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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Over the last 18 months, the region has played host to the 2025 NBA All-Star Game, Super Bowl LX and several FIFA World Cup games. While the receipts from the World Cup are still being tallied, the Super Bowl generated more than $720 million in revenue, breaking economic records, said Zaileen Janmohamed, CEO and president of the Bay Area Host Committee, which helps the nine counties prepare for major events. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“It just shows what leagues and governing bodies are looking for when they’re selecting a city or a region to host an event,” Janmohamed said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>That contest takes place days before the 2028 Summer Olympics open in Los Angeles, where baseball returns for the first time since 2020. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Lacob, who also owns the Golden State Warriors, shouted out the franchise’s dedicated local fanbase. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Next year, we intend to show out as well as we can, and to put on a tremendous event for our city,” he said. “Our fans are incredible, and they will be ready. It should just be an enormous opportunity to show the world how great the WNBA is.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "Mayor Daniel Lurie tied the astronomical rise of the Golden State Valkyries to the city’s “comeback.”",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>A major sports event is on its way to \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12082963/ballhalla-rising-golden-state-valkyries-cool-off-phoenix-mercury-to-take-home-opener\">Ballhalla\u003c/a>: San Francisco will host the 2027 WNBA All-Star Game at Chase Center, the league announced Tuesday.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Festivities will be held July 30 and July 31, 2027, capped on the last night by the All-Star Game at Chase Center, the home of the Golden State Valkyries — a team that has surpassed high expectations. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert thanked Valkyries fans and team owner, Joe Lacob, at a \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0x7Bztv1JfE\">press conference\u003c/a> at Chase Center shortly after the announcement. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260510-VALKYRIESHOMEOPENER-26-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12083064\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260510-VALKYRIESHOMEOPENER-26-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260510-VALKYRIESHOMEOPENER-26-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/05/260510-VALKYRIESHOMEOPENER-26-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The Golden State Valkyries play the Phoenix Mercury during their home opener at Chase Center in San Francisco on May 10, 2026. The game marked the start of the Valkyries’ second WNBA season. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Golden State has shown what can happen when you bring together a passionate fan base, a dedicated ownership group — thank you, Joe — and an organization with a clear vision and a strong commitment from local leaders who believe in the power of women’s sports,” Engelbert said. “We all know women’s sports is not easy.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Hot off their \u003ca href=\"https://www.espn.com/wnba/story/_/id/49645344/valkyries-beat-wings-clinch-playoff-spot-second-straight-season\">victory\u003c/a> against the Dallas Wings on Monday night, the violet-clad players became the first expansion team — or a newly founded franchise — to make the playoffs in each of its two seasons.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie, who professed his love of the team at Tuesday’s press conference, tied the rapid rise of the Golden State Valkyries to the city’s broader “comeback,” and said that the team has helped make the city ready to welcome visitors from around the world.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We’re a city on the rise,” Lurie said. “The confidence of the WNBA and the commissioner allowing us to host their marquee event is something that we’re going to be ready for.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Over the last 18 months, the region has played host to the 2025 NBA All-Star Game, Super Bowl LX and several FIFA World Cup games. While the receipts from the World Cup are still being tallied, the Super Bowl generated more than $720 million in revenue, breaking economic records, said Zaileen Janmohamed, CEO and president of the Bay Area Host Committee, which helps the nine counties prepare for major events. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It just shows what leagues and governing bodies are looking for when they’re selecting a city or a region to host an event,” Janmohamed said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The news followed last week’s announcement that the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12095311/major-league-baseball-to-hold-2028-all-star-game-at-san-franciscos-oracle-park\">2028 MLB All-Star Game\u003c/a> will be held at Oracle Park.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>That contest takes place days before the 2028 Summer Olympics open in Los Angeles, where baseball returns for the first time since 2020. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Lacob, who also owns the Golden State Warriors, shouted out the franchise’s dedicated local fanbase. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Next year, we intend to show out as well as we can, and to put on a tremendous event for our city,” he said. “Our fans are incredible, and they will be ready. It should just be an enormous opportunity to show the world how great the WNBA is.”\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "as-sfusd-welcomes-back-students-officials-plan-to-revamp-enrollment-consider-closures",
"title": "As SFUSD Welcomes Back Students, Officials Plan to Revamp Enrollment, Consider Closures",
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"content": "\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/sfusd\">San Francisco public schools \u003c/a>welcomed students back to school Monday morning, touting high teacher staffing and brand-new gains in literacy and math proficiency districtwide. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Jose Ortega Elementary School in Ingleside buzzed with excitement in the early morning fog, as hundreds of young students greeted classmates, found their new teachers on the blacktop, and taught new transitional kindergarteners the “Jose Bears Cheer” — complete with a deafening, and high-pitched, roar.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>First graders Ellie, Genevieve and Olivia said they were most excited to be reunited with their friends — they waited for each other on the campus’s front steps before making their way to the playground for the morning circle.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-03-MC-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095559\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-03-MC-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-03-MC-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-03-MC-KQED-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A student takes a picture on his first day of school at Jose Ortega Elementary School on Aug. 17, 2026, in San Francisco. (Miles Cull/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Mom Kathryn Yu said the first day was exciting, but also nerve-wracking for parents. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We see them growing up,” Yu said. “It has been a great summer.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The first day festivities marked the beginning of what Superintendent Maria Su hopes will be a period of stability for SFUSD, after a tumultuous few years,, which saw a \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12010008/sf-schools-crisis-is-spiraling-with-top-official-to-resign-heres-all-thats-happened\">botched school closure plan\u003c/a>, unexpected superintendent departure, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12072729/san-francisco-teachers-walk-out-in-first-strike-in-nearly-50-years\">historic teachers’ strike\u003c/a> and federal inquiries into \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12086634/white-house-opens-probe-into-san-francisco-schools-over-gender-ideology\">progressive district curriculum and policies\u003c/a>. But \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/san-francisco-unified-school-district\">San Francisco Unified School District\u003c/a> is still far from smooth sailing. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Ahead of the first day of classes, the school board laid the groundwork to begin tackling two long-awaited and controversial changes this school year: a new enrollment system to take effect in 2028, and an evaluation of the district’s school portfolio, which could include campus closures and mergers. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We are building operations and systems that are really meeting the demands of our students, our families and our employees. We’re moving in the right direction,” Superintendent Maria Su said at the district’s first board meeting of the academic year earlier this month. “But we’re not there yet; we’ve got a lot of work to do.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>By April, Su is expected to deliver a proposal for a new student assignment method to finally replace the embattled “lottery,” which SFUSD introduced in 2011.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The current system, which allows families to seek a spot at any campus, was intended to reduce the number of racially isolated and underenrolled schools, according to \u003ca href=\"https://drive.google.com/file/d/1hfSeb1kMqU6yVS5FNN3-HC3PkSMKP6je/view\">district documents\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Instead, it’s created long waitlists and padded PTA funds at some of the most successful SFUSD campuses, while others suffer from significant underenrollment and limited resources. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In 2018, board members first proposed an overhaul after finding that “SFUSD’s choice system has increased inequity and has not provided equitable access to a range of opportunities.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Two years later, district leaders approved a zone-based assignment system focused on elementary schools, slated to go into effect in 2023. That was pushed back to 2026, and later, delayed indefinitely amid leadership upheaval and budget concerns.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-14-MC-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095566\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-14-MC-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-14-MC-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-14-MC-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">San Francisco Unified School District superintendent, Dr. Maria Su, speaks during Jose Ortega Elementary School’s first morning circle of the school year on Aug. 17, 2026, in San Francisco. (Miles Cull/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Last fall, the school board instructed Su to \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12064366/sf-school-board-set-to-make-maria-su-the-permanent-superintendent-for-city-schools\">pick back up the project\u003c/a> and introduce a new strategy by the spring, but not all parents and commissioners seem confident that district staff will deliver. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It constantly is coming up and then nothing happens,” said Veronica Gray, who has a second grader at Jose Ortega and an eighth grader who’s been in SFUSD for years. “I’m just going to take it day by day.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In the spring, several board members expressed frustration after Su delayed the school assignment proposal by another two years — announcing her intention to roll out a new system in 2028 — without their input. She also told the board the conversation around whether schools could close or merge would wait until after the enrollment overhaul — by 2030.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>At their first meeting this fall, the board made it clear that deferring further won’t be an option. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I’ll just name my discomfort … because the board had indicated a timeline of two years and we saw that pushed out to four years. I just don’t want a repeat of what had happened,” Commissioner Parag Gupta said, referring to the spring. “That would be frankly unacceptable.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Su assured the board that her team was on track to recommend an assignment system in April, and told them that developing the new enrollment process will lead to a “a very organic process” on school consolidations.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-04-MC-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095560\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-04-MC-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-04-MC-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-04-MC-KQED-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Talya Huntley (left) hugs Jose Ortega Elementary School principal Paula Antram (right) while Shamir Caston waits for his first day of the school year to start on Aug. 17, 2026, in San Francisco. (Miles Cull/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“As we start to decide how we are going to assign students to schools, we are going to very quickly see that perhaps there are some neighborhoods in our city that won’t have enough students for the number of schools we currently have in those neighborhoods,” she said. “We as a body will have to figure out what to do with that.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>That could mean changing how the district fills schools or uses its school buildings. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Su has repeatedly posited that some sites could be reconfigured for new language pathways — including a \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12048313/san-francisco-unified-plans-new-mandarin-immersion-school-amid-charter-push\">forthcoming K-8 Mandarin Immersion program\u003c/a> — or \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12085270/sfusd-to-open-new-special-education-program-for-students-with-extensive-needs\">expanded special education services\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We have committed to our community that number one, we are going to open a K-8 Mandarin school and number two, we will share with the community the temporary site of that school and then go through a community engagement process to identify the long-term site,” Su said. “That in and of itself is a portfolio change that is necessary and required.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Since she took over the district in distress in the fall of 2024, Su focused primarily on balancing a $130 million budget deficit and settling multi-year contracts with the district’s labor partners.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Classrooms opening today have the highest rate of permanent teachers in years — with 96% of classrooms staffed — and students will be welcomed to a brand \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12094176/im-ready-for-kindergarten-san-franciscos-mission-bay-gets-first-public-school-in-20-years\">new campus in Mission Bay\u003c/a>, the neighborhood’s first public school 25 years in the making.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1998\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFirstDay-20-MC_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095609\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFirstDay-20-MC_qed.jpg 1998w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFirstDay-20-MC_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFirstDay-20-MC_qed-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1998px) 100vw, 1998px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Students arrive at Jose Ortega Elementary School for the first day of their school year on August 17, 2026, in San Francisco. (Miles Cull/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We’re excited to get this year started,” said Justin Schnieder, whose daughter is now a second grader at Jose Ortega. “I feel confident that we’re going to go through the whole year without any strikes or closures, so that’s all I can say.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Now, major structural changes will be Su’s next target. The school board has also set lofty student achievement benchmarks for 3rd grade literacy rates and 8th grade math proficiency, both of which have slipped across the state since the COVID-19 pandemic. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>On Tuesday, Su said that new data from the end of last year showed a 2% increase in 3rd grade reading, and a nearly 4% increase in 8th grade math. That data hasn’t been publicly released yet. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“The board has set some very audacious goals for us to achieve,” Su said. “They are our North Star.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/sfusd\">San Francisco public schools \u003c/a>welcomed students back to school Monday morning, touting high teacher staffing and brand-new gains in literacy and math proficiency districtwide. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/sfusd\">San Francisco public schools \u003c/a>welcomed students back to school Monday morning, touting high teacher staffing and brand-new gains in literacy and math proficiency districtwide. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Jose Ortega Elementary School in Ingleside buzzed with excitement in the early morning fog, as hundreds of young students greeted classmates, found their new teachers on the blacktop, and taught new transitional kindergarteners the “Jose Bears Cheer” — complete with a deafening, and high-pitched, roar.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Jose Ortega Elementary School in Ingleside buzzed with excitement in the early morning fog, as hundreds of young students greeted classmates, found their new teachers on the blacktop, and taught new transitional kindergarteners the “Jose Bears Cheer” — complete with a deafening, and high-pitched, roar.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>First graders Ellie, Genevieve and Olivia said they were most excited to be reunited with their friends — they waited for each other on the campus’s front steps before making their way to the playground for the morning circle.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>First graders Ellie, Genevieve and Olivia said they were most excited to be reunited with their friends — they waited for each other on the campus’s front steps before making their way to the playground for the morning circle.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-03-MC-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095559\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-03-MC-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-03-MC-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-03-MC-KQED-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A student takes a picture on his first day of school at Jose Ortega Elementary School on Aug. 17, 2026, in San Francisco.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Miles Cull/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-03-MC-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095559\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A student takes a picture on his first day of school at Jose Ortega Elementary School on Aug. 17, 2026, in San Francisco.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Miles Cull/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Mom Kathryn Yu said the first day was exciting, but also nerve-wracking for parents. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“We see them growing up,” Yu said. “It has been a great summer.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The first day festivities marked the beginning of what Superintendent Maria Su hopes will be a period of stability for SFUSD, after a tumultuous few years,, which saw a \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12010008/sf-schools-crisis-is-spiraling-with-top-official-to-resign-heres-all-thats-happened\">botched school closure plan\u003c/a>, unexpected superintendent departure, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12072729/san-francisco-teachers-walk-out-in-first-strike-in-nearly-50-years\">historic teachers’ strike\u003c/a> and federal inquiries into \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12086634/white-house-opens-probe-into-san-francisco-schools-over-gender-ideology\">progressive district curriculum and policies\u003c/a>. But \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/san-francisco-unified-school-district\">San Francisco Unified School District\u003c/a> is still far from smooth sailing. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The first day festivities marked the beginning of what Superintendent Maria Su hopes will be a period of stability for SFUSD, after a tumultuous few years,, which saw a \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12010008/sf-schools-crisis-is-spiraling-with-top-official-to-resign-heres-all-thats-happened\">botched school closure plan\u003c/a>, unexpected superintendent departure, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12072729/san-francisco-teachers-walk-out-in-first-strike-in-nearly-50-years\">historic teachers’ strike\u003c/a> and federal inquiries into \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12086634/white-house-opens-probe-into-san-francisco-schools-over-gender-ideology\">progressive district curriculum and policies\u003c/a>. But \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/san-francisco-unified-school-district\">San Francisco Unified School District\u003c/a> is still far from smooth sailing. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Ahead of the first day of classes, the school board laid the groundwork to begin tackling two long-awaited and controversial changes this school year: a new enrollment system to take effect in 2028, and an evaluation of the district’s school portfolio, which could include campus closures and mergers. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Ahead of the first day of classes, the school board laid the groundwork to begin tackling two long-awaited and controversial changes this school year: a new enrollment system to take effect in 2028, and an evaluation of the district’s school portfolio, which could include campus closures and mergers. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“We are building operations and systems that are really meeting the demands of our students, our families and our employees. We’re moving in the right direction,” Superintendent Maria Su said at the district’s first board meeting of the academic year earlier this month. “But we’re not there yet; we’ve got a lot of work to do.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“We are building operations and systems that are really meeting the demands of our students, our families and our employees. We’re moving in the right direction,” Superintendent Maria Su said at the district’s first board meeting of the academic year earlier this month. “But we’re not there yet; we’ve got a lot of work to do.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>By April, Su is expected to deliver a proposal for a new student assignment method to finally replace the embattled “lottery,” which SFUSD introduced in 2011.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>By April, Su is expected to deliver a proposal for a new student assignment method to finally replace the embattled “lottery,” which SFUSD introduced in 2011.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The current system, which allows families to seek a spot at any campus, was intended to reduce the number of racially isolated and underenrolled schools, according to \u003ca href=\"https://drive.google.com/file/d/1hfSeb1kMqU6yVS5FNN3-HC3PkSMKP6je/view\">district documents\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The current system, which allows families to seek a spot at any campus, was intended to reduce the number of racially isolated and underenrolled schools, according to \u003ca href=\"https://drive.google.com/file/d/1hfSeb1kMqU6yVS5FNN3-HC3PkSMKP6je/view\">district documents\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Instead, it’s created long waitlists and padded PTA funds at some of the most successful SFUSD campuses, while others suffer from significant underenrollment and limited resources. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Instead, it’s created long waitlists and padded PTA funds at some of the most successful SFUSD campuses, while others suffer from significant underenrollment and limited resources. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In 2018, board members first proposed an overhaul after finding that “SFUSD’s choice system has increased inequity and has not provided equitable access to a range of opportunities.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>In 2018, board members first proposed an overhaul after finding that “SFUSD’s choice system has increased inequity and has not provided equitable access to a range of opportunities.” \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Two years later, district leaders approved a zone-based assignment system focused on elementary schools, slated to go into effect in 2023. That was pushed back to 2026, and later, delayed indefinitely amid leadership upheaval and budget concerns.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Two years later, district leaders approved a zone-based assignment system focused on elementary schools, slated to go into effect in 2023. That was pushed back to 2026, and later, delayed indefinitely amid leadership upheaval and budget concerns.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-14-MC-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095566\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-14-MC-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-14-MC-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-14-MC-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">San Francisco Unified School District superintendent, Dr. Maria Su, speaks during Jose Ortega Elementary School’s first morning circle of the school year on Aug. 17, 2026, in San Francisco.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Miles Cull/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-14-MC-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095566\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">San Francisco Unified School District superintendent, Dr. Maria Su, speaks during Jose Ortega Elementary School’s first morning circle of the school year on Aug. 17, 2026, in San Francisco.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Miles Cull/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Last fall, the school board instructed Su to \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12064366/sf-school-board-set-to-make-maria-su-the-permanent-superintendent-for-city-schools\">pick back up the project\u003c/a> and introduce a new strategy by the spring, but not all parents and commissioners seem confident that district staff will deliver. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Last fall, the school board instructed Su to \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12064366/sf-school-board-set-to-make-maria-su-the-permanent-superintendent-for-city-schools\">pick back up the project\u003c/a> and introduce a new strategy by the spring, but not all parents and commissioners seem confident that district staff will deliver. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“It constantly is coming up and then nothing happens,” said Veronica Gray, who has a second grader at Jose Ortega and an eighth grader who’s been in SFUSD for years. “I’m just going to take it day by day.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“It constantly is coming up and then nothing happens,” said Veronica Gray, who has a second grader at Jose Ortega and an eighth grader who’s been in SFUSD for years. “I’m just going to take it day by day.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In the spring, several board members expressed frustration after Su delayed the school assignment proposal by another two years — announcing her intention to roll out a new system in 2028 — without their input. She also told the board the conversation around whether schools could close or merge would wait until after the enrollment overhaul — by 2030.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>In the spring, several board members expressed frustration after Su delayed the school assignment proposal by another two years — announcing her intention to roll out a new system in 2028 — without their input. She also told the board the conversation around whether schools could close or merge would wait until after the enrollment overhaul — by 2030.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>At their first meeting this fall, the board made it clear that deferring further won’t be an option. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>At their first meeting this fall, the board made it clear that deferring further won’t be an option. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“I’ll just name my discomfort … because the board had indicated a timeline of two years and we saw that pushed out to four years. I just don’t want a repeat of what had happened,” Commissioner Parag Gupta said, referring to the spring. “That would be frankly unacceptable.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“I’ll just name my discomfort … because the board had indicated a timeline of two years and we saw that pushed out to four years. I just don’t want a repeat of what had happened,” Commissioner Parag Gupta said, referring to the spring. “That would be frankly unacceptable.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Su assured the board that her team was on track to recommend an assignment system in April, and told them that developing the new enrollment process will lead to a “a very organic process” on school consolidations.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Su assured the board that her team was on track to recommend an assignment system in April, and told them that developing the new enrollment process will lead to a “a very organic process” on school consolidations.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-04-MC-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095560\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-04-MC-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-04-MC-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-04-MC-KQED-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Talya Huntley (left) hugs Jose Ortega Elementary School principal Paula Antram (right) while Shamir Caston waits for his first day of the school year to start on Aug. 17, 2026, in San Francisco.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Miles Cull/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-04-MC-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095560\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Talya Huntley (left) hugs Jose Ortega Elementary School principal Paula Antram (right) while Shamir Caston waits for his first day of the school year to start on Aug. 17, 2026, in San Francisco.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Miles Cull/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“As we start to decide how we are going to assign students to schools, we are going to very quickly see that perhaps there are some neighborhoods in our city that won’t have enough students for the number of schools we currently have in those neighborhoods,” she said. “We as a body will have to figure out what to do with that.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“As we start to decide how we are going to assign students to schools, we are going to very quickly see that perhaps there are some neighborhoods in our city that won’t have enough students for the number of schools we currently have in those neighborhoods,” she said. “We as a body will have to figure out what to do with that.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>That could mean changing how the district fills schools or uses its school buildings. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>That could mean changing how the district fills schools or uses its school buildings. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Su has repeatedly posited that some sites could be reconfigured for new language pathways — including a \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12048313/san-francisco-unified-plans-new-mandarin-immersion-school-amid-charter-push\">forthcoming K-8 Mandarin Immersion program\u003c/a> — or \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12085270/sfusd-to-open-new-special-education-program-for-students-with-extensive-needs\">expanded special education services\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Su has repeatedly posited that some sites could be reconfigured for new language pathways — including a \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12048313/san-francisco-unified-plans-new-mandarin-immersion-school-amid-charter-push\">forthcoming K-8 Mandarin Immersion program\u003c/a> — or \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12085270/sfusd-to-open-new-special-education-program-for-students-with-extensive-needs\">expanded special education services\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“We have committed to our community that number one, we are going to open a K-8 Mandarin school and number two, we will share with the community the temporary site of that school and then go through a community engagement process to identify the long-term site,” Su said. “That in and of itself is a portfolio change that is necessary and required.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“We have committed to our community that number one, we are going to open a K-8 Mandarin school and number two, we will share with the community the temporary site of that school and then go through a community engagement process to identify the long-term site,” Su said. “That in and of itself is a portfolio change that is necessary and required.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Since she took over the district in distress in the fall of 2024, Su focused primarily on balancing a $130 million budget deficit and settling multi-year contracts with the district’s labor partners.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“We’re excited to get this year started,” said Justin Schnieder, whose daughter is now a second grader at Jose Ortega. “I feel confident that we’re going to go through the whole year without any strikes or closures, so that’s all I can say.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Now, major structural changes will be Su’s next target. The school board has also set lofty student achievement benchmarks for 3rd grade literacy rates and 8th grade math proficiency, both of which have slipped across the state since the COVID-19 pandemic. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>On Tuesday, Su said that new data from the end of last year showed a 2% increase in 3rd grade reading, and a nearly 4% increase in 8th grade math. That data hasn’t been publicly released yet. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>On Tuesday, Su said that new data from the end of last year showed a 2% increase in 3rd grade reading, and a nearly 4% increase in 8th grade math. That data hasn’t been publicly released yet. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“The board has set some very audacious goals for us to achieve,” Su said. “They are our North Star.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "Superintendent Maria Su must present a new school assignment system by April; she told the Board of Education that school consolidations could follow.",
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"title": "As SFUSD Welcomes Back Students, Officials Plan to Revamp Enrollment, Consider Closures | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/sfusd\">San Francisco public schools \u003c/a>welcomed students back to school Monday morning, touting high teacher staffing and brand-new gains in literacy and math proficiency districtwide. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Jose Ortega Elementary School in Ingleside buzzed with excitement in the early morning fog, as hundreds of young students greeted classmates, found their new teachers on the blacktop, and taught new transitional kindergarteners the “Jose Bears Cheer” — complete with a deafening, and high-pitched, roar.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>First graders Ellie, Genevieve and Olivia said they were most excited to be reunited with their friends — they waited for each other on the campus’s front steps before making their way to the playground for the morning circle.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-03-MC-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095559\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-03-MC-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-03-MC-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-03-MC-KQED-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A student takes a picture on his first day of school at Jose Ortega Elementary School on Aug. 17, 2026, in San Francisco. (Miles Cull/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Mom Kathryn Yu said the first day was exciting, but also nerve-wracking for parents. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We see them growing up,” Yu said. “It has been a great summer.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The first day festivities marked the beginning of what Superintendent Maria Su hopes will be a period of stability for SFUSD, after a tumultuous few years,, which saw a \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12010008/sf-schools-crisis-is-spiraling-with-top-official-to-resign-heres-all-thats-happened\">botched school closure plan\u003c/a>, unexpected superintendent departure, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12072729/san-francisco-teachers-walk-out-in-first-strike-in-nearly-50-years\">historic teachers’ strike\u003c/a> and federal inquiries into \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12086634/white-house-opens-probe-into-san-francisco-schools-over-gender-ideology\">progressive district curriculum and policies\u003c/a>. But \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/san-francisco-unified-school-district\">San Francisco Unified School District\u003c/a> is still far from smooth sailing. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Ahead of the first day of classes, the school board laid the groundwork to begin tackling two long-awaited and controversial changes this school year: a new enrollment system to take effect in 2028, and an evaluation of the district’s school portfolio, which could include campus closures and mergers. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We are building operations and systems that are really meeting the demands of our students, our families and our employees. We’re moving in the right direction,” Superintendent Maria Su said at the district’s first board meeting of the academic year earlier this month. “But we’re not there yet; we’ve got a lot of work to do.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>By April, Su is expected to deliver a proposal for a new student assignment method to finally replace the embattled “lottery,” which SFUSD introduced in 2011.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The current system, which allows families to seek a spot at any campus, was intended to reduce the number of racially isolated and underenrolled schools, according to \u003ca href=\"https://drive.google.com/file/d/1hfSeb1kMqU6yVS5FNN3-HC3PkSMKP6je/view\">district documents\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Instead, it’s created long waitlists and padded PTA funds at some of the most successful SFUSD campuses, while others suffer from significant underenrollment and limited resources. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In 2018, board members first proposed an overhaul after finding that “SFUSD’s choice system has increased inequity and has not provided equitable access to a range of opportunities.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Two years later, district leaders approved a zone-based assignment system focused on elementary schools, slated to go into effect in 2023. That was pushed back to 2026, and later, delayed indefinitely amid leadership upheaval and budget concerns.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-14-MC-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095566\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-14-MC-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-14-MC-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-14-MC-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">San Francisco Unified School District superintendent, Dr. Maria Su, speaks during Jose Ortega Elementary School’s first morning circle of the school year on Aug. 17, 2026, in San Francisco. (Miles Cull/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Last fall, the school board instructed Su to \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12064366/sf-school-board-set-to-make-maria-su-the-permanent-superintendent-for-city-schools\">pick back up the project\u003c/a> and introduce a new strategy by the spring, but not all parents and commissioners seem confident that district staff will deliver. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It constantly is coming up and then nothing happens,” said Veronica Gray, who has a second grader at Jose Ortega and an eighth grader who’s been in SFUSD for years. “I’m just going to take it day by day.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In the spring, several board members expressed frustration after Su delayed the school assignment proposal by another two years — announcing her intention to roll out a new system in 2028 — without their input. She also told the board the conversation around whether schools could close or merge would wait until after the enrollment overhaul — by 2030.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>At their first meeting this fall, the board made it clear that deferring further won’t be an option. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I’ll just name my discomfort … because the board had indicated a timeline of two years and we saw that pushed out to four years. I just don’t want a repeat of what had happened,” Commissioner Parag Gupta said, referring to the spring. “That would be frankly unacceptable.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Su assured the board that her team was on track to recommend an assignment system in April, and told them that developing the new enrollment process will lead to a “a very organic process” on school consolidations.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-04-MC-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095560\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-04-MC-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-04-MC-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFIRSTDAY-04-MC-KQED-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Talya Huntley (left) hugs Jose Ortega Elementary School principal Paula Antram (right) while Shamir Caston waits for his first day of the school year to start on Aug. 17, 2026, in San Francisco. (Miles Cull/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“As we start to decide how we are going to assign students to schools, we are going to very quickly see that perhaps there are some neighborhoods in our city that won’t have enough students for the number of schools we currently have in those neighborhoods,” she said. “We as a body will have to figure out what to do with that.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>That could mean changing how the district fills schools or uses its school buildings. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Su has repeatedly posited that some sites could be reconfigured for new language pathways — including a \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12048313/san-francisco-unified-plans-new-mandarin-immersion-school-amid-charter-push\">forthcoming K-8 Mandarin Immersion program\u003c/a> — or \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12085270/sfusd-to-open-new-special-education-program-for-students-with-extensive-needs\">expanded special education services\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We have committed to our community that number one, we are going to open a K-8 Mandarin school and number two, we will share with the community the temporary site of that school and then go through a community engagement process to identify the long-term site,” Su said. “That in and of itself is a portfolio change that is necessary and required.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Since she took over the district in distress in the fall of 2024, Su focused primarily on balancing a $130 million budget deficit and settling multi-year contracts with the district’s labor partners.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Classrooms opening today have the highest rate of permanent teachers in years — with 96% of classrooms staffed — and students will be welcomed to a brand \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12094176/im-ready-for-kindergarten-san-franciscos-mission-bay-gets-first-public-school-in-20-years\">new campus in Mission Bay\u003c/a>, the neighborhood’s first public school 25 years in the making.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1998\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFirstDay-20-MC_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095609\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFirstDay-20-MC_qed.jpg 1998w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFirstDay-20-MC_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/081726-SFUSDFirstDay-20-MC_qed-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1998px) 100vw, 1998px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Students arrive at Jose Ortega Elementary School for the first day of their school year on August 17, 2026, in San Francisco. (Miles Cull/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We’re excited to get this year started,” said Justin Schnieder, whose daughter is now a second grader at Jose Ortega. “I feel confident that we’re going to go through the whole year without any strikes or closures, so that’s all I can say.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Now, major structural changes will be Su’s next target. The school board has also set lofty student achievement benchmarks for 3rd grade literacy rates and 8th grade math proficiency, both of which have slipped across the state since the COVID-19 pandemic. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>On Tuesday, Su said that new data from the end of last year showed a 2% increase in 3rd grade reading, and a nearly 4% increase in 8th grade math. That data hasn’t been publicly released yet. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“The board has set some very audacious goals for us to achieve,” Su said. “They are our North Star.”\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "san-francisco-child-care-free-elfa-discount-subsidies-how-to-apply-who-qualifies",
"title": "San Francisco Is Expanding Access to Free or Discounted Childcare. How Do Families Sign Up?",
