The GrowSF Report: Entire family of four killed by speeding driver at West Portal
PLUS: BART employees caught stealing time on the job
What You Need To Know
Here’s what happened around the city for the week of March 18, 2024:
- Entire family of four killed by speeding driver in West Portal
- Hundreds of people die on our streets every year. What happens to their bodies?
- BART employees caught stealing time on the job
- More electric charging stations coming to a street near you
Recent & upcoming openings:
- Pop-up turned brick-and-mortar Bernal Bakery opens this weekend
- Sextant Coffee comes to Valencia
Entire family of four killed by speeding driver in West Portal
Tragedy struck West Portal over the weekend. A 78-year-old woman slammed her speeding SUV into a bus stop killing a husband, wife and their two children, including a three-month-old. The family had been waiting to take the bus to the zoo to celebrate their second wedding anniversary. Witnesses report the driver was speeding in the wrong lane and didn’t even hit her brakes before smashing into the family.
This tragedy joins 7 other fatal crashes this year, putting San Francisco on track to exceed last year’s body count. Vision Zero continues to be an abject failure and everyone responsible for implementing it ought to be fired, and the program rebooted with real authority to make desperately needed street changes without being bogged down in bureaucracy. The red tape is, quite literally, killing people.
Hundreds of people die on our streets every year. What happens to their bodies?
Last year San Francisco hit a sad milestone: nearly 400 people who died in our city had no next of kin to claim their bodies. Many were down on their luck, impoverished or elderly, and nearly half died from a drug overdose.
According to Alex Mullaney at the Standard, if no next of kin are found, disposing the bodies becomes the responsibility of the city. The bodies are cremated and scattered in the Pacific ocean.
Due to the spike in fentanyl overdose deaths, the city’s resources to hunt down the next of kin and cover cremation costs are being stretched. The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner has already recorded 130 overdose deaths this year.
Several BART employees caught stealing time on the job
BART employees have been accused of time theft: clocking in and not working. Not only does this theft of taxpayer dollars erode public trust in government, it compromises the integrity of the transportation system.
“Besides the theft, this also weighs on the system because they’re supposed to be out there doing things like maintenance and repairs, and if they’re not doing it, then it speaks to the quality of the system,” BART Inspector General Claudette Biemeret shared with Kevin Truong of the Standard.
If we want San Francisco to be a city that works – we need to trust that public employees and managers will uphold the same social contract.
More electric charging stations coming to a street near you
What do you do if you buy an electric car but don’t have a garage to charge it in? Supervisor Rafael Mandelman might have an answer: install 5,000 curbside chargers by 2030. Currently there are only 1,200 public charging stations citywide for the nearly 30,000 vehicles on the road, a number that will quickly grow.
“We have to take action to expand our public EV charging infrastructure and make EV ownership more accessible and practical for all San Franciscans,” Supervisor Mandelman shared with Greg Wong at the Examiner.
But does this problem really demand the city’s resources and time? We agree that EVs are a great alternative to gas cars…but maybe the city should make it easier for private companies to build charging infrastructure. After all, there are no city-owned gas stations! Maybe the city should focus on installing more bike racks, or investing in our city’s aging public transportation infrastructure, instead.
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Recent & upcoming openings
A great city is constantly changing and growing, let’s celebrate what’s new!
Bernal Bakery brings baked goods to Cortland
WHERE: 521 Cortland Avenue
WHEN: Wednesday-Sunday; 7am -1:30pm
A new bakery is taking over the former Little Bee Bakery space on Cortland Avenue. Owners Ryan Staff and Danielle Banchero are opening doors to Bernal Bakery this Saturday, March 23 at 7am and will stay open “until everything is gone,” according to Eater SF. Their menu will include staple bakery items we’ve grown to love like sourdough, apple cider donuts, and chocolate chip cookies.
Sextant Coffee comes to Valencia
WHERE: 539 Valencia Street
WHEN: Monday-Friday, 7am-5pm; Saturday-Sunday, 8am-5pm
The Ethiopian coffee roaster has opened a new location at 16th & Valencia, according to Paolo Bicchieri of Eater. Besides a great cappuccino, you can expect interesting combinations like the ginger gasheer – a Middle Eastern and East African coffee with fresh ginger – and the popular “Wired Gandhi,” an espresso drink with chai.
