Four-alarm fire at pier 45

Around 4 a.m. on May 23, locals were awakened by multiple fire engines called to put out a large fire at a warehouse on Fisherman’s Wharf’s Pier 45. As many as 130 firefighter... Read More

Northsider

In the Zoom zone

By John Zipperer

San Francisco-based filmmaker H.P. Mendoza had 24 hours before he left Japan. He asked for a week, or a few days, but was told that no, within hours he would have to be on this pa... Read More

News Briefs

Facts and figures

By John Zipperer

50: percentage of San Francisco restaurants not expected to reopen once the pandemic is over, according to the Golden Gate Restaurant Association . . . 43.9: percentage of Califo... Read More

News Briefs

Several new city initiatives launched to help small business

By John Zipperer

Restaurants and small shops were struggling in this high-cost, high-regulation city even before the pandemic hit; the enforced closure or radical change in business practices for ... Read More

News Briefs

City budget facing more than $1 billion shortfall

By John Zipperer

Even before the Covid-19 pandemic hit city revenues and spending plans, the San Francisco city budget was several hundred million dollars short. But at the end of March, the city ... Read More

News Briefs

Crime time

By John Zipperer

Don’t be surprised to see even more establishments board up their front windows and doors. Burglaries and acts of vandalism at closed restaurants and stores have risen in San Fr... Read More

Northsider

Coping in the age of coronavirus

What happens to people and businesses when a city of 880,000 shuts down?

By John Zipperer

Two emails tell the story. On March 12, a company called Homebase, which tracks employee hours and business operations, emailed journalists with a short report that their data sho... Read More

Real Estate Reporter

Your home is your castle

Or maybe it’s your jail

By John Zipperer

A question for the hive mind: Does sheltering in place make you aware of everything you dislike about your home and remind you of how much you want to leave it? Or does it comfort... Read More

Real Estate Reporter

Buyers — and sellers? — beware

As Zillow and others change the home-buying landscape, it is unclear who wins

By John Zipperer

This month, let’s check in on a few trends that are impacting the real estate market. CAN I BUY AND SELL YOUR HOUSE? If you are looking through home listings in an effort to buy... Read More

News Briefs

Clay Theatre Ends 100-Year Run

By John Zipperer

The final credits rolled Jan. 26 at the Pacific Heights movie house Clay Theatre, bringing an end to more than a century of films. The Art Deco cinema, part of the Landmark Theatre... Read More

News Briefs

Warming Hut, Round House Cafe Food Service to End

By John Zipperer

The Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy announced that it has “made the difficult decision to close our kitchen operations and the cafes that serve visitors and community memb... Read More

Politics as Usual

Bonds, city bonds

You’re being asked to vote for nearly $1.6 billion in bond financing. Just how do municipal bonds work, anyway?

By John Zipperer

When you open up your ballot for the March 3 election, two of the choices you’ll be asked to make involve issuing hundreds of millions of dollars in bonds to fund various project... Read More

News Briefs

Crime Snapshot

By John Zipperer

In the week from Dec. 30 to January 5, there were 82 auto burglaries in the area of the city covered by the Northern Police Station, up from 61 for the same period a year earlier. ... Read More

News Briefs

Facts and Figures

By John Zipperer

Almost 24,000: hours that San Francisco police officers spent on “hospital watch” guarding suspects at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital so they can get medical treatme... Read More

News Briefs

Francisco Park Update

By John Zipperer

The Francisco Park Conservancy reports work continues apace on the transformation of the former reservoir at the corner of Hyde and Bay Streets into the new 4.25-acre Francisco Par... Read More

John Zipperer