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"headTitle": "San Francisco Is Expanding Access to Free or Discounted Childcare. How Do Families Sign Up? | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003cem>This story is part of How We Get By, a KQED series exploring how people are coping with rising costs in the Bay Area and California. Find the \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/affordability\">\u003cem>full series here\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem>.\u003c/em> \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>San Francisco is \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12069711/san-francisco-expands-child-care-subsidies-to-tackle-affordability-issues\">widening access to early childhood education\u003c/a> and care for children from birth to 5 years old — by offering families financial aid.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>A few years ago, the city began \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11948690/business-tax-provides-crucial-funding-for-early-childhood-education-and-care-in-san-francisco\">using revenue from a local business tax\u003c/a>, plus state and federal dollars, to fund free childcare and preschool for families with low and moderate incomes. Starting this summer, higher-income families can apply for a 50% tuition discount.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The expansion is expected to take some financial pressure off young families in the city as they grapple with the \u003ca href=\"https://tootris.com/edu/blog/parents/cost-of-child-care-in-california-by-city-age-and-type-of-care-provider/\">highest childcare costs in California\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But there’s a catch: financial aid is only available to families who enroll in any of the approximately 560 early learning programs participating in the city’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/early-learning-for-all\">Early Learning For All, also known as ELFA,\u003c/a> network. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Here’s what San Francisco families need to know about the system and how they can sign up. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Who qualifies for San Francisco’s financial aid for childcare?\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Free tuition\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Free tuition is available for families who live in San Francisco and earn up to\u003cstrong> \u003c/strong>110% of the Area Median Income, or AMI. That means a single parent with a child, who makes up to $142,650 per year — or a couple with one child earning $160,500 per year — would qualify for free tuition.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Full tuition credit\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Families earning between 111% and 150% of the AMI (that’s up to $194,550 for a family of two, and up to $218,850 for a family of three) can get full tuition credit to pay for \u003cem>most \u003c/em>of the cost of childcare or preschool. The subsidy goes directly to the provider, but families might need to cover a co-pay and any extra hours of care.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00137_TV_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12076653\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00137_TV_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00137_TV_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00137_TV_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lyuba Shkolnik teaches children how to bake muffins at her in-home childcare business called Daycare Bumblebee in San Francisco on Jan. 30, 2026. (Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The San Francisco Department of Early Childhood, a branch of the city’s government, sets the rates it will reimburse to providers in the ELFA network. \u003ca href=\"https://media.api.sf.gov/documents/Early_Learning_For_All_Rates_FY_26-27_uwckwsW.pdf\">For the 2026-27 fiscal year\u003c/a>, which began July 1, families can save the following amounts in childcare per month for each child in these age categories:\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\u003cli>Infants (0 to 24 months): $3,027 per month\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>Toddlers (24 to 36 months): $2,306 per month\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>Preschoolers (3 to 5 years): $2,115 per month\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">50% tuition discount\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Families earning between 151% and 200% of the AMI (that’s up to $259,400 for a family of two, and up to $291,800 for a family of three) can apply for 50% off the reimbursement rates — but they must pay the rest of the tuition costs set by the provider and any extra hours of care or fees. Here’s how much families can save in childcare per month for children in these age categories:\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\u003cli> Infants (0 to 24 months): $1,514 per month\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>Toddlers (24 to 36 months): $1,153 per month\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>Preschoolers (3 to 5 years): $1,058 per month\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How is income eligibility determined?\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The AMI is based on gross income, which is the amount you earn \u003cem>before \u003c/em>any taxes or other deductions are taken out of your paycheck. Families can submit tax documents from the previous year or their most recent pay stubs. Eligibility is determined based on the documentation provided and \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/eligibility-for-free-or-low-cost-preschool-and-child-care\">the family’s household size\u003c/a>, said Jonathan Rubinsky, a spokesman for the Department of Early Childhood.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How do I sign up for San Francisco childcare subsidies?\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>You can sign up yourself on the \u003ca href=\"https://app.mycareconnect.io/carewait3/sfdec/service\">Department of Early Childhood’s online portal\u003c/a> — or you can contact these \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/early-learning-for-all\">three Childcare Resource and Referral agencies \u003c/a>who can help you apply. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>You can also contact a preschool or childcare program in the ELFA network and their staff will help you apply for the subsidy.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How do I choose among the hundreds of childcare programs and preschools in the ELFA network? \u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Families can browse through a \u003ca href=\"https://app.mycareconnect.io/carewait3/sfdec/service/search/list?near=San%20Francisco,%20CA\">centralized list\u003c/a> of childcare and preschool programs in the ELFA network to learn about their locations, hours, prices, available spaces and educational approaches, such as immersing children in specific languages or in a Montessori or play-based curriculum. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>You can also click on the provider’s state license number to look up details of their health and safety records, state regulators’ inspections of their facilities, and any citations or complaints they received. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut.jpg\" alt=\"A woman with long, black braids and a brown hoodie plays with a baby in a sunhat in the backyard on a sunny day.\" class=\"wp-image-11957186\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A little over 50% of family childcare providers in California are 50 years old or older, yet less than a quarter of them have any retirement savings, according to research from the Center for the Study of Child Care Employment at UC Berkeley. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Programs based in the provider’s home and licensed to serve up to 14 children are categorized as “Family Child Care.” Larger programs with multiple classrooms and staff are categorized as “centers.” Some families prefer a home environment for their children, while others prefer larger centers — and you can request a tour of the facility to inform your decision. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Parents of 4-year-olds can also opt for a school-based program called \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11989955/what-to-expect-when-enrolling-your-child-in-transitional-kindergarten\">transitional kindergarten\u003c/a>. The pre-kindergarten program is taught at San Francisco Unified School District elementary schools or early education centers.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">I really want to enroll my child in a certain program, but they don’t have any openings. What can I do?\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Some childcare homes or centers have waitlists because the demand for a space in their program is driven by parental choice, according to Meenoo Yashar, deputy director of early learning at the city’s Department of Early Childhood. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She said parents can contact the provider to find out when they might have an opening and get on their waitlist. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What’s the quality of these programs?\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>All of these programs meet the state’s minimum health and safety standards for licensed centers and family childcare homes. These include:\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\u003cli>Passing staff background checks\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>Receiving staff training in pediatric CPR and First Aid\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>Maintaining specific staff-to-child ratios\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>Ensuring safe indoor and outdoor physical space\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>To join the Early Learning For All network, they also must meet the Department of Early Childhood’s \u003ca href=\"https://provider.sfdec.org/wp-content/uploads/Quality-Standard_Updated_6_8_26_ENG.pdf\">quality standards\u003c/a>, which are higher than state and federal requirements, according to an \u003ca href=\"https://learningpolicyinstitute.org/product/ca-upk-mixed-delivery-systems-report\">analysis by the Learning Policy Institute\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00146_TV_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12076655\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00146_TV_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00146_TV_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00146_TV_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Victoria Golobordko walks a child at Daycare Bumblebee in San Francisco on Jan. 30, 2026. San Francisco is expanding access to childcare by offering 50% discounts to middle- and upper-middle-income earners in an effort to tackle affordability issues in one of the most expensive cities in the country. Daycare Bumblebee is trying to get approval to enter the city’s Early Learning For All system. (Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Yashar said those expectations include providing a “welcoming, culturally responsive environment” to parents, where there are multiple communication channels to tell them what’s going on in the classroom and how their children are developing.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Yashar said members must also provide a “rich learning environment with lots of opportunities for children to do exploratory play.” That means early educators are providing a variety of hands-on learning materials, and they’re also interacting meaningfully with children. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>To join ELFA, educators get assessed on the way they engage with children, Yashar said. “Are they asking open-ended questions? Are there opportunities where children are talking to each other, or are they just being talked to?” she said. “We’re looking to see, are the teachers also helping the children understand what’s going to happen in their day?”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Providers in the ELFA network must also provide data regularly to the Department of Early Childhood. In return, they receive wage supplements for the teaching staff and funding to improve their facilities, including outdoor play areas. Teachers also receive professional development, coaching and access to mental health consultants. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The department also covers tuition for educators who want to complete their degrees in early childhood education at local colleges. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“This work has to do with optimizing brain development during a critical time, and so we want our educators to have access to higher education and understand the latest research and methodology for working with young kids,” Yashar said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Higher pay has helped stabilize staffing in a sector plagued by workplace burnout due to low wages and lack of support and benefits. Last year, a study by \u003ca href=\"https://cscce.berkeley.edu/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/state-of-ece-san-francisco-2025-updated-jan2026.pdf\">UC Berkeley’s Center for the Study of Child Care Employment\u003c/a> found that the turnover rate for teachers and assistant teachers in San Francisco was 17%, which is 23% to 35% lower than in other places in California.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If you’re getting better paid, hopefully you’re going to stay in your job,” Yashar said. A stable staff is a marker of quality, she said, because it allows children to strengthen relationships with their educator. \u003c/p>\n\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This story is part of How We Get By, a KQED series exploring how people are coping with rising costs in the Bay Area and California. Find the \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/affordability\">\u003cem>full series here\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem>.\u003c/em> \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>San Francisco is \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12069711/san-francisco-expands-child-care-subsidies-to-tackle-affordability-issues\">widening access to early childhood education\u003c/a> and care for children from birth to 5 years old — by offering families financial aid.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>San Francisco is \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12069711/san-francisco-expands-child-care-subsidies-to-tackle-affordability-issues\">widening access to early childhood education\u003c/a> and care for children from birth to 5 years old — by offering families financial aid.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>A few years ago, the city began \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11948690/business-tax-provides-crucial-funding-for-early-childhood-education-and-care-in-san-francisco\">using revenue from a local business tax\u003c/a>, plus state and federal dollars, to fund free childcare and preschool for families with low and moderate incomes. Starting this summer, higher-income families can apply for a 50% tuition discount.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>A few years ago, the city began \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11948690/business-tax-provides-crucial-funding-for-early-childhood-education-and-care-in-san-francisco\">using revenue from a local business tax\u003c/a>, plus state and federal dollars, to fund free childcare and preschool for families with low and moderate incomes. Starting this summer, higher-income families can apply for a 50% tuition discount.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The expansion is expected to take some financial pressure off young families in the city as they grapple with the \u003ca href=\"https://tootris.com/edu/blog/parents/cost-of-child-care-in-california-by-city-age-and-type-of-care-provider/\">highest childcare costs in California\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The expansion is expected to take some financial pressure off young families in the city as they grapple with the \u003ca href=\"https://tootris.com/edu/blog/parents/cost-of-child-care-in-california-by-city-age-and-type-of-care-provider/\">highest childcare costs in California\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>But there’s a catch: financial aid is only available to families who enroll in any of the approximately 560 early learning programs participating in the city’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/early-learning-for-all\">Early Learning For All, also known as ELFA,\u003c/a> network. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>But there’s a catch: financial aid is only available to families who enroll in any of the approximately 560 early learning programs participating in the city’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/early-learning-for-all\">Early Learning For All, also known as ELFA,\u003c/a> network. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Free tuition is available for families who live in San Francisco and earn up to\u003cstrong> \u003c/strong>110% of the Area Median Income, or AMI. That means a single parent with a child, who makes up to $142,650 per year — or a couple with one child earning $160,500 per year — would qualify for free tuition.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Free tuition is available for families who live in San Francisco and earn up to\u003cstrong> \u003c/strong>110% of the Area Median Income, or AMI. That means a single parent with a child, who makes up to $142,650 per year — or a couple with one child earning $160,500 per year — would qualify for free tuition.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Families earning between 111% and 150% of the AMI (that’s up to $194,550 for a family of two, and up to $218,850 for a family of three) can get full tuition credit to pay for \u003cem>most \u003c/em>of the cost of childcare or preschool. The subsidy goes directly to the provider, but families might need to cover a co-pay and any extra hours of care.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Families earning between 111% and 150% of the AMI (that’s up to $194,550 for a family of two, and up to $218,850 for a family of three) can get full tuition credit to pay for \u003cem>most \u003c/em>of the cost of childcare or preschool. The subsidy goes directly to the provider, but families might need to cover a co-pay and any extra hours of care.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00137_TV_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12076653\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00137_TV_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00137_TV_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00137_TV_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lyuba Shkolnik teaches children how to bake muffins at her in-home childcare business called Daycare Bumblebee in San Francisco on Jan. 30, 2026. \u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The San Francisco Department of Early Childhood, a branch of the city’s government, sets the rates it will reimburse to providers in the ELFA network. \u003ca href=\"https://media.api.sf.gov/documents/Early_Learning_For_All_Rates_FY_26-27_uwckwsW.pdf\">For the 2026-27 fiscal year\u003c/a>, which began July 1, families can save the following amounts in childcare per month for each child in these age categories:\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The San Francisco Department of Early Childhood, a branch of the city’s government, sets the rates it will reimburse to providers in the ELFA network. \u003ca href=\"https://media.api.sf.gov/documents/Early_Learning_For_All_Rates_FY_26-27_uwckwsW.pdf\">For the 2026-27 fiscal year\u003c/a>, which began July 1, families can save the following amounts in childcare per month for each child in these age categories:\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\n\n\n\u003c/ul>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cli>Infants (0 to 24 months): $3,027 per month\u003c/li>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cli>Infants (0 to 24 months): $3,027 per month\u003c/li>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cli>Toddlers (24 to 36 months): $2,306 per month\u003c/li>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cli>Toddlers (24 to 36 months): $2,306 per month\u003c/li>\n"
]
},
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cli>Preschoolers (3 to 5 years): $2,115 per month\u003c/li>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cli>Preschoolers (3 to 5 years): $2,115 per month\u003c/li>\n"
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}
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"blockName": "core/heading",
"attrs": {
"level": 3,
"text": "50% tuition discount"
},
"innerHTML": "\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">50% tuition discount\u003c/h3>\n",
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"\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">50% tuition discount\u003c/h3>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Families earning between 151% and 200% of the AMI (that’s up to $259,400 for a family of two, and up to $291,800 for a family of three) can apply for 50% off the reimbursement rates — but they must pay the rest of the tuition costs set by the provider and any extra hours of care or fees. Here’s how much families can save in childcare per month for children in these age categories:\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Families earning between 151% and 200% of the AMI (that’s up to $259,400 for a family of two, and up to $291,800 for a family of three) can apply for 50% off the reimbursement rates — but they must pay the rest of the tuition costs set by the provider and any extra hours of care or fees. Here’s how much families can save in childcare per month for children in these age categories:\u003c/p>\n"
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"Toddlers (24 to 36 months): $1,153 per month",
"Preschoolers (3 to 5 years): $1,058 per month"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cli> Infants (0 to 24 months): $1,514 per month\u003c/li>\n",
"innerContent": [
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cli>Toddlers (24 to 36 months): $1,153 per month\u003c/li>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cli>Preschoolers (3 to 5 years): $1,058 per month\u003c/li>\n",
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"blockName": "core/heading",
"attrs": {
"text": "How is income eligibility determined?",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How is income eligibility determined?\u003c/h2>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How is income eligibility determined?\u003c/h2>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The AMI is based on gross income, which is the amount you earn \u003cem>before \u003c/em>any taxes or other deductions are taken out of your paycheck. Families can submit tax documents from the previous year or their most recent pay stubs. Eligibility is determined based on the documentation provided and \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/eligibility-for-free-or-low-cost-preschool-and-child-care\">the family’s household size\u003c/a>, said Jonathan Rubinsky, a spokesman for the Department of Early Childhood.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>The AMI is based on gross income, which is the amount you earn \u003cem>before \u003c/em>any taxes or other deductions are taken out of your paycheck. Families can submit tax documents from the previous year or their most recent pay stubs. Eligibility is determined based on the documentation provided and \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/eligibility-for-free-or-low-cost-preschool-and-child-care\">the family’s household size\u003c/a>, said Jonathan Rubinsky, a spokesman for the Department of Early Childhood.\u003c/p>\n"
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"blockName": "core/heading",
"attrs": {
"text": "How do I sign up for San Francisco childcare subsidies?",
"level": 2
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How do I sign up for San Francisco childcare subsidies?\u003c/h2>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How do I sign up for San Francisco childcare subsidies?\u003c/h2>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>You can sign up yourself on the \u003ca href=\"https://app.mycareconnect.io/carewait3/sfdec/service\">Department of Early Childhood’s online portal\u003c/a> — or you can contact these \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/early-learning-for-all\">three Childcare Resource and Referral agencies \u003c/a>who can help you apply. \u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>You can sign up yourself on the \u003ca href=\"https://app.mycareconnect.io/carewait3/sfdec/service\">Department of Early Childhood’s online portal\u003c/a> — or you can contact these \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/early-learning-for-all\">three Childcare Resource and Referral agencies \u003c/a>who can help you apply. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>You can also contact a preschool or childcare program in the ELFA network and their staff will help you apply for the subsidy.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>You can also contact a preschool or childcare program in the ELFA network and their staff will help you apply for the subsidy.\u003c/p>\n"
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"blockName": "core/heading",
"attrs": {
"text": "How do I choose among the hundreds of childcare programs and preschools in the ELFA network? ",
"level": 2
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How do I choose among the hundreds of childcare programs and preschools in the ELFA network? \u003c/h2>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How do I choose among the hundreds of childcare programs and preschools in the ELFA network? \u003c/h2>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Families can browse through a \u003ca href=\"https://app.mycareconnect.io/carewait3/sfdec/service/search/list?near=San%20Francisco,%20CA\">centralized list\u003c/a> of childcare and preschool programs in the ELFA network to learn about their locations, hours, prices, available spaces and educational approaches, such as immersing children in specific languages or in a Montessori or play-based curriculum. \u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>Families can browse through a \u003ca href=\"https://app.mycareconnect.io/carewait3/sfdec/service/search/list?near=San%20Francisco,%20CA\">centralized list\u003c/a> of childcare and preschool programs in the ELFA network to learn about their locations, hours, prices, available spaces and educational approaches, such as immersing children in specific languages or in a Montessori or play-based curriculum. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>You can also click on the provider’s state license number to look up details of their health and safety records, state regulators’ inspections of their facilities, and any citations or complaints they received. \u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>You can also click on the provider’s state license number to look up details of their health and safety records, state regulators’ inspections of their facilities, and any citations or complaints they received. \u003c/p>\n"
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"srcset": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut.jpg\" alt=\"A woman with long, black braids and a brown hoodie plays with a baby in a sunhat in the backyard on a sunny day.\" class=\"wp-image-11957186\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A little over 50% of family childcare providers in California are 50 years old or older, yet less than a quarter of them have any retirement savings, according to research from the Center for the Study of Child Care Employment at UC Berkeley.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut.jpg\" alt=\"A woman with long, black braids and a brown hoodie plays with a baby in a sunhat in the backyard on a sunny day.\" class=\"wp-image-11957186\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A little over 50% of family childcare providers in California are 50 years old or older, yet less than a quarter of them have any retirement savings, according to research from the Center for the Study of Child Care Employment at UC Berkeley.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Programs based in the provider’s home and licensed to serve up to 14 children are categorized as “Family Child Care.” Larger programs with multiple classrooms and staff are categorized as “centers.” Some families prefer a home environment for their children, while others prefer larger centers — and you can request a tour of the facility to inform your decision. \u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>Programs based in the provider’s home and licensed to serve up to 14 children are categorized as “Family Child Care.” Larger programs with multiple classrooms and staff are categorized as “centers.” Some families prefer a home environment for their children, while others prefer larger centers — and you can request a tour of the facility to inform your decision. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Parents of 4-year-olds can also opt for a school-based program called \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11989955/what-to-expect-when-enrolling-your-child-in-transitional-kindergarten\">transitional kindergarten\u003c/a>. The pre-kindergarten program is taught at San Francisco Unified School District elementary schools or early education centers.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>Parents of 4-year-olds can also opt for a school-based program called \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11989955/what-to-expect-when-enrolling-your-child-in-transitional-kindergarten\">transitional kindergarten\u003c/a>. The pre-kindergarten program is taught at San Francisco Unified School District elementary schools or early education centers.\u003c/p>\n"
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"blockName": "core/heading",
"attrs": {
"text": "I really want to enroll my child in a certain program, but they don’t have any openings. What can I do?",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">I really want to enroll my child in a certain program, but they don’t have any openings. What can I do?\u003c/h2>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Some childcare homes or centers have waitlists because the demand for a space in their program is driven by parental choice, according to Meenoo Yashar, deputy director of early learning at the city’s Department of Early Childhood. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Some childcare homes or centers have waitlists because the demand for a space in their program is driven by parental choice, according to Meenoo Yashar, deputy director of early learning at the city’s Department of Early Childhood. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>She said parents can contact the provider to find out when they might have an opening and get on their waitlist. \u003c/p>\n",
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"blockName": "core/heading",
"attrs": {
"text": "What’s the quality of these programs?",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What’s the quality of these programs?\u003c/h2>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>All of these programs meet the state’s minimum health and safety standards for licensed centers and family childcare homes. These include:\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cli>Receiving staff training in pediatric CPR and First Aid\u003c/li>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cli>Maintaining specific staff-to-child ratios\u003c/li>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cli>Ensuring safe indoor and outdoor physical space\u003c/li>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>To join the Early Learning For All network, they also must meet the Department of Early Childhood’s \u003ca href=\"https://provider.sfdec.org/wp-content/uploads/Quality-Standard_Updated_6_8_26_ENG.pdf\">quality standards\u003c/a>, which are higher than state and federal requirements, according to an \u003ca href=\"https://learningpolicyinstitute.org/product/ca-upk-mixed-delivery-systems-report\">analysis by the Learning Policy Institute\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>To join the Early Learning For All network, they also must meet the Department of Early Childhood’s \u003ca href=\"https://provider.sfdec.org/wp-content/uploads/Quality-Standard_Updated_6_8_26_ENG.pdf\">quality standards\u003c/a>, which are higher than state and federal requirements, according to an \u003ca href=\"https://learningpolicyinstitute.org/product/ca-upk-mixed-delivery-systems-report\">analysis by the Learning Policy Institute\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n"
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"srcset": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00146_TV_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00146_TV_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00146_TV_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00146_TV_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12076655\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00146_TV_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00146_TV_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00146_TV_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Victoria Golobordko walks a child at Daycare Bumblebee in San Francisco on Jan. 30, 2026. San Francisco is expanding access to childcare by offering 50% discounts to middle- and upper-middle-income earners in an effort to tackle affordability issues in one of the most expensive cities in the country. Daycare Bumblebee is trying to get approval to enter the city’s Early Learning For All system.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00146_TV_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12076655\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Victoria Golobordko walks a child at Daycare Bumblebee in San Francisco on Jan. 30, 2026. San Francisco is expanding access to childcare by offering 50% discounts to middle- and upper-middle-income earners in an effort to tackle affordability issues in one of the most expensive cities in the country. Daycare Bumblebee is trying to get approval to enter the city’s Early Learning For All system.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Yashar said those expectations include providing a “welcoming, culturally responsive environment” to parents, where there are multiple communication channels to tell them what’s going on in the classroom and how their children are developing.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>Yashar said those expectations include providing a “welcoming, culturally responsive environment” to parents, where there are multiple communication channels to tell them what’s going on in the classroom and how their children are developing.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Yashar said members must also provide a “rich learning environment with lots of opportunities for children to do exploratory play.” That means early educators are providing a variety of hands-on learning materials, and they’re also interacting meaningfully with children. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Yashar said members must also provide a “rich learning environment with lots of opportunities for children to do exploratory play.” That means early educators are providing a variety of hands-on learning materials, and they’re also interacting meaningfully with children. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>To join ELFA, educators get assessed on the way they engage with children, Yashar said. “Are they asking open-ended questions? Are there opportunities where children are talking to each other, or are they just being talked to?” she said. “We’re looking to see, are the teachers also helping the children understand what’s going to happen in their day?”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>To join ELFA, educators get assessed on the way they engage with children, Yashar said. “Are they asking open-ended questions? Are there opportunities where children are talking to each other, or are they just being talked to?” she said. “We’re looking to see, are the teachers also helping the children understand what’s going to happen in their day?”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Providers in the ELFA network must also provide data regularly to the Department of Early Childhood. In return, they receive wage supplements for the teaching staff and funding to improve their facilities, including outdoor play areas. Teachers also receive professional development, coaching and access to mental health consultants. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Providers in the ELFA network must also provide data regularly to the Department of Early Childhood. In return, they receive wage supplements for the teaching staff and funding to improve their facilities, including outdoor play areas. Teachers also receive professional development, coaching and access to mental health consultants. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The department also covers tuition for educators who want to complete their degrees in early childhood education at local colleges. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“This work has to do with optimizing brain development during a critical time, and so we want our educators to have access to higher education and understand the latest research and methodology for working with young kids,” Yashar said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“This work has to do with optimizing brain development during a critical time, and so we want our educators to have access to higher education and understand the latest research and methodology for working with young kids,” Yashar said.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Higher pay has helped stabilize staffing in a sector plagued by workplace burnout due to low wages and lack of support and benefits. Last year, a study by \u003ca href=\"https://cscce.berkeley.edu/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/state-of-ece-san-francisco-2025-updated-jan2026.pdf\">UC Berkeley’s Center for the Study of Child Care Employment\u003c/a> found that the turnover rate for teachers and assistant teachers in San Francisco was 17%, which is 23% to 35% lower than in other places in California.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Higher pay has helped stabilize staffing in a sector plagued by workplace burnout due to low wages and lack of support and benefits. Last year, a study by \u003ca href=\"https://cscce.berkeley.edu/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/state-of-ece-san-francisco-2025-updated-jan2026.pdf\">UC Berkeley’s Center for the Study of Child Care Employment\u003c/a> found that the turnover rate for teachers and assistant teachers in San Francisco was 17%, which is 23% to 35% lower than in other places in California.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“If you’re getting better paid, hopefully you’re going to stay in your job,” Yashar said. A stable staff is a marker of quality, she said, because it allows children to strengthen relationships with their educator. \u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "San Francisco is the first U.S. city to offer a robust early childhood education program for children under 5. Here’s how families can opt into its Early Learning For All system. ",
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"title": "San Francisco Is Expanding Access to Free or Discounted Childcare. How Do Families Sign Up? | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cem>This story is part of How We Get By, a KQED series exploring how people are coping with rising costs in the Bay Area and California. Find the \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/affordability\">\u003cem>full series here\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem>.\u003c/em> \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>San Francisco is \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12069711/san-francisco-expands-child-care-subsidies-to-tackle-affordability-issues\">widening access to early childhood education\u003c/a> and care for children from birth to 5 years old — by offering families financial aid.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>A few years ago, the city began \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11948690/business-tax-provides-crucial-funding-for-early-childhood-education-and-care-in-san-francisco\">using revenue from a local business tax\u003c/a>, plus state and federal dollars, to fund free childcare and preschool for families with low and moderate incomes. Starting this summer, higher-income families can apply for a 50% tuition discount.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The expansion is expected to take some financial pressure off young families in the city as they grapple with the \u003ca href=\"https://tootris.com/edu/blog/parents/cost-of-child-care-in-california-by-city-age-and-type-of-care-provider/\">highest childcare costs in California\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But there’s a catch: financial aid is only available to families who enroll in any of the approximately 560 early learning programs participating in the city’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/early-learning-for-all\">Early Learning For All, also known as ELFA,\u003c/a> network. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Here’s what San Francisco families need to know about the system and how they can sign up. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Who qualifies for San Francisco’s financial aid for childcare?\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Free tuition\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Free tuition is available for families who live in San Francisco and earn up to\u003cstrong> \u003c/strong>110% of the Area Median Income, or AMI. That means a single parent with a child, who makes up to $142,650 per year — or a couple with one child earning $160,500 per year — would qualify for free tuition.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Full tuition credit\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Families earning between 111% and 150% of the AMI (that’s up to $194,550 for a family of two, and up to $218,850 for a family of three) can get full tuition credit to pay for \u003cem>most \u003c/em>of the cost of childcare or preschool. The subsidy goes directly to the provider, but families might need to cover a co-pay and any extra hours of care.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00137_TV_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12076653\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00137_TV_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00137_TV_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00137_TV_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lyuba Shkolnik teaches children how to bake muffins at her in-home childcare business called Daycare Bumblebee in San Francisco on Jan. 30, 2026. (Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The San Francisco Department of Early Childhood, a branch of the city’s government, sets the rates it will reimburse to providers in the ELFA network. \u003ca href=\"https://media.api.sf.gov/documents/Early_Learning_For_All_Rates_FY_26-27_uwckwsW.pdf\">For the 2026-27 fiscal year\u003c/a>, which began July 1, families can save the following amounts in childcare per month for each child in these age categories:\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\u003cli>Infants (0 to 24 months): $3,027 per month\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>Toddlers (24 to 36 months): $2,306 per month\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>Preschoolers (3 to 5 years): $2,115 per month\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">50% tuition discount\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Families earning between 151% and 200% of the AMI (that’s up to $259,400 for a family of two, and up to $291,800 for a family of three) can apply for 50% off the reimbursement rates — but they must pay the rest of the tuition costs set by the provider and any extra hours of care or fees. Here’s how much families can save in childcare per month for children in these age categories:\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\u003cli> Infants (0 to 24 months): $1,514 per month\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>Toddlers (24 to 36 months): $1,153 per month\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>Preschoolers (3 to 5 years): $1,058 per month\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How is income eligibility determined?\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The AMI is based on gross income, which is the amount you earn \u003cem>before \u003c/em>any taxes or other deductions are taken out of your paycheck. Families can submit tax documents from the previous year or their most recent pay stubs. Eligibility is determined based on the documentation provided and \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/eligibility-for-free-or-low-cost-preschool-and-child-care\">the family’s household size\u003c/a>, said Jonathan Rubinsky, a spokesman for the Department of Early Childhood.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How do I sign up for San Francisco childcare subsidies?\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>You can sign up yourself on the \u003ca href=\"https://app.mycareconnect.io/carewait3/sfdec/service\">Department of Early Childhood’s online portal\u003c/a> — or you can contact these \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/early-learning-for-all\">three Childcare Resource and Referral agencies \u003c/a>who can help you apply. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>You can also contact a preschool or childcare program in the ELFA network and their staff will help you apply for the subsidy.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How do I choose among the hundreds of childcare programs and preschools in the ELFA network? \u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Families can browse through a \u003ca href=\"https://app.mycareconnect.io/carewait3/sfdec/service/search/list?near=San%20Francisco,%20CA\">centralized list\u003c/a> of childcare and preschool programs in the ELFA network to learn about their locations, hours, prices, available spaces and educational approaches, such as immersing children in specific languages or in a Montessori or play-based curriculum. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>You can also click on the provider’s state license number to look up details of their health and safety records, state regulators’ inspections of their facilities, and any citations or complaints they received. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut.jpg\" alt=\"A woman with long, black braids and a brown hoodie plays with a baby in a sunhat in the backyard on a sunny day.\" class=\"wp-image-11957186\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/08/RS64819_015_KQED_EachOneTeachOneChildCare_04262023-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A little over 50% of family childcare providers in California are 50 years old or older, yet less than a quarter of them have any retirement savings, according to research from the Center for the Study of Child Care Employment at UC Berkeley. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Programs based in the provider’s home and licensed to serve up to 14 children are categorized as “Family Child Care.” Larger programs with multiple classrooms and staff are categorized as “centers.” Some families prefer a home environment for their children, while others prefer larger centers — and you can request a tour of the facility to inform your decision. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Parents of 4-year-olds can also opt for a school-based program called \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11989955/what-to-expect-when-enrolling-your-child-in-transitional-kindergarten\">transitional kindergarten\u003c/a>. The pre-kindergarten program is taught at San Francisco Unified School District elementary schools or early education centers.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">I really want to enroll my child in a certain program, but they don’t have any openings. What can I do?\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Some childcare homes or centers have waitlists because the demand for a space in their program is driven by parental choice, according to Meenoo Yashar, deputy director of early learning at the city’s Department of Early Childhood. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She said parents can contact the provider to find out when they might have an opening and get on their waitlist. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What’s the quality of these programs?\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>All of these programs meet the state’s minimum health and safety standards for licensed centers and family childcare homes. These include:\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\u003cli>Passing staff background checks\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>Receiving staff training in pediatric CPR and First Aid\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>Maintaining specific staff-to-child ratios\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>Ensuring safe indoor and outdoor physical space\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>To join the Early Learning For All network, they also must meet the Department of Early Childhood’s \u003ca href=\"https://provider.sfdec.org/wp-content/uploads/Quality-Standard_Updated_6_8_26_ENG.pdf\">quality standards\u003c/a>, which are higher than state and federal requirements, according to an \u003ca href=\"https://learningpolicyinstitute.org/product/ca-upk-mixed-delivery-systems-report\">analysis by the Learning Policy Institute\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00146_TV_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12076655\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00146_TV_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00146_TV_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/03/260130-sfchildcareaccess00146_TV_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Victoria Golobordko walks a child at Daycare Bumblebee in San Francisco on Jan. 30, 2026. San Francisco is expanding access to childcare by offering 50% discounts to middle- and upper-middle-income earners in an effort to tackle affordability issues in one of the most expensive cities in the country. Daycare Bumblebee is trying to get approval to enter the city’s Early Learning For All system. (Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Yashar said those expectations include providing a “welcoming, culturally responsive environment” to parents, where there are multiple communication channels to tell them what’s going on in the classroom and how their children are developing.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Yashar said members must also provide a “rich learning environment with lots of opportunities for children to do exploratory play.” That means early educators are providing a variety of hands-on learning materials, and they’re also interacting meaningfully with children. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>To join ELFA, educators get assessed on the way they engage with children, Yashar said. “Are they asking open-ended questions? Are there opportunities where children are talking to each other, or are they just being talked to?” she said. “We’re looking to see, are the teachers also helping the children understand what’s going to happen in their day?”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Providers in the ELFA network must also provide data regularly to the Department of Early Childhood. In return, they receive wage supplements for the teaching staff and funding to improve their facilities, including outdoor play areas. Teachers also receive professional development, coaching and access to mental health consultants. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The department also covers tuition for educators who want to complete their degrees in early childhood education at local colleges. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“This work has to do with optimizing brain development during a critical time, and so we want our educators to have access to higher education and understand the latest research and methodology for working with young kids,” Yashar said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Higher pay has helped stabilize staffing in a sector plagued by workplace burnout due to low wages and lack of support and benefits. Last year, a study by \u003ca href=\"https://cscce.berkeley.edu/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/state-of-ece-san-francisco-2025-updated-jan2026.pdf\">UC Berkeley’s Center for the Study of Child Care Employment\u003c/a> found that the turnover rate for teachers and assistant teachers in San Francisco was 17%, which is 23% to 35% lower than in other places in California.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If you’re getting better paid, hopefully you’re going to stay in your job,” Yashar said. A stable staff is a marker of quality, she said, because it allows children to strengthen relationships with their educator. \u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "san-francisco-uses-new-speed-limit-law-to-help-kids-get-to-school-safely",
