SF News Racist East Bay Letter Writer Arrested By San Leandro Police; Released Due to Backed-Up Bail Schedule 52-year-old Nancy Arechiga was apprehended by San Leandro police in relation to a number of xenophobic notes posted at the homes of East Bay Asian Americans, as well as in nearby public places, though she was later released due to the state’s backed-up bail schedule caused by the pandemic.
SF News Sunday Links: USF Agrees To Pay $2.5M Settlement Over Fraud Allegations The University of San Francisco will pay $2.5M to settle fraudulent charges, the front page of The New York Times today lists 1,000 lives lost to COVID-19, and, despite a stern warning from Mayor Breed, SF parks were mobbed yesterday.
Arts & Entertainment Eye Zen's 'OUT of Site: SOMA' Digital Production To Explore South of Market's Queer History Pride Month in San Francisco this year continues to shapeshift as more events either altogether cancel or adopt entirely online programs. One creative adjustment to the current times is Eye Zen's performance-driven, queer history tour of SOMA that's set to digitally debut in June.
SF News Saturday Links: Don't Overcrowd Parks This Long Weekend, Mayor Breed Warns Tom Hanks surprised graduating seniors at his Oakland alma mater yesterday, La Taqueria is expected to reopen for takeout next week, and Mayor Breed cautions San Franciscans to heed social distancing guidelines this holiday weekend at our city's parks — or they could be "shut down."
SF News SF Nonprofit Behind Bay Lights To Transform Pink Triangle Into Public Light Display for 2020 Amid social distancing requirements, 2020’s Pink Triangle on Twin Peaks — which celebrates its 25th anniversary this year — will be modified into a public light display for onlookers to appreciate from afar, illuminated by over 2,700 LED nodes.
SF News Curbside Retail Begins in SF With Noted Lines at Sex Shops, Bookstores Curbside retail sales and pickup began in SF on Monday. But because of the tight restrictions placed on local retailers by the city, it was met with a muted drum roll and short, sparse lines — for some merchants, if any at all — across the seven-by-seven.
Arts & Entertainment Openhouse, SF Queer Nightlife Fund, and TL Museum Will Host Digital Drag Show To Honor LGBTQ Elders San Francisco's queer seniors are reeling from the pandemic, as many continue struggling to find financial respite — for some, even sustenance — amid shelter-in-place. But a live-streamed drag show in support of them this coming Friday aims to offer both levity and monetary relief.
SF News Pelosi Pushes Veritas Investments To Return $3.6M PPP Loan; They'll Now Repay Amount Veritas Investments, SF's largest corporate landlord, was recently granted a $3.6M Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan by the U.S. government's Small Business Administration (SBA) — funds they plan on repaying, which will help bolster some of the city's most vulnerable small businesses.
SF News Sunday Links: Bay Area's 'Slow Streets' Are Here To Stay The Salvation Army held a drive-through food pantry in the Dogpatch yesterday, an SF Supervisor is calling for city police to better enforce safety violations after Friday’s crowds at Howells Bar, and it looks like SF and Oakland's “slow streets" initiatives aren't going away anytime soon.
SF News Second 'Safe Sleeping Village' To Open at Defunct McDonald’s in Haight-Ashbury SF's first "Safe Sleeping Village" opened this week at the Civic Center and was met with a lukewarm reception; it allows for only 50 tents, each set behind a flimsy fence line. Now, there's a second one in the works that will soon occupy the idle McDonald’s across from Golden Gate Park.
SF News Local Food Bank Opens First Drive-Through Pantry in SF; No Reservations Needed To Collect Sustenance The Giants parking lot at Oracle Park — Seawall Lot 337 — was transformed into a drive-through food pantry yesterday afternoon by the San Francisco-Marin Food Bank, a first of its kind for the city.
SF News Saturday Links: Crowds Gather Outside Marina District Bar, Sans Face Masks An "atmospheric river" is expected to bring inches of rain to the Bay Area this weekend, the City of Oakland is cracking down on large gatherings around Lake Merritt, and crowds congregated outside the Marina District’s Howells Bar last night — with few face masks in sight.
