On Billionaires Row, the stretch of Broadway that runs along the top of Pacific Heights, Larry Ellison is suing his millionaire downhill neighbors Jane and Bernard von Bothmer over some runaway redwoods and an acacia that block Ellison’s views of the bay. According to the complaint, the dispute has been going on since 2008. The [...]
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Parking meters on Fillmore Street and in Japantown no longer have a one-hour time limit. As part of the rollout of the city’s new high-tech parking program called SFpark, the shiny new silver meters along Fillmore were re-programmed on April 25 to have no time limits at all. Drivers may park as long as they [...]
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By Barbara Kate Repa Yoga. Trance dancing. Nurturing food from the earth. Music by the Grateful Dead’s Mickey Hart. A crowd of true believers at the Fillmore. It sounds like the ’60s all over again. But this time, in a wholly wholesome good way, it’s a unique happening called Wanderlust coming to the historic Fillmore [...]
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Travelers through the swank new terminal two at San Francisco International Airport will find friends from the neighborhood to bid them hail and farewell. Birds from Alta Plaza Park are part of an ingenious new piece of interactive musical art created by longtime neighborhood resident Walter Kitundu for a children’s play area. It’s intended for [...]
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MUSIC | Anthony Torres I first heard Charles Unger play when I stepped into the Sheba Piano Lounge on the way home from Yoshi’s one night. As I walked in, I was immediately struck by the intonation of the tenor sax and the ease with which Unger and his band, The Experience, moved through Carlos [...]
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STARBUCKS OPENING
A FILLMORE JUICE BAR
Farewell to the Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, one of Fillmore’s many coffee shops, which closed on March 25 at the corner of Fillmore and Sacramento. . . . And hello to Starbucks, which is taking over the busy corner for its new chain of juice bars called Evolution Fresh, offering fresh and bottled juices, smoothies and food.
Even though this is the beginning of a new chain from Starbucks, it squeaks in under the ban on chain stores because it’s just starting and has fewer than 11 outlets. So far.
FURNITURE GIVES WAY
TO YOGA WEAR
The end is near for the Danish furniture store BoConcept, which opened less than two years ago at 1928 Fillmore. It’s retreating to its larger showroom in the design district and will be replaced by Prana, a brand of activewear for yogis, climbers and other sports enthusiasts.
SOLVING THE PUZZLE
OF FLOOR COVERING
A welcoming carpet in jaunty shades of brick, brown and purple on the sidewalk at 2226 Bush Street beckons buyers into Flor, a new store selling a modular system of floor covering that can be assembled as rugs, runners or wall-to-wall carpeting.
The floor covering is offered in 20-by-20-inch carpet tiles that range in cost from $8 per square for short nylon pile to $40 for plush wool. The squares can be assembled and changed to fit space and use needs.
ROAM BURGERS
MOVING UP TO FILLMORE
At 1923 Fillmore, Roam Burgers has signed a lease to succeed Osaka, the long-running Japanese restaurant operated by three Chinese sisters. Roam has established a big following for its gourmet burgers down the hill on Union Street.
MORE FASHION
SHOPS OPENING
Three Fillmore shops that have closed in recent weeks — Blu, Her and Ruby Living Design — will be replaced by new clothing boutiques. Alice + Olivia is already open at the corner of Fillmore and Clay Streets, former home of Blu. Look for Roberta Freymann and Steven Alan, coming soon.
DUMPLINGS & BUNS
CALLS IT QUITS
It was a dream come true for May Lee, whose family has owned the building at the key corner of Fillmore and California for many years. She’d take over the space at 2411 California and open a shop serving Chinese dumplings and buns based on her own family’s recipes.
Despite a stylish storefront and authentic offerings, the dream turned into something of a nightmare and the shop closed on February 26, barely six months after it opened.
A number of potential new food-related tenants are said to be circling, even though the space has no kitchen.
DECORATOR SHOWCASE
AT 2020 JACKSON
The Heller mansion at 2020 Jackson Street — on the market for $20 million — has been selected as the location for this year’s Decorator Showcase.
Designed by Julius Krafft, 2020 Jackson was built in 1902 by Wells Fargo Bank President Isaias Hellman as a wedding gift for his daughter, Clara, and her husband Emanuel Heller, founder of the Heller Ehrman law firm. After the 1906 earthquake, it served as the temporary headquarters of Wells Fargo.
This year the Decorator Showcase will run from April 28 to May 28.