"title": "San Francisco Uses New Speed Limit Law to Help Kids Get to School Safely",
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"headTitle": "San Francisco Uses New Speed Limit Law to Help Kids Get to School Safely | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cp>Public school will be back in session in \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/san-francisco\">San Francisco\u003c/a> in a few days — and city leaders are introducing several strategies to make sure students get to class safely.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency on Friday shared its plans to bolster safety for students’ commutes to school, including enforcing a 2025 state \u003ca href=\"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billTextClient.xhtml?bill_id=202520260AB382\">bill\u003c/a> that allows the agency to reduce the speed limit in school zones from 25 miles per hour to 15 or 20 when children are present.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp> “Street safety is public safety, and there’s really no higher priority than keeping our school children safe in the city,” SFMTA spokesperson Madhu Unnikrishnan said on Friday. Unnikrishnan joined other city officials at Leonard R. Flynn Elementary School to announce the news. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Flynn Elementary, which sits on the border of the city’s Mission District, is among the first of San Francisco’s schools to see the speed limit on its surrounding streets reduced. The SFMTA said it is working to reduce speed limits at more than 230 public and private schools in the city by 2028.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1500\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260814-SF-Street-Safety-ADE-02-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095419\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260814-SF-Street-Safety-ADE-02-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260814-SF-Street-Safety-ADE-02-KQED-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260814-SF-Street-Safety-ADE-02-KQED-1536x1152.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mayor Daniel Lurie outlines street safety initiatives ahead of the new school year in front of Leonard R. Flynn Elementary School on Aug. 14, 2026. (Azul Dahlstrom-Eckman/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In addition to the new speed limit law, leaders touted other measures meant to make streets safer, including the SFMTA’s crossing guard program, automated speed safety camera program and infrastructure changes like intersection daylighting and high-visibility crosswalks.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The announcement comes as San Francisco continues its efforts to prevent traffic injuries and deaths in the city. Last year, Mayor Daniel Lurie launched the \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/news-mayor-lurie-signs-street-safety-executive-directive-in-major-step-to-improve-public-safety-in-san-francisco\">Street Safety executive directive\u003c/a>, which aimed to increase coordination between city departments involved in transportation.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The directive followed the city’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12055304/after-vision-zero-san-francisco-looks-to-a-new-approach-to-traffic-safety\">Vision Zero initiative\u003c/a>, which aimed to reduce deaths to zero over a 10-year period. It ended in 2024, which marked the deadliest year for traffic collisions in the city since the initiative began, with 42 traffic fatalities on record.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>So far this year, the city has recorded 17 traffic fatalities, including an \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12095110/after-san-francisco-scooter-victim-identified-advocates-call-for-safer-market-street\">e-scooter rider\u003c/a> who was struck and killed last week by a driver on Market Street. A recent report by the SFMTA’s street safety committee \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfmta.com/media/45487/download?inline\">shows\u003c/a> that while all injury collisions overall are trending down, severe injury collisions are trending up. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Emberly Garibay, 11, a recent graduate of Flynn Elementary, lives nearby and has two siblings who still attend the school. She said that crossing Cesar Chavez Street’s four lanes of traffic to get to school can feel scary.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“ I don’t feel safe sometimes, because I feel like I’m going to get hit by a car, even when I’m with my family,” Garibay said. “ People are just going too fast, so I’m really excited that the speed limit is lowering.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Despite SFMTA’s structural budget deficit of over $300 million, the agency prioritized maintaining the same number of crossing guards as the previous year, according to Unnikrishnan. He said that the agency employs guards at 96 schools at about 174 corners around the city. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I keep the kids safe, and the kids are really sweet, and they smile when they see me, and it makes me really happy,” said Luzmery Betancur, who said she has been a crossing guard for 15 years. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1500\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260814-SF-Street-Safety-ADE-03-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095420\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260814-SF-Street-Safety-ADE-03-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260814-SF-Street-Safety-ADE-03-KQED-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260814-SF-Street-Safety-ADE-03-KQED-1536x1152.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Crossing guards Luzmery Betancur and Jose Guillen help San Franciscans cross the street safely. (Azul Dahlstrom-Eckman/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The time allotted for pedestrians to cross Cesar Chavez Street is about five seconds too short to get a large quantity of children across the street safely, according to Ryan Hazelton, director of the Mariposa Kids afterschool program at Flynn Elementary. Hazelton, who is also running for a seat on the San Francisco School Board, said the crossing guards play a crucial role in keeping them safe.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“ They provide us with that security envelope that we need, and the parents feel really confident in our ability to get the kids from school to our off-site location because we have those crossing guards,” Hazelton said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>San Francisco Police Department Chief Derrick Lew said the department plans to conduct “high visibility enforcement” around schools to make sure drivers are following speed limits. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“ There will be zero tolerance for dangerous driving,” Lew said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Lew also said the department will be conducting enforcement for violations involving e-bikes and e-scooters near schools, after recent collisions in the city involving the devices caused fatal and serious injuries. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Christopher White, executive director of the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition, said he thought Lew was reacting to a perception that e-bikes and e-scooters were unsafe, but said that impression “really isn’t true.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“ We need to be making it easier for people on e-bikes and e-scooters to get to school,” White said. “It’s important that we make sure that people are riding street-legal devices, but nonetheless, these are valid modes that aren’t a risk to people on the street.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>As nearly 50,000 public school students head back to school on Monday, San Francisco Unified School District Superintendent Maria Su is imploring drivers to slow down. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“ There will be children and students walking around the streets,” Su said. “So just have a little extra patience, give yourself a little extra time.”\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency on Friday shared its plans to bolster safety for students’ commutes to school, including enforcing a 2025 state \u003ca href=\"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billTextClient.xhtml?bill_id=202520260AB382\">bill\u003c/a> that allows the agency to reduce the speed limit in school zones from 25 miles per hour to 15 or 20 when children are present.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp> “Street safety is public safety, and there’s really no higher priority than keeping our school children safe in the city,” SFMTA spokesperson Madhu Unnikrishnan said on Friday. Unnikrishnan joined other city officials at Leonard R. Flynn Elementary School to announce the news. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Flynn Elementary, which sits on the border of the city’s Mission District, is among the first of San Francisco’s schools to see the speed limit on its surrounding streets reduced. The SFMTA said it is working to reduce speed limits at more than 230 public and private schools in the city by 2028.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260814-SF-Street-Safety-ADE-02-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095419\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260814-SF-Street-Safety-ADE-02-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260814-SF-Street-Safety-ADE-02-KQED-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260814-SF-Street-Safety-ADE-02-KQED-1536x1152.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mayor Daniel Lurie outlines street safety initiatives ahead of the new school year in front of Leonard R. Flynn Elementary School on Aug. 14, 2026.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The announcement comes as San Francisco continues its efforts to prevent traffic injuries and deaths in the city. Last year, Mayor Daniel Lurie launched the \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/news-mayor-lurie-signs-street-safety-executive-directive-in-major-step-to-improve-public-safety-in-san-francisco\">Street Safety executive directive\u003c/a>, which aimed to increase coordination between city departments involved in transportation.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>So far this year, the city has recorded 17 traffic fatalities, including an \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12095110/after-san-francisco-scooter-victim-identified-advocates-call-for-safer-market-street\">e-scooter rider\u003c/a> who was struck and killed last week by a driver on Market Street. A recent report by the SFMTA’s street safety committee \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfmta.com/media/45487/download?inline\">shows\u003c/a> that while all injury collisions overall are trending down, severe injury collisions are trending up. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Emberly Garibay, 11, a recent graduate of Flynn Elementary, lives nearby and has two siblings who still attend the school. She said that crossing Cesar Chavez Street’s four lanes of traffic to get to school can feel scary.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“ I don’t feel safe sometimes, because I feel like I’m going to get hit by a car, even when I’m with my family,” Garibay said. “ People are just going too fast, so I’m really excited that the speed limit is lowering.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Despite SFMTA’s structural budget deficit of over $300 million, the agency prioritized maintaining the same number of crossing guards as the previous year, according to Unnikrishnan. He said that the agency employs guards at 96 schools at about 174 corners around the city. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The time allotted for pedestrians to cross Cesar Chavez Street is about five seconds too short to get a large quantity of children across the street safely, according to Ryan Hazelton, director of the Mariposa Kids afterschool program at Flynn Elementary. Hazelton, who is also running for a seat on the San Francisco School Board, said the crossing guards play a crucial role in keeping them safe.\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "A new law lets the city reduce speed limits in school zones to 15 or 20 miles per hour, as public schools are set to resume instruction on Monday.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Public school will be back in session in \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/san-francisco\">San Francisco\u003c/a> in a few days — and city leaders are introducing several strategies to make sure students get to class safely.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency on Friday shared its plans to bolster safety for students’ commutes to school, including enforcing a 2025 state \u003ca href=\"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billTextClient.xhtml?bill_id=202520260AB382\">bill\u003c/a> that allows the agency to reduce the speed limit in school zones from 25 miles per hour to 15 or 20 when children are present.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp> “Street safety is public safety, and there’s really no higher priority than keeping our school children safe in the city,” SFMTA spokesperson Madhu Unnikrishnan said on Friday. Unnikrishnan joined other city officials at Leonard R. Flynn Elementary School to announce the news. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Flynn Elementary, which sits on the border of the city’s Mission District, is among the first of San Francisco’s schools to see the speed limit on its surrounding streets reduced. The SFMTA said it is working to reduce speed limits at more than 230 public and private schools in the city by 2028.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1500\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260814-SF-Street-Safety-ADE-02-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095419\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260814-SF-Street-Safety-ADE-02-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260814-SF-Street-Safety-ADE-02-KQED-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260814-SF-Street-Safety-ADE-02-KQED-1536x1152.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mayor Daniel Lurie outlines street safety initiatives ahead of the new school year in front of Leonard R. Flynn Elementary School on Aug. 14, 2026. (Azul Dahlstrom-Eckman/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In addition to the new speed limit law, leaders touted other measures meant to make streets safer, including the SFMTA’s crossing guard program, automated speed safety camera program and infrastructure changes like intersection daylighting and high-visibility crosswalks.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The announcement comes as San Francisco continues its efforts to prevent traffic injuries and deaths in the city. Last year, Mayor Daniel Lurie launched the \u003ca href=\"https://www.sf.gov/news-mayor-lurie-signs-street-safety-executive-directive-in-major-step-to-improve-public-safety-in-san-francisco\">Street Safety executive directive\u003c/a>, which aimed to increase coordination between city departments involved in transportation.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The directive followed the city’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12055304/after-vision-zero-san-francisco-looks-to-a-new-approach-to-traffic-safety\">Vision Zero initiative\u003c/a>, which aimed to reduce deaths to zero over a 10-year period. It ended in 2024, which marked the deadliest year for traffic collisions in the city since the initiative began, with 42 traffic fatalities on record.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>So far this year, the city has recorded 17 traffic fatalities, including an \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12095110/after-san-francisco-scooter-victim-identified-advocates-call-for-safer-market-street\">e-scooter rider\u003c/a> who was struck and killed last week by a driver on Market Street. A recent report by the SFMTA’s street safety committee \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfmta.com/media/45487/download?inline\">shows\u003c/a> that while all injury collisions overall are trending down, severe injury collisions are trending up. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Emberly Garibay, 11, a recent graduate of Flynn Elementary, lives nearby and has two siblings who still attend the school. She said that crossing Cesar Chavez Street’s four lanes of traffic to get to school can feel scary.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“ I don’t feel safe sometimes, because I feel like I’m going to get hit by a car, even when I’m with my family,” Garibay said. “ People are just going too fast, so I’m really excited that the speed limit is lowering.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Despite SFMTA’s structural budget deficit of over $300 million, the agency prioritized maintaining the same number of crossing guards as the previous year, according to Unnikrishnan. He said that the agency employs guards at 96 schools at about 174 corners around the city. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I keep the kids safe, and the kids are really sweet, and they smile when they see me, and it makes me really happy,” said Luzmery Betancur, who said she has been a crossing guard for 15 years. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1500\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260814-SF-Street-Safety-ADE-03-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12095420\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260814-SF-Street-Safety-ADE-03-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260814-SF-Street-Safety-ADE-03-KQED-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260814-SF-Street-Safety-ADE-03-KQED-1536x1152.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Crossing guards Luzmery Betancur and Jose Guillen help San Franciscans cross the street safely. (Azul Dahlstrom-Eckman/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The time allotted for pedestrians to cross Cesar Chavez Street is about five seconds too short to get a large quantity of children across the street safely, according to Ryan Hazelton, director of the Mariposa Kids afterschool program at Flynn Elementary. Hazelton, who is also running for a seat on the San Francisco School Board, said the crossing guards play a crucial role in keeping them safe.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“ They provide us with that security envelope that we need, and the parents feel really confident in our ability to get the kids from school to our off-site location because we have those crossing guards,” Hazelton said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>San Francisco Police Department Chief Derrick Lew said the department plans to conduct “high visibility enforcement” around schools to make sure drivers are following speed limits. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“ There will be zero tolerance for dangerous driving,” Lew said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Lew also said the department will be conducting enforcement for violations involving e-bikes and e-scooters near schools, after recent collisions in the city involving the devices caused fatal and serious injuries. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Christopher White, executive director of the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition, said he thought Lew was reacting to a perception that e-bikes and e-scooters were unsafe, but said that impression “really isn’t true.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“ We need to be making it easier for people on e-bikes and e-scooters to get to school,” White said. “It’s important that we make sure that people are riding street-legal devices, but nonetheless, these are valid modes that aren’t a risk to people on the street.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>As nearly 50,000 public school students head back to school on Monday, San Francisco Unified School District Superintendent Maria Su is imploring drivers to slow down. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“ There will be children and students walking around the streets,” Su said. “So just have a little extra patience, give yourself a little extra time.”\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"title": "Major League Baseball to Hold 2028 All-Star Game at San Francisco’s Oracle Park",
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"content": "\u003cp>The \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/san-francisco-giants\">San Francisco Giants\u003c/a> will host the 2028 Major League Baseball All-Star Game, bringing yet another major sporting event to the Bay Area. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Mayor Daniel Lurie and the league announced Friday that baseball’s biggest summer showcase will be played at Oracle Park for the first time in more than 20 years.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We’re thrilled to welcome the Midsummer Classic to San Francisco, the ultimate celebration of Major League Baseball and one of our game’s greatest annual traditions,” the Giants said in a statement. “This is a tremendous opportunity to showcase our organization, our city, and the incredible passion of our fans on baseball’s biggest summer stage.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1980\" height=\"1337\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/GettyImages-2208881091.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12090146\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/GettyImages-2208881091.jpg 1980w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/GettyImages-2208881091-160x108.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/GettyImages-2208881091-1536x1037.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1980px) 100vw, 1980px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mike Yastrzemski and Heliot Ramos of the San Francisco Giants celebrate after Yastrzemski hit a three-run home run against the Seattle Mariners in the bottom of the fourth inning at Oracle Park on April 6, 2025, in San Francisco, California. (Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The annual contest will feature the top players in Major League Baseball on July 12, 2028 — days before the 2028 Summer Olympics open in Los Angeles, where baseball returns for the first time since 2020. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Whether the Giants would be selected to host the year’s All-Star Game had reportedly been tied to whether MLB players would be allowed to participate in the 2028 games.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Historically, the league has not allowed its stars to compete in the Olympics due to concerns about disrupting a packed summer schedule and injury risk. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But the \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfchronicle.com/sports/giants/article/sf-frontrunner-2028-all-star-game-mlb-opts-la-20770751.php\">\u003cem>San Francisco Chronicle\u003c/em>\u003c/a> reported in July that MLB was considering the West Coast stadium so that its players could more easily travel to and from Los Angeles for the summer games. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Friday’s decision comes before any official call on MLB’s Olympic participation, but it seems to point to the league trying to make the schedule possible. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>This will be the second All-Star Game at Oracle Park and the fourth the Giants have hosted in San Francisco. Both the 1961 and 1984 games were held at Candlestick Park. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In addition to the main event, Oracle Park will host the All-Star Futures Game, featuring top minor league players, and the Home Run Derby. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“With its passionate fanbase, world-class ballpark, and rich baseball history, San Francisco will be an outstanding host for All-Star Week, which culminates in one of Major League Baseball’s best traditions, the Midsummer Classic,” MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said in a statement. “We look forward to bringing the excitement of All-Star Week and the celebration of baseball to the Bay Area.”\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/GettyImages-2208881091.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12090146\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/GettyImages-2208881091.jpg 1980w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/GettyImages-2208881091-160x108.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/GettyImages-2208881091-1536x1037.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mike Yastrzemski and Heliot Ramos of the San Francisco Giants celebrate after Yastrzemski hit a three-run home run against the Seattle Mariners in the bottom of the fourth inning at Oracle Park on April 6, 2025, in San Francisco, California.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>But the \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfchronicle.com/sports/giants/article/sf-frontrunner-2028-all-star-game-mlb-opts-la-20770751.php\">\u003cem>San Francisco Chronicle\u003c/em>\u003c/a> reported in July that MLB was considering the West Coast stadium so that its players could more easily travel to and from Los Angeles for the summer games. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Friday’s decision comes before any official call on MLB’s Olympic participation, but it seems to point to the league trying to make the schedule possible. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>This will be the second All-Star Game at Oracle Park and the fourth the Giants have hosted in San Francisco. Both the 1961 and 1984 games were held at Candlestick Park. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In addition to the main event, Oracle Park will host the All-Star Futures Game, featuring top minor league players, and the Home Run Derby. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“With its passionate fanbase, world-class ballpark, and rich baseball history, San Francisco will be an outstanding host for All-Star Week, which culminates in one of Major League Baseball’s best traditions, the Midsummer Classic,” MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said in a statement. “We look forward to bringing the excitement of All-Star Week and the celebration of baseball to the Bay Area.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "The game will bring baseball’s biggest stars to the Bay Area, days before the 2028 Summer Olympics open in Los Angeles. ",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>The \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/san-francisco-giants\">San Francisco Giants\u003c/a> will host the 2028 Major League Baseball All-Star Game, bringing yet another major sporting event to the Bay Area. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Mayor Daniel Lurie and the league announced Friday that baseball’s biggest summer showcase will be played at Oracle Park for the first time in more than 20 years.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We’re thrilled to welcome the Midsummer Classic to San Francisco, the ultimate celebration of Major League Baseball and one of our game’s greatest annual traditions,” the Giants said in a statement. “This is a tremendous opportunity to showcase our organization, our city, and the incredible passion of our fans on baseball’s biggest summer stage.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1980\" height=\"1337\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/GettyImages-2208881091.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12090146\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/GettyImages-2208881091.jpg 1980w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/GettyImages-2208881091-160x108.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/07/GettyImages-2208881091-1536x1037.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1980px) 100vw, 1980px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mike Yastrzemski and Heliot Ramos of the San Francisco Giants celebrate after Yastrzemski hit a three-run home run against the Seattle Mariners in the bottom of the fourth inning at Oracle Park on April 6, 2025, in San Francisco, California. (Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The annual contest will feature the top players in Major League Baseball on July 12, 2028 — days before the 2028 Summer Olympics open in Los Angeles, where baseball returns for the first time since 2020. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Whether the Giants would be selected to host the year’s All-Star Game had reportedly been tied to whether MLB players would be allowed to participate in the 2028 games.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Historically, the league has not allowed its stars to compete in the Olympics due to concerns about disrupting a packed summer schedule and injury risk. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But the \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfchronicle.com/sports/giants/article/sf-frontrunner-2028-all-star-game-mlb-opts-la-20770751.php\">\u003cem>San Francisco Chronicle\u003c/em>\u003c/a> reported in July that MLB was considering the West Coast stadium so that its players could more easily travel to and from Los Angeles for the summer games. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Friday’s decision comes before any official call on MLB’s Olympic participation, but it seems to point to the league trying to make the schedule possible. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>This will be the second All-Star Game at Oracle Park and the fourth the Giants have hosted in San Francisco. Both the 1961 and 1984 games were held at Candlestick Park. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In addition to the main event, Oracle Park will host the All-Star Futures Game, featuring top minor league players, and the Home Run Derby. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“With its passionate fanbase, world-class ballpark, and rich baseball history, San Francisco will be an outstanding host for All-Star Week, which culminates in one of Major League Baseball’s best traditions, the Midsummer Classic,” MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said in a statement. “We look forward to bringing the excitement of All-Star Week and the celebration of baseball to the Bay Area.”\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"title": "After San Francisco Scooter Victim Identified, Advocates Call for Safer Market Street",
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"content": "\u003cp>Advocates for safer streets are renewing calls for changes along San Francisco’s Market Street after a 32-year-old \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12094311/fatal-collision-in-downtown-san-francisco-closes-down-market-street-intersection\">woman was struck and killed\u003c/a> while riding an electric scooter last week, saying the fatal crash highlights longstanding safety concerns along the busy corridor. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Yebin Kim, a San Francisco resident, was riding near Powell and Market streets downtown when she was struck by a commercial truck, San Francisco police said. At 8:18 a.m., officers found Kim in the street with life-threatening injuries. Medics attempted to save her, but ultimately pronounced her dead at the scene, police said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Both the vehicle and the driver have been located, but the police said they are not providing additional comment at this time due to an open and active investigation. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/005_KQED_CarFreeMarketSt_01222020_8366_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12033116\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/005_KQED_CarFreeMarketSt_01222020_8366_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/005_KQED_CarFreeMarketSt_01222020_8366_qed-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/005_KQED_CarFreeMarketSt_01222020_8366_qed-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/005_KQED_CarFreeMarketSt_01222020_8366_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/005_KQED_CarFreeMarketSt_01222020_8366_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/005_KQED_CarFreeMarketSt_01222020_8366_qed-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Cars drive down Market Street in San Francisco on Jan. 20, 2022. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Claire Amable, spokesperson for the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition, said Kim’s death is the second crash this summer involving a \u003ca href=\"https://sfbike.org/news/our-statement-on-the-death-of-yebin-kim-on-market-street/\">wheel\u003c/a> stuck in a Muni rail. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The group is holding a vigil to honor Kim at 4:30 p.m. on Friday at the intersection where she died. They’re also calling for changes along the busy stretch — including shifting transit stops to center lanes so that they mix less with bikes and scooters, installing strips of rubber that make it harder for wheels to get stuck along rail crossings and making Market Street completely car-free again. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’re in a place where people aren’t feeling as safe as they once did on Market Street,” Amable said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>For nearly five years, cars could not \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11797529/san-franciscos-market-street-is-going-car-free-next-week-7-things-you-need-to-know\">drive\u003c/a> down Market Street following advocacy from groups like the Bicycle Coalition. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Last April, Mayor Daniel Lurie \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12065918/waymo-uber-lyft-to-expand-on-sfs-market-street-despite-pushback-from-transit-groups\">opened\u003c/a> Market Street to select ride-hailing vehicles, including Waymo, Lyft Black and Uber Black as part of his downtown revitalization plan. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Amable said that it’s unclear whether or not reopening the street to these vehicles has had any positive economic benefits but said that it has had an impact on safety. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Though ride-hailing was not involved in this crash, Amable said, “Opening the street to luxury ride-hail last year has created so much confusion about who’s allowed to be on Market Street, and that is leading to unsafe street conditions on the corridor.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In a statement to KQED, Mayor Daniel Lurie said his top priority is resident safety. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“The tragedy on Market Street is heartbreaking, and my condolences go out to Yebin’s family and friends,” Lurie said. “As the city investigates the incident on Market Street, we will continue to move the work forward to create safer streets for all San Franciscans.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Amable invited anyone who is concerned about “wrongful deaths on our streets, to come and to just be in community” at Friday’s vigil.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Yebin Kim, a San Francisco resident, was riding near Powell and Market streets downtown when she was struck by a commercial truck, San Francisco police said. At 8:18 a.m., officers found Kim in the street with life-threatening injuries. Medics attempted to save her, but ultimately pronounced her dead at the scene, police said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Yebin Kim, a San Francisco resident, was riding near Powell and Market streets downtown when she was struck by a commercial truck, San Francisco police said. At 8:18 a.m., officers found Kim in the street with life-threatening injuries. Medics attempted to save her, but ultimately pronounced her dead at the scene, police said. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Both the vehicle and the driver have been located, but the police said they are not providing additional comment at this time due to an open and active investigation. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Claire Amable, spokesperson for the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition, said Kim’s death is the second crash this summer involving a \u003ca href=\"https://sfbike.org/news/our-statement-on-the-death-of-yebin-kim-on-market-street/\">wheel\u003c/a> stuck in a Muni rail. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The group is holding a vigil to honor Kim at 4:30 p.m. on Friday at the intersection where she died. They’re also calling for changes along the busy stretch — including shifting transit stops to center lanes so that they mix less with bikes and scooters, installing strips of rubber that make it harder for wheels to get stuck along rail crossings and making Market Street completely car-free again. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The group is holding a vigil to honor Kim at 4:30 p.m. on Friday at the intersection where she died. They’re also calling for changes along the busy stretch — including shifting transit stops to center lanes so that they mix less with bikes and scooters, installing strips of rubber that make it harder for wheels to get stuck along rail crossings and making Market Street completely car-free again. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Last April, Mayor Daniel Lurie \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12065918/waymo-uber-lyft-to-expand-on-sfs-market-street-despite-pushback-from-transit-groups\">opened\u003c/a> Market Street to select ride-hailing vehicles, including Waymo, Lyft Black and Uber Black as part of his downtown revitalization plan. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Amable said that it’s unclear whether or not reopening the street to these vehicles has had any positive economic benefits but said that it has had an impact on safety. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Though ride-hailing was not involved in this crash, Amable said, “Opening the street to luxury ride-hail last year has created so much confusion about who’s allowed to be on Market Street, and that is leading to unsafe street conditions on the corridor.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In a statement to KQED, Mayor Daniel Lurie said his top priority is resident safety. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“The tragedy on Market Street is heartbreaking, and my condolences go out to Yebin’s family and friends,” Lurie said. “As the city investigates the incident on Market Street, we will continue to move the work forward to create safer streets for all San Franciscans.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Amable invited anyone who is concerned about “wrongful deaths on our streets, to come and to just be in community” at Friday’s vigil.\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "Advocates seek safer Muni rail crossings and traffic changes as debate continues over Market Street access and downtown road safety.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Advocates for safer streets are renewing calls for changes along San Francisco’s Market Street after a 32-year-old \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12094311/fatal-collision-in-downtown-san-francisco-closes-down-market-street-intersection\">woman was struck and killed\u003c/a> while riding an electric scooter last week, saying the fatal crash highlights longstanding safety concerns along the busy corridor. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Yebin Kim, a San Francisco resident, was riding near Powell and Market streets downtown when she was struck by a commercial truck, San Francisco police said. At 8:18 a.m., officers found Kim in the street with life-threatening injuries. Medics attempted to save her, but ultimately pronounced her dead at the scene, police said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Both the vehicle and the driver have been located, but the police said they are not providing additional comment at this time due to an open and active investigation. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/005_KQED_CarFreeMarketSt_01222020_8366_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12033116\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/005_KQED_CarFreeMarketSt_01222020_8366_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/005_KQED_CarFreeMarketSt_01222020_8366_qed-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/005_KQED_CarFreeMarketSt_01222020_8366_qed-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/005_KQED_CarFreeMarketSt_01222020_8366_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/005_KQED_CarFreeMarketSt_01222020_8366_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/005_KQED_CarFreeMarketSt_01222020_8366_qed-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Cars drive down Market Street in San Francisco on Jan. 20, 2022. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Claire Amable, spokesperson for the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition, said Kim’s death is the second crash this summer involving a \u003ca href=\"https://sfbike.org/news/our-statement-on-the-death-of-yebin-kim-on-market-street/\">wheel\u003c/a> stuck in a Muni rail. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The group is holding a vigil to honor Kim at 4:30 p.m. on Friday at the intersection where she died. They’re also calling for changes along the busy stretch — including shifting transit stops to center lanes so that they mix less with bikes and scooters, installing strips of rubber that make it harder for wheels to get stuck along rail crossings and making Market Street completely car-free again. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’re in a place where people aren’t feeling as safe as they once did on Market Street,” Amable said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>For nearly five years, cars could not \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11797529/san-franciscos-market-street-is-going-car-free-next-week-7-things-you-need-to-know\">drive\u003c/a> down Market Street following advocacy from groups like the Bicycle Coalition. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Last April, Mayor Daniel Lurie \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12065918/waymo-uber-lyft-to-expand-on-sfs-market-street-despite-pushback-from-transit-groups\">opened\u003c/a> Market Street to select ride-hailing vehicles, including Waymo, Lyft Black and Uber Black as part of his downtown revitalization plan. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Amable said that it’s unclear whether or not reopening the street to these vehicles has had any positive economic benefits but said that it has had an impact on safety. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Though ride-hailing was not involved in this crash, Amable said, “Opening the street to luxury ride-hail last year has created so much confusion about who’s allowed to be on Market Street, and that is leading to unsafe street conditions on the corridor.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In a statement to KQED, Mayor Daniel Lurie said his top priority is resident safety. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“The tragedy on Market Street is heartbreaking, and my condolences go out to Yebin’s family and friends,” Lurie said. “As the city investigates the incident on Market Street, we will continue to move the work forward to create safer streets for all San Franciscans.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Amable invited anyone who is concerned about “wrongful deaths on our streets, to come and to just be in community” at Friday’s vigil.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"content": "\u003cp>A series of \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/earthquakes\">earthquakes\u003c/a> struck the Bay Area on Thursday morning.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The first and largest hit at 8:30 a.m., centered about \u003ca href=\"https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/nc75417557/executive\">2.4 miles north of San Leandro\u003c/a>, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. The agency initially put it at magnitude 4.1, then revised it down to 3.9 and later to 3.8.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Residents reported feeling strong shaking in the East Bay, with rumblings across the water into San Francisco, according to social media \u003ca href=\"https://www.reddit.com/r/bayarea/comments/1vne0os/that_was_a_big_earthquake/\">posts\u003c/a> on Reddit. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Two smaller quakes followed at 9:07 a.m., four seconds apart. The USGS recorded one at \u003ca href=\"https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/nc75417577/executive\">magnitude 3.0\u003c/a> and a \u003ca href=\"https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/nc75417582/executive\">second at 2.8\u003c/a>, also centered about 2 miles north of San Leandro.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>BART slowed service systemwide. The agency said trains were running at reduced speeds while crews completed safety track inspections and told riders to expect residual delays of up to 20 minutes.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The Hayward Fault runs through the area, from San Pablo Bay south to Fremont. The USGS said the initial quake was strong enough to trigger ShakeAlert, the West Coast early warning system, which issued its first message 3.7 seconds after the quake began. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>No wireless emergency alerts went out to phones because the system only sends those when a quake is estimated at magnitude 5.0 or higher.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The first and largest hit at 8:30 a.m., centered about \u003ca href=\"https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/nc75417557/executive\">2.4 miles north of San Leandro\u003c/a>, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. The agency initially put it at magnitude 4.1, then revised it down to 3.9 and later to 3.8.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Residents reported feeling strong shaking in the East Bay, with rumblings across the water into San Francisco, according to social media \u003ca href=\"https://www.reddit.com/r/bayarea/comments/1vne0os/that_was_a_big_earthquake/\">posts\u003c/a> on Reddit. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Two smaller quakes followed at 9:07 a.m., four seconds apart. The USGS recorded one at \u003ca href=\"https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/nc75417577/executive\">magnitude 3.0\u003c/a> and a \u003ca href=\"https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/nc75417582/executive\">second at 2.8\u003c/a>, also centered about 2 miles north of San Leandro.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>BART slowed service systemwide. The agency said trains were running at reduced speeds while crews completed safety track inspections and told riders to expect residual delays of up to 20 minutes.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The Hayward Fault runs through the area, from San Pablo Bay south to Fremont. The USGS said the initial quake was strong enough to trigger ShakeAlert, the West Coast early warning system, which issued its first message 3.7 seconds after the quake began. \u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "The quake, which struck near San Leandro Thursday morning, was followed by two smaller ones about 37 minutes later. BART slowed trains for track inspections.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>A series of \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/earthquakes\">earthquakes\u003c/a> struck the Bay Area on Thursday morning.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The first and largest hit at 8:30 a.m., centered about \u003ca href=\"https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/nc75417557/executive\">2.4 miles north of San Leandro\u003c/a>, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. The agency initially put it at magnitude 4.1, then revised it down to 3.9 and later to 3.8.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Residents reported feeling strong shaking in the East Bay, with rumblings across the water into San Francisco, according to social media \u003ca href=\"https://www.reddit.com/r/bayarea/comments/1vne0os/that_was_a_big_earthquake/\">posts\u003c/a> on Reddit. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Two smaller quakes followed at 9:07 a.m., four seconds apart. The USGS recorded one at \u003ca href=\"https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/nc75417577/executive\">magnitude 3.0\u003c/a> and a \u003ca href=\"https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/nc75417582/executive\">second at 2.8\u003c/a>, also centered about 2 miles north of San Leandro.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>BART slowed service systemwide. The agency said trains were running at reduced speeds while crews completed safety track inspections and told riders to expect residual delays of up to 20 minutes.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The Hayward Fault runs through the area, from San Pablo Bay south to Fremont. The USGS said the initial quake was strong enough to trigger ShakeAlert, the West Coast early warning system, which issued its first message 3.7 seconds after the quake began. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>No wireless emergency alerts went out to phones because the system only sends those when a quake is estimated at magnitude 5.0 or higher.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "the-best-places-to-bring-your-book-in-the-bay-area-performative-reading-accusations-not-included",