Your Action Plan
Now that you know what’s happening, help us shape what happens next:
Vote for Golden Gate Park as Best City Park!
USA Today is running a “Best City Park” poll until Monday, April 8 at Noon eastern. There are twenty parks from across the country that have been nominated. Readers can vote once per day. Vote today to nominate Golden Gate as a top ten in the United States!
The Spirit of San Francisco
There’s a lot to love about our city and the Bay Area. Here’s what makes it great. Brought to you by The Bold Italic.
What we’re doing this week
Start your spring in San Francisco with these great activities
Spring has sprung, finally. We’ve recently experienced some bright spots in our city that’s otherwise been very wet and dreary in 2024. From blooming flowers in Golden Gate Park to lively events like the Cherry Blossom Festival, San Francisco offers a great range springtime adventures. Here are a bunch of suggestions.
Nintendo trio at Grace Cathedral
The magic of Nintendo comes to life through the rich sounds of classical instruments. Whether you’re a seasoned gamer or simply a lover of music, this performance has something for everyone. Sixth Station Trio debuted at Grace Cathedral last year to a sold-out crowd, with Katelyn Tan on piano, Anju Goto on violin, and Federico Strand Ramirez on cello.
Their performances Friday and Saturday will feature music from Super Mario Bros, Luigi’s Mansion, Mario Kart, Mario RPG, Mario and Luigi Paper, Mario Yoshi’s Island, Legend of Zelda, Animal Crossing, Splatoon, Kirby, Metroid, Star Fox, F-Zero, Donkey Kong, Earthbound, Kid Icarus, Pokémon, Super Smash Bros, and Nintendo Console Themes.
WHERE: Grace Cathedral, 1100 California St, San Francisco, CA
WHEN: March 23, today, 7:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.
Also coming up: “Show of Hope” gala with Community Health Center
This event honors the Community Health Center’s commitment to providing essential healthcare services to underserved communities. Their annual gala features inspiring speakers, good dinner and dancing. ABC7 sponsors the event, so the morning crew that attends is always a hoot. We spent some time with Nancy Pelosi at this one last year, and London Breed also spoke.
WHEN: April 19, 2024 beginning at 5:30 p.m.
WHERE: Hyatt Regency San Francisco, 5 Embarcadero Ctr.
What we’re writing about
Born again: Iconic Starlite shimmers anew on top of the Beacon Grand
Since 1928, San Francisco has sparkled and shimmered from the 21st floor of the Beacon Grand, where the iconic Starlite bar was recently reborn this winter. Formerly the historic Sir Francis Drake, the hotel underwent a massive remodel not long ago, then everyone got invited to a big reveal of the new Starlite in late January.
The newest overhaul is more gorgeous than any remodel prior, thanks to local Alice Crumeyrolle, previously a senior designer at none other than Ken Fulk Inc. I felt a classier vibe walking into the preview, with the redone digs markedly less gaudy than the old days in red and black, and more soothing than the clubbier Lizzie’s Starlite of recent years.
Colleen Jones: Gliding through life with grace, grit, and amazing hair
Glide past Golden Gate Park and you’ll likely spot Colleen Jones soaring through the air on one foot, showcasing her latest skating trick while her long white locks fly behind her. With a collection of roller skates that could rival a local boutique, Jones is a force to be reckoned with in San Francisco’s roller skating scene.
SF I love you. Unrequitedly.
“SF I love you. Unrequitedly. As soon as I leave, all I can do is think about you fondly, and plot a return.
Your beauty, perhaps, is paralleled by Mendocino and Santa Barbara, eclipsed by most European cities. Your gingerbread Victorians are lovely, but also proto-tract-homes, and you haven’t had an architectural gem unveiled in decades. You would be equally sprawling if you had the land mass, and you’re blessed with windswept coast on three sides that make you appear more clean than you are.”
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