Panhandle workday coming up next weekend, Sat June 14

Our next Panhandle workday will happen next weekend, on Saturday, June 14. Come join us for fresh air, community, and a great start to your weekend.

Saturday, June 14
9 am - 11:30 am
Panhandle Community Workday
Meet near the Playground (Oak @ Ashbury)

Also, enjoy a few pictures from yesterday's picnic - a great way to complete the Panhandle Park Action Project. We feasted on Guillermo's tacos, set up a tent and some extra benches next to our rain garden, and enjoyed our neighborhood park.

RPD gardening crew that keeps the park in shape: Guillermo, Charlie, and Daniel

Workday coming up Saturday Feb 8

Our regular monthly workday happens on the Second Saturday of each month, so the next workday is sneaking up quickly. All are welcome for hands-on park care:

Panhandle Community Workday
Saturday, February 8, 2014
9 am - 11:30 am
Gather near the Panhandle playground (near Ashbury @ Oak Street)

Meanwhile, the special event that had been scheduled for Sunday, 2/9 has been been postponed. As part of our 2013-14 Panhandle Park Action Project, we had scheduled a special community event to bring together people interested safer travel to and through the park. I'll announce the new date as soon as we are able to.

Want a safer Panhandle? Come out Sunday November 17

Our next special event is coming up in just a week and a half. On Sunday, Nov 17 from 11 am - 1 pm, join neighbors for a picnic with a dose of dialog and networking. We're working with local agencies and community-based organizations that can help show ways we can all create a safer environment in the park.  

It's the next event of the Panhandle Park Action Project, a project of the North of Panhandle Neighborhood Association supported by a small grant from the San Francisco Parks Alliance.

Waking up Sunday to Fall Back into Nature

With the end of daylight savings time Sunday morning, we had an extra hour to prepare for a special free event that brought community groups together to celebrate nature in the Panhandle. It was the second of the special events planned for the Panhandle Park Action Project.

Dozens of kids were excited by the free face-painting and everyone was treated to fuji apples donated by Earl's Organic Produce. Here are some photos to show you more of the highlights.

Families from New Traditions Elementary School offered native and edible plants along with expert advice. New Traditions is located a block from the Panhandle and has a dynamic green schoolyard program.

branch, a group of nature educators, offered a scavenger hunt that got dozens of kids running around the park.

Learning about lemons with Just One Tree

The rain garden was available as a spot for planting a young dogwood, generously provided by the Recreation and Parks Department and planted with the help of four young ladies. Cornus sericea supsp. occidentalis is the species of dogwood found locally, typically in wetlands. Its red stems are most apparent in winter, during its dormant season, and in the summer it has clusters of small white flowers.  

Fall Back in Nature: This Sunday Nov 3

Our second special event in the Panhandle Park Action Project is coming up this Sunday, November 3. Join us anytime between 11:30 am - 1:30 pm for picnicking and appreciation of the amazing natural resources of the Panhandle Park! See you just outside the playground.

NoPa NERT stages a drill at the Panhandle

When the next disaster occurs, it's the Neighborhood Emergency Response Team (NERT) that will be best prepared to respond by providing information and assistance to people in need. Our local NERT has been working to build its capacity to respond to a variety of situations, so last Wednesday Sept 25, they deployed their people, plans, and supplies for a staging area drill on-site at the Panhandle Park.  

Special thanks goes to Steve McPherson and Lt. Erica Arteseros for the photos.   

The tables set up on the paved area west of Masonic don't just look festive, they are color-coded to help you find the leaders of planning, logistics, and operations. And since disasters don't stop when it get dark, your local NERT now has some experience in keeping the emergency response going even when the lights go out. I am certain that I will feel really glad to see these folks out and on the scene in the event of a disaster. 

You can meet local NERT leaders at one of the upcoming events of the Panhandle Park Action Project. On Sunday Nov 17, from 11 am - 1 pm, Picnic with other advocates covering the themes of safety, crime prevention, and preparedness  and meet Park Station officers (with the talking police car) and also reps from SF Bike Coalition, SFMTA, SFDPW and SF SAFE, and NERT.

Action project: Playground event coming up on Sunday, October 13

The Panhandle Park Action Project is up and running, offering events above and beyond the monthly community workday in the Panhandle. The first of our special events is all about our Panhandle Playground! 