"title": "The Best Places to Bring Your Book in the Bay Area (‘Performative Reading’ Accusations Not Included)",
"publishDate": 1786636800,
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"headTitle": "The Best Places to Bring Your Book in the Bay Area (‘Performative Reading’ Accusations Not Included) | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cp>One of the easiest ways to remind myself that life is worth living is grabbing my current read and taking it out of the house with me. It’s an essential tote bag accessory, along with my keys, chapstick and sunscreen. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>So imagine my surprise when I saw this post from a user whose friend took a picture of them reading — on what appears to be a lovely bench — captioned: “My friends called me performative cause this is how they found me lmao??” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Yes, it’s probably a joke — and it definitely sounds like something my friends would say ironically as well. (“Going to bring a book to the BTS concert so RM sees me reading in the audience and knows I’m not like other girls,” etc. etc.) But \u003ca href=\"https://www.instyle.com/elle-fanning-reading-interview-coach-11914208\">being a\u003c/a> \u003ca href=\"https://x.com/Lilys_verses/status/2082914715525611989\">“performative reader”\u003c/a> — \u003ca href=\"https://www.newyorker.com/culture/the-lede/performative-reading?_sp=5af1db0a-9ac4-4ed6-a317-ecbb6b519457.1786058480642\">i.e., reading in public\u003c/a>, in \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-F_A7qvs5Gs\">various configurations\u003c/a> —\u003cem>has \u003c/em>turned into \u003ca href=\"https://www.nbcnews.com/pop-culture/books/performative-reading-trend-social-media-booktok-readers-weigh-in-rcna237393\">something of a jab\u003c/a> from \u003ca href=\"https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2025/jun/30/performative-reading-public-tiktok\">the Very Online\u003c/a>. And it’s for everyone, not just the apparent \u003ca href=\"https://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/article/chore-coats-moustaches-and-female-fiction-meet-the-men-doing-the-performative-reading-meme-irl\">“pretentious guy on a dating app\u003c/a>” archetype.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-x wp-block-embed-x\">\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\nhttps://twitter.com/mariahyreva/status/2081521301714284976\n\u003c/div>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But as \u003ca href=\"https://www.newyorker.com/culture/the-lede/performative-reading?_sp=5af1db0a-9ac4-4ed6-a317-ecbb6b519457.1786058480642\">\u003cem>The New Yorker’s \u003c/em>Brady Brickner-Wood\u003c/a> wrote, “If everything is potentially performative, how will we ever work up the courage to step outside of our sphere of normal, to risk being earnest and cringe, and experience something transformative?” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>And as Brickner-Wood said, “Reading a book is antithetical to scrolling; online platforms cannot replicate the slow, patient, and complex experience of reading a weighty novel.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So in celebration of reading outside — \u003ca href=\"https://www.tiktok.com/@hopeurdoingwellbruh/video/7653930211234336031\">which \u003cem>is\u003c/em> a vibe\u003c/a> — I consulted some of the Bay Area’s writers, librarians and booksellers and went on the hunt to find excellent spots in the region that will let you sit down for a while with a good read. (As always, be sure to check the hours of any businesses on this list before heading out, to make sure it’s still open.)\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-tiktok wp-block-embed-tiktok\">\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\nhttps://www.tiktok.com/@hopeurdoingwellbruh/video/7653930211234336031\n\u003c/div>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>And if you don’t have something in your \u003ca href=\"https://www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/tbr\">TBR list\u003c/a> that’s speaking to you right now, you can check out KQED’s Forum episode \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/forum/2010101914694/whats-on-your-summer-reading-list-4\">interviewing Bay Area booksellers on some popular summer titles\u003c/a>. (I am currently reading \u003cem>The Brothers Karamazov\u003c/em> with a friend, which, I’ll admit, is not helping me beat the performative reading allegations.)\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Jump straight to the best places to read in:\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"#east-bay\">East Bay\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"#north-bay\">North Bay\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"#peninsula\">South Bay and Peninsula\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The best places to read in San Francisco\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Vesuvio Cafe in North Beach\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: Rae Alexandra, KQED Arts and Culture reporter and author of \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12077049/unsung-heroines-rebel-girls-of-the-bay-area\">\u003cem>Unsung Heroines: 35 Women Who Changed the Bay Area\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Vesuvio Cafe is a gorgeous bar right next to City Lights, the famous bookstore once frequented by figures like \u003ca href=\"https://www.timeout.com/san-francisco/bars/vesuvio\">Jack Kerouac and Allen Ginsberg\u003c/a> (they also publish books, and \u003cem>Unsung Heroines\u003c/em> is one of them). Alexandra’s preference is at the end of the bar, near the front door.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/VesuvioSFGetty.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094749\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/VesuvioSFGetty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/VesuvioSFGetty-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/VesuvioSFGetty-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Vesuvio Bar in San Francisco, California, on July 13, 2017. (Michael Macor/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>“\u003c/strong>It’s a habit that started by accident — going book shopping in City Lights and deciding I just \u003cem>had \u003c/em>to start reading what I’d bought immediately, so popping next door to the bar,” Alexandra said. “Vesuvio is quiet in the afternoon, so a nice place to read.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>If you want some nature reading with your City Lights read instead, take a 12-minute walk up Columbus Avenue to \u003cstrong>Ina Coolbrith Park,\u003c/strong> a small space with beautiful city views named after \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vlfR1eeDoME\">the state’s first poet laureate\u003c/a>. Alternatively, a little way up Columbus is \u003cstrong>Washington Square Park. \u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Golden Gate Park\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/booknerderika?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ%3D%3D\">\u003cem>Erika Naulu\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem>, high school librarian in Concord \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>It’s hard \u003cem>not \u003c/em>to find a pretty spot in Golden Gate Park to read — but \u003ca href=\"https://gggp.org/conservatory-of-flowers/\">the Conservatory of Flowers\u003c/a> is probably my all-time favorite place to spread a blanket and rest.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Librarian Naulu agrees. For her, the best spot is the area between the California Academy of Sciences and de Young Museum. “There are fountains and benches where you can sit and relax,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1999\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/009_SanFrancisco_SkyStarWheel_03042021_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12022568\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/009_SanFrancisco_SkyStarWheel_03042021_qed.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/009_SanFrancisco_SkyStarWheel_03042021_qed-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/009_SanFrancisco_SkyStarWheel_03042021_qed-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/009_SanFrancisco_SkyStarWheel_03042021_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/009_SanFrancisco_SkyStarWheel_03042021_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/009_SanFrancisco_SkyStarWheel_03042021_qed-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1999px) 100vw, 1999px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">View from the SkyStar Observation Wheel of the de Young Museum in Golden Gate Park on March 4, 2021. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“There are music performances sometimes at the music concourse that can get distracting if you are looking for a quiet spot,” Naulu said. “I like the background music sometimes though.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>What makes the park particularly excellent for readers is the plethora of bookstores also available nearby, including: \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://gggp.org/shop/\">Gardens of Golden Gate Park\u003c/a> has its own bookstore \u003cem>in\u003c/em> the park, near Lincoln Way and Ninth Avenue. \u003ca href=\"https://gggp.org/learn/library-collection/\">The Helen Crocker Russell Library of Horticulture\u003c/a> is also nearby.\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://greenapplebooks.com/\">Green Apple Books on the Park\u003c/a> is around a minute walk from the Ninth Street entrance to Golden Gate Park.\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://borderlands-books.com/v2/index.html\">Borderlands Books\u003c/a> (science fiction and fantasy focused) is around a 3-minute walk from the Stanyan Street entrance to Golden Gate Park.\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://blackbirdsf.com/\">Blackbird Bookstore and Cafe\u003c/a> is around a 6-minute walk from the closest entrance on Lincoln Way to Golden Gate Park.\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://booksmith.com/\">The Booksmith\u003c/a> is around a 7-minute walk away from the closest entrance on Stanyan Street to Golden Gate Park.\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://www.globusbooks.com/\">Globus Books\u003c/a> is around a 7-minute walk away from the closest entrance on Fulton Street to Golden Gate Park.\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://boundtogether.org/\">Bound Together Bookstore\u003c/a> is around an 11-minute walk from the closest entrance on Stanyan Street to Golden Gate Park — but is just around the corner from Buena Vista Park, too.\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">La Promenade Café in the Outer Richmond\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: Amy Gloriana, owner of bookstore \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.betweenthebookendssf.com/\">\u003cem>Between the Bookends\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Gloriana said that \u003ca href=\"https://www.lapromenadecafe.com/\">La Promenade Café\u003c/a> has “so many options for seating and it’s so cozy!” There are usually a good amount of customers inside, but “never too loud” and “food and coffee is pretty good,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>And probably the most winning part of her rec: “It feels like you’re in \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9mRoCerrpY&list=RDY9mRoCerrpY&start_radio=1&pp=ygUQbG9maSBjb2ZmZWUgc2hvcKAHAdIHCQnECwGHKiGM7w%3D%3D\">a coffee shop lofi video\u003c/a>.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Charlie’s Cafe in the Mission\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: Sirkka Miller, bookseller at Dog Eared Books Valencia\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Miller said Charlie’s Cafe has good coffee and, in the morning, is “well lit” and “nice and airy” in addition to being quiet. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>A bonus for Charlie’s is that it is \u003cem>right\u003c/em> next to Precita Park, which has \u003ca href=\"https://sfrecpark.org/898/Precita-Park\">a butterfly garden\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1293\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/RomanceGetty.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12081136\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/RomanceGetty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/RomanceGetty-160x103.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/RomanceGetty-1536x993.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">People relaxing in the grass at Dolores Park in San Francisco. (Lonely Planet/Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Dolores Park in the Mission \u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: Grace Wathen, bookseller at \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.thelovepotionlibrary.com/\">\u003cem>The Love Potion Library\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Wathen said her usual spots are “anywhere I can read under a tree.” Near Dolores Park is \u003cstrong>Dolores Cafe\u003c/strong>, which includes outside seating and a pretty magnificent view of the park.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>If you need a book, there are also stores near the park, including:\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://www.dogearedbooks.com/\">Dog Eared Books\u003c/a>, around a 6-minute walk away from the closest entrance to Dolores Park.\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"http://fabulosabooks.com/\">Fabulosa Books\u003c/a>, around a 10-minute walk away from the closest entrance to Dolores Park.\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The International Library of Young Authors in the Mission\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>This incredible sweet spot — which features titles written by young writers across the country — is a favorite of this reporter, as it’s also the home of literary magazines like McSweeney’s (founded by the Bay Area’s Dave Eggers) and The Believer. The “library” has comfy couches, plenty of sunlight and a pretty whimsical hidden room at the back. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The space sometimes hosts workshops for young people, so it’s best to check their schedule beforehand to make sure you’re able to pop in during the quiet, empty hours.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"east-bay\">The best places to read in East Bay\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Clio’s in Oakland\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/gabbi.rose?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ%3D%3D\">\u003cem>Gabbi Sharp\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem>, host of \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://oaklandlibrary.bibliocommons.com/events/67c8f1a4596bfd2f00183710\">\u003cem>the Black Authors Book Club\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem> at the West Oakland Branch Library\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.cliosbooks.com/\">Clio’s\u003c/a> is a stylish bar and bookstore. As Sharp said, “I always bring my own book to read. They have such cozy couches, a warm atmosphere, and they are open late!” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Lake Chabot in Castro Valley\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: Concord librarian Naulu\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Naulu recommends this \u003ca href=\"https://www.ebparks.org/parks/lake-chabot\">gated regional park\u003c/a> where people also boat and fish. “I like to walk the trails while listening to audiobooks,” Naulu said. “There are places to sit and read as well near the lake, but depending on the day, it can get busy and noisy with campers or other people.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>You’ll need to pay for parking within the regional park itself, but there’s also parking available on the road just outside the park, which is free.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1378\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/LakeMerrittReadingGetty.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094745\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/LakeMerrittReadingGetty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/LakeMerrittReadingGetty-160x110.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/LakeMerrittReadingGetty-1536x1058.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A woman reads a book at Lake Merritt in Oakland, California, on Saturday, May 16, 2020. (Paul Chinn/The San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Lake Merritt in Oakland\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/ablacklibrarian?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ%3D%3D\">\u003cem>Makayla Walker\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem>, librarian in Oakland\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Lake Merritt is a favorite, especially on sunny days, Walker said. There are also \u003ca href=\"https://www.lakemerritt.org/gardens.html\">specific gardens\u003c/a> within Lake Merritt to choose from. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Perhaps Lake Merritt is the place for a nice fantasy novel, considering \u003ca href=\"https://www.lakemerritt.org/fairyland.html\">children’s amusement park Fairyland\u003c/a> is nearby as well.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Bishop Ranch in San Ramon\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: Concord librarian Naulu\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>As a large, lush open space, Naulu called Bishop Ranch a “hidden gem of San Ramon.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>There’s also \u003ca href=\"https://www.bishopranch.com/venue/annabel-lake/\">Annabel Lake \u003c/a>nearby, with “a lot of benches around it that are perfect for reading,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/BookSociety_Jan2025_001.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12081140\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/BookSociety_Jan2025_001.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/BookSociety_Jan2025_001-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/BookSociety_Jan2025_001-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Book Society is a wine lounge based in Berkeley. (Courtesy of Kara Brodgesell via Book Society.)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Book Society in Berkeley\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>A wine lounge with \u003ca href=\"https://www.booksociety.social/menu\">a menu of snacks and nonalcoholic options\u003c/a> to choose from, the Book Society is a stylish space with popular titles for sale as well. There are also couches to lounge on, as well as soft chairs and bar stools. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"north-bay\">The best places to read in North Bay\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Mill Valley Depot Café & Bookstore in Mill Valley \u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>This cafe offers \u003ca href=\"https://www.depotcafeandbookstore.com/\">a large menu\u003c/a>, allowing you to spend some time grazing while going through your book.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The cafe also doubles as an independent bookstore and an event space — so be sure to \u003ca href=\"https://www.depotcafeandbookstore.com/events\">check out the calendar\u003c/a> if you’d like to see a live music show that day as well (or avoid one, if you’re seeking serenity!).\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Mill Valley Public Library\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The Mill Valley branch has \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/mill_valley_library/?hl=en\">wide glass windows, high ceilings and cozy lighting\u003c/a> that allow visitors to really feel like they are engulfed in the surrounding woods. In this reporter’s humble opinion, it’s probably one of the prettiest public libraries in the Bay Area. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Aqus Cafe in Petaluma\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: Danielle Venton, KQED Science and climate reporter, host of \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/event/4149/climate-book-club\">\u003cem>KQED’s Climate Book Club\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>A little away from the bustling downtown, Venton said that Aqus Cafe is “very welcoming to those bookishly quiet of us, who want to be around other people without necessarily talking to them.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But if you \u003cem>would \u003c/em>like to be closer to downtown, Venton also recommended historic saloon \u003cstrong>McNears, \u003c/strong>adding that the staff there has “been kind and patient with me, letting me hide out upstairs reading and writing.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Oak Hill in Petaluma\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: Danielle Venton, KQED Science and climate reporter, host of KQED’s Climate Book Club\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Venton said that this park has “everything you want.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>There are picnic tables, a kid’s playground, dog run, petanque court, basketball hoop and, most importantly for readers, “enormous live oak trees offering abundant shade over a large lawn,” she said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"peninsula\">The best places to read in South Bay and the Peninsula\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Fioli Estate in Woodside\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Recommendation from: Yung Le, co-founder of \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/anovelaffairbookcafe/\">A Novel Affair\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>This gorgeous, Austenland-like garden was actually Le’s previous recommendation to KQED for \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12081122/bay-area-book-lovers-we-have-highly-literary-date-or-friend-hang-ideas-for-your-weekend\">a literary-themed date\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>At \u003ca href=\"https://51772.blackbaudhosting.com/51772/tickets?tab=2&txobjid=85164de0-552f-49c6-8ba5-ce4be2af4d14\">around $45 for adults\u003c/a>, Filoli is a pricier option for a day out with a book. But people with \u003ca href=\"https://filoli.org/visit/#!\">a SNAP (CalFresh) EBT card or a Discover and Go pass\u003c/a> from the library can get free and reduced admission.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/Filoli-AlbertDros-9.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12081141\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/Filoli-AlbertDros-9.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/Filoli-AlbertDros-9-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/Filoli-AlbertDros-9-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Fioli, in Woodside, is an historic estate with landscape gardens that brings pure Pemberley vibes to the Peninsula. \u003cbr> (Courtesy of Albert Dros via Fioli)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The A.M. Craft in San José\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: Amy Ly, \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"http://instagram.com/silentbookclubsanjose?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ==\">\u003cem>San José Silent Book Club\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem> moderator\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>This cafe and restaurant is located in downtown San José, and Ly called \u003ca href=\"https://am-craft.mailchimpsites.com/about-us\">A.M. Craft\u003c/a> “my little hideout when I want to get some reading done on a Saturday morning.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Gimme a cold brew, pastry and a good read, and I’ll happily read for a few hours,” Ly said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Atherton Library in Atherton\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/sfbookgirl?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ%3D%3D\">\u003cem>Ciera Pasturel\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem>, San Mateo County librarian\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Pasturel recommends specifically the patio of the Atherton Library, which is “under an enormous oak tree.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“There is ample seating as well as a cafe that sells delicious coffee and pastries,” Pasturel added.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Half Moon Bay Beach\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: Concord librarian Naulu\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Weather permitting, of course! Naulu said that she tends to take her e-reader to the beach instead of a physical book, since it “does get windy.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But it makes for a pleasant family outing, since she can settle with a book while her kids build sandcastles next to her.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>One of the easiest ways to remind myself that life is worth living is grabbing my current read and taking it out of the house with me. It’s an essential tote bag accessory, along with my keys, chapstick and sunscreen. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>So imagine my surprise when I saw this post from a user whose friend took a picture of them reading — on what appears to be a lovely bench — captioned: “My friends called me performative cause this is how they found me lmao??” \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>So imagine my surprise when I saw this post from a user whose friend took a picture of them reading — on what appears to be a lovely bench — captioned: “My friends called me performative cause this is how they found me lmao??” \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Yes, it’s probably a joke — and it definitely sounds like something my friends would say ironically as well. (“Going to bring a book to the BTS concert so RM sees me reading in the audience and knows I’m not like other girls,” etc. etc.) But \u003ca href=\"https://www.instyle.com/elle-fanning-reading-interview-coach-11914208\">being a\u003c/a> \u003ca href=\"https://x.com/Lilys_verses/status/2082914715525611989\">“performative reader”\u003c/a> — \u003ca href=\"https://www.newyorker.com/culture/the-lede/performative-reading?_sp=5af1db0a-9ac4-4ed6-a317-ecbb6b519457.1786058480642\">i.e., reading in public\u003c/a>, in \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-F_A7qvs5Gs\">various configurations\u003c/a> —\u003cem>has \u003c/em>turned into \u003ca href=\"https://www.nbcnews.com/pop-culture/books/performative-reading-trend-social-media-booktok-readers-weigh-in-rcna237393\">something of a jab\u003c/a> from \u003ca href=\"https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2025/jun/30/performative-reading-public-tiktok\">the Very Online\u003c/a>. And it’s for everyone, not just the apparent \u003ca href=\"https://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/article/chore-coats-moustaches-and-female-fiction-meet-the-men-doing-the-performative-reading-meme-irl\">“pretentious guy on a dating app\u003c/a>” archetype.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>Yes, it’s probably a joke — and it definitely sounds like something my friends would say ironically as well. (“Going to bring a book to the BTS concert so RM sees me reading in the audience and knows I’m not like other girls,” etc. etc.) But \u003ca href=\"https://www.instyle.com/elle-fanning-reading-interview-coach-11914208\">being a\u003c/a> \u003ca href=\"https://x.com/Lilys_verses/status/2082914715525611989\">“performative reader”\u003c/a> — \u003ca href=\"https://www.newyorker.com/culture/the-lede/performative-reading?_sp=5af1db0a-9ac4-4ed6-a317-ecbb6b519457.1786058480642\">i.e., reading in public\u003c/a>, in \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-F_A7qvs5Gs\">various configurations\u003c/a> —\u003cem>has \u003c/em>turned into \u003ca href=\"https://www.nbcnews.com/pop-culture/books/performative-reading-trend-social-media-booktok-readers-weigh-in-rcna237393\">something of a jab\u003c/a> from \u003ca href=\"https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2025/jun/30/performative-reading-public-tiktok\">the Very Online\u003c/a>. And it’s for everyone, not just the apparent \u003ca href=\"https://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/article/chore-coats-moustaches-and-female-fiction-meet-the-men-doing-the-performative-reading-meme-irl\">“pretentious guy on a dating app\u003c/a>” archetype.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-x wp-block-embed-x\">\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\nhttps://twitter.com/mariahyreva/status/2081521301714284976\n\u003c/div>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-x wp-block-embed-x\">\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\nhttps://twitter.com/mariahyreva/status/2081521301714284976\n\u003c/div>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>But as \u003ca href=\"https://www.newyorker.com/culture/the-lede/performative-reading?_sp=5af1db0a-9ac4-4ed6-a317-ecbb6b519457.1786058480642\">\u003cem>The New Yorker’s \u003c/em>Brady Brickner-Wood\u003c/a> wrote, “If everything is potentially performative, how will we ever work up the courage to step outside of our sphere of normal, to risk being earnest and cringe, and experience something transformative?” \u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>But as \u003ca href=\"https://www.newyorker.com/culture/the-lede/performative-reading?_sp=5af1db0a-9ac4-4ed6-a317-ecbb6b519457.1786058480642\">\u003cem>The New Yorker’s \u003c/em>Brady Brickner-Wood\u003c/a> wrote, “If everything is potentially performative, how will we ever work up the courage to step outside of our sphere of normal, to risk being earnest and cringe, and experience something transformative?” \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>And as Brickner-Wood said, “Reading a book is antithetical to scrolling; online platforms cannot replicate the slow, patient, and complex experience of reading a weighty novel.” \u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>And as Brickner-Wood said, “Reading a book is antithetical to scrolling; online platforms cannot replicate the slow, patient, and complex experience of reading a weighty novel.” \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>So in celebration of reading outside — \u003ca href=\"https://www.tiktok.com/@hopeurdoingwellbruh/video/7653930211234336031\">which \u003cem>is\u003c/em> a vibe\u003c/a> — I consulted some of the Bay Area’s writers, librarians and booksellers and went on the hunt to find excellent spots in the region that will let you sit down for a while with a good read. (As always, be sure to check the hours of any businesses on this list before heading out, to make sure it’s still open.)\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>So in celebration of reading outside — \u003ca href=\"https://www.tiktok.com/@hopeurdoingwellbruh/video/7653930211234336031\">which \u003cem>is\u003c/em> a vibe\u003c/a> — I consulted some of the Bay Area’s writers, librarians and booksellers and went on the hunt to find excellent spots in the region that will let you sit down for a while with a good read. (As always, be sure to check the hours of any businesses on this list before heading out, to make sure it’s still open.)\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-tiktok wp-block-embed-tiktok\">\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\nhttps://www.tiktok.com/@hopeurdoingwellbruh/video/7653930211234336031\n\u003c/div>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-tiktok wp-block-embed-tiktok\">\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\nhttps://www.tiktok.com/@hopeurdoingwellbruh/video/7653930211234336031\n\u003c/div>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>And if you don’t have something in your \u003ca href=\"https://www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/tbr\">TBR list\u003c/a> that’s speaking to you right now, you can check out KQED’s Forum episode \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/forum/2010101914694/whats-on-your-summer-reading-list-4\">interviewing Bay Area booksellers on some popular summer titles\u003c/a>. (I am currently reading \u003cem>The Brothers Karamazov\u003c/em> with a friend, which, I’ll admit, is not helping me beat the performative reading allegations.)\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>And if you don’t have something in your \u003ca href=\"https://www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/tbr\">TBR list\u003c/a> that’s speaking to you right now, you can check out KQED’s Forum episode \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/forum/2010101914694/whats-on-your-summer-reading-list-4\">interviewing Bay Area booksellers on some popular summer titles\u003c/a>. (I am currently reading \u003cem>The Brothers Karamazov\u003c/em> with a friend, which, I’ll admit, is not helping me beat the performative reading allegations.)\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Jump straight to the best places to read in:\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Jump straight to the best places to read in:\u003c/p>\n"
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null,
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null,
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"#east-bay\">East Bay\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n",
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"\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"#east-bay\">East Bay\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"#peninsula\">South Bay and Peninsula\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n",
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"text": "The best places to read in San Francisco",
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"text": "Vesuvio Cafe in North Beach"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: Rae Alexandra, KQED Arts and Culture reporter and author of \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12077049/unsung-heroines-rebel-girls-of-the-bay-area\">\u003cem>Unsung Heroines: 35 Women Who Changed the Bay Area\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: Rae Alexandra, KQED Arts and Culture reporter and author of \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12077049/unsung-heroines-rebel-girls-of-the-bay-area\">\u003cem>Unsung Heroines: 35 Women Who Changed the Bay Area\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Vesuvio Cafe is a gorgeous bar right next to City Lights, the famous bookstore once frequented by figures like \u003ca href=\"https://www.timeout.com/san-francisco/bars/vesuvio\">Jack Kerouac and Allen Ginsberg\u003c/a> (they also publish books, and \u003cem>Unsung Heroines\u003c/em> is one of them). Alexandra’s preference is at the end of the bar, near the front door.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>Vesuvio Cafe is a gorgeous bar right next to City Lights, the famous bookstore once frequented by figures like \u003ca href=\"https://www.timeout.com/san-francisco/bars/vesuvio\">Jack Kerouac and Allen Ginsberg\u003c/a> (they also publish books, and \u003cem>Unsung Heroines\u003c/em> is one of them). Alexandra’s preference is at the end of the bar, near the front door.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/VesuvioSFGetty.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094749\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/VesuvioSFGetty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/VesuvioSFGetty-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/VesuvioSFGetty-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Vesuvio Bar in San Francisco, California, on July 13, 2017. \u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/VesuvioSFGetty.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094749\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Vesuvio Bar in San Francisco, California, on July 13, 2017. \u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>“\u003c/strong>It’s a habit that started by accident — going book shopping in City Lights and deciding I just \u003cem>had \u003c/em>to start reading what I’d bought immediately, so popping next door to the bar,” Alexandra said. “Vesuvio is quiet in the afternoon, so a nice place to read.” \u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>“\u003c/strong>It’s a habit that started by accident — going book shopping in City Lights and deciding I just \u003cem>had \u003c/em>to start reading what I’d bought immediately, so popping next door to the bar,” Alexandra said. “Vesuvio is quiet in the afternoon, so a nice place to read.” \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>If you want some nature reading with your City Lights read instead, take a 12-minute walk up Columbus Avenue to \u003cstrong>Ina Coolbrith Park,\u003c/strong> a small space with beautiful city views named after \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vlfR1eeDoME\">the state’s first poet laureate\u003c/a>. Alternatively, a little way up Columbus is \u003cstrong>Washington Square Park. \u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>If you want some nature reading with your City Lights read instead, take a 12-minute walk up Columbus Avenue to \u003cstrong>Ina Coolbrith Park,\u003c/strong> a small space with beautiful city views named after \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vlfR1eeDoME\">the state’s first poet laureate\u003c/a>. Alternatively, a little way up Columbus is \u003cstrong>Washington Square Park. \u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n"
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"blockName": "core/heading",
"attrs": {
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"text": "Golden Gate Park"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Golden Gate Park\u003c/h3>\n",
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"\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Golden Gate Park\u003c/h3>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/booknerderika?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ%3D%3D\">\u003cem>Erika Naulu\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem>, high school librarian in Concord \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/booknerderika?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ%3D%3D\">\u003cem>Erika Naulu\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem>, high school librarian in Concord \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>It’s hard \u003cem>not \u003c/em>to find a pretty spot in Golden Gate Park to read — but \u003ca href=\"https://gggp.org/conservatory-of-flowers/\">the Conservatory of Flowers\u003c/a> is probably my all-time favorite place to spread a blanket and rest.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>It’s hard \u003cem>not \u003c/em>to find a pretty spot in Golden Gate Park to read — but \u003ca href=\"https://gggp.org/conservatory-of-flowers/\">the Conservatory of Flowers\u003c/a> is probably my all-time favorite place to spread a blanket and rest.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Librarian Naulu agrees. For her, the best spot is the area between the California Academy of Sciences and de Young Museum. “There are fountains and benches where you can sit and relax,” she said.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>Librarian Naulu agrees. For her, the best spot is the area between the California Academy of Sciences and de Young Museum. “There are fountains and benches where you can sit and relax,” she said.\u003c/p>\n"
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"srcset": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/009_SanFrancisco_SkyStarWheel_03042021_qed.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/009_SanFrancisco_SkyStarWheel_03042021_qed-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/009_SanFrancisco_SkyStarWheel_03042021_qed-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/009_SanFrancisco_SkyStarWheel_03042021_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/009_SanFrancisco_SkyStarWheel_03042021_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/009_SanFrancisco_SkyStarWheel_03042021_qed-1920x1280.jpg 1920w",
"sizes": "(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/009_SanFrancisco_SkyStarWheel_03042021_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12022568\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/009_SanFrancisco_SkyStarWheel_03042021_qed.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/009_SanFrancisco_SkyStarWheel_03042021_qed-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/009_SanFrancisco_SkyStarWheel_03042021_qed-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/009_SanFrancisco_SkyStarWheel_03042021_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/009_SanFrancisco_SkyStarWheel_03042021_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/009_SanFrancisco_SkyStarWheel_03042021_qed-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">View from the SkyStar Observation Wheel of the de Young Museum in Golden Gate Park on March 4, 2021.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/009_SanFrancisco_SkyStarWheel_03042021_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12022568\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">View from the SkyStar Observation Wheel of the de Young Museum in Golden Gate Park on March 4, 2021.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“There are music performances sometimes at the music concourse that can get distracting if you are looking for a quiet spot,” Naulu said. “I like the background music sometimes though.” \u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>“There are music performances sometimes at the music concourse that can get distracting if you are looking for a quiet spot,” Naulu said. “I like the background music sometimes though.” \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>What makes the park particularly excellent for readers is the plethora of bookstores also available nearby, including: \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>What makes the park particularly excellent for readers is the plethora of bookstores also available nearby, including: \u003c/p>\n"
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"Gardens of Golden Gate Park has its own bookstore in the park, near Lincoln Way and Ninth Avenue. The Helen Crocker Russell Library of Horticulture is also nearby.",
"Green Apple Books on the Park is around a minute walk from the Ninth Street entrance to Golden Gate Park.",
"Borderlands Books (science fiction and fantasy focused) is around a 3-minute walk from the Stanyan Street entrance to Golden Gate Park.",
"Blackbird Bookstore and Cafe is around a 6-minute walk from the closest entrance on Lincoln Way to Golden Gate Park.",
"The Booksmith is around a 7-minute walk away from the closest entrance on Stanyan Street to Golden Gate Park.",
"Globus Books is around a 7-minute walk away from the closest entrance on Fulton Street to Golden Gate Park.",
"Bound Together Bookstore is around an 11-minute walk from the closest entrance on Stanyan Street to Golden Gate Park — but is just around the corner from Buena Vista Park, too."
