San Francisco, CA
San Francisco’s first ‘entertainment zone’ hosts Oktoberfest celebration
For the past decade, Schroeder’s on Front Street in San Francisco has been hosting Oktoberfest celebrations. But this year, the party is not just bigger – it’s taken over the entire block.
“We just thought this was the perfect opportunity to show that downtown is back and is evolving and changing and we wanted to give a reason for people to come down here,” said Andy Chun, the owner of Schroeder’s.
A section of Front Street has now been designated one of the city’s new entertainment zones, meaning they’re allowed to close off the street to cars and host events where people can drink outside.
It’s part of a push to try and get more people to come back to the city’s downtown corridor and Andy Chun, the owner of Schroeder’s, thought what better way to kick off the new zone than with Oktoberfest.
“The idea that you know we can kind of mimic some of the European cities and take advantage of not only the small spaces that we have inside, because we all have small apartments, we all have small condos, but you can use all of this and have fun and do it in a responsible manor I think is going to be really incredible,” said Chun.
The festival featured live music, games, food and, of course, beer.
“I think that’s amazing because it’s, like, the financial district, but yet we’re still getting some fun here,” said Sasha Hefler, an attendee.
“I think there’s a lot of opportunities for different types of events both drinking and non-drinking opportunities out there that could bring a lot of different communities together and help rebuild downtown,” said Teresa Eccleston.
In total organizers, say more than 5,000 people RSVP’d. That’s a crowd Andy says will definitely make a huge impact on the area.
“I think in past years we’ve probably been 6-700, so this is really going to be unprecedented,” said Chun.
And they’re not stopping there. Andy and his fellow business owner across the street, Ben Bleiman, say they’re already brainstorming a list of ideas and they’re ready to make events like this one a monthly occurrence.
“It used to just be go to work, go to happy hour, go home; but downtown’s a canvas right now and we can do amazing outdoor events, indoor events. We can make this a thing,” said Bleiman, the owner of Harrington’s Bar and Grill.
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San Francisco, CA
Dozens of apparent shopping carts stuck in marsh along SF Bay: ‘How did they get there?!’
SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. (KGO) — Dozens of apparent shopping carts are stuck in a marsh along the San Francisco Bay. And residents are puzzled as to how they got there.
“It’s crazy! Gross!” said Kim Avalos, who frequents the trail. “What is that?!”
The San Francisco Bay Trail in South San Francisco curves around the mouth of the Colma Creek marsh. It’s a popular walking and running trail, but local residents are starting to notice something in the water.
“Now that I’m looking at… wow…there’s actually so many shopping carts out here,” said Avalos. “There’s an extreme amount.”
Avalos works for a nearby garbage company. She says she walks the trail every day but has never seen anything like this.
“It’s actually kind of insane to think about how they even got there,” Avalos said.
It’s the same story for others who frequent the trail. At first glance, mistaking the debris for rocks until they actually stare at it.
“It kind of blends in,” said Hondres when we approached him on the trail. “I’ve never seen grocery carts out in the Bay like this… I don’t know, it’s kind of weird.”
“Have you noticed it before?” 7 On Your Side’s Stephanie Sierra asked another passer-by.
“Uh… no. This is kind of new,” he said. “Someone is being very stupid… I’ve seen them over the years. I don’t remember there being this many. There’s quite a few.”
Many people who frequent the trail said when it’s high tide it’s hard to notice anything.
“It does look like shopping carts, do you know if that’s what it is?”
It’s hard to say for sure. But at low tide, it certainly looks that way.
“It does look like shopping carts, amongst other things,” Save the Bay representative Josh Quigley said.
And there’s not just one or two, but there’s what appears to be dozens of them spanning the Colma Creek marsh adjacent to the bay.
“Have you ever seen this many shopping carts along the bay?” Stephanie Sierra asked.
“I have not, no,” Quigley said. “This is certainly the greater concentration that I’ve ever seen in one place.”
Quigley is the Senior Policy Manager for Save the Bay, an environmental nonprofit founded in 1961 to stop excessive filling of the San Francisco Bay.
“I think it’s really unfortunate… the bay is treated not as the jewel and resource that it should be, but as a dumping ground,” Quigley said.
So, where is it all coming from? That seems to be up for debate.
“It could be a big prank, if anything, but at this rate I have no idea,” said Alvin Lau, who visits the trail regularly.
“There’s often homeless people in the mobile RV vehicles,” said another. “There’s always a lot of trash here, not going to lie.”
“I don’t know, maybe Costco. They are our neighbors,” Kim Avalos said. “Could be because they do look bigger.”
A Costco Business Center is about a mile from Colma Marsh. 7 On Your Side reached out to Costco’s corporate office, and the South San Francisco Costco General Manager said: “We walk and clean the trail multiple times a week, in addition to checking for any carts that might end up in the bay.”
The goal now is to clean it out — and ensure it stays that way.
“Stop being dumb. There’s only one planet we got, so take care of it,” said Lau.
“It hurts me as an animal lover to see all these shopping carts in their place of habitat,” Avalos said.
“Save the Bay” says overall pollution is decreasing across the bay shoreline, but there are instances–like this one–where smaller pockets need to be addressed.
Locally, there are regulations in place to prevent this type of pollution.
7 On Your Side contacted the San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control Board to further investigate and clean up the area.
Take a look at more stories and videos by 7 On Your Side.
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SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) — San Francisco will celebrate the country’s 250th anniversary this July 4 with a rare fireworks show on the Golden Gate Bridge, the mayor’s office announced Monday. It will be the first time in 14 years, and the third time ever, that a fireworks display will be held on the iconic span.
“The Golden Gate Bridge is as iconic as any landmark in the United States, so it’s an ideal place to launch fireworks for our country’s 250th anniversary,” Mayor Daniel Lurie said in a news release announcing the event.
With the change of venue for the city’s annual July 4 fireworks show, the mayor’s office is providing guidance on where to watch, and where not to watch, this year’s Golden Gate Bridge display, set to begin at 9:30 p.m.
Recommended viewing locations:
- Crissy Field
- Marina Green
- Fisherman’s Wharf/Pier 39
The mayor’s office noted that “because this year’s fireworks will launch from the east side of the Golden Gate Bridge between its two towers, the best viewing areas are those with a clear northwest sightline toward the bridge.”
Locations that are not recommended for viewing the fireworks show due to obstructed views include Ocean Beach, the Ferry Building and the Embarcadero waterfront.
The Golden Gate Bridge will be completely shut down to vehicle and pedestrian traffic during the Independence Day show. Vehicles will be blocked from the bridge beginning around 8:30 p.m. until “shortly after the conclusion of the fireworks display,” officials said. The east and west sidewalks will be closed from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m.
The two previous fireworks displays were in 1987 and 2012, when the Golden Gate Bridge’s 50th and 75th anniversaries were celebrated.
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