Arts & Entertainment GLBT Historical Society and SFAC Galleries To Display '50 Years of Pride' Exhibit, Digitally To commemorate San Francisco Pride’s golden anniversary, the GLBT Historical Society and SFAC Galleries are partnering to bring "50 Years of Pride," a collection of 100 photographs taken over the five decades of SF Pride, to the masses — completely free and available online.
Arts & Entertainment Street Artist Behind Coronavirus-Inspired Honey Bear Murals Raises Over $125K for COVID-19 Charities SF-based creative fnnch, the artist behind our city's beloved honey bear and pink flamingo murals, has raised more than $125K for two COVID-19 charities from sales made through his online store. And those now donated funds will go toward bolstering local communities hardest hit by the pandemic.
SF News Governor Newsom: Community Spread of COVID-19 in California Likely Originated From Nail Salon Governor Newsom has repeatedly suggested that the first community transmission of COVID-19 in California came from a nail salon. Unsurprisingly, beauticians across the state remain bewildered by the claim and fear the repercussions it may have on their businesses.
SF News UCSF Scientist Documents Completely Full United Flight From Newark to San Francisco Prior to the flight's departure, passengers received an email from United saying that the airline would uphold social distancing practices and block middle seating. But a UCSF medical professional found himself in a much different scenario — sat inside a completely booked, crowded cabin.
SF News Sunday Links: Elon Musk Throws Tantrum on Twitter, Threatens To Move Tesla's Fremont Factory Elsewhere Elon Musk heedlessly tweeted Saturday he’ll move Tesla's Fremont factory to Texas or Nevada after Alameda County declined their request to reopen, six arson arrests were made in SF this past week, and BART has quietly added San Jose to its map ahead of the unconstructed extension there.
SF News SF Queer Nightlife Fund Announces Second Round of Fundraising To Support Industry Workers After raising over $180K — procured largely from individual donations — the San Francisco Queer Nightlife Fund (QNF) announced a second round of fundraising Friday and, too, will accept new grant applications throughout May.
SF Restaurants, Food & Drink After 32 Years in Business, North Beach's Ristorante Franchino Is Calling It Quits Opened in 1989 by Francesco and Giuseppina Nozzolino, Ristorante Franchino has remained a go-to for authentic Italian fare in the city for well over three decades. But, in light of COVID-19 and an unwillingness to move to takeout only, the North Beach institution will shutter after this month.
SF News Saturday Links: Dolores Park Was Packed Yesterday Facebook and Google will allow employees to work remotely until the end of 2020, five Bay Area DMV locations began opening up again Friday, and despite warnings from UCSF health experts, Dolores Park was crowded with people yesterday — not practicing proper social distancing.
Arts & Entertainment SOMArts To Host Online Panel Discussing Virtual Frontiers for Performance Art Faced with the mounting uncertainty of what’s still to become of nightlife, the offbeat drag group Toxic Waste Face will host an online symposium in partnership with SOMArts to address queer artistry amid COVID-19 — and help envision a pathway forward.
SF Restaurants, Food & Drink Five Ways To Celebrate Cinco de Mayo While Sheltering In Place That's right, it's Cinco de Mayo. But for 2020, the drunken revelries will need to exist inside our domiciles as we all continue doing our part not to spread a virus around.
SF News SF Queer Nightlife Fund Raises $160K, Starts Distributing Grants to Eligible Applicants COVID-19 has surely hindered San Francisco’s queer nightlife community, leaving bartenders sans pay and prompting entertainers to embrace Twitch. In response, the SF Queer Nightlife Fund has been amassing donations to aid those workers and will begin distributing some $160K to accepted applicants.
SF News Staff and Residents at All 21 San Francisco Nursing Facilities Will Soon Be Tested for Coronavirus The San Francisco Department of Public Health (SFDPH) and Mayor Breed announced Friday that the City will soon order all 21 of its skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) to have their staff and residents tested for COVID-19, a part of SF's "next phase" to expand coronavirus testing.
SF News Sunday Links: Bolinas Tests Nearly All Residents for COVID-19 Former Oakland A’s pitcher Matt Keough passes away at 64, two-inch-long "murder hornets" from East Asia arrive in Washington state, and the Marin County town of Bolinas has tested virtually all of its residents for coronavirus — with no active infections reported.