]
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003c/ul>\n",
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null,
"\n\n",
null,
"\n\n",
null,
"\n\n",
null,
"\n\n",
null,
"\n\n",
null,
"\n\n",
null,
"\u003c/ul>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://gggp.org/shop/\">Gardens of Golden Gate Park\u003c/a> has its own bookstore \u003cem>in\u003c/em> the park, near Lincoln Way and Ninth Avenue. \u003ca href=\"https://gggp.org/learn/library-collection/\">The Helen Crocker Russell Library of Horticulture\u003c/a> is also nearby.\u003c/li>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://gggp.org/shop/\">Gardens of Golden Gate Park\u003c/a> has its own bookstore \u003cem>in\u003c/em> the park, near Lincoln Way and Ninth Avenue. \u003ca href=\"https://gggp.org/learn/library-collection/\">The Helen Crocker Russell Library of Horticulture\u003c/a> is also nearby.\u003c/li>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://greenapplebooks.com/\">Green Apple Books on the Park\u003c/a> is around a minute walk from the Ninth Street entrance to Golden Gate Park.\u003c/li>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://greenapplebooks.com/\">Green Apple Books on the Park\u003c/a> is around a minute walk from the Ninth Street entrance to Golden Gate Park.\u003c/li>\n"
]
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{
"blockName": "core/list-item",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://borderlands-books.com/v2/index.html\">Borderlands Books\u003c/a> (science fiction and fantasy focused) is around a 3-minute walk from the Stanyan Street entrance to Golden Gate Park.\u003c/li>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://borderlands-books.com/v2/index.html\">Borderlands Books\u003c/a> (science fiction and fantasy focused) is around a 3-minute walk from the Stanyan Street entrance to Golden Gate Park.\u003c/li>\n"
]
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{
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://blackbirdsf.com/\">Blackbird Bookstore and Cafe\u003c/a> is around a 6-minute walk from the closest entrance on Lincoln Way to Golden Gate Park.\u003c/li>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://blackbirdsf.com/\">Blackbird Bookstore and Cafe\u003c/a> is around a 6-minute walk from the closest entrance on Lincoln Way to Golden Gate Park.\u003c/li>\n"
]
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{
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://booksmith.com/\">The Booksmith\u003c/a> is around a 7-minute walk away from the closest entrance on Stanyan Street to Golden Gate Park.\u003c/li>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://booksmith.com/\">The Booksmith\u003c/a> is around a 7-minute walk away from the closest entrance on Stanyan Street to Golden Gate Park.\u003c/li>\n"
]
},
{
"blockName": "core/list-item",
"attrs": [],
"innerBlocks": [],
"innerHTML": "\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://www.globusbooks.com/\">Globus Books\u003c/a> is around a 7-minute walk away from the closest entrance on Fulton Street to Golden Gate Park.\u003c/li>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://www.globusbooks.com/\">Globus Books\u003c/a> is around a 7-minute walk away from the closest entrance on Fulton Street to Golden Gate Park.\u003c/li>\n"
]
},
{
"blockName": "core/list-item",
"attrs": [],
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://boundtogether.org/\">Bound Together Bookstore\u003c/a> is around an 11-minute walk from the closest entrance on Stanyan Street to Golden Gate Park — but is just around the corner from Buena Vista Park, too.\u003c/li>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://boundtogether.org/\">Bound Together Bookstore\u003c/a> is around an 11-minute walk from the closest entrance on Stanyan Street to Golden Gate Park — but is just around the corner from Buena Vista Park, too.\u003c/li>\n"
]
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]
},
{
"blockName": "core/heading",
"attrs": {
"level": 3,
"text": "La Promenade Café in the Outer Richmond"
},
"innerHTML": "\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">La Promenade Café in the Outer Richmond\u003c/h3>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">La Promenade Café in the Outer Richmond\u003c/h3>\n"
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{
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"attrs": [],
"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: Amy Gloriana, owner of bookstore \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.betweenthebookendssf.com/\">\u003cem>Between the Bookends\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: Amy Gloriana, owner of bookstore \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.betweenthebookendssf.com/\">\u003cem>Between the Bookends\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n"
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"blockName": "core/paragraph",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Gloriana said that \u003ca href=\"https://www.lapromenadecafe.com/\">La Promenade Café\u003c/a> has “so many options for seating and it’s so cozy!” There are usually a good amount of customers inside, but “never too loud” and “food and coffee is pretty good,” she said.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>Gloriana said that \u003ca href=\"https://www.lapromenadecafe.com/\">La Promenade Café\u003c/a> has “so many options for seating and it’s so cozy!” There are usually a good amount of customers inside, but “never too loud” and “food and coffee is pretty good,” she said.\u003c/p>\n"
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"blockName": "core/paragraph",
"attrs": [],
"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>And probably the most winning part of her rec: “It feels like you’re in \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9mRoCerrpY&list=RDY9mRoCerrpY&start_radio=1&pp=ygUQbG9maSBjb2ZmZWUgc2hvcKAHAdIHCQnECwGHKiGM7w%3D%3D\">a coffee shop lofi video\u003c/a>.”\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>And probably the most winning part of her rec: “It feels like you’re in \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9mRoCerrpY&list=RDY9mRoCerrpY&start_radio=1&pp=ygUQbG9maSBjb2ZmZWUgc2hvcKAHAdIHCQnECwGHKiGM7w%3D%3D\">a coffee shop lofi video\u003c/a>.”\u003c/p>\n"
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{
"blockName": "core/heading",
"attrs": {
"level": 3,
"text": "Charlie’s Cafe in the Mission"
},
"innerHTML": "\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Charlie’s Cafe in the Mission\u003c/h3>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Charlie’s Cafe in the Mission\u003c/h3>\n"
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"attrs": [],
"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: Sirkka Miller, bookseller at Dog Eared Books Valencia\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: Sirkka Miller, bookseller at Dog Eared Books Valencia\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n"
],
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{
"blockName": "core/paragraph",
"attrs": [],
"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Miller said Charlie’s Cafe has good coffee and, in the morning, is “well lit” and “nice and airy” in addition to being quiet. \u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>Miller said Charlie’s Cafe has good coffee and, in the morning, is “well lit” and “nice and airy” in addition to being quiet. \u003c/p>\n"
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{
"blockName": "core/paragraph",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>A bonus for Charlie’s is that it is \u003cem>right\u003c/em> next to Precita Park, which has \u003ca href=\"https://sfrecpark.org/898/Precita-Park\">a butterfly garden\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>A bonus for Charlie’s is that it is \u003cem>right\u003c/em> next to Precita Park, which has \u003ca href=\"https://sfrecpark.org/898/Precita-Park\">a butterfly garden\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n"
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{
"blockName": "core/image",
"attrs": {
"id": 12081136,
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"linkDestination": "none",
"imageCredit": "Lonely Planet/Getty Images",
"srcset": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/RomanceGetty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/RomanceGetty-160x103.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/RomanceGetty-1536x993.jpg 1536w",
"sizes": "(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/RomanceGetty.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12081136\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/RomanceGetty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/RomanceGetty-160x103.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/RomanceGetty-1536x993.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">People relaxing in the grass at Dolores Park in San Francisco.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/RomanceGetty.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12081136\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">People relaxing in the grass at Dolores Park in San Francisco.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"blockName": "core/heading",
"attrs": {
"level": 3,
"text": "Dolores Park in the Mission "
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Dolores Park in the Mission \u003c/h3>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Dolores Park in the Mission \u003c/h3>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: Grace Wathen, bookseller at \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.thelovepotionlibrary.com/\">\u003cem>The Love Potion Library\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: Grace Wathen, bookseller at \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.thelovepotionlibrary.com/\">\u003cem>The Love Potion Library\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n"
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"blockName": "core/paragraph",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Wathen said her usual spots are “anywhere I can read under a tree.” Near Dolores Park is \u003cstrong>Dolores Cafe\u003c/strong>, which includes outside seating and a pretty magnificent view of the park.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>Wathen said her usual spots are “anywhere I can read under a tree.” Near Dolores Park is \u003cstrong>Dolores Cafe\u003c/strong>, which includes outside seating and a pretty magnificent view of the park.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>If you need a book, there are also stores near the park, including:\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>If you need a book, there are also stores near the park, including:\u003c/p>\n"
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"Dog Eared Books, around a 6-minute walk away from the closest entrance to Dolores Park.",
"Fabulosa Books, around a 10-minute walk away from the closest entrance to Dolores Park."
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\n\u003c/ul>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://www.dogearedbooks.com/\">Dog Eared Books\u003c/a>, around a 6-minute walk away from the closest entrance to Dolores Park.\u003c/li>\n",
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"\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://www.dogearedbooks.com/\">Dog Eared Books\u003c/a>, around a 6-minute walk away from the closest entrance to Dolores Park.\u003c/li>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"http://fabulosabooks.com/\">Fabulosa Books\u003c/a>, around a 10-minute walk away from the closest entrance to Dolores Park.\u003c/li>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"http://fabulosabooks.com/\">Fabulosa Books\u003c/a>, around a 10-minute walk away from the closest entrance to Dolores Park.\u003c/li>\n"
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"attrs": {
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"text": "The International Library of Young Authors in the Mission"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>This incredible sweet spot — which features titles written by young writers across the country — is a favorite of this reporter, as it’s also the home of literary magazines like McSweeney’s (founded by the Bay Area’s Dave Eggers) and The Believer. The “library” has comfy couches, plenty of sunlight and a pretty whimsical hidden room at the back. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>This incredible sweet spot — which features titles written by young writers across the country — is a favorite of this reporter, as it’s also the home of literary magazines like McSweeney’s (founded by the Bay Area’s Dave Eggers) and The Believer. The “library” has comfy couches, plenty of sunlight and a pretty whimsical hidden room at the back. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The space sometimes hosts workshops for young people, so it’s best to check their schedule beforehand to make sure you’re able to pop in during the quiet, empty hours.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>The space sometimes hosts workshops for young people, so it’s best to check their schedule beforehand to make sure you’re able to pop in during the quiet, empty hours.\u003c/p>\n"
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"attrs": {
"text": "The best places to read in East Bay",
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"text": "Clio’s in Oakland"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/gabbi.rose?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ%3D%3D\">\u003cem>Gabbi Sharp\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem>, host of \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://oaklandlibrary.bibliocommons.com/events/67c8f1a4596bfd2f00183710\">\u003cem>the Black Authors Book Club\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem> at the West Oakland Branch Library\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/gabbi.rose?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ%3D%3D\">\u003cem>Gabbi Sharp\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem>, host of \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://oaklandlibrary.bibliocommons.com/events/67c8f1a4596bfd2f00183710\">\u003cem>the Black Authors Book Club\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem> at the West Oakland Branch Library\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.cliosbooks.com/\">Clio’s\u003c/a> is a stylish bar and bookstore. As Sharp said, “I always bring my own book to read. They have such cozy couches, a warm atmosphere, and they are open late!” \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.cliosbooks.com/\">Clio’s\u003c/a> is a stylish bar and bookstore. As Sharp said, “I always bring my own book to read. They have such cozy couches, a warm atmosphere, and they are open late!” \u003c/p>\n"
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"text": "Lake Chabot in Castro Valley"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: Concord librarian Naulu\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: Concord librarian Naulu\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Naulu recommends this \u003ca href=\"https://www.ebparks.org/parks/lake-chabot\">gated regional park\u003c/a> where people also boat and fish. “I like to walk the trails while listening to audiobooks,” Naulu said. “There are places to sit and read as well near the lake, but depending on the day, it can get busy and noisy with campers or other people.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Naulu recommends this \u003ca href=\"https://www.ebparks.org/parks/lake-chabot\">gated regional park\u003c/a> where people also boat and fish. “I like to walk the trails while listening to audiobooks,” Naulu said. “There are places to sit and read as well near the lake, but depending on the day, it can get busy and noisy with campers or other people.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>You’ll need to pay for parking within the regional park itself, but there’s also parking available on the road just outside the park, which is free.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>You’ll need to pay for parking within the regional park itself, but there’s also parking available on the road just outside the park, which is free.\u003c/p>\n"
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"srcset": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/LakeMerrittReadingGetty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/LakeMerrittReadingGetty-160x110.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/LakeMerrittReadingGetty-1536x1058.jpg 1536w",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/LakeMerrittReadingGetty.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094745\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/LakeMerrittReadingGetty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/LakeMerrittReadingGetty-160x110.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/LakeMerrittReadingGetty-1536x1058.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A woman reads a book at Lake Merritt in Oakland, California, on Saturday, May 16, 2020. \u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/LakeMerrittReadingGetty.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094745\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A woman reads a book at Lake Merritt in Oakland, California, on Saturday, May 16, 2020. \u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"text": "Lake Merritt in Oakland"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/ablacklibrarian?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ%3D%3D\">\u003cem>Makayla Walker\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem>, librarian in Oakland\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/ablacklibrarian?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ%3D%3D\">\u003cem>Makayla Walker\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem>, librarian in Oakland\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Lake Merritt is a favorite, especially on sunny days, Walker said. There are also \u003ca href=\"https://www.lakemerritt.org/gardens.html\">specific gardens\u003c/a> within Lake Merritt to choose from. \u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>Lake Merritt is a favorite, especially on sunny days, Walker said. There are also \u003ca href=\"https://www.lakemerritt.org/gardens.html\">specific gardens\u003c/a> within Lake Merritt to choose from. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Perhaps Lake Merritt is the place for a nice fantasy novel, considering \u003ca href=\"https://www.lakemerritt.org/fairyland.html\">children’s amusement park Fairyland\u003c/a> is nearby as well.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>Perhaps Lake Merritt is the place for a nice fantasy novel, considering \u003ca href=\"https://www.lakemerritt.org/fairyland.html\">children’s amusement park Fairyland\u003c/a> is nearby as well.\u003c/p>\n"
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"attrs": {
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"text": "Bishop Ranch in San Ramon"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Bishop Ranch in San Ramon\u003c/h3>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: Concord librarian Naulu\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: Concord librarian Naulu\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>As a large, lush open space, Naulu called Bishop Ranch a “hidden gem of San Ramon.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>As a large, lush open space, Naulu called Bishop Ranch a “hidden gem of San Ramon.” \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>There’s also \u003ca href=\"https://www.bishopranch.com/venue/annabel-lake/\">Annabel Lake \u003c/a>nearby, with “a lot of benches around it that are perfect for reading,” she said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>There’s also \u003ca href=\"https://www.bishopranch.com/venue/annabel-lake/\">Annabel Lake \u003c/a>nearby, with “a lot of benches around it that are perfect for reading,” she said.\u003c/p>\n"
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"imageCredit": "Courtesy of Kara Brodgesell via Book Society. ",
"srcset": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/BookSociety_Jan2025_001.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/BookSociety_Jan2025_001-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/BookSociety_Jan2025_001-1536x1024.jpg 1536w",
"sizes": "(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/BookSociety_Jan2025_001.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12081140\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/BookSociety_Jan2025_001.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/BookSociety_Jan2025_001-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/BookSociety_Jan2025_001-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Book Society is a wine lounge based in Berkeley. \u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/BookSociety_Jan2025_001.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12081140\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Book Society is a wine lounge based in Berkeley. \u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>A wine lounge with \u003ca href=\"https://www.booksociety.social/menu\">a menu of snacks and nonalcoholic options\u003c/a> to choose from, the Book Society is a stylish space with popular titles for sale as well. There are also couches to lounge on, as well as soft chairs and bar stools. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>A wine lounge with \u003ca href=\"https://www.booksociety.social/menu\">a menu of snacks and nonalcoholic options\u003c/a> to choose from, the Book Society is a stylish space with popular titles for sale as well. There are also couches to lounge on, as well as soft chairs and bar stools. \u003c/p>\n"
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"blockName": "core/heading",
"attrs": {
"text": "The best places to read in North Bay",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"north-bay\">The best places to read in North Bay\u003c/h2>\n",
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"\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"north-bay\">The best places to read in North Bay\u003c/h2>\n"
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"blockName": "core/heading",
"attrs": {
"level": 3,
"text": "Mill Valley Depot Café & Bookstore in Mill Valley "
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Mill Valley Depot Café & Bookstore in Mill Valley \u003c/h3>\n",
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"\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Mill Valley Depot Café & Bookstore in Mill Valley \u003c/h3>\n"
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"blockName": "core/paragraph",
"attrs": [],
"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>This cafe offers \u003ca href=\"https://www.depotcafeandbookstore.com/\">a large menu\u003c/a>, allowing you to spend some time grazing while going through your book.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>This cafe offers \u003ca href=\"https://www.depotcafeandbookstore.com/\">a large menu\u003c/a>, allowing you to spend some time grazing while going through your book.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The cafe also doubles as an independent bookstore and an event space — so be sure to \u003ca href=\"https://www.depotcafeandbookstore.com/events\">check out the calendar\u003c/a> if you’d like to see a live music show that day as well (or avoid one, if you’re seeking serenity!).\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The cafe also doubles as an independent bookstore and an event space — so be sure to \u003ca href=\"https://www.depotcafeandbookstore.com/events\">check out the calendar\u003c/a> if you’d like to see a live music show that day as well (or avoid one, if you’re seeking serenity!).\u003c/p>\n"
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"attrs": {
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"text": "The Mill Valley Public Library"
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"heroImage": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/Literary-Dates-Hangouts.jpg"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The Mill Valley branch has \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/mill_valley_library/?hl=en\">wide glass windows, high ceilings and cozy lighting\u003c/a> that allow visitors to really feel like they are engulfed in the surrounding woods. In this reporter’s humble opinion, it’s probably one of the prettiest public libraries in the Bay Area. \u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>The Mill Valley branch has \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/mill_valley_library/?hl=en\">wide glass windows, high ceilings and cozy lighting\u003c/a> that allow visitors to really feel like they are engulfed in the surrounding woods. In this reporter’s humble opinion, it’s probably one of the prettiest public libraries in the Bay Area. \u003c/p>\n"
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"text": "Aqus Cafe in Petaluma"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: Danielle Venton, KQED Science and climate reporter, host of \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/event/4149/climate-book-club\">\u003cem>KQED’s Climate Book Club\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: Danielle Venton, KQED Science and climate reporter, host of \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/event/4149/climate-book-club\">\u003cem>KQED’s Climate Book Club\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>A little away from the bustling downtown, Venton said that Aqus Cafe is “very welcoming to those bookishly quiet of us, who want to be around other people without necessarily talking to them.” \u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>A little away from the bustling downtown, Venton said that Aqus Cafe is “very welcoming to those bookishly quiet of us, who want to be around other people without necessarily talking to them.” \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>But if you \u003cem>would \u003c/em>like to be closer to downtown, Venton also recommended historic saloon \u003cstrong>McNears, \u003c/strong>adding that the staff there has “been kind and patient with me, letting me hide out upstairs reading and writing.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>But if you \u003cem>would \u003c/em>like to be closer to downtown, Venton also recommended historic saloon \u003cstrong>McNears, \u003c/strong>adding that the staff there has “been kind and patient with me, letting me hide out upstairs reading and writing.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"text": "Oak Hill in Petaluma"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: Danielle Venton, KQED Science and climate reporter, host of KQED’s Climate Book Club\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: Danielle Venton, KQED Science and climate reporter, host of KQED’s Climate Book Club\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Venton said that this park has “everything you want.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>There are picnic tables, a kid’s playground, dog run, petanque court, basketball hoop and, most importantly for readers, “enormous live oak trees offering abundant shade over a large lawn,” she said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>There are picnic tables, a kid’s playground, dog run, petanque court, basketball hoop and, most importantly for readers, “enormous live oak trees offering abundant shade over a large lawn,” she said. \u003c/p>\n"
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"text": "Fioli Estate in Woodside"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Recommendation from: Yung Le, co-founder of \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/anovelaffairbookcafe/\">A Novel Affair\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>This gorgeous, Austenland-like garden was actually Le’s previous recommendation to KQED for \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12081122/bay-area-book-lovers-we-have-highly-literary-date-or-friend-hang-ideas-for-your-weekend\">a literary-themed date\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>At \u003ca href=\"https://51772.blackbaudhosting.com/51772/tickets?tab=2&txobjid=85164de0-552f-49c6-8ba5-ce4be2af4d14\">around $45 for adults\u003c/a>, Filoli is a pricier option for a day out with a book. But people with \u003ca href=\"https://filoli.org/visit/#!\">a SNAP (CalFresh) EBT card or a Discover and Go pass\u003c/a> from the library can get free and reduced admission.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerContent": [
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"text": "The A.M. Craft in San José"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: Amy Ly, \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"http://instagram.com/silentbookclubsanjose?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ==\">\u003cem>San José Silent Book Club\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem> moderator\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>This cafe and restaurant is located in downtown San José, and Ly called \u003ca href=\"https://am-craft.mailchimpsites.com/about-us\">A.M. Craft\u003c/a> “my little hideout when I want to get some reading done on a Saturday morning.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Gimme a cold brew, pastry and a good read, and I’ll happily read for a few hours,” Ly said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/sfbookgirl?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ%3D%3D\">\u003cem>Ciera Pasturel\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem>, San Mateo County librarian\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Pasturel recommends specifically the patio of the Atherton Library, which is “under an enormous oak tree.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“There is ample seating as well as a cafe that sells delicious coffee and pastries,” Pasturel added.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Weather permitting, of course! Naulu said that she tends to take her e-reader to the beach instead of a physical book, since it “does get windy.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>One of the easiest ways to remind myself that life is worth living is grabbing my current read and taking it out of the house with me. It’s an essential tote bag accessory, along with my keys, chapstick and sunscreen. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>So imagine my surprise when I saw this post from a user whose friend took a picture of them reading — on what appears to be a lovely bench — captioned: “My friends called me performative cause this is how they found me lmao??” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Yes, it’s probably a joke — and it definitely sounds like something my friends would say ironically as well. (“Going to bring a book to the BTS concert so RM sees me reading in the audience and knows I’m not like other girls,” etc. etc.) But \u003ca href=\"https://www.instyle.com/elle-fanning-reading-interview-coach-11914208\">being a\u003c/a> \u003ca href=\"https://x.com/Lilys_verses/status/2082914715525611989\">“performative reader”\u003c/a> — \u003ca href=\"https://www.newyorker.com/culture/the-lede/performative-reading?_sp=5af1db0a-9ac4-4ed6-a317-ecbb6b519457.1786058480642\">i.e., reading in public\u003c/a>, in \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-F_A7qvs5Gs\">various configurations\u003c/a> —\u003cem>has \u003c/em>turned into \u003ca href=\"https://www.nbcnews.com/pop-culture/books/performative-reading-trend-social-media-booktok-readers-weigh-in-rcna237393\">something of a jab\u003c/a> from \u003ca href=\"https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2025/jun/30/performative-reading-public-tiktok\">the Very Online\u003c/a>. And it’s for everyone, not just the apparent \u003ca href=\"https://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/article/chore-coats-moustaches-and-female-fiction-meet-the-men-doing-the-performative-reading-meme-irl\">“pretentious guy on a dating app\u003c/a>” archetype.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-x wp-block-embed-x\">\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But as \u003ca href=\"https://www.newyorker.com/culture/the-lede/performative-reading?_sp=5af1db0a-9ac4-4ed6-a317-ecbb6b519457.1786058480642\">\u003cem>The New Yorker’s \u003c/em>Brady Brickner-Wood\u003c/a> wrote, “If everything is potentially performative, how will we ever work up the courage to step outside of our sphere of normal, to risk being earnest and cringe, and experience something transformative?” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>And as Brickner-Wood said, “Reading a book is antithetical to scrolling; online platforms cannot replicate the slow, patient, and complex experience of reading a weighty novel.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So in celebration of reading outside — \u003ca href=\"https://www.tiktok.com/@hopeurdoingwellbruh/video/7653930211234336031\">which \u003cem>is\u003c/em> a vibe\u003c/a> — I consulted some of the Bay Area’s writers, librarians and booksellers and went on the hunt to find excellent spots in the region that will let you sit down for a while with a good read. (As always, be sure to check the hours of any businesses on this list before heading out, to make sure it’s still open.)\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-tiktok wp-block-embed-tiktok\">\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\nhttps://www.tiktok.com/@hopeurdoingwellbruh/video/7653930211234336031\n\u003c/div>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>And if you don’t have something in your \u003ca href=\"https://www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/tbr\">TBR list\u003c/a> that’s speaking to you right now, you can check out KQED’s Forum episode \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/forum/2010101914694/whats-on-your-summer-reading-list-4\">interviewing Bay Area booksellers on some popular summer titles\u003c/a>. (I am currently reading \u003cem>The Brothers Karamazov\u003c/em> with a friend, which, I’ll admit, is not helping me beat the performative reading allegations.)\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Jump straight to the best places to read in:\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"#east-bay\">East Bay\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"#north-bay\">North Bay\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"#peninsula\">South Bay and Peninsula\u003c/a>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The best places to read in San Francisco\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Vesuvio Cafe in North Beach\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: Rae Alexandra, KQED Arts and Culture reporter and author of \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12077049/unsung-heroines-rebel-girls-of-the-bay-area\">\u003cem>Unsung Heroines: 35 Women Who Changed the Bay Area\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Vesuvio Cafe is a gorgeous bar right next to City Lights, the famous bookstore once frequented by figures like \u003ca href=\"https://www.timeout.com/san-francisco/bars/vesuvio\">Jack Kerouac and Allen Ginsberg\u003c/a> (they also publish books, and \u003cem>Unsung Heroines\u003c/em> is one of them). Alexandra’s preference is at the end of the bar, near the front door.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/VesuvioSFGetty.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094749\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/VesuvioSFGetty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/VesuvioSFGetty-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/VesuvioSFGetty-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Vesuvio Bar in San Francisco, California, on July 13, 2017. (Michael Macor/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>“\u003c/strong>It’s a habit that started by accident — going book shopping in City Lights and deciding I just \u003cem>had \u003c/em>to start reading what I’d bought immediately, so popping next door to the bar,” Alexandra said. “Vesuvio is quiet in the afternoon, so a nice place to read.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>If you want some nature reading with your City Lights read instead, take a 12-minute walk up Columbus Avenue to \u003cstrong>Ina Coolbrith Park,\u003c/strong> a small space with beautiful city views named after \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vlfR1eeDoME\">the state’s first poet laureate\u003c/a>. Alternatively, a little way up Columbus is \u003cstrong>Washington Square Park. \u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Golden Gate Park\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/booknerderika?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ%3D%3D\">\u003cem>Erika Naulu\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem>, high school librarian in Concord \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>It’s hard \u003cem>not \u003c/em>to find a pretty spot in Golden Gate Park to read — but \u003ca href=\"https://gggp.org/conservatory-of-flowers/\">the Conservatory of Flowers\u003c/a> is probably my all-time favorite place to spread a blanket and rest.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Librarian Naulu agrees. For her, the best spot is the area between the California Academy of Sciences and de Young Museum. “There are fountains and benches where you can sit and relax,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1999\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/009_SanFrancisco_SkyStarWheel_03042021_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12022568\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/009_SanFrancisco_SkyStarWheel_03042021_qed.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/009_SanFrancisco_SkyStarWheel_03042021_qed-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/009_SanFrancisco_SkyStarWheel_03042021_qed-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/009_SanFrancisco_SkyStarWheel_03042021_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/009_SanFrancisco_SkyStarWheel_03042021_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/009_SanFrancisco_SkyStarWheel_03042021_qed-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1999px) 100vw, 1999px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">View from the SkyStar Observation Wheel of the de Young Museum in Golden Gate Park on March 4, 2021. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“There are music performances sometimes at the music concourse that can get distracting if you are looking for a quiet spot,” Naulu said. “I like the background music sometimes though.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>What makes the park particularly excellent for readers is the plethora of bookstores also available nearby, including: \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://gggp.org/shop/\">Gardens of Golden Gate Park\u003c/a> has its own bookstore \u003cem>in\u003c/em> the park, near Lincoln Way and Ninth Avenue. \u003ca href=\"https://gggp.org/learn/library-collection/\">The Helen Crocker Russell Library of Horticulture\u003c/a> is also nearby.\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://greenapplebooks.com/\">Green Apple Books on the Park\u003c/a> is around a minute walk from the Ninth Street entrance to Golden Gate Park.\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://borderlands-books.com/v2/index.html\">Borderlands Books\u003c/a> (science fiction and fantasy focused) is around a 3-minute walk from the Stanyan Street entrance to Golden Gate Park.\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://blackbirdsf.com/\">Blackbird Bookstore and Cafe\u003c/a> is around a 6-minute walk from the closest entrance on Lincoln Way to Golden Gate Park.\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://booksmith.com/\">The Booksmith\u003c/a> is around a 7-minute walk away from the closest entrance on Stanyan Street to Golden Gate Park.\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://www.globusbooks.com/\">Globus Books\u003c/a> is around a 7-minute walk away from the closest entrance on Fulton Street to Golden Gate Park.\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://boundtogether.org/\">Bound Together Bookstore\u003c/a> is around an 11-minute walk from the closest entrance on Stanyan Street to Golden Gate Park — but is just around the corner from Buena Vista Park, too.\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">La Promenade Café in the Outer Richmond\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: Amy Gloriana, owner of bookstore \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.betweenthebookendssf.com/\">\u003cem>Between the Bookends\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Gloriana said that \u003ca href=\"https://www.lapromenadecafe.com/\">La Promenade Café\u003c/a> has “so many options for seating and it’s so cozy!” There are usually a good amount of customers inside, but “never too loud” and “food and coffee is pretty good,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>And probably the most winning part of her rec: “It feels like you’re in \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9mRoCerrpY&list=RDY9mRoCerrpY&start_radio=1&pp=ygUQbG9maSBjb2ZmZWUgc2hvcKAHAdIHCQnECwGHKiGM7w%3D%3D\">a coffee shop lofi video\u003c/a>.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Charlie’s Cafe in the Mission\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: Sirkka Miller, bookseller at Dog Eared Books Valencia\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Miller said Charlie’s Cafe has good coffee and, in the morning, is “well lit” and “nice and airy” in addition to being quiet. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>A bonus for Charlie’s is that it is \u003cem>right\u003c/em> next to Precita Park, which has \u003ca href=\"https://sfrecpark.org/898/Precita-Park\">a butterfly garden\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1293\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/RomanceGetty.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12081136\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/RomanceGetty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/RomanceGetty-160x103.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/RomanceGetty-1536x993.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">People relaxing in the grass at Dolores Park in San Francisco. (Lonely Planet/Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Dolores Park in the Mission \u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: Grace Wathen, bookseller at \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.thelovepotionlibrary.com/\">\u003cem>The Love Potion Library\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Wathen said her usual spots are “anywhere I can read under a tree.” Near Dolores Park is \u003cstrong>Dolores Cafe\u003c/strong>, which includes outside seating and a pretty magnificent view of the park.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>If you need a book, there are also stores near the park, including:\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"https://www.dogearedbooks.com/\">Dog Eared Books\u003c/a>, around a 6-minute walk away from the closest entrance to Dolores Park.\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>\u003ca href=\"http://fabulosabooks.com/\">Fabulosa Books\u003c/a>, around a 10-minute walk away from the closest entrance to Dolores Park.\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The International Library of Young Authors in the Mission\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>This incredible sweet spot — which features titles written by young writers across the country — is a favorite of this reporter, as it’s also the home of literary magazines like McSweeney’s (founded by the Bay Area’s Dave Eggers) and The Believer. The “library” has comfy couches, plenty of sunlight and a pretty whimsical hidden room at the back. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The space sometimes hosts workshops for young people, so it’s best to check their schedule beforehand to make sure you’re able to pop in during the quiet, empty hours.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"east-bay\">The best places to read in East Bay\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Clio’s in Oakland\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/gabbi.rose?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ%3D%3D\">\u003cem>Gabbi Sharp\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem>, host of \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://oaklandlibrary.bibliocommons.com/events/67c8f1a4596bfd2f00183710\">\u003cem>the Black Authors Book Club\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem> at the West Oakland Branch Library\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.cliosbooks.com/\">Clio’s\u003c/a> is a stylish bar and bookstore. As Sharp said, “I always bring my own book to read. They have such cozy couches, a warm atmosphere, and they are open late!” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Lake Chabot in Castro Valley\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: Concord librarian Naulu\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Naulu recommends this \u003ca href=\"https://www.ebparks.org/parks/lake-chabot\">gated regional park\u003c/a> where people also boat and fish. “I like to walk the trails while listening to audiobooks,” Naulu said. “There are places to sit and read as well near the lake, but depending on the day, it can get busy and noisy with campers or other people.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>You’ll need to pay for parking within the regional park itself, but there’s also parking available on the road just outside the park, which is free.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1378\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/LakeMerrittReadingGetty.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094745\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/LakeMerrittReadingGetty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/LakeMerrittReadingGetty-160x110.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/LakeMerrittReadingGetty-1536x1058.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A woman reads a book at Lake Merritt in Oakland, California, on Saturday, May 16, 2020. (Paul Chinn/The San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Lake Merritt in Oakland\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/ablacklibrarian?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ%3D%3D\">\u003cem>Makayla Walker\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem>, librarian in Oakland\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Lake Merritt is a favorite, especially on sunny days, Walker said. There are also \u003ca href=\"https://www.lakemerritt.org/gardens.html\">specific gardens\u003c/a> within Lake Merritt to choose from. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Perhaps Lake Merritt is the place for a nice fantasy novel, considering \u003ca href=\"https://www.lakemerritt.org/fairyland.html\">children’s amusement park Fairyland\u003c/a> is nearby as well.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Bishop Ranch in San Ramon\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: Concord librarian Naulu\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>As a large, lush open space, Naulu called Bishop Ranch a “hidden gem of San Ramon.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>There’s also \u003ca href=\"https://www.bishopranch.com/venue/annabel-lake/\">Annabel Lake \u003c/a>nearby, with “a lot of benches around it that are perfect for reading,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/BookSociety_Jan2025_001.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12081140\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/BookSociety_Jan2025_001.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/BookSociety_Jan2025_001-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/BookSociety_Jan2025_001-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Book Society is a wine lounge based in Berkeley. (Courtesy of Kara Brodgesell via Book Society.)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Book Society in Berkeley\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>A wine lounge with \u003ca href=\"https://www.booksociety.social/menu\">a menu of snacks and nonalcoholic options\u003c/a> to choose from, the Book Society is a stylish space with popular titles for sale as well. There are also couches to lounge on, as well as soft chairs and bar stools. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"north-bay\">The best places to read in North Bay\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Mill Valley Depot Café & Bookstore in Mill Valley \u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>This cafe offers \u003ca href=\"https://www.depotcafeandbookstore.com/\">a large menu\u003c/a>, allowing you to spend some time grazing while going through your book.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The cafe also doubles as an independent bookstore and an event space — so be sure to \u003ca href=\"https://www.depotcafeandbookstore.com/events\">check out the calendar\u003c/a> if you’d like to see a live music show that day as well (or avoid one, if you’re seeking serenity!).\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Mill Valley Public Library\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The Mill Valley branch has \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/mill_valley_library/?hl=en\">wide glass windows, high ceilings and cozy lighting\u003c/a> that allow visitors to really feel like they are engulfed in the surrounding woods. In this reporter’s humble opinion, it’s probably one of the prettiest public libraries in the Bay Area. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Aqus Cafe in Petaluma\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: Danielle Venton, KQED Science and climate reporter, host of \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/event/4149/climate-book-club\">\u003cem>KQED’s Climate Book Club\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>A little away from the bustling downtown, Venton said that Aqus Cafe is “very welcoming to those bookishly quiet of us, who want to be around other people without necessarily talking to them.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But if you \u003cem>would \u003c/em>like to be closer to downtown, Venton also recommended historic saloon \u003cstrong>McNears, \u003c/strong>adding that the staff there has “been kind and patient with me, letting me hide out upstairs reading and writing.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Oak Hill in Petaluma\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: Danielle Venton, KQED Science and climate reporter, host of KQED’s Climate Book Club\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Venton said that this park has “everything you want.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>There are picnic tables, a kid’s playground, dog run, petanque court, basketball hoop and, most importantly for readers, “enormous live oak trees offering abundant shade over a large lawn,” she said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"peninsula\">The best places to read in South Bay and the Peninsula\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Fioli Estate in Woodside\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Recommendation from: Yung Le, co-founder of \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/anovelaffairbookcafe/\">A Novel Affair\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>This gorgeous, Austenland-like garden was actually Le’s previous recommendation to KQED for \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12081122/bay-area-book-lovers-we-have-highly-literary-date-or-friend-hang-ideas-for-your-weekend\">a literary-themed date\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>At \u003ca href=\"https://51772.blackbaudhosting.com/51772/tickets?tab=2&txobjid=85164de0-552f-49c6-8ba5-ce4be2af4d14\">around $45 for adults\u003c/a>, Filoli is a pricier option for a day out with a book. But people with \u003ca href=\"https://filoli.org/visit/#!\">a SNAP (CalFresh) EBT card or a Discover and Go pass\u003c/a> from the library can get free and reduced admission.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/Filoli-AlbertDros-9.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12081141\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/Filoli-AlbertDros-9.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/Filoli-AlbertDros-9-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/04/Filoli-AlbertDros-9-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Fioli, in Woodside, is an historic estate with landscape gardens that brings pure Pemberley vibes to the Peninsula. \u003cbr> (Courtesy of Albert Dros via Fioli)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The A.M. Craft in San José\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: Amy Ly, \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"http://instagram.com/silentbookclubsanjose?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ==\">\u003cem>San José Silent Book Club\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem> moderator\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>This cafe and restaurant is located in downtown San José, and Ly called \u003ca href=\"https://am-craft.mailchimpsites.com/about-us\">A.M. Craft\u003c/a> “my little hideout when I want to get some reading done on a Saturday morning.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Gimme a cold brew, pastry and a good read, and I’ll happily read for a few hours,” Ly said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Atherton Library in Atherton\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/sfbookgirl?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ%3D%3D\">\u003cem>Ciera Pasturel\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem>, San Mateo County librarian\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Pasturel recommends specifically the patio of the Atherton Library, which is “under an enormous oak tree.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“There is ample seating as well as a cafe that sells delicious coffee and pastries,” Pasturel added.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Half Moon Bay Beach\u003c/h3>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Recommendation from: Concord librarian Naulu\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Weather permitting, of course! Naulu said that she tends to take her e-reader to the beach instead of a physical book, since it “does get windy.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But it makes for a pleasant family outing, since she can settle with a book while her kids build sandcastles next to her.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "san-franciscos-official-flower-turns-100-celebrate-with-a-free-dahlia-show-this-weekend",