Sunday, October 13, 10 am - 12 noon

Meet at the playground

Originally built in 1965, the Panhandle Playground sees thousands of children and their families throughout the year. The playground was renovated in 1998 and is now in need of some TLC. The Parks and Rec Department, in partnership with the San Francisco Parks Alliance, is deciding where to spend playground renovation funds in 2014. With the Panhandle Playground rating a grade of C- and below every year, we think it's the perfect time to make our little playground the shining star it can be. 

Please come help us celebrate, schmooze, meet your neighbors and get involved. Featuring a neighborhood magician, balloon art, activities and more! 

This event is led by volunteers organized through the North of Panhandle Neighborhood Association. The Panhandle Park Action Project is a series of events organized with support from the San Francisco Parks Alliance. 

Come celebrate the day at the Panhandle Playground. For more information about this special event, contact panhandlepark@nopna.org. 

Picnic in the Panhandle this Saturday, Sept 21

It's time to celebrate! This Saturday, September 21 from 11:30 am - 1:30 pm is a Picnic in the Panhandle to celebrate the accomplishments in the park and to kickoff the Panhandle Park Action Project.

Our picnic runs from 11:30 am to 1:30 pm. Bring a frisbee to toss or games to play, or just come to spend time with neighbors and enjoy the improvements around the center of the park. We'll provide refreshments and hope to have enough for everybody.  

The Panhandle Park Action Project is a series of special events at the Panhandle, funded by the SF Parks Alliance. We're already working with volunteers from the community to plan several more events that will bring neighbors together and build our network of people interested in new ideas for the park. We'll have flyers with the dates for all of our events on Saturday.

North Panhandle News features history of the Panhandle park

The North Panhandle News, distributed to about 3,500 households in the boundaries of Turk, Divisadero, Masonic, and Fell Street, has a brief history of the Panhandle in its September/October issue. The article is written by Sean Sullivan, who is organizing the public safety event for the Panhandle Park Action Project. The newsletter was just printed, and I delivered newsletters along my route yesterday. If you live outside the boundaries, or if you haven't received a copy of the newsletter, you can also check the newsletter online. 

This issue also has an update on the Arts Commission plans to build a fence around the McKinley Statue. Neighborhood groups have reluctantly come around to supporting the plan to protect the piece from vandalism, and the Commission's agenda for this past Monday, September 9 included a motion for approval of an octagonal iron fence.

Workday and community picnic coming up Saturday, September 21

The Panhandle workday for September is happening on Saturday, September 21. If you've got your calendar marked for our normal second Saturday, please make sure to note the exception that this month's event is one week later.

 Come out at 9 am and meet up at the bulletin board, (near Oak @ Ashbury). We'll be working in the area close to the playground and rain garden with Rec and Parks staff - probably planting some new plants! Tools are provided.

Right after our community workday, we're planning a community-wide picnic to celebrate the accomplishments that were completed this year. Everyone is welcome, whether or not you have ever participated in a workday. It will be a fun event and a chance to meet other people who care about the park and want to figure out how to make it even better. For more about our picnic, check out the attached flyer or our event page on Facebook.

The picnic is the start of the Panhandle Park Action Project, a series of events for neighbors at the Panhandle to bring people together and start dialog about ways to continue to improve our neighborhood park. Bring your friends and share this flyer with others!

After tomorrow's workday, looking forward to a picnic in September

Our monthly community workday is coming up tomorrow, Saturday, August 10. Join us! With our rain garden in good hands, we're expecting to travel to the east end (near Lyon Street) where our ornamental beds need some upkeep and the redwood grove needs a new layer of soil and mulch.

And next month, we're planning a special event, that should appeal to everyone - even those who don't want to get out of bed early on a Saturday morning or rake up leaves in the park:

Picnic in the Panhandle, 

Saturday September 21 

11:30 am - 1:30 pm. 

Next Panhandle workday is Saturday, July 13

Our next workday is scheduled for Saturday, July 13.  Join us to take care of the Panhandle new gardens and lay the groundwork for ongoing stewardship of our neighborhood park. 

Saturday, July 13

9 am - 11:30 am 

Meet by the Playground (near Oak @ Ashbury)

tools and gloves are provided (kids are encouraged to bring their own kid-size gloves). Wear sturdy shoes as conditions can sometimes be muddy. 

The Panhandle Park Action Project begins this month with a planning meeting, scheduled for Tuesday July 16 at 7pm at the San Francisco Day School. This project is funded by a small grant from the San Francisco Parks Alliance and will involve several public events and celebrations to be scheduled over the next six months. If you'd like to attend this initial session, please RSVP to dale987@gmail.com.