to plant a tree in the bed, your plantings may be removed without notice.

For sidewalk landscaping (which follows different rules), visit the SFPW Sidewalk Landscaping Permit page .

Planting Tips from Susan Karasoff, RHN Parks Chair and California Native Plant Society Member

Install a low fence for the first 3 years to protect young plants from foot traffic and pets.
Assign a steward (or team) to water new plants for at least 1 year, and new trees for 3 years. Without consistent watering, plants won’t survive.
Choose plants wisely : Look for long-blooming, evergreen species that grow 1–3 feet tall. This avoids sightline issues and discourages littering.

Recommended Flowering Plants for Tree Beds

☀️ Full Sun

California Fuchsia (Epilobium canum)
Bush Sunflower (Encelia californica)
Dune Bush Lupine (Lupinus chamissonis) – sand only
Deerweed (Acmispon glaber) – prefers sand
Coast Buckwheat (Eriogonum latifolium/nudum) – sand only

��️ Sun to Part Shade

California Aster (Symphyotrichum chilense)
Grindelia (Grindelia camporum/hirsutula)
Goldenrod (Solidago velutina ssp. californica)
Hooker’s Evening Primrose (Oenothera elata)
Hummingbird Sage (Salvia spathacea)
Hedge Nettle (Stachys spp.)
Yarrow (Achillea millefolium)
Pineapple Sage (Salvia elegans) – non-native, edible, needs extra water in drought years

�� Bushes (Not Trees) for Height & Presence

Malva Rosa (Malva assurgentiflora)
Pink Flowering Currant (Ribes sanguineum glutinosum/aurem)

Helpful Resources

Disclaimer: This guidance is for general informational purposes only. For questions about regulations, plant selection, or any aspect of planting in public tree beds, please contact the San Francisco Department of Public Works or visit their official website .

Neighborhood Essentials

nicole.flowers@rhnsf.org (Nicole Flowers) — Sat, 21 Jun 2025 22:16:19 GMT

At Russian Hill Neighbors, we're dedicated to preserving the charm, safety, and vibrancy of Russian Hill. Here is some helpful information on city ordinances and neighbor suggestions that are making a positive impact:

Sidewalk Responsibility

Property owners must keep sidewalks clean and clear of debris, including leaves, litter, and other waste.
Sweeping debris into the gutter is prohibited —instead, collect and dispose of it in the appropriate trash, recycling, or compost bin.
Illegal dumping on sidewalks is not allowed —please report incidents via SF 311 .
Maintain 4 feet of horizontal clearance and 8 feet of vertical clearance on sidewalks for pedestrian access.

Trash, Recycling, Composting & Illegal Dumping

Sorting Waste: San Francisco requires residents to separate recyclables, compostables, and landfill waste.
Composting: Food scraps, yard waste, and compostable paper must go in the green bin .
Bulky Item Disposal: Schedule free pickups for furniture, appliances, and oversized waste through Recology SF .

Planting in Tree Beds

You can plant flowers in an empty tree bed without a permit from San Francisco Public Works. However, please inform or collaborate with the adjacent property owner, as they will be held responsible for the maintenance of the plants/flowers and may receive a warning letter if they become overgrown or impact ADA access.

If you wish to break ground, you’ll need a sidewalk landscaping permit from SF Public Works to ensure proper planting and pedestrian safety.

Dog Owner Responsibilities

Leash Laws : Dogs must be leashed in public spaces unless in designated off-leash areas.
Cleanup: Owners must pick up after their pets —violations can result in fines.
Tree Bed Protection: Dog urine harms trees—please carry a small water bottle to dilute its effects.
Noise Consideration: Excessive barking can be reported to SF Animal Care & Control .

Other Helpful Tips

Parking : Residential parking permits are available through SFMTA. Make sure to move your car on street sweeping days.
Noise Ordinance: Quiet hours are enforced from 10 PM to 7 AM .
Community Events: Stay connected with local gatherings, neighborhood clean-ups, and advocacy efforts !
RHN Newsletter: Sign up here for our monthly newsletter , which provides updates on advocacy, upcoming events, and neighborhood resources .