"title": "San Francisco’s Official Flower Turns 100. Celebrate With a Free Dahlia Show This Weekend",
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"headTitle": "San Francisco’s Official Flower Turns 100. Celebrate With a Free Dahlia Show This Weekend | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cp>If you’ve ever wondered what hundreds of the most ornamental flowers with striking geometric forms would look like under one roof, there’s a free event in \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/golden-gate-park\">Golden Gate Park\u003c/a> this weekend that can give you a pretty good idea. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The Dahlia Society of California’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfdahlias.org/dsc-annual-dahlia-show\">annual Dahlia Show and Competition\u003c/a> returns this Saturday and Sunday at the County Fair Building near Ninth Avenue and Lincoln Way. The show is free and open to the public. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>More than a hundred growers are expected to enter blooms for judging, with ribbons and cash prizes awarded in categories including Best in Show, photography and floral arrangements. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1999\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-1553502485-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094981\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-1553502485-KQED.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-1553502485-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-1553502485-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1999px) 100vw, 1999px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Visitors enjoy dahlia flowers at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco on July 24, 2023. (Li Jianguo/Xinhua via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Thousands of people pour through these doors over the weekends, and there’s something for everyone,” said Jenna Kaiser, a dahlia ambassador with the society. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“There’s a photo booth, and the orchid people will have a table there as well. The arrangement category is a big hit with the general public because there’s a theme to it.” This year’s arrangement theme is San Francisco icons, Kaiser said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And there’s an extra reason to celebrate. 2026 marks 100 years since the dahlia became San Francisco’s official flower.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The city’s Board of Supervisors designated the \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfdahlias.org/official-sf-flower\">dahlia the official flower on Oct. 4, 1926\u003c/a>. The flower had already been growing in Golden Gate Park since the 1880s, and its ability to thrive in San Francisco’s cool summers and moist air helped make it a natural fit for the city. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>During the show, visitors can watch judges make their way through the entries with clipboards on Saturday, and by Sunday, the winning blooms will be marked by ribbons. There’s also a People’s Choice Award, where visitors can vote for their favorite flower. Voters can take part by visiting the \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/sfdahliasociety/\">society’s Instagram account\u003c/a> and casting their vote this weekend, Kaiser said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It’s a room full of the most colorful, spectacular, perfect dahlias you’ve ever seen,” Kaiser said. “A sea of blooms.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Think your backyard dahlia could be a contender? You don’t have to be a professional grower to enter the show.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>To compete, exhibitors must be members of a dahlia society affiliated with the American Dahlia Society. The Dahlia Society of California’s individual membership costs $10 a year and includes eligibility to participate in the annual show. The society welcomes growers at all levels.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1940\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-1162632631-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094980\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-1162632631-KQED.jpg 1940w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-1162632631-KQED-160x110.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-1162632631-KQED-1536x1055.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1940px) 100vw, 1940px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">People visit a dahlia flower exhibition at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco on Saturday, Aug. 17, 2019. (Li Jianguo/Xinhua via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Exhibitors also need an exhibitor number and must follow the show’s classification and entry rules. The \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfdahlias.org/annual-dahlia-show\">society’s show information\u003c/a> said entries must be in place by 9 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 15. The full show schedule includes the different classes and requirements for individual blooms, arrangements and other categories.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Volunteers at the Dahlia Society of California, founded in 1917, help maintain the historic \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfdahlias.org/dahlia-dell\">Dahlia Dell in Golden Gate Park\u003c/a>, where more than 700 named varieties are grown. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>For Kaiser, that community is part of what makes the flower so addictive. “You get your feet wet, and then you can’t help yourself,” she said. “You want one of each [type of dahlia].” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.sfdahlias.org/annual-dahlia-show\">\u003cem>The Annual Dahlia Show\u003c/em>\u003c/a> \u003cem>at Golden Gate Park is free to attend and takes place this Saturday, Aug. 15, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday, Aug. 16, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The Dahlia Society of California’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfdahlias.org/dsc-annual-dahlia-show\">annual Dahlia Show and Competition\u003c/a> returns this Saturday and Sunday at the County Fair Building near Ninth Avenue and Lincoln Way. The show is free and open to the public. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>More than a hundred growers are expected to enter blooms for judging, with ribbons and cash prizes awarded in categories including Best in Show, photography and floral arrangements. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-1553502485-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094981\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-1553502485-KQED.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-1553502485-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-1553502485-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Visitors enjoy dahlia flowers at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco on July 24, 2023. \u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Thousands of people pour through these doors over the weekends, and there’s something for everyone,” said Jenna Kaiser, a dahlia ambassador with the society. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“There’s a photo booth, and the orchid people will have a table there as well. The arrangement category is a big hit with the general public because there’s a theme to it.” This year’s arrangement theme is San Francisco icons, Kaiser said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>And there’s an extra reason to celebrate. 2026 marks 100 years since the dahlia became San Francisco’s official flower.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The city’s Board of Supervisors designated the \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfdahlias.org/official-sf-flower\">dahlia the official flower on Oct. 4, 1926\u003c/a>. The flower had already been growing in Golden Gate Park since the 1880s, and its ability to thrive in San Francisco’s cool summers and moist air helped make it a natural fit for the city. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>During the show, visitors can watch judges make their way through the entries with clipboards on Saturday, and by Sunday, the winning blooms will be marked by ribbons. There’s also a People’s Choice Award, where visitors can vote for their favorite flower. Voters can take part by visiting the \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/sfdahliasociety/\">society’s Instagram account\u003c/a> and casting their vote this weekend, Kaiser said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>During the show, visitors can watch judges make their way through the entries with clipboards on Saturday, and by Sunday, the winning blooms will be marked by ribbons. There’s also a People’s Choice Award, where visitors can vote for their favorite flower. Voters can take part by visiting the \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/sfdahliasociety/\">society’s Instagram account\u003c/a> and casting their vote this weekend, Kaiser said. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“It’s a room full of the most colorful, spectacular, perfect dahlias you’ve ever seen,” Kaiser said. “A sea of blooms.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“It’s a room full of the most colorful, spectacular, perfect dahlias you’ve ever seen,” Kaiser said. “A sea of blooms.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Think your backyard dahlia could be a contender? You don’t have to be a professional grower to enter the show.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>To compete, exhibitors must be members of a dahlia society affiliated with the American Dahlia Society. The Dahlia Society of California’s individual membership costs $10 a year and includes eligibility to participate in the annual show. The society welcomes growers at all levels.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>To compete, exhibitors must be members of a dahlia society affiliated with the American Dahlia Society. The Dahlia Society of California’s individual membership costs $10 a year and includes eligibility to participate in the annual show. The society welcomes growers at all levels.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-1162632631-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094980\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-1162632631-KQED.jpg 1940w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-1162632631-KQED-160x110.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-1162632631-KQED-1536x1055.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">People visit a dahlia flower exhibition at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco on Saturday, Aug. 17, 2019.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Exhibitors also need an exhibitor number and must follow the show’s classification and entry rules. The \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfdahlias.org/annual-dahlia-show\">society’s show information\u003c/a> said entries must be in place by 9 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 15. The full show schedule includes the different classes and requirements for individual blooms, arrangements and other categories.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>For Kaiser, that community is part of what makes the flower so addictive. “You get your feet wet, and then you can’t help yourself,” she said. “You want one of each [type of dahlia].” \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.sfdahlias.org/annual-dahlia-show\">\u003cem>The Annual Dahlia Show\u003c/em>\u003c/a> \u003cem>at Golden Gate Park is free to attend and takes place this Saturday, Aug. 15, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday, Aug. 16, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>If you’ve ever wondered what hundreds of the most ornamental flowers with striking geometric forms would look like under one roof, there’s a free event in \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/golden-gate-park\">Golden Gate Park\u003c/a> this weekend that can give you a pretty good idea. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The Dahlia Society of California’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfdahlias.org/dsc-annual-dahlia-show\">annual Dahlia Show and Competition\u003c/a> returns this Saturday and Sunday at the County Fair Building near Ninth Avenue and Lincoln Way. The show is free and open to the public. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>More than a hundred growers are expected to enter blooms for judging, with ribbons and cash prizes awarded in categories including Best in Show, photography and floral arrangements. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1999\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-1553502485-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094981\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-1553502485-KQED.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-1553502485-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-1553502485-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1999px) 100vw, 1999px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Visitors enjoy dahlia flowers at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco on July 24, 2023. (Li Jianguo/Xinhua via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Thousands of people pour through these doors over the weekends, and there’s something for everyone,” said Jenna Kaiser, a dahlia ambassador with the society. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“There’s a photo booth, and the orchid people will have a table there as well. The arrangement category is a big hit with the general public because there’s a theme to it.” This year’s arrangement theme is San Francisco icons, Kaiser said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And there’s an extra reason to celebrate. 2026 marks 100 years since the dahlia became San Francisco’s official flower.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The city’s Board of Supervisors designated the \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfdahlias.org/official-sf-flower\">dahlia the official flower on Oct. 4, 1926\u003c/a>. The flower had already been growing in Golden Gate Park since the 1880s, and its ability to thrive in San Francisco’s cool summers and moist air helped make it a natural fit for the city. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>During the show, visitors can watch judges make their way through the entries with clipboards on Saturday, and by Sunday, the winning blooms will be marked by ribbons. There’s also a People’s Choice Award, where visitors can vote for their favorite flower. Voters can take part by visiting the \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/sfdahliasociety/\">society’s Instagram account\u003c/a> and casting their vote this weekend, Kaiser said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It’s a room full of the most colorful, spectacular, perfect dahlias you’ve ever seen,” Kaiser said. “A sea of blooms.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Think your backyard dahlia could be a contender? You don’t have to be a professional grower to enter the show.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>To compete, exhibitors must be members of a dahlia society affiliated with the American Dahlia Society. The Dahlia Society of California’s individual membership costs $10 a year and includes eligibility to participate in the annual show. The society welcomes growers at all levels.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1940\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-1162632631-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094980\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-1162632631-KQED.jpg 1940w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-1162632631-KQED-160x110.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/GettyImages-1162632631-KQED-1536x1055.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1940px) 100vw, 1940px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">People visit a dahlia flower exhibition at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco on Saturday, Aug. 17, 2019. (Li Jianguo/Xinhua via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Exhibitors also need an exhibitor number and must follow the show’s classification and entry rules. The \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfdahlias.org/annual-dahlia-show\">society’s show information\u003c/a> said entries must be in place by 9 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 15. The full show schedule includes the different classes and requirements for individual blooms, arrangements and other categories.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Volunteers at the Dahlia Society of California, founded in 1917, help maintain the historic \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfdahlias.org/dahlia-dell\">Dahlia Dell in Golden Gate Park\u003c/a>, where more than 700 named varieties are grown. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>For Kaiser, that community is part of what makes the flower so addictive. “You get your feet wet, and then you can’t help yourself,” she said. “You want one of each [type of dahlia].” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.sfdahlias.org/annual-dahlia-show\">\u003cem>The Annual Dahlia Show\u003c/em>\u003c/a> \u003cem>at Golden Gate Park is free to attend and takes place this Saturday, Aug. 15, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday, Aug. 16, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "the-san-francisco-rock-climbing-spot-known-for-its-shiny-surface",
"title": "The San Francisco Rock Climbing Spot Known For Its Shiny Surface",
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"headTitle": "The San Francisco Rock Climbing Spot Known For Its Shiny Surface | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003ca href=\"#transcript\">View the full episode transcript\u003c/a>\u003c/em>.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/san-francisco\">San Francisco’s\u003c/a> Beaver Street is just two blocks long. It climbs from Castro Street up a steep hill toward Corona Heights, a few blocks from the Castro Theater.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Tucked into the curve of this tiny street is a narrow park, and inside it, a 60-foot slab of rock that towers over a public playground. The rock is streaked with diagonal bands of red and tan that make it look almost like a slice of bacon — with a surface unlike any rock Bay Curious listener Ravi Bhoraskar had seen.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Bhoraskar first stumbled across the \u003ca href=\"https://www.mountainproject.com/area/105733887/beaver-street-wall\">Beaver Street rock wall\u003c/a> during a weekend outing with his daughters, to the Randall Museum of Science in Corona Heights Park.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1500\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/BeaverStreetClimbing_FF-3-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12093864\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/BeaverStreetClimbing_FF-3-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/BeaverStreetClimbing_FF-3-KQED-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/BeaverStreetClimbing_FF-3-KQED-1536x1152.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Max Stewart belays Ravi Bhoraskar as he climbs the Beaver Street wall in San Francisco’s Corona Heights Park. (Francesca Fenzi/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>He described it as a “shiny, almost slippery-looking surface” with a few sparse holes “that you can potentially use to climb on.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The secluded crag felt like a revelation. He recently started rock climbing, and climbs weekly at his neighborhood gym in the Mission.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I was excited to learn that there is at least one [outdoor] climbing spot within the city, easily reachable by bus,” Bhoraskar said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">A visible record of Bay Area geology\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Bhoraskar’s first clue to the origins of the Beaver Street rock came from a sign posted at its base. Known as a “slickenside,” the sign explained: “This smooth rock face was once inside a fault. Its surface was polished by millions of years of geological activity.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Slickenside is a type of rock that forms along fault lines, like the San Andreas Fault that slashes diagonally across San Francisco. When two rocks on either side of the fault rub against each other, the friction between them can generate heat and super-fine particles of dust. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>That dust acts like a lubricant, polishing the rock surface until it becomes glassy and smooth, just like the rock on Beaver Street. The colorful stripes on a slickenside formation even record the direction the rocks were moving, allowing geologists to track the movement of different faults across time. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-06-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094715\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-06-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-06-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-06-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The Beaver Street Wall in Corona Heights Park in San Francisco on Aug. 10, 2026. The rock wall is open to climbing and is primarily used for top-rope climbing. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>According to the City of San Francisco’s posted signage, the rock wall on Beaver Street is thought to be one of the largest exposed slickenside formations in the world.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>This sign also serves as a reminder of a \u003ca href=\"https://www.facebook.com/savebsw/\">small municipal battle over access to the rock\u003c/a>. In 2014, the city instituted a permitting process for climbers hoping to scale the slick stone wall. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>San Francisco climbers protested and eventually persuaded the city to drop the permits — on the condition that local climbing groups and the signage at Beaver Street emphasized a “leave no trace” policy.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How a Berkeley park changed climbing history\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The rock on Beaver Street is one of a handful of outdoor climbing areas in San Francisco proper, but across the bay in the Berkeley Hills sits another city park where climbers have pushed the sport forward for nearly a century.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://berkeleyca.gov/community-recreation/parks-recreation/parks/indian-rock-park\">Indian Rock Park\u003c/a> encompasses a collection of volcanic boulders in the hills overlooking the UC Berkeley campus. Long a \u003ca href=\"https://sogoreate-landtrust.org/slt_resources/indian-rock/\">place of significance to Ohlone people\u003c/a>, these boulders have also played an outsized role in the Bay Area’s climbing history. John Sherman remembers getting introduced to the sport here in the 1970s, when he was a student at El Cerrito High.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Well, it’s kind of a funny story,” Sherman said. “Some friends and I scored some beer. Of course, we weren’t of legal drinking age, so we were really excited, and we wanted to find some place where we’d be semi-hidden to drink it.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-image\">\n\u003cfigure class=\"alignleft size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1500\" height=\"2000\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/BeaverStreetClimbing_FF-5-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"A man in orange shirt and grey pants wearing a helmet and rock climbing shoes climbs a rock wall.\" class=\"wp-image-12093866\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/BeaverStreetClimbing_FF-5-KQED.jpg 1500w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/BeaverStreetClimbing_FF-5-KQED-160x213.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/BeaverStreetClimbing_FF-5-KQED-1152x1536.jpg 1152w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Ravi Bhoraskar climbs the Beaver Street wall, his first outdoor climbing experience. (Francesca Fenzi/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003c/div>\n\n\n\u003cp>A friend suggested that they take their contraband to Indian Rock Park. While they were sitting on the steps enjoying these illicit beverages, Sherman noticed people scrambling on the rocks nearby, practicing gymnastic moves just a few feet off the ground.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“That day I got fascinated with it, and I wanted to try it myself,” he said. He came back a few days later, blundering his way through the first of many bouldering climbs in what would become his 50-year love affair with rock climbing.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I got hooked, and I’ve been doing it every day since,” Sherman said. Bay Area climbers might recognize Sherman by his nickname: Verm, short for Vermin.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Verm would go on to become one of the pioneers of a relatively new style of climbing, called bouldering, where climbers perform ambitious, gymnastic moves with no ropes — all while staying relatively close to the ground.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Just because bouldering involves less consequential falls than those taken by climbers on California’s soaring cliff faces, doesn’t mean falling off a boulder didn’t hurt.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We took a real beating back in those days,” Sherman explained of his early bouldering experiments at Indian Rock. “There weren’t that many people, like myself, who were daft enough to go through that and keep beating themselves up.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.climbinggold.com/voices/john-sherman\">Sherman is now a climbing legend\u003c/a> within the Bay Area and beyond.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>He was the first person to scale and document hundreds of new routes in a now-esteemed bouldering area in Texas, called \u003ca href=\"https://tpwd.texas.gov/state-parks/hueco-tanks/activities/#rock-climbing\">Hueco Tanks\u003c/a>, and he \u003ca href=\"https://www.climbing.com/gear/crash-pads-safety-changed-bouldering-forever/\">helped to invent the “crash pads” that boulderers use to cushion their falls\u003c/a> today.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But his most recognizable contribution to the Bay Area’s climbing culture is one that Sherman doesn’t like to talk about. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-14-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094719\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-14-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-14-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-14-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A view of the skyline from the Beaver Street Wall in Corona Heights Park in San Francisco on Aug. 10, 2026. The rock wall is open to climbing and is primarily used for top-rope climbing. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>He invented a system to grade the difficulty of bouldering climbs, dubbed the \u003ca href=\"https://rockclimbingrealms.com/bouldering-grades-explained/\">“V grading system” \u003c/a>— as in, the Vermin grading system. This is a system now widely used by climbing gyms, which rates the easiest climbs at V0 and goes up numerically (V1, V2, V3 and so on) as the difficulty increases.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Sherman said he dislikes how fixated other climbers have become with his grading system.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I just think of climbing grades as the excrement of the climbing experience,” he said. He described the “nutrition” of the climbing experience as being all the things that make climbing worthwhile: the camaraderie, the “kinesthetic flow of the movement” and a communion with nature.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“And then what happens afterwards?” he said. “Out pops a V grade.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">A safer way to fall\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Sherman prefers to think of himself as part of a long lineage of Bay Area climbers who have sharpened their skills on the urban rock faces available to them.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>At Indian Rock, for example, a group of Berkeley law students and mountaineers were \u003ca href=\"https://www.berkeleyside.org/2023/12/07/rock-climbing-indian-rock-mortar-rock\">preparing for ascents in Yosemite Valley as early as the 1930s\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Mountain climbing at the time was extraordinarily dangerous. The gear was heavy and awkward, and the safety equipment didn’t really work. Climbers used ropes made of hemp — stiff, dry, and prone to snapping if pulled too quickly. Most people assumed a fall on a climbing route was fatal.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“The rope’s gonna break, and that’s it, you know?” Sherman said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-09-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094716\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-09-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-09-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-09-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">An anchor chain at the top of the Beaver Street Wall in Corona Heights Park in San Francisco on Aug. 10, 2026. The rock wall is open to climbing and is primarily used for top-rope climbing. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But the Berkeley students climbing at Indian Rock developed a counterintuitive idea to change that.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The solution was all in how climbers handled the rope. If a belayer let the rope run through their hands and slowly absorbed the force of a fall, the rope was far less likely to snap — and could actually catch a falling climber without killing them.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Climbers began practicing these controlled, “slow” rope falls by jumping off the boulders at Indian Rock, and they carried the life-saving technique with them to Yosemite. \u003ca href=\"https://www.sciencehistory.org/stories/magazine/nylon-a-revolution-in-textiles/\">By the 1940s, nylon was commercially accessible\u003c/a>, and climbers began making stronger, more shock-absorbent ropes from it.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“And then all of a sudden things got a lot safer,” Sherman said. “The nylon ropes were less prone to breaking than hemp ropes were.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Falling was no longer a death sentence, and the sport became more popular as a result. As new tools and techniques made climbing safer, the goals of the sport shifted too.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Style was more important than difficulty, and you were more respected if you could walk up to a climb and climb it without falling … just figuring it out,” Sherman said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>By the 1960s, climbing was no longer just about the summit — it was about finding a creative way up each rock, and making the act of climbing itself beautiful. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The secret climbs on University of California, Berkeley campus\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Climbers still wanted to test themselves on big routes in Yosemite and Joshua Tree, but the Bay Area’s natural geology was limited, and climbing gyms weren’t yet common. So climbers had to look for training grounds in some unexpected places.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Jordan Schultz is the kind of climber who sees potential everywhere — even across the UC Berkeley campus, where he’s cataloged hundreds of “buildering” routes.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I think I listed, like, 300-plus routes just on campus,” Schultz said. “Pretty much every building is climbable, is what I found out, if you look at it in the right way.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260811-BEAVER-STREET-CLIMBING-01-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094710\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260811-BEAVER-STREET-CLIMBING-01-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260811-BEAVER-STREET-CLIMBING-01-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260811-BEAVER-STREET-CLIMBING-01-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">From left to right, climbers Ace Landauer, Jordan Schultz, Tilly Holtz and Colin Wills hang from cracks in the “penny wall,” a spot on the UC Berkeley campus where rock climbers practice crack climbing techniques required for climbs in Yosemite Valley. ((Courtesy Jordan Schultz))\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Schultz documented these routes — and the history behind them — in his guidebook, \u003ca href=\"https://campusingbook.com\">\u003cem>Campusing: A Secret History and Buildering Guide to UC Berkeley\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem>. \u003c/em>One of the university’s most famous unofficial routes is a crack running up the side of a brick building that houses the chemistry department.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It doesn’t really look like much when you look at it,” Schultz said. “I think that’s the beautiful part about it. You need to open your eyes to it, you know?”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Climbers have used this crack to practice technique since at least the 1960s, Schultz said, because it mirrors the kind of crack climbing common in Yosemite and other parts of the Sierra.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The spot has another name, too: the Penny Wall. According to Schultz, back in the 1960s, climbers practicing at the crack would stick a penny onto the highest brick they could reach — a marker and quiet challenge to whoever climbed the crack next.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>John Sherman honed his own crack-climbing technique on the Penny Wall. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>And as much as the Bay Area’s outdoor climbing sites have been the home of real breakthroughs in the sport of climbing, he said their true value is in the community of climbers that are drawn to them.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Climbing something like the rock on Beaver Street, tucked into the corner of a busy city, can still feel like being let in on a local secret — passed down by generations of climbers who have left something behind for the next adventurous climber: a penny, a piece of gear, or simply a tip to help newcomers navigate a tricky stretch of rock.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“When you do go to these little areas, and make the effort to meet the locals [climbing there], the experience is so much richer,” Sherman said. “It doesn’t have to be Yosemite to give you a climbing experience and a community to hang out with.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\u003cp>[baycuriousquestion]\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"transcript\">Episode transcript\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price:\u003c/strong> I’m Olivia Allen-Price and you’re listening to Bay Curious.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>When I was about six months pregnant with my first child, a friend of a friend passed along a maternity climbing harness … a full body nylon contraption that allows pregnant people to keep rock climbing.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Now, I was not a rock climber at the time, but thought — “hey, why not? A lot of other activities I love, like running, have gotten really hard, but my legs are stronger than ever. Let’s climb!”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Soon I found myself halfway up a wall in Pinnacles National Park … having a blast, but also hearing the voice of my mother inside my head: \u003cem>“Oh, Olivia. You would.”\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>To be honest, my stint with rock climbing was relatively short, but I was into it long enough to hit up most of the bigger climbing areas in the Bay Area. And I learned you don’t have to drive all the way to Yosemite to feel the thrill of scaling a cliff. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>There are a handful of urban climbing areas you might have walked past without a second look.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Bay Curious listener Ravi Bhoraskar [[boh-RAHS-car]] stumbled across one of those hidden rock walls … tucked into the hills of San Francisco.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar: \u003c/strong>It looked to me like a residential street. A bunch of cute houses, \u003cs>uh,\u003c/s> and, like, a little narrow path in the middle.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price: \u003c/strong>Beaver Street itself is just two blocks long. It climbs from Castro Street up a steep hill towards Corona Heights. The Castro Theater is just a few blocks away.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>And tucked into the curve of Beaver Street is a narrow park.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar: \u003c/strong>And as you come in, you get this giant piece of shiny rock, which is the Beaver Street Wall. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price: \u003c/strong>This big slab of rock towers 60 feet above a kids’ playground. It’s got these diagonal streaks of red and tan rock that honestly make it look almost like a slice of bacon. And it has an unusual texture…\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar: \u003c/strong>It’s kind of like a shiny, almost slippery-looking surface, with some holes that you can potentially use to climb on.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price: \u003c/strong>This interested Ravi because he recently got into rock climbing. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar: \u003c/strong>Mostly indoors at the climbing gym. I was excited to learn that there is, like, at least one climbing spot right within the city, like, easily reachable by bus.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price: \u003c/strong>And he wants to know … what is that slippery, striped bacon rock?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar: \u003c/strong>How did it end up there, and why does it look so cool?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price: \u003c/strong>And most importantly…\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar: \u003c/strong>Like, can I climb it?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price: \u003c/strong>Today we’re going to get answers for Ravi, of course. But we’ll also explore how Bay Area climbers have used city parks to practice their skills for decades — and ultimately push the sport forward. Turns out there’s a lot of rock climbing history anchored right here in the Bay Area.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>KQED producer Francesca Fenzi headed to Beaver Street with Ravi … to check out this unusual rock.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Birds singing, slight traffic sounds\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi:\u003c/strong> Ravi and I arrive at Corona Heights Park on a sunny weekend afternoon. We can hear birds singing … and the faint sound of traffic from Market Street carrying up the hill.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>There’s a playground, a dense pocket of trees, and then … this glistening rock wall.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar: \u003c/strong>It’s not wet, but it \u003cem>looks\u003c/em> wet. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>The shiny surface is interrupted by a single jagged crack, which runs about six stories high. And at the base of the rock is a sign … which gives us a clue about how it got here.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> Known as a slickenslide, this smooth rock face was once inside a fault. Its surface was polished by millions of years of geological activity.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>It’s Slicken SIDE actually. Try saying that three times fast! \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Slickenside forms when two rocks inside a fault rub against each other. Imagine pressing your hands together as hard as you can and then sliding them back and forth. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>That friction creates heat — and tiny dust particles which act like a fluid — to polish the rock until it looks glassy and smooth. Just like the wall at Beaver Street. The colorful stripes even show the direction the fault was moving when a Slickenside was formed.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>According to the sign, this rock is thought to be one of the largest exposed Slickenside formations in the world. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> Capitals, “Please do not chip holes in the rock face or alter the rock in any way.” And then it’s taped over Um, climbing on these rocks is by permit only. To obtain a permit, call some number.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>I looked into getting a permit and it turns out you no longer need one to climb at Beaver Street. So Ravi is going to try to climb it today.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>And to make sure we don’t damage the rock, we’ve enlisted some help.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart:\u003c/strong> Hey, how you doing? I’m Max. Hey, Ravi. Ravi, nice to meet you. Nice to meet you. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Max Stewart owns a guiding company, called SAANO Adventures. And he’s offered to help us set up an anchor and climbing rope on the Beaver Street wall… \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart:\u003c/strong> I’d be happy to. Did you bring some shoes? \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> I brought some shoes. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>Yeah? Okay. Cool.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Outdoor rocks don’t come with built-in safety equipment like the climbs in a gym, so we’ll need to secure our rope to something sturdy at the top of the rock wall.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>There’s a little staircase here. Yep, there it is.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Max leads us up and around the back side of the rock, to the top of a windy hill. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>I can pick out landmarks like the diagonal slash of Market Street below, the Salesforce tower and the Bay Bridge in the distance. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Directly in front of us is a steep drop off. It looks a lot more intimidating from up here! \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart:\u003c/strong> Isn’t that wild? So the playground. we met just right down there. There’s the sign that you were reading.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Separating us from the edge of the cliff is a chain link fence. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart:\u003c/strong> And then a bunch of heavy duty chains that we’re gonna use.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>These heavy duty chains bolted into the top of the wall are perfect for setting up what’s called a “top rope” climb, where a rope runs from the ground, up to an anchor, and back down to the climber, catching them if they fall.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart:\u003c/strong> Always a little weird!\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Max explains that this is the same setup used by climbing gyms … even if it looks a bit different outside.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi in scene: \u003c/strong>Oh, man. That was impressive. [to Ravi] Is this what you were expecting? \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> No, not at all. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi in scene: \u003c/strong>A little different than the climbing gym, huh? \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> Yeah, yeah, definitely.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>I’ve climbed outside a bit myself and part of what I love is the sense of possibility. There aren’t any predetermined holds, you can find your own route up to the top. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>Every single person is gonna have their own method for solving this. the gyms I think are a really good place to get started, to kinda just learn the ropes, but I really encourage people as soon as, you feel like you can do it, to get outside.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi in scene: \u003c/strong>Is this gonna be your first time climbing outside? \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> Uh, yes. Yes, this will be. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>No way, really? \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> Yeah.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>Oh, it’s so fun.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Sound of climbing over chain link fence\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart:\u003c/strong> When was the last time you were hopping [00:07:00] fences to go climbing. Hey. It feels kinda like you’re doing stuff you’re not supposed to do, hopping fences and … It’s like good clean fun, but still kind of a throwback, you know?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>No laws were broken in the making of this podcast! But Max is right. Setting up the rope above Beaver Street really does feel like getting away with something.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Music starts\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>A lot of urban climbs FEEL illicit because it seems kind of unnatural to be doing something we associate with mountains right in our backyards. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But, there’s actually a long history of Bay Area climbers using whatever they can find to ready themselves for those more ambitious, wild ascents. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Beaver Street is one of the only rocks you can climb outdoors in San Francisco, but just across the bay, in the Berkeley Hills, is another city park where climbers have been pushing the limits of the sport for almost a century.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>John Sherman grew up in Berkeley. And he remembers getting introduced to climbing there.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman:\u003c/strong> Well, it’s kind of a funny story. Some friends and I in high school, we scored some beer. Of course, we weren’t of legal drinking age, so we were really excited, and we wanted to find some place where \u003cs>we, you know, \u003c/s>we’d be semi-hidden to drink it.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>So they made their way to Indian Rock park, a collection of volcanic boulders that was once an Ohlone meeting spot. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>And we were sitting on the steps there drinking this beer we had gotten, and I saw people climbing there.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>The climbers were just a few feet off the ground … practicing gravity-defying moves.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>That day I got fascinated with it, and I wanted to try it myself.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Pretty soon, he was taking the bus to Indian Rock every day after school.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>And I would always have my climbing shoes in my book bag along with my textbooks and stuff, and I would stop there on the way home every day, go to Indian Rock and boulder till it got dark and then walk home.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>He was at the rock so often that his brother started describing himself as an only child.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>I got hooked, and I’ve been doing it every day since. And, you know, it’s been over 50 years now.