Yesterday was another lovely day in Dolores Park, and there were once again thousands jamming onto Hipster Hill, the Gay Beach, the dog area, and elsewhere. Also, there were many, many kids at play in the very attractive but arguably oversized new playground, and a number of cops taking tours, on foot and and on motorcycles, apparently taking some kind of census of how many people were drinking out in the open telling some people to put their bottles away, and issuing a citation to somebody in at least one case we observed. Boo! Right? Well, this might only be getting worse for park boozing ... News arrived today that that brick church building, converted into a residence a few years ago by a misguided house-flipper, is going to become a middle school.
Nearby charter school the Children's Day School (333 Dolores) needs to expand, and they bought the building in 2011, as Mission Local reports, for $6.6 million down from the wildly optimistic $9.9 million asking price in 2008. The City just approved the place to be converted for school use. The kids apparently all think the place looks like Hogwarts, and isn't that cute.
But what does this mean for the future of Dolores Park policing, and pot smoking, and bongo-playing, and nudity, and impromptu dance parties? Summer in S.F. rarely ever coincides with summer in the school year, so we foresee much potential conflict in this news. We already know that parents in the new playground are feeling more entitled these days, and we're now waiting for the next shoe to drop. After the two partial closures that happen next year, we fear the new park will not be as libertine and marvelous as the current one. This new battle in the War on Fun could be an ugly one, friends.
PREVIOUSLY: Dolores Park Playground Parents Now Want A Fence To Keep Out Gays Dogs
Dolores Park To Be Half-Closed, Generally Unpleasant, For A Really Long Time
