Richmond Roundup
Gardeners get awards for keeping City green
San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee presented awards to gardeners during the third annual William Hammond Hall Awards in Golden Gate Park on June 23. The event was put on with the help of the Parks Trust and Laborers' Local 261 and was attended by members of the SF Recreation and Park Commission and SF Recreation and Park Department.
Individual gardeners recognized for their exemplary work on behalf of San Francisco residents were: Janet Aguilera (Golden Gate Park); Peter Andrews (Mission Park Service Area); Kevin Burr (West Sunset and Stern Grove); Jon Campo (Natural Areas); Roberto Chavez (Golf and Turf); Joseph Faulker (Golf and Turf); Ann Gagello (McLaren and Crocker Amazon); Dave Lamb (Union Square, McKinley Square, Civic Center); Thomas Madrick (Golf and Turf); Marvin Mouton (Richmond Park Service Area); Terry Seefeld (Golden Gate Park, Arboretum, California Native Garden); and Romeo Washington (Golf and Turf).
"Today, it is my honor to join our City's outstanding gardeners who are receiving the William Hammond Hall Award recognizing their commitment and tireless efforts in caring for our treasured parks and natural landscapes throughout our city parks," Lee said.
During the 1870s, the first park commissioners appointed William Hammond Hall as the first park superintendent. Hall worked to improve the park by planting trees and designing pathways for the pleasure of visitors and the preservation of wildlife.
Today, the Recreation and Park Department stewards more than 220 parks, playgrounds and open spaces, including Golden Gate Park, Lincoln Park and the San Francisco Zoo.
Sutro students save
A new financial aid pilot program from the City was launched this spring, offering a college savings account at Citibank, accompanied with an initial $50 deposit, for every kindergartner enrolled at participating elementary schools.
Sutro Elementary School was the first school in the Richmond District to offer the savings accounts to students.
"I think it's a good program that gives people incentive to save," said Sutro Elementary School Principal Andrew Poon. "Some of our second-language immigrant parents are still wary of the banks and they do everything in cash. So, it gives them a chance to see that you can save money and the banks can take care of it."
According to the City, money deposited into the Kindergarten to College (K2C) program can only be used for college or another type of education or training after high school, including use for tuition, books and supplies. Additional K2C incentives include an extra $50 deposit for students participating in the National School Lunch program.
The K2C program will also match every dollar saved up to the first $100 during the initial year, along with reward-based incentives for positive behavior, such as academic performance.
As the first school in the district to offer the program, Poon said that the response from parents has been positive, with the majority of parents returning consent forms when they were sent out in early May.
About 50 percent of the district's schools are expected to be covered by the end of the year, with all schools participating by 2012, according to organizers.
For more information about K2C, call 311, visit the website at k2csf.org or send an e-mail info@k2csf.org.
Free concerts in Golden Gate Park
The Golden Gate Park Band, under the direction of conductor Michael Wirgler, will perform free concerts every Sunday through Oct. 12 at the Golden Gate Park bandshell. All concerts are at 1 p.m.
The remaining schedule is:
• July 3 – The music of composer George Gershwin is featured;
• July 10 – The music of composer James Fulton is featured;
• July 17 – Features a salute to African-American composers and artists;
• July 24 – A concert of great band music, with program to be announced;
• July 31 – The music of Latin America is featured;
• Aug. 7 – A salute to the "great John Philip Sousa Band;"
• Aug. 14 – A concert of great band music, with program to be announced;
• Aug. 21 – A concert for St. Stephen's Day features Hungarian music, singing and dancing;
• Aug. 28 – "Ukrainian-American Day;"
• Sept. 4 – Movies in the Park," with baritone John Minagro;
• Sept. 5 (Monday) – Labor Day concert celebrates the American worker in music;
• Sept. 11 – No concert this week as the band takes a vacation;
• Sept. 18 – A musical tribute to Robert Emmet, featuring Irish music and dancing;
• Sept. 25 – Tribute to the music of Spain with El Grupo De Espana;
• Oct. 2 – The band performs its annual swing and jazz concert;
• Oct. 9 – Audience appreciation day features an all-request concert.
For more information, go to the website at www.sfgov.org.
Energy efficiency program coming to Richmond
Representatives from the SF Department of the Environment will be fanning out across the Richmond District in July to notify people about its Energy Watch Program, a program designed to help residents cut energy costs through energy efficiency.
The goals of the program are to:
• provide a free on-site energy evaluation to identify potential savings;
• provide incentives to replace high energy-consuming devices with those more energy efficient;
• provide expert consultation and installation services.
The San Francisco Energy Watch Program was created as a joint project between the city of San Francisco and PG&E in 2007. The program has paid out $9.5 million in incentives, and saved 3,396 customers more than 16.5 million in energy costs, equivalent to supplying power to 15,351 homes for a year.
For more information about San Francisco Energy Watch, or to schedule an appointment for a free on-site assessment to identify energy savings, call the SF Energy Watch Hotline at (415) 355-3717 or visit the website at www.sfenergywatch.org.
Magic at the Balboa Theater
There will be a live magic show, featuring young magicians, at the Balboa Theater to coincide with the showing of the movie "Make Believe," running from July 22 – 28. The live presentations are being coordinated through the Sunset magic store on Ninth Avenue called Misdirections.
The Balboa Theater is located on Balboa Street, at 37th Avenue. For more information, go to the websites at www.makebelievefilm.com and www.misdirections.
Car sharing service coming
RelayRides, a new vehicle-sharing service, is debuting in the Richmond and Sunset districts in July. The Google-sponsored program allows individuals to rent their vehicles to people living nearby for a small fee. The average take for a person renting their vehicle is about $250 a month.
People renting vehicles pay as little as $5 an hour, which includes gas. Prices vary according to the make and model of vehicle being rented and the amount of rent required from the owner of the vehicle.
RelayRides provides full insurance, with up to a $1 million in liability coverage, for everyone using the service. It also provides "in-car technology" to modify the vehicle's ignition system so there is no need for exchanging keys or making appointments to give keys.
RelayRides so far has raised $6.2 million in funding, mostly from Google Ventures and August Capital. The goal of the program is to give drivers interested in an alternative to car ownership a way to get personalized transportation at a fraction of the cost of car rentals. Google says it is more eco-friendly because it reduces the number of vehicles on a community's roads, thereby reducing air pollution.
RelayRides is launching in the Inner Richmond on July 13 and the Inner Sunset on July 27. For more information, go to the website at www.relayrides.com.
Free Stern Grove concerts
Every year since 1938, the Stern Grove Festival has provided an admission-free performing arts series in Sigmund Stern Grove. It is one of the longest-running free concert series in the country.
The season begins June 19, and all concerts begin at 2 p.m. The schedule for this summer is:
• June 19 – Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings, Ben L'Oncle Soul;
• June 26 – Jazz Mafia Symphony featuring Chali 2Na;
• July 3 – Neko Case and The Dodos;
• July 10 – AfroCubism, Pellejo Seco;
• July 17 – The English Beat, My First Earthquake;
• July 24 – San Francisco Symphony;
• July 31 – San Francisco Ballet, Helgi Tomasson, artistic director;
• Aug. 7 – Aaron Neville and Quinn Deveaux, Blue Beat Review;
• Aug. 14, Javier Limon and Buika, Sandra Carrasco and Luisa Maita;
• Aug. 21 – San Francisco Opera.
There are also a number of "kids days" occurring before regularly scheduled concerts. For more information, call (415) 252-6252 or go to the website at www.sterngrove.org.