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>The type of climbing John was doing is called bouldering. There aren’t any ropes, but people climb closer to the ground, using pads to cushion a fall. At least, they do now. But in the early days…\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>We took a real beating and there weren’t that many people like myself who were daft enough to go through that and keep beating themselves up like that.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>John is a bit of a legend. He was the first person to climb a bunch of famous bouldering routes, he helped invent those cushioned pads, AND he created a system for ranking the difficulty of climbs — called the V grading system — that’s widely used today. It starts with the easiest climbs at V0 and goes up from there as the climbing gets harder — V1, V2 and so on. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The V comes from John’s lifelong nickname, given to him by a biology teacher at El Cerrito High.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>So he called me Sherman the Vermin. Got shortened to Verm and just kind of stuck.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>John actually hates how fixated other climbers get on his V grading system.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>I just think of climbing grades as the excrement of the climbing experience. After you do a wonderful, you know, boulder problem, and you enjoy the setting that you’re in, the camaraderie of your climbing partners, the kinesthetic flow of the moves and everything, and then what happens afterwards? Out pops a V grade.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Instead, John likes to think of himself as part of a long line of climbers honing their skills at Indian Rock.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>The early history that I know of that’s documented goes back to like the 1930s\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>At that time, a group of Berkeley law students — and mountaineers — had their sights on Yosemite Valley.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>And here is a collection of rocks where they could train.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>The training part was important. Because at the time mountain climbing was super dangerous. The gear was heavy and awkward. The safety equipment didn’t really work.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Climbers were using these flimsy ropes made out of hemp that were stiff and dry and tended to break if they got pulled apart too quickly.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>John says most people assumed that falling on a climbing route was a death sentence.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>The rope’s gonna break and that’s it, you know?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>But these Berkeley students, climbing at Indian Rock. They came up with a counterintuitive idea.\u003cbr>\u003cbr>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price:\u003c/strong> More on their idea and how it revolutionized climbing after this quick break. Stay with us.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Sponsor message\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price:\u003c/strong> UC Berkeley Students climbing at Indian Rock wanted to make climbing safer, and they discovered a technique that would really change the game. Francesca Fenzi takes it from here.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi:\u003c/strong> It was all in how you handled the rope… \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>If you let it run through your hands and slowly break the fall, that rope might not snap, and you can actually catch the leader if they fall, and they’re not gonna die.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>This was huge. Climbers started practicing these “slow” rope falls by jumping off the boulders at Indian Rock. And they brought these life-saving skills to Yosemite with them.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>A decade later, in the 1940s, nylon was widely available. And climbers started using the stretchy fiber to make stronger, more shock-absorbant ropes.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>And then all of a sudden things got a lot safer. The nylon ropes were less prone to breaking than hemp ropes were.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Falling on a rock climb was no longer a death sentence and that made the sport a lot more popular.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>As new tools and techniques made climbs safer, the goals of climbing changed, too.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>Style was more important than difficulty.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>John says by the time he got hooked, rock climbing was no longer just about getting to the top. It was about finding creative ways up a rock, and making the act of climbing itself beautiful.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Climbers were \u003cem>still \u003c/em>eager to test themselves on the big climbs in places like Yosemite and Joshua Tree. But the Bay Area’s natural geology was limiting. And climbing gyms — with their variety of simulated rock types — weren’t as common as they are today.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>So for Bay Area climbers to take their skills to the next level … they had to look in some unexpected places.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Jordan Schulz: \u003c/strong>Pretty much every building is climbable is what I found out, if you look at it in the right way.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Jordan Schulz is the kind of climber who looks at it “the right way.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>He’s 23 and sees climbing opportunities everywhere. Even the UC Berkeley campus, where he’s showing me one of the university’s most famous climbing “routes.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>It’s a crack in the side of a brick building that houses the Chemistry department. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Jordan Schulz: \u003c/strong>This is the crack we’re looking at right here. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>It takes me a moment to “see” it the way Jordan does.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi in scene: \u003c/strong>To me, I’m looking at a brick wall with a parking sign on it. Yeah. And there’s a gap in the wall that’s maybe about an inch and a half thick. And it runs from the base of the wall to the the next story up.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Jordan Schulz: \u003c/strong>Yeah. That’s the climb. It doesn’t really look like much when you look at it. And then I think that’s the beautiful part about it, is that you need to open your eyes to it, you know?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Jordan says climbers have been using the crack in this building to practice their technique since at least the 1960s\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Jordan Schulz: \u003c/strong>A lot of the style of climbing in Yosemite and the Sierras features a lot of cracks in the rock. And so, it offers a good training ground to learn some crack climbing technique that would help people climb better in the mountains.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Jordan says this spot has another name: the Penny Wall. Back in the 60s, when a climber was practicing at the crack, they’d stick a penny onto the highest brick they could reach.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Jordan Schulz: \u003c/strong>And so people would see, like, how high was the penny, and every so often it would get higher.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>A challenge to the next climber…\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Jordan Schulz: \u003c/strong>A subtle way of communicating you know, who climbed a little higher and moved the penny up.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Back at Beaver Street, our question asker Ravi is getting ready to place his own metaphorical penny on the wall.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: All right, Ravi, let’s get your shoes on- Yep\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>He’s about to climb outside for the first time.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi in scene:\u003c/strong> How are you feeling about climbing it? \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> I’m excited. I’m also, yeah, a li- little nervous. Like, I don’t want to slip, but, no, mostly excited. Mostly feeling excited about climbing this.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>Your belay is on. And climbing. Okay. Climb on, sir.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>The Bay Area’s outdoor rock walls have been home to major breakthroughs in the sport. But as Max would say, they’re also good clean fun.\u003cstrong> \u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>What do you think of outdoor climbing versus, uh, in the gym? \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> This is great. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>Isn’t it so nice?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>And urban climbs like this one — tucked into corners of busy cities — feel like secrets, passed along by other members of this special club. People who’ve contributed a penny, or a pair of chains, or advice about how to get around a tricky stretch of rock.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>Try and utilize that crack as much as possible. This guy’s got some bragging rights having this be his first outdoor climb, and he’s just absolutely sending it. Okay, I’m gonna lower you nice and slow. Just walk those feet down. Hey, nice work, man. That was amazing. Good job, man. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> Thank you. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>First outdoor climb. Yeah. What a classic too, man. This is a, uh- That was amazing … that’s no slouch of a climb, man. That was, uh, you worked hard for that.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Whether you’re a seasoned mountaineer, or a new climber, like Ravi, a neighborhood rock can feel just as magical as Yosemite.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>What’d you think of that glass section in the middle there? \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> The glass section was definitely interesting. That was wild. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>Well, what do you think? Should we, uh, pull these ropes?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Sounds or rope falling from a great height\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>Boom. That’s it. That’s the sound of the end of it.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Classical music plays\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi in scene: \u003c/strong>That song is the perfect soundtrack. Was that your cellphone?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> Yeah, it was.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price:\u003c/strong> That story was brought to us by KQED reporter Francesca Fenzi.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>I’ve got two requests for you on our way out. First, Head to \u003ca href=\"http://baycurious.org\">BayCurious.org\u003c/a> and VOTE in our public voting round to help us decide what story we should tackle next. All it takes is a few seconds and one click.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Second, consider becoming a member of KQED and supporting Bay Curious. We are relying more on listener donations than we have in the past and every dollar helps us to keep bringing you stories like this one. Head to \u003ca href=\"http://donate.kqed.org/podcasts\">donate.kqed.org/podcasts\u003c/a> to get started.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003ca href=\"#transcript\">View the full episode transcript\u003c/a>\u003c/em>.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/san-francisco\">San Francisco’s\u003c/a> Beaver Street is just two blocks long. It climbs from Castro Street up a steep hill toward Corona Heights, a few blocks from the Castro Theater.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/san-francisco\">San Francisco’s\u003c/a> Beaver Street is just two blocks long. It climbs from Castro Street up a steep hill toward Corona Heights, a few blocks from the Castro Theater.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Tucked into the curve of this tiny street is a narrow park, and inside it, a 60-foot slab of rock that towers over a public playground. The rock is streaked with diagonal bands of red and tan that make it look almost like a slice of bacon — with a surface unlike any rock Bay Curious listener Ravi Bhoraskar had seen.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Tucked into the curve of this tiny street is a narrow park, and inside it, a 60-foot slab of rock that towers over a public playground. The rock is streaked with diagonal bands of red and tan that make it look almost like a slice of bacon — with a surface unlike any rock Bay Curious listener Ravi Bhoraskar had seen.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Bhoraskar first stumbled across the \u003ca href=\"https://www.mountainproject.com/area/105733887/beaver-street-wall\">Beaver Street rock wall\u003c/a> during a weekend outing with his daughters, to the Randall Museum of Science in Corona Heights Park.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Bhoraskar first stumbled across the \u003ca href=\"https://www.mountainproject.com/area/105733887/beaver-street-wall\">Beaver Street rock wall\u003c/a> during a weekend outing with his daughters, to the Randall Museum of Science in Corona Heights Park.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/BeaverStreetClimbing_FF-3-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12093864\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/BeaverStreetClimbing_FF-3-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/BeaverStreetClimbing_FF-3-KQED-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/BeaverStreetClimbing_FF-3-KQED-1536x1152.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Max Stewart belays Ravi Bhoraskar as he climbs the Beaver Street wall in San Francisco’s Corona Heights Park.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/BeaverStreetClimbing_FF-3-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12093864\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Max Stewart belays Ravi Bhoraskar as he climbs the Beaver Street wall in San Francisco’s Corona Heights Park.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>He described it as a “shiny, almost slippery-looking surface” with a few sparse holes “that you can potentially use to climb on.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>He described it as a “shiny, almost slippery-looking surface” with a few sparse holes “that you can potentially use to climb on.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The secluded crag felt like a revelation. He recently started rock climbing, and climbs weekly at his neighborhood gym in the Mission.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The secluded crag felt like a revelation. He recently started rock climbing, and climbs weekly at his neighborhood gym in the Mission.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“I was excited to learn that there is at least one [outdoor] climbing spot within the city, easily reachable by bus,” Bhoraskar said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“I was excited to learn that there is at least one [outdoor] climbing spot within the city, easily reachable by bus,” Bhoraskar said.\u003c/p>\n"
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"text": "A visible record of Bay Area geology",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">A visible record of Bay Area geology\u003c/h2>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Bhoraskar’s first clue to the origins of the Beaver Street rock came from a sign posted at its base. Known as a “slickenside,” the sign explained: “This smooth rock face was once inside a fault. Its surface was polished by millions of years of geological activity.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Bhoraskar’s first clue to the origins of the Beaver Street rock came from a sign posted at its base. Known as a “slickenside,” the sign explained: “This smooth rock face was once inside a fault. Its surface was polished by millions of years of geological activity.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Slickenside is a type of rock that forms along fault lines, like the San Andreas Fault that slashes diagonally across San Francisco. When two rocks on either side of the fault rub against each other, the friction between them can generate heat and super-fine particles of dust. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Slickenside is a type of rock that forms along fault lines, like the San Andreas Fault that slashes diagonally across San Francisco. When two rocks on either side of the fault rub against each other, the friction between them can generate heat and super-fine particles of dust. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>That dust acts like a lubricant, polishing the rock surface until it becomes glassy and smooth, just like the rock on Beaver Street. The colorful stripes on a slickenside formation even record the direction the rocks were moving, allowing geologists to track the movement of different faults across time. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>That dust acts like a lubricant, polishing the rock surface until it becomes glassy and smooth, just like the rock on Beaver Street. The colorful stripes on a slickenside formation even record the direction the rocks were moving, allowing geologists to track the movement of different faults across time. \u003c/p>\n"
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"srcset": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-06-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-06-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-06-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-06-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094715\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-06-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-06-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-06-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The Beaver Street Wall in Corona Heights Park in San Francisco on Aug. 10, 2026. The rock wall is open to climbing and is primarily used for top-rope climbing.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-06-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094715\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The Beaver Street Wall in Corona Heights Park in San Francisco on Aug. 10, 2026. The rock wall is open to climbing and is primarily used for top-rope climbing.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>According to the City of San Francisco’s posted signage, the rock wall on Beaver Street is thought to be one of the largest exposed slickenside formations in the world.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>According to the City of San Francisco’s posted signage, the rock wall on Beaver Street is thought to be one of the largest exposed slickenside formations in the world.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>This sign also serves as a reminder of a \u003ca href=\"https://www.facebook.com/savebsw/\">small municipal battle over access to the rock\u003c/a>. In 2014, the city instituted a permitting process for climbers hoping to scale the slick stone wall. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>This sign also serves as a reminder of a \u003ca href=\"https://www.facebook.com/savebsw/\">small municipal battle over access to the rock\u003c/a>. In 2014, the city instituted a permitting process for climbers hoping to scale the slick stone wall. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>San Francisco climbers protested and eventually persuaded the city to drop the permits — on the condition that local climbing groups and the signage at Beaver Street emphasized a “leave no trace” policy.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>San Francisco climbers protested and eventually persuaded the city to drop the permits — on the condition that local climbing groups and the signage at Beaver Street emphasized a “leave no trace” policy.\u003c/p>\n"
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"text": "How a Berkeley park changed climbing history",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How a Berkeley park changed climbing history\u003c/h2>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The rock on Beaver Street is one of a handful of outdoor climbing areas in San Francisco proper, but across the bay in the Berkeley Hills sits another city park where climbers have pushed the sport forward for nearly a century.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The rock on Beaver Street is one of a handful of outdoor climbing areas in San Francisco proper, but across the bay in the Berkeley Hills sits another city park where climbers have pushed the sport forward for nearly a century.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://berkeleyca.gov/community-recreation/parks-recreation/parks/indian-rock-park\">Indian Rock Park\u003c/a> encompasses a collection of volcanic boulders in the hills overlooking the UC Berkeley campus. Long a \u003ca href=\"https://sogoreate-landtrust.org/slt_resources/indian-rock/\">place of significance to Ohlone people\u003c/a>, these boulders have also played an outsized role in the Bay Area’s climbing history. John Sherman remembers getting introduced to the sport here in the 1970s, when he was a student at El Cerrito High.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://berkeleyca.gov/community-recreation/parks-recreation/parks/indian-rock-park\">Indian Rock Park\u003c/a> encompasses a collection of volcanic boulders in the hills overlooking the UC Berkeley campus. Long a \u003ca href=\"https://sogoreate-landtrust.org/slt_resources/indian-rock/\">place of significance to Ohlone people\u003c/a>, these boulders have also played an outsized role in the Bay Area’s climbing history. John Sherman remembers getting introduced to the sport here in the 1970s, when he was a student at El Cerrito High.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Well, it’s kind of a funny story,” Sherman said. “Some friends and I scored some beer. Of course, we weren’t of legal drinking age, so we were really excited, and we wanted to find some place where we’d be semi-hidden to drink it.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“Well, it’s kind of a funny story,” Sherman said. “Some friends and I scored some beer. Of course, we weren’t of legal drinking age, so we were really excited, and we wanted to find some place where we’d be semi-hidden to drink it.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image alignleft size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/BeaverStreetClimbing_FF-5-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"A man in orange shirt and grey pants wearing a helmet and rock climbing shoes climbs a rock wall.\" class=\"wp-image-12093866\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/BeaverStreetClimbing_FF-5-KQED.jpg 1500w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/BeaverStreetClimbing_FF-5-KQED-160x213.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/BeaverStreetClimbing_FF-5-KQED-1152x1536.jpg 1152w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Ravi Bhoraskar climbs the Beaver Street wall, his first outdoor climbing experience.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image alignleft size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/BeaverStreetClimbing_FF-5-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"A man in orange shirt and grey pants wearing a helmet and rock climbing shoes climbs a rock wall.\" class=\"wp-image-12093866\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Ravi Bhoraskar climbs the Beaver Street wall, his first outdoor climbing experience.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>A friend suggested that they take their contraband to Indian Rock Park. While they were sitting on the steps enjoying these illicit beverages, Sherman noticed people scrambling on the rocks nearby, practicing gymnastic moves just a few feet off the ground.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>A friend suggested that they take their contraband to Indian Rock Park. While they were sitting on the steps enjoying these illicit beverages, Sherman noticed people scrambling on the rocks nearby, practicing gymnastic moves just a few feet off the ground.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“That day I got fascinated with it, and I wanted to try it myself,” he said. He came back a few days later, blundering his way through the first of many bouldering climbs in what would become his 50-year love affair with rock climbing.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“That day I got fascinated with it, and I wanted to try it myself,” he said. He came back a few days later, blundering his way through the first of many bouldering climbs in what would become his 50-year love affair with rock climbing.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“I got hooked, and I’ve been doing it every day since,” Sherman said. Bay Area climbers might recognize Sherman by his nickname: Verm, short for Vermin.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>“I got hooked, and I’ve been doing it every day since,” Sherman said. Bay Area climbers might recognize Sherman by his nickname: Verm, short for Vermin.\u003c/p>\n"
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"blockName": "core/paragraph",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Verm would go on to become one of the pioneers of a relatively new style of climbing, called bouldering, where climbers perform ambitious, gymnastic moves with no ropes — all while staying relatively close to the ground.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>Verm would go on to become one of the pioneers of a relatively new style of climbing, called bouldering, where climbers perform ambitious, gymnastic moves with no ropes — all while staying relatively close to the ground.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Just because bouldering involves less consequential falls than those taken by climbers on California’s soaring cliff faces, doesn’t mean falling off a boulder didn’t hurt.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>Just because bouldering involves less consequential falls than those taken by climbers on California’s soaring cliff faces, doesn’t mean falling off a boulder didn’t hurt.\u003c/p>\n"
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"blockName": "core/paragraph",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“We took a real beating back in those days,” Sherman explained of his early bouldering experiments at Indian Rock. “There weren’t that many people, like myself, who were daft enough to go through that and keep beating themselves up.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“We took a real beating back in those days,” Sherman explained of his early bouldering experiments at Indian Rock. “There weren’t that many people, like myself, who were daft enough to go through that and keep beating themselves up.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.climbinggold.com/voices/john-sherman\">Sherman is now a climbing legend\u003c/a> within the Bay Area and beyond.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.climbinggold.com/voices/john-sherman\">Sherman is now a climbing legend\u003c/a> within the Bay Area and beyond.\u003c/p>\n"
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"blockName": "core/paragraph",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>He was the first person to scale and document hundreds of new routes in a now-esteemed bouldering area in Texas, called \u003ca href=\"https://tpwd.texas.gov/state-parks/hueco-tanks/activities/#rock-climbing\">Hueco Tanks\u003c/a>, and he \u003ca href=\"https://www.climbing.com/gear/crash-pads-safety-changed-bouldering-forever/\">helped to invent the “crash pads” that boulderers use to cushion their falls\u003c/a> today.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>He was the first person to scale and document hundreds of new routes in a now-esteemed bouldering area in Texas, called \u003ca href=\"https://tpwd.texas.gov/state-parks/hueco-tanks/activities/#rock-climbing\">Hueco Tanks\u003c/a>, and he \u003ca href=\"https://www.climbing.com/gear/crash-pads-safety-changed-bouldering-forever/\">helped to invent the “crash pads” that boulderers use to cushion their falls\u003c/a> today.\u003c/p>\n"
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"blockName": "core/paragraph",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>But his most recognizable contribution to the Bay Area’s climbing culture is one that Sherman doesn’t like to talk about. \u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>But his most recognizable contribution to the Bay Area’s climbing culture is one that Sherman doesn’t like to talk about. \u003c/p>\n"
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"srcset": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-14-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-14-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-14-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w",
"sizes": "(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-14-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094719\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-14-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-14-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-14-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A view of the skyline from the Beaver Street Wall in Corona Heights Park in San Francisco on Aug. 10, 2026. The rock wall is open to climbing and is primarily used for top-rope climbing.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-14-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094719\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A view of the skyline from the Beaver Street Wall in Corona Heights Park in San Francisco on Aug. 10, 2026. The rock wall is open to climbing and is primarily used for top-rope climbing.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>He invented a system to grade the difficulty of bouldering climbs, dubbed the \u003ca href=\"https://rockclimbingrealms.com/bouldering-grades-explained/\">“V grading system” \u003c/a>— as in, the Vermin grading system. This is a system now widely used by climbing gyms, which rates the easiest climbs at V0 and goes up numerically (V1, V2, V3 and so on) as the difficulty increases.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>He invented a system to grade the difficulty of bouldering climbs, dubbed the \u003ca href=\"https://rockclimbingrealms.com/bouldering-grades-explained/\">“V grading system” \u003c/a>— as in, the Vermin grading system. This is a system now widely used by climbing gyms, which rates the easiest climbs at V0 and goes up numerically (V1, V2, V3 and so on) as the difficulty increases.\u003c/p>\n"
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"blockName": "core/paragraph",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Sherman said he dislikes how fixated other climbers have become with his grading system.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>Sherman said he dislikes how fixated other climbers have become with his grading system.\u003c/p>\n"
],
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{
"blockName": "core/paragraph",
"attrs": [],
"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“I just think of climbing grades as the excrement of the climbing experience,” he said. He described the “nutrition” of the climbing experience as being all the things that make climbing worthwhile: the camaraderie, the “kinesthetic flow of the movement” and a communion with nature.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“I just think of climbing grades as the excrement of the climbing experience,” he said. He described the “nutrition” of the climbing experience as being all the things that make climbing worthwhile: the camaraderie, the “kinesthetic flow of the movement” and a communion with nature.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“And then what happens afterwards?” he said. “Out pops a V grade.”\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>“And then what happens afterwards?” he said. “Out pops a V grade.”\u003c/p>\n"
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{
"blockName": "core/heading",
"attrs": {
"text": "A safer way to fall",
"level": 2
},
"innerHTML": "\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">A safer way to fall\u003c/h2>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">A safer way to fall\u003c/h2>\n"
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"blockName": "core/paragraph",
"attrs": [],
"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Sherman prefers to think of himself as part of a long lineage of Bay Area climbers who have sharpened their skills on the urban rock faces available to them.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>Sherman prefers to think of himself as part of a long lineage of Bay Area climbers who have sharpened their skills on the urban rock faces available to them.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>At Indian Rock, for example, a group of Berkeley law students and mountaineers were \u003ca href=\"https://www.berkeleyside.org/2023/12/07/rock-climbing-indian-rock-mortar-rock\">preparing for ascents in Yosemite Valley as early as the 1930s\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>At Indian Rock, for example, a group of Berkeley law students and mountaineers were \u003ca href=\"https://www.berkeleyside.org/2023/12/07/rock-climbing-indian-rock-mortar-rock\">preparing for ascents in Yosemite Valley as early as the 1930s\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n"
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"blockName": "core/paragraph",
"attrs": [],
"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Mountain climbing at the time was extraordinarily dangerous. The gear was heavy and awkward, and the safety equipment didn’t really work. Climbers used ropes made of hemp — stiff, dry, and prone to snapping if pulled too quickly. Most people assumed a fall on a climbing route was fatal.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>Mountain climbing at the time was extraordinarily dangerous. The gear was heavy and awkward, and the safety equipment didn’t really work. Climbers used ropes made of hemp — stiff, dry, and prone to snapping if pulled too quickly. Most people assumed a fall on a climbing route was fatal.\u003c/p>\n"
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"blockName": "core/paragraph",
"attrs": [],
"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“The rope’s gonna break, and that’s it, you know?” Sherman said.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>“The rope’s gonna break, and that’s it, you know?” Sherman said.\u003c/p>\n"
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"attrs": {
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"sizes": "(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-09-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094716\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-09-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-09-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-09-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">An anchor chain at the top of the Beaver Street Wall in Corona Heights Park in San Francisco on Aug. 10, 2026. The rock wall is open to climbing and is primarily used for top-rope climbing.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-09-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094716\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">An anchor chain at the top of the Beaver Street Wall in Corona Heights Park in San Francisco on Aug. 10, 2026. The rock wall is open to climbing and is primarily used for top-rope climbing.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
],
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"attrs": [],
"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>But the Berkeley students climbing at Indian Rock developed a counterintuitive idea to change that.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>But the Berkeley students climbing at Indian Rock developed a counterintuitive idea to change that.\u003c/p>\n"
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"blockName": "core/paragraph",
"attrs": [],
"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The solution was all in how climbers handled the rope. If a belayer let the rope run through their hands and slowly absorbed the force of a fall, the rope was far less likely to snap — and could actually catch a falling climber without killing them.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>The solution was all in how climbers handled the rope. If a belayer let the rope run through their hands and slowly absorbed the force of a fall, the rope was far less likely to snap — and could actually catch a falling climber without killing them.\u003c/p>\n"
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"blockName": "core/paragraph",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Climbers began practicing these controlled, “slow” rope falls by jumping off the boulders at Indian Rock, and they carried the life-saving technique with them to Yosemite. \u003ca href=\"https://www.sciencehistory.org/stories/magazine/nylon-a-revolution-in-textiles/\">By the 1940s, nylon was commercially accessible\u003c/a>, and climbers began making stronger, more shock-absorbent ropes from it.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>Climbers began practicing these controlled, “slow” rope falls by jumping off the boulders at Indian Rock, and they carried the life-saving technique with them to Yosemite. \u003ca href=\"https://www.sciencehistory.org/stories/magazine/nylon-a-revolution-in-textiles/\">By the 1940s, nylon was commercially accessible\u003c/a>, and climbers began making stronger, more shock-absorbent ropes from it.\u003c/p>\n"
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"blockName": "core/paragraph",
"attrs": [],
"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“And then all of a sudden things got a lot safer,” Sherman said. “The nylon ropes were less prone to breaking than hemp ropes were.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“And then all of a sudden things got a lot safer,” Sherman said. “The nylon ropes were less prone to breaking than hemp ropes were.”\u003c/p>\n"
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{
"blockName": "core/paragraph",
"attrs": [],
"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Falling was no longer a death sentence, and the sport became more popular as a result. As new tools and techniques made climbing safer, the goals of the sport shifted too.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>Falling was no longer a death sentence, and the sport became more popular as a result. As new tools and techniques made climbing safer, the goals of the sport shifted too.\u003c/p>\n"
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{
"blockName": "core/paragraph",
"attrs": [],
"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Style was more important than difficulty, and you were more respected if you could walk up to a climb and climb it without falling … just figuring it out,” Sherman said. \u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>“Style was more important than difficulty, and you were more respected if you could walk up to a climb and climb it without falling … just figuring it out,” Sherman said. \u003c/p>\n"
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{
"blockName": "core/paragraph",
"attrs": [],
"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>By the 1960s, climbing was no longer just about the summit — it was about finding a creative way up each rock, and making the act of climbing itself beautiful. \u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>By the 1960s, climbing was no longer just about the summit — it was about finding a creative way up each rock, and making the act of climbing itself beautiful. \u003c/p>\n"
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{
"blockName": "core/heading",
"attrs": {
"text": "The secret climbs on University of California, Berkeley campus",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The secret climbs on University of California, Berkeley campus\u003c/h2>\n",
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"\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The secret climbs on University of California, Berkeley campus\u003c/h2>\n"
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"blockName": "core/paragraph",
"attrs": [],
"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Climbers still wanted to test themselves on big routes in Yosemite and Joshua Tree, but the Bay Area’s natural geology was limited, and climbing gyms weren’t yet common. So climbers had to look for training grounds in some unexpected places.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>Climbers still wanted to test themselves on big routes in Yosemite and Joshua Tree, but the Bay Area’s natural geology was limited, and climbing gyms weren’t yet common. So climbers had to look for training grounds in some unexpected places.\u003c/p>\n"
],
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{
"blockName": "core/paragraph",
"attrs": [],
"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Jordan Schultz is the kind of climber who sees potential everywhere — even across the UC Berkeley campus, where he’s cataloged hundreds of “buildering” routes.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>Jordan Schultz is the kind of climber who sees potential everywhere — even across the UC Berkeley campus, where he’s cataloged hundreds of “buildering” routes.\u003c/p>\n"
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{
"blockName": "core/paragraph",
"attrs": [],
"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“I think I listed, like, 300-plus routes just on campus,” Schultz said. “Pretty much every building is climbable, is what I found out, if you look at it in the right way.”\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>“I think I listed, like, 300-plus routes just on campus,” Schultz said. “Pretty much every building is climbable, is what I found out, if you look at it in the right way.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"attrs": {
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"imageCredit": "(Courtesy Jordan Schultz)",
"srcset": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260811-BEAVER-STREET-CLIMBING-01-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260811-BEAVER-STREET-CLIMBING-01-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260811-BEAVER-STREET-CLIMBING-01-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w",
"sizes": "(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260811-BEAVER-STREET-CLIMBING-01-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094710\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260811-BEAVER-STREET-CLIMBING-01-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260811-BEAVER-STREET-CLIMBING-01-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260811-BEAVER-STREET-CLIMBING-01-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">From left to right, climbers Ace Landauer, Jordan Schultz, Tilly Holtz and Colin Wills hang from cracks in the “penny wall,” a spot on the UC Berkeley campus where rock climbers practice crack climbing techniques required for climbs in Yosemite Valley.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260811-BEAVER-STREET-CLIMBING-01-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094710\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">From left to right, climbers Ace Landauer, Jordan Schultz, Tilly Holtz and Colin Wills hang from cracks in the “penny wall,” a spot on the UC Berkeley campus where rock climbers practice crack climbing techniques required for climbs in Yosemite Valley.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Schultz documented these routes — and the history behind them — in his guidebook, \u003ca href=\"https://campusingbook.com\">\u003cem>Campusing: A Secret History and Buildering Guide to UC Berkeley\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem>. \u003c/em>One of the university’s most famous unofficial routes is a crack running up the side of a brick building that houses the chemistry department.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Schultz documented these routes — and the history behind them — in his guidebook, \u003ca href=\"https://campusingbook.com\">\u003cem>Campusing: A Secret History and Buildering Guide to UC Berkeley\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem>. \u003c/em>One of the university’s most famous unofficial routes is a crack running up the side of a brick building that houses the chemistry department.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“It doesn’t really look like much when you look at it,” Schultz said. “I think that’s the beautiful part about it. You need to open your eyes to it, you know?”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“It doesn’t really look like much when you look at it,” Schultz said. “I think that’s the beautiful part about it. You need to open your eyes to it, you know?”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Climbers have used this crack to practice technique since at least the 1960s, Schultz said, because it mirrors the kind of crack climbing common in Yosemite and other parts of the Sierra.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Climbers have used this crack to practice technique since at least the 1960s, Schultz said, because it mirrors the kind of crack climbing common in Yosemite and other parts of the Sierra.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The spot has another name, too: the Penny Wall. According to Schultz, back in the 1960s, climbers practicing at the crack would stick a penny onto the highest brick they could reach — a marker and quiet challenge to whoever climbed the crack next.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The spot has another name, too: the Penny Wall. According to Schultz, back in the 1960s, climbers practicing at the crack would stick a penny onto the highest brick they could reach — a marker and quiet challenge to whoever climbed the crack next.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>John Sherman honed his own crack-climbing technique on the Penny Wall. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>John Sherman honed his own crack-climbing technique on the Penny Wall. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>And as much as the Bay Area’s outdoor climbing sites have been the home of real breakthroughs in the sport of climbing, he said their true value is in the community of climbers that are drawn to them.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>And as much as the Bay Area’s outdoor climbing sites have been the home of real breakthroughs in the sport of climbing, he said their true value is in the community of climbers that are drawn to them.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Climbing something like the rock on Beaver Street, tucked into the corner of a busy city, can still feel like being let in on a local secret — passed down by generations of climbers who have left something behind for the next adventurous climber: a penny, a piece of gear, or simply a tip to help newcomers navigate a tricky stretch of rock.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Climbing something like the rock on Beaver Street, tucked into the corner of a busy city, can still feel like being let in on a local secret — passed down by generations of climbers who have left something behind for the next adventurous climber: a penny, a piece of gear, or simply a tip to help newcomers navigate a tricky stretch of rock.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“When you do go to these little areas, and make the effort to meet the locals [climbing there], the experience is so much richer,” Sherman said. “It doesn’t have to be Yosemite to give you a climbing experience and a community to hang out with.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“When you do go to these little areas, and make the effort to meet the locals [climbing there], the experience is so much richer,” Sherman said. “It doesn’t have to be Yosemite to give you a climbing experience and a community to hang out with.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"\n[baycuriousquestion]\n"
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"text": "Episode transcript",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"transcript\">Episode transcript\u003c/h2>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price:\u003c/strong> I’m Olivia Allen-Price and you’re listening to Bay Curious.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price:\u003c/strong> I’m Olivia Allen-Price and you’re listening to Bay Curious.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>When I was about six months pregnant with my first child, a friend of a friend passed along a maternity climbing harness … a full body nylon contraption that allows pregnant people to keep rock climbing.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>When I was about six months pregnant with my first child, a friend of a friend passed along a maternity climbing harness … a full body nylon contraption that allows pregnant people to keep rock climbing.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Now, I was not a rock climber at the time, but thought — “hey, why not? A lot of other activities I love, like running, have gotten really hard, but my legs are stronger than ever. Let’s climb!”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Now, I was not a rock climber at the time, but thought — “hey, why not? A lot of other activities I love, like running, have gotten really hard, but my legs are stronger than ever. Let’s climb!”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Soon I found myself halfway up a wall in Pinnacles National Park … having a blast, but also hearing the voice of my mother inside my head: \u003cem>“Oh, Olivia. You would.”\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Soon I found myself halfway up a wall in Pinnacles National Park … having a blast, but also hearing the voice of my mother inside my head: \u003cem>“Oh, Olivia. You would.”\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>To be honest, my stint with rock climbing was relatively short, but I was into it long enough to hit up most of the bigger climbing areas in the Bay Area. And I learned you don’t have to drive all the way to Yosemite to feel the thrill of scaling a cliff. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>To be honest, my stint with rock climbing was relatively short, but I was into it long enough to hit up most of the bigger climbing areas in the Bay Area. And I learned you don’t have to drive all the way to Yosemite to feel the thrill of scaling a cliff. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>There are a handful of urban climbing areas you might have walked past without a second look.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>There are a handful of urban climbing areas you might have walked past without a second look.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Bay Curious listener Ravi Bhoraskar [[boh-RAHS-car]] stumbled across one of those hidden rock walls … tucked into the hills of San Francisco.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Bay Curious listener Ravi Bhoraskar [[boh-RAHS-car]] stumbled across one of those hidden rock walls … tucked into the hills of San Francisco.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar: \u003c/strong>It looked to me like a residential street. A bunch of cute houses, \u003cs>uh,\u003c/s> and, like, a little narrow path in the middle.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar: \u003c/strong>It looked to me like a residential street. A bunch of cute houses, \u003cs>uh,\u003c/s> and, like, a little narrow path in the middle.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price: \u003c/strong>Beaver Street itself is just two blocks long. It climbs from Castro Street up a steep hill towards Corona Heights. The Castro Theater is just a few blocks away.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price: \u003c/strong>Beaver Street itself is just two blocks long. It climbs from Castro Street up a steep hill towards Corona Heights. The Castro Theater is just a few blocks away.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>And tucked into the curve of Beaver Street is a narrow park.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>And tucked into the curve of Beaver Street is a narrow park.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar: \u003c/strong>And as you come in, you get this giant piece of shiny rock, which is the Beaver Street Wall. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar: \u003c/strong>And as you come in, you get this giant piece of shiny rock, which is the Beaver Street Wall. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price: \u003c/strong>This big slab of rock towers 60 feet above a kids’ playground. It’s got these diagonal streaks of red and tan rock that honestly make it look almost like a slice of bacon. And it has an unusual texture…\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price: \u003c/strong>This big slab of rock towers 60 feet above a kids’ playground. It’s got these diagonal streaks of red and tan rock that honestly make it look almost like a slice of bacon. And it has an unusual texture…\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar: \u003c/strong>It’s kind of like a shiny, almost slippery-looking surface, with some holes that you can potentially use to climb on.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar: \u003c/strong>It’s kind of like a shiny, almost slippery-looking surface, with some holes that you can potentially use to climb on.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price: \u003c/strong>This interested Ravi because he recently got into rock climbing. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price: \u003c/strong>This interested Ravi because he recently got into rock climbing. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar: \u003c/strong>Mostly indoors at the climbing gym. I was excited to learn that there is, like, at least one climbing spot right within the city, like, easily reachable by bus.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar: \u003c/strong>Mostly indoors at the climbing gym. I was excited to learn that there is, like, at least one climbing spot right within the city, like, easily reachable by bus.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price: \u003c/strong>And he wants to know … what is that slippery, striped bacon rock?\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price: \u003c/strong>And he wants to know … what is that slippery, striped bacon rock?\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar: \u003c/strong>How did it end up there, and why does it look so cool?\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar: \u003c/strong>How did it end up there, and why does it look so cool?\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price: \u003c/strong>And most importantly…\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price: \u003c/strong>And most importantly…\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar: \u003c/strong>Like, can I climb it?\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar: \u003c/strong>Like, can I climb it?\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price: \u003c/strong>Today we’re going to get answers for Ravi, of course. But we’ll also explore how Bay Area climbers have used city parks to practice their skills for decades — and ultimately push the sport forward. Turns out there’s a lot of rock climbing history anchored right here in the Bay Area.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price: \u003c/strong>Today we’re going to get answers for Ravi, of course. But we’ll also explore how Bay Area climbers have used city parks to practice their skills for decades — and ultimately push the sport forward. Turns out there’s a lot of rock climbing history anchored right here in the Bay Area.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>KQED producer Francesca Fenzi headed to Beaver Street with Ravi … to check out this unusual rock.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>KQED producer Francesca Fenzi headed to Beaver Street with Ravi … to check out this unusual rock.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Birds singing, slight traffic sounds\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Birds singing, slight traffic sounds\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi:\u003c/strong> Ravi and I arrive at Corona Heights Park on a sunny weekend afternoon. We can hear birds singing … and the faint sound of traffic from Market Street carrying up the hill.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi:\u003c/strong> Ravi and I arrive at Corona Heights Park on a sunny weekend afternoon. We can hear birds singing … and the faint sound of traffic from Market Street carrying up the hill.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>There’s a playground, a dense pocket of trees, and then … this glistening rock wall.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>There’s a playground, a dense pocket of trees, and then … this glistening rock wall.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar: \u003c/strong>It’s not wet, but it \u003cem>looks\u003c/em> wet. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar: \u003c/strong>It’s not wet, but it \u003cem>looks\u003c/em> wet. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>The shiny surface is interrupted by a single jagged crack, which runs about six stories high. And at the base of the rock is a sign … which gives us a clue about how it got here.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>The shiny surface is interrupted by a single jagged crack, which runs about six stories high. And at the base of the rock is a sign … which gives us a clue about how it got here.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> Known as a slickenslide, this smooth rock face was once inside a fault. Its surface was polished by millions of years of geological activity.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> Known as a slickenslide, this smooth rock face was once inside a fault. Its surface was polished by millions of years of geological activity.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>It’s Slicken SIDE actually. Try saying that three times fast! \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>It’s Slicken SIDE actually. Try saying that three times fast! \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Slickenside forms when two rocks inside a fault rub against each other. Imagine pressing your hands together as hard as you can and then sliding them back and forth. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Slickenside forms when two rocks inside a fault rub against each other. Imagine pressing your hands together as hard as you can and then sliding them back and forth. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>That friction creates heat — and tiny dust particles which act like a fluid — to polish the rock until it looks glassy and smooth. Just like the wall at Beaver Street. The colorful stripes even show the direction the fault was moving when a Slickenside was formed.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>That friction creates heat — and tiny dust particles which act like a fluid — to polish the rock until it looks glassy and smooth. Just like the wall at Beaver Street. The colorful stripes even show the direction the fault was moving when a Slickenside was formed.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>According to the sign, this rock is thought to be one of the largest exposed Slickenside formations in the world. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>According to the sign, this rock is thought to be one of the largest exposed Slickenside formations in the world. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> Capitals, “Please do not chip holes in the rock face or alter the rock in any way.” And then it’s taped over Um, climbing on these rocks is by permit only. To obtain a permit, call some number.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> Capitals, “Please do not chip holes in the rock face or alter the rock in any way.” And then it’s taped over Um, climbing on these rocks is by permit only. To obtain a permit, call some number.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>I looked into getting a permit and it turns out you no longer need one to climb at Beaver Street. So Ravi is going to try to climb it today.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>I looked into getting a permit and it turns out you no longer need one to climb at Beaver Street. So Ravi is going to try to climb it today.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>And to make sure we don’t damage the rock, we’ve enlisted some help.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>And to make sure we don’t damage the rock, we’ve enlisted some help.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart:\u003c/strong> Hey, how you doing? I’m Max. Hey, Ravi. Ravi, nice to meet you. Nice to meet you. \u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart:\u003c/strong> Hey, how you doing? I’m Max. Hey, Ravi. Ravi, nice to meet you. Nice to meet you. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Max Stewart owns a guiding company, called SAANO Adventures. And he’s offered to help us set up an anchor and climbing rope on the Beaver Street wall… \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart:\u003c/strong> I’d be happy to. Did you bring some shoes? \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> I brought some shoes. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>Yeah? Okay. Cool.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Outdoor rocks don’t come with built-in safety equipment like the climbs in a gym, so we’ll need to secure our rope to something sturdy at the top of the rock wall.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Outdoor rocks don’t come with built-in safety equipment like the climbs in a gym, so we’ll need to secure our rope to something sturdy at the top of the rock wall.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>There’s a little staircase here. Yep, there it is.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>There’s a little staircase here. Yep, there it is.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Max leads us up and around the back side of the rock, to the top of a windy hill. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Max leads us up and around the back side of the rock, to the top of a windy hill. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>I can pick out landmarks like the diagonal slash of Market Street below, the Salesforce tower and the Bay Bridge in the distance. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>I can pick out landmarks like the diagonal slash of Market Street below, the Salesforce tower and the Bay Bridge in the distance. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Directly in front of us is a steep drop off. It looks a lot more intimidating from up here! \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Directly in front of us is a steep drop off. It looks a lot more intimidating from up here! \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart:\u003c/strong> Isn’t that wild? So the playground. we met just right down there. There’s the sign that you were reading.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart:\u003c/strong> Isn’t that wild? So the playground. we met just right down there. There’s the sign that you were reading.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Separating us from the edge of the cliff is a chain link fence. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Separating us from the edge of the cliff is a chain link fence. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart:\u003c/strong> And then a bunch of heavy duty chains that we’re gonna use.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart:\u003c/strong> And then a bunch of heavy duty chains that we’re gonna use.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>These heavy duty chains bolted into the top of the wall are perfect for setting up what’s called a “top rope” climb, where a rope runs from the ground, up to an anchor, and back down to the climber, catching them if they fall.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>These heavy duty chains bolted into the top of the wall are perfect for setting up what’s called a “top rope” climb, where a rope runs from the ground, up to an anchor, and back down to the climber, catching them if they fall.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart:\u003c/strong> Always a little weird!\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Max explains that this is the same setup used by climbing gyms … even if it looks a bit different outside.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Max explains that this is the same setup used by climbing gyms … even if it looks a bit different outside.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi in scene: \u003c/strong>Oh, man. That was impressive. [to Ravi] Is this what you were expecting? \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi in scene: \u003c/strong>Oh, man. That was impressive. [to Ravi] Is this what you were expecting? \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> No, not at all. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> No, not at all. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi in scene: \u003c/strong>A little different than the climbing gym, huh? \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi in scene: \u003c/strong>A little different than the climbing gym, huh? \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> Yeah, yeah, definitely.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> Yeah, yeah, definitely.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>I’ve climbed outside a bit myself and part of what I love is the sense of possibility. There aren’t any predetermined holds, you can find your own route up to the top. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>I’ve climbed outside a bit myself and part of what I love is the sense of possibility. There aren’t any predetermined holds, you can find your own route up to the top. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>Every single person is gonna have their own method for solving this. the gyms I think are a really good place to get started, to kinda just learn the ropes, but I really encourage people as soon as, you feel like you can do it, to get outside.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>Every single person is gonna have their own method for solving this. the gyms I think are a really good place to get started, to kinda just learn the ropes, but I really encourage people as soon as, you feel like you can do it, to get outside.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi in scene: \u003c/strong>Is this gonna be your first time climbing outside? \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi in scene: \u003c/strong>Is this gonna be your first time climbing outside? \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> Uh, yes. Yes, this will be. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> Uh, yes. Yes, this will be. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>No way, really? \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>No way, really? \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> Yeah.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>Oh, it’s so fun.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>Oh, it’s so fun.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Sound of climbing over chain link fence\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Sound of climbing over chain link fence\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart:\u003c/strong> When was the last time you were hopping [00:07:00] fences to go climbing. Hey. It feels kinda like you’re doing stuff you’re not supposed to do, hopping fences and … It’s like good clean fun, but still kind of a throwback, you know?\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart:\u003c/strong> When was the last time you were hopping [00:07:00] fences to go climbing. Hey. It feels kinda like you’re doing stuff you’re not supposed to do, hopping fences and … It’s like good clean fun, but still kind of a throwback, you know?\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>No laws were broken in the making of this podcast! But Max is right. Setting up the rope above Beaver Street really does feel like getting away with something.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>No laws were broken in the making of this podcast! But Max is right. Setting up the rope above Beaver Street really does feel like getting away with something.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Music starts\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Music starts\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>A lot of urban climbs FEEL illicit because it seems kind of unnatural to be doing something we associate with mountains right in our backyards. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>A lot of urban climbs FEEL illicit because it seems kind of unnatural to be doing something we associate with mountains right in our backyards. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>But, there’s actually a long history of Bay Area climbers using whatever they can find to ready themselves for those more ambitious, wild ascents. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>But, there’s actually a long history of Bay Area climbers using whatever they can find to ready themselves for those more ambitious, wild ascents. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Beaver Street is one of the only rocks you can climb outdoors in San Francisco, but just across the bay, in the Berkeley Hills, is another city park where climbers have been pushing the limits of the sport for almost a century.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Beaver Street is one of the only rocks you can climb outdoors in San Francisco, but just across the bay, in the Berkeley Hills, is another city park where climbers have been pushing the limits of the sport for almost a century.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>John Sherman grew up in Berkeley. And he remembers getting introduced to climbing there.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>John Sherman grew up in Berkeley. And he remembers getting introduced to climbing there.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman:\u003c/strong> Well, it’s kind of a funny story. Some friends and I in high school, we scored some beer. Of course, we weren’t of legal drinking age, so we were really excited, and we wanted to find some place where \u003cs>we, you know, \u003c/s>we’d be semi-hidden to drink it.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman:\u003c/strong> Well, it’s kind of a funny story. Some friends and I in high school, we scored some beer. Of course, we weren’t of legal drinking age, so we were really excited, and we wanted to find some place where \u003cs>we, you know, \u003c/s>we’d be semi-hidden to drink it.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>So they made their way to Indian Rock park, a collection of volcanic boulders that was once an Ohlone meeting spot. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>So they made their way to Indian Rock park, a collection of volcanic boulders that was once an Ohlone meeting spot. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>And we were sitting on the steps there drinking this beer we had gotten, and I saw people climbing there.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>And we were sitting on the steps there drinking this beer we had gotten, and I saw people climbing there.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>The climbers were just a few feet off the ground … practicing gravity-defying moves.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>The climbers were just a few feet off the ground … practicing gravity-defying moves.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>That day I got fascinated with it, and I wanted to try it myself.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>That day I got fascinated with it, and I wanted to try it myself.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Pretty soon, he was taking the bus to Indian Rock every day after school.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Pretty soon, he was taking the bus to Indian Rock every day after school.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>And I would always have my climbing shoes in my book bag along with my textbooks and stuff, and I would stop there on the way home every day, go to Indian Rock and boulder till it got dark and then walk home.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>And I would always have my climbing shoes in my book bag along with my textbooks and stuff, and I would stop there on the way home every day, go to Indian Rock and boulder till it got dark and then walk home.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>He was at the rock so often that his brother started describing himself as an only child.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>He was at the rock so often that his brother started describing himself as an only child.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>I got hooked, and I’ve been doing it every day since. And, you know, it’s been over 50 years now.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>I got hooked, and I’ve been doing it every day since. And, you know, it’s been over 50 years now.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>The type of climbing John was doing is called bouldering. There aren’t any ropes, but people climb closer to the ground, using pads to cushion a fall. At least, they do now. But in the early days…\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>The type of climbing John was doing is called bouldering. There aren’t any ropes, but people climb closer to the ground, using pads to cushion a fall. At least, they do now. But in the early days…\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>We took a real beating and there weren’t that many people like myself who were daft enough to go through that and keep beating themselves up like that.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>We took a real beating and there weren’t that many people like myself who were daft enough to go through that and keep beating themselves up like that.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>John is a bit of a legend. He was the first person to climb a bunch of famous bouldering routes, he helped invent those cushioned pads, AND he created a system for ranking the difficulty of climbs — called the V grading system — that’s widely used today. It starts with the easiest climbs at V0 and goes up from there as the climbing gets harder — V1, V2 and so on. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>John is a bit of a legend. He was the first person to climb a bunch of famous bouldering routes, he helped invent those cushioned pads, AND he created a system for ranking the difficulty of climbs — called the V grading system — that’s widely used today. It starts with the easiest climbs at V0 and goes up from there as the climbing gets harder — V1, V2 and so on. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The V comes from John’s lifelong nickname, given to him by a biology teacher at El Cerrito High.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The V comes from John’s lifelong nickname, given to him by a biology teacher at El Cerrito High.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>So he called me Sherman the Vermin. Got shortened to Verm and just kind of stuck.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>So he called me Sherman the Vermin. Got shortened to Verm and just kind of stuck.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>John actually hates how fixated other climbers get on his V grading system.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>John actually hates how fixated other climbers get on his V grading system.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>I just think of climbing grades as the excrement of the climbing experience. After you do a wonderful, you know, boulder problem, and you enjoy the setting that you’re in, the camaraderie of your climbing partners, the kinesthetic flow of the moves and everything, and then what happens afterwards? Out pops a V grade.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>I just think of climbing grades as the excrement of the climbing experience. After you do a wonderful, you know, boulder problem, and you enjoy the setting that you’re in, the camaraderie of your climbing partners, the kinesthetic flow of the moves and everything, and then what happens afterwards? Out pops a V grade.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Instead, John likes to think of himself as part of a long line of climbers honing their skills at Indian Rock.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Instead, John likes to think of himself as part of a long line of climbers honing their skills at Indian Rock.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>The early history that I know of that’s documented goes back to like the 1930s\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>The early history that I know of that’s documented goes back to like the 1930s\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>At that time, a group of Berkeley law students — and mountaineers — had their sights on Yosemite Valley.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>And here is a collection of rocks where they could train.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>And here is a collection of rocks where they could train.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>The training part was important. Because at the time mountain climbing was super dangerous. The gear was heavy and awkward. The safety equipment didn’t really work.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>The training part was important. Because at the time mountain climbing was super dangerous. The gear was heavy and awkward. The safety equipment didn’t really work.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Climbers were using these flimsy ropes made out of hemp that were stiff and dry and tended to break if they got pulled apart too quickly.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Climbers were using these flimsy ropes made out of hemp that were stiff and dry and tended to break if they got pulled apart too quickly.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>John says most people assumed that falling on a climbing route was a death sentence.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>John says most people assumed that falling on a climbing route was a death sentence.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>The rope’s gonna break and that’s it, you know?\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>The rope’s gonna break and that’s it, you know?\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>But these Berkeley students, climbing at Indian Rock. They came up with a counterintuitive idea.\u003cbr>\u003cbr>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price:\u003c/strong> More on their idea and how it revolutionized climbing after this quick break. Stay with us.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>But these Berkeley students, climbing at Indian Rock. They came up with a counterintuitive idea.\u003cbr>\u003cbr>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price:\u003c/strong> More on their idea and how it revolutionized climbing after this quick break. Stay with us.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Sponsor message\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Sponsor message\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price:\u003c/strong> UC Berkeley Students climbing at Indian Rock wanted to make climbing safer, and they discovered a technique that would really change the game. Francesca Fenzi takes it from here.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price:\u003c/strong> UC Berkeley Students climbing at Indian Rock wanted to make climbing safer, and they discovered a technique that would really change the game. Francesca Fenzi takes it from here.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi:\u003c/strong> It was all in how you handled the rope… \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi:\u003c/strong> It was all in how you handled the rope… \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>If you let it run through your hands and slowly break the fall, that rope might not snap, and you can actually catch the leader if they fall, and they’re not gonna die.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>If you let it run through your hands and slowly break the fall, that rope might not snap, and you can actually catch the leader if they fall, and they’re not gonna die.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>This was huge. Climbers started practicing these “slow” rope falls by jumping off the boulders at Indian Rock. And they brought these life-saving skills to Yosemite with them.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>This was huge. Climbers started practicing these “slow” rope falls by jumping off the boulders at Indian Rock. And they brought these life-saving skills to Yosemite with them.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>A decade later, in the 1940s, nylon was widely available. And climbers started using the stretchy fiber to make stronger, more shock-absorbant ropes.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>A decade later, in the 1940s, nylon was widely available. And climbers started using the stretchy fiber to make stronger, more shock-absorbant ropes.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>And then all of a sudden things got a lot safer. The nylon ropes were less prone to breaking than hemp ropes were.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>And then all of a sudden things got a lot safer. The nylon ropes were less prone to breaking than hemp ropes were.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Falling on a rock climb was no longer a death sentence and that made the sport a lot more popular.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Falling on a rock climb was no longer a death sentence and that made the sport a lot more popular.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>As new tools and techniques made climbs safer, the goals of climbing changed, too.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>As new tools and techniques made climbs safer, the goals of climbing changed, too.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>Style was more important than difficulty.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>John says by the time he got hooked, rock climbing was no longer just about getting to the top. It was about finding creative ways up a rock, and making the act of climbing itself beautiful.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>John says by the time he got hooked, rock climbing was no longer just about getting to the top. It was about finding creative ways up a rock, and making the act of climbing itself beautiful.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Climbers were \u003cem>still \u003c/em>eager to test themselves on the big climbs in places like Yosemite and Joshua Tree. But the Bay Area’s natural geology was limiting. And climbing gyms — with their variety of simulated rock types — weren’t as common as they are today.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Climbers were \u003cem>still \u003c/em>eager to test themselves on the big climbs in places like Yosemite and Joshua Tree. But the Bay Area’s natural geology was limiting. And climbing gyms — with their variety of simulated rock types — weren’t as common as they are today.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>So for Bay Area climbers to take their skills to the next level … they had to look in some unexpected places.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>So for Bay Area climbers to take their skills to the next level … they had to look in some unexpected places.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Jordan Schulz: \u003c/strong>Pretty much every building is climbable is what I found out, if you look at it in the right way.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Jordan Schulz: \u003c/strong>Pretty much every building is climbable is what I found out, if you look at it in the right way.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Jordan Schulz is the kind of climber who looks at it “the right way.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Jordan Schulz is the kind of climber who looks at it “the right way.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>He’s 23 and sees climbing opportunities everywhere. Even the UC Berkeley campus, where he’s showing me one of the university’s most famous climbing “routes.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>He’s 23 and sees climbing opportunities everywhere. Even the UC Berkeley campus, where he’s showing me one of the university’s most famous climbing “routes.” \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>It’s a crack in the side of a brick building that houses the Chemistry department. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>It’s a crack in the side of a brick building that houses the Chemistry department. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Jordan Schulz: \u003c/strong>This is the crack we’re looking at right here. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Jordan Schulz: \u003c/strong>This is the crack we’re looking at right here. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>It takes me a moment to “see” it the way Jordan does.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>It takes me a moment to “see” it the way Jordan does.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi in scene: \u003c/strong>To me, I’m looking at a brick wall with a parking sign on it. Yeah. And there’s a gap in the wall that’s maybe about an inch and a half thick. And it runs from the base of the wall to the the next story up.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi in scene: \u003c/strong>To me, I’m looking at a brick wall with a parking sign on it. Yeah. And there’s a gap in the wall that’s maybe about an inch and a half thick. And it runs from the base of the wall to the the next story up.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Jordan Schulz: \u003c/strong>Yeah. That’s the climb. It doesn’t really look like much when you look at it. And then I think that’s the beautiful part about it, is that you need to open your eyes to it, you know?\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Jordan Schulz: \u003c/strong>Yeah. That’s the climb. It doesn’t really look like much when you look at it. And then I think that’s the beautiful part about it, is that you need to open your eyes to it, you know?\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Jordan says climbers have been using the crack in this building to practice their technique since at least the 1960s\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Jordan says climbers have been using the crack in this building to practice their technique since at least the 1960s\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Jordan Schulz: \u003c/strong>A lot of the style of climbing in Yosemite and the Sierras features a lot of cracks in the rock. And so, it offers a good training ground to learn some crack climbing technique that would help people climb better in the mountains.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Jordan Schulz: \u003c/strong>A lot of the style of climbing in Yosemite and the Sierras features a lot of cracks in the rock. And so, it offers a good training ground to learn some crack climbing technique that would help people climb better in the mountains.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Jordan says this spot has another name: the Penny Wall. Back in the 60s, when a climber was practicing at the crack, they’d stick a penny onto the highest brick they could reach.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Jordan says this spot has another name: the Penny Wall. Back in the 60s, when a climber was practicing at the crack, they’d stick a penny onto the highest brick they could reach.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Jordan Schulz: \u003c/strong>And so people would see, like, how high was the penny, and every so often it would get higher.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Jordan Schulz: \u003c/strong>And so people would see, like, how high was the penny, and every so often it would get higher.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>A challenge to the next climber…\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>A challenge to the next climber…\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Jordan Schulz: \u003c/strong>A subtle way of communicating you know, who climbed a little higher and moved the penny up.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Jordan Schulz: \u003c/strong>A subtle way of communicating you know, who climbed a little higher and moved the penny up.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Back at Beaver Street, our question asker Ravi is getting ready to place his own metaphorical penny on the wall.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Back at Beaver Street, our question asker Ravi is getting ready to place his own metaphorical penny on the wall.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: All right, Ravi, let’s get your shoes on- Yep\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: All right, Ravi, let’s get your shoes on- Yep\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>He’s about to climb outside for the first time.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>He’s about to climb outside for the first time.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi in scene:\u003c/strong> How are you feeling about climbing it? \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi in scene:\u003c/strong> How are you feeling about climbing it? \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> I’m excited. I’m also, yeah, a li- little nervous. Like, I don’t want to slip, but, no, mostly excited. Mostly feeling excited about climbing this.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> I’m excited. I’m also, yeah, a li- little nervous. Like, I don’t want to slip, but, no, mostly excited. Mostly feeling excited about climbing this.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>Your belay is on. And climbing. Okay. Climb on, sir.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>Your belay is on. And climbing. Okay. Climb on, sir.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>The Bay Area’s outdoor rock walls have been home to major breakthroughs in the sport. But as Max would say, they’re also good clean fun.\u003cstrong> \u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>The Bay Area’s outdoor rock walls have been home to major breakthroughs in the sport. But as Max would say, they’re also good clean fun.\u003cstrong> \u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>What do you think of outdoor climbing versus, uh, in the gym? \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> This is great. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> This is great. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>Isn’t it so nice?\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>Isn’t it so nice?\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>And urban climbs like this one — tucked into corners of busy cities — feel like secrets, passed along by other members of this special club. People who’ve contributed a penny, or a pair of chains, or advice about how to get around a tricky stretch of rock.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>And urban climbs like this one — tucked into corners of busy cities — feel like secrets, passed along by other members of this special club. People who’ve contributed a penny, or a pair of chains, or advice about how to get around a tricky stretch of rock.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>Try and utilize that crack as much as possible. This guy’s got some bragging rights having this be his first outdoor climb, and he’s just absolutely sending it. Okay, I’m gonna lower you nice and slow. Just walk those feet down. Hey, nice work, man. That was amazing. Good job, man. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>Try and utilize that crack as much as possible. This guy’s got some bragging rights having this be his first outdoor climb, and he’s just absolutely sending it. Okay, I’m gonna lower you nice and slow. Just walk those feet down. Hey, nice work, man. That was amazing. Good job, man. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> Thank you. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> Thank you. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>First outdoor climb. Yeah. What a classic too, man. This is a, uh- That was amazing … that’s no slouch of a climb, man. That was, uh, you worked hard for that.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>First outdoor climb. Yeah. What a classic too, man. This is a, uh- That was amazing … that’s no slouch of a climb, man. That was, uh, you worked hard for that.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Whether you’re a seasoned mountaineer, or a new climber, like Ravi, a neighborhood rock can feel just as magical as Yosemite.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Whether you’re a seasoned mountaineer, or a new climber, like Ravi, a neighborhood rock can feel just as magical as Yosemite.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>What’d you think of that glass section in the middle there? \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> The glass section was definitely interesting. That was wild. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>Well, what do you think? Should we, uh, pull these ropes?\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Sounds or rope falling from a great height\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>Boom. That’s it. That’s the sound of the end of it.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Classical music plays\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi in scene: \u003c/strong>That song is the perfect soundtrack. Was that your cellphone?\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> Yeah, it was.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price:\u003c/strong> That story was brought to us by KQED reporter Francesca Fenzi.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>I’ve got two requests for you on our way out. First, Head to \u003ca href=\"http://baycurious.org\">BayCurious.org\u003c/a> and VOTE in our public voting round to help us decide what story we should tackle next. All it takes is a few seconds and one click.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Second, consider becoming a member of KQED and supporting Bay Curious. We are relying more on listener donations than we have in the past and every dollar helps us to keep bringing you stories like this one. Head to \u003ca href=\"http://donate.kqed.org/podcasts\">donate.kqed.org/podcasts\u003c/a> to get started.\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "Beaver Street’s shiny slab isn’t just a geologic curiosity — it’s part of a long legacy for Bay Area climbers who have used city rocks and buildings to train for the heights of Yosemite Valley.",
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"title": "The San Francisco Rock Climbing Spot Known For Its Shiny Surface | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003ca href=\"#transcript\">View the full episode transcript\u003c/a>\u003c/em>.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/san-francisco\">San Francisco’s\u003c/a> Beaver Street is just two blocks long. It climbs from Castro Street up a steep hill toward Corona Heights, a few blocks from the Castro Theater.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Tucked into the curve of this tiny street is a narrow park, and inside it, a 60-foot slab of rock that towers over a public playground. The rock is streaked with diagonal bands of red and tan that make it look almost like a slice of bacon — with a surface unlike any rock Bay Curious listener Ravi Bhoraskar had seen.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Bhoraskar first stumbled across the \u003ca href=\"https://www.mountainproject.com/area/105733887/beaver-street-wall\">Beaver Street rock wall\u003c/a> during a weekend outing with his daughters, to the Randall Museum of Science in Corona Heights Park.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1500\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/BeaverStreetClimbing_FF-3-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12093864\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/BeaverStreetClimbing_FF-3-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/BeaverStreetClimbing_FF-3-KQED-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/BeaverStreetClimbing_FF-3-KQED-1536x1152.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Max Stewart belays Ravi Bhoraskar as he climbs the Beaver Street wall in San Francisco’s Corona Heights Park. (Francesca Fenzi/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>He described it as a “shiny, almost slippery-looking surface” with a few sparse holes “that you can potentially use to climb on.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The secluded crag felt like a revelation. He recently started rock climbing, and climbs weekly at his neighborhood gym in the Mission.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I was excited to learn that there is at least one [outdoor] climbing spot within the city, easily reachable by bus,” Bhoraskar said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">A visible record of Bay Area geology\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Bhoraskar’s first clue to the origins of the Beaver Street rock came from a sign posted at its base. Known as a “slickenside,” the sign explained: “This smooth rock face was once inside a fault. Its surface was polished by millions of years of geological activity.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Slickenside is a type of rock that forms along fault lines, like the San Andreas Fault that slashes diagonally across San Francisco. When two rocks on either side of the fault rub against each other, the friction between them can generate heat and super-fine particles of dust. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>That dust acts like a lubricant, polishing the rock surface until it becomes glassy and smooth, just like the rock on Beaver Street. The colorful stripes on a slickenside formation even record the direction the rocks were moving, allowing geologists to track the movement of different faults across time. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-06-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094715\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-06-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-06-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-06-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The Beaver Street Wall in Corona Heights Park in San Francisco on Aug. 10, 2026. The rock wall is open to climbing and is primarily used for top-rope climbing. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>According to the City of San Francisco’s posted signage, the rock wall on Beaver Street is thought to be one of the largest exposed slickenside formations in the world.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>This sign also serves as a reminder of a \u003ca href=\"https://www.facebook.com/savebsw/\">small municipal battle over access to the rock\u003c/a>. In 2014, the city instituted a permitting process for climbers hoping to scale the slick stone wall. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>San Francisco climbers protested and eventually persuaded the city to drop the permits — on the condition that local climbing groups and the signage at Beaver Street emphasized a “leave no trace” policy.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How a Berkeley park changed climbing history\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The rock on Beaver Street is one of a handful of outdoor climbing areas in San Francisco proper, but across the bay in the Berkeley Hills sits another city park where climbers have pushed the sport forward for nearly a century.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://berkeleyca.gov/community-recreation/parks-recreation/parks/indian-rock-park\">Indian Rock Park\u003c/a> encompasses a collection of volcanic boulders in the hills overlooking the UC Berkeley campus. Long a \u003ca href=\"https://sogoreate-landtrust.org/slt_resources/indian-rock/\">place of significance to Ohlone people\u003c/a>, these boulders have also played an outsized role in the Bay Area’s climbing history. John Sherman remembers getting introduced to the sport here in the 1970s, when he was a student at El Cerrito High.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Well, it’s kind of a funny story,” Sherman said. “Some friends and I scored some beer. Of course, we weren’t of legal drinking age, so we were really excited, and we wanted to find some place where we’d be semi-hidden to drink it.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-image\">\n\u003cfigure class=\"alignleft size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1500\" height=\"2000\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/BeaverStreetClimbing_FF-5-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"A man in orange shirt and grey pants wearing a helmet and rock climbing shoes climbs a rock wall.\" class=\"wp-image-12093866\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/BeaverStreetClimbing_FF-5-KQED.jpg 1500w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/BeaverStreetClimbing_FF-5-KQED-160x213.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/BeaverStreetClimbing_FF-5-KQED-1152x1536.jpg 1152w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Ravi Bhoraskar climbs the Beaver Street wall, his first outdoor climbing experience. (Francesca Fenzi/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003c/div>\n\n\n\u003cp>A friend suggested that they take their contraband to Indian Rock Park. While they were sitting on the steps enjoying these illicit beverages, Sherman noticed people scrambling on the rocks nearby, practicing gymnastic moves just a few feet off the ground.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“That day I got fascinated with it, and I wanted to try it myself,” he said. He came back a few days later, blundering his way through the first of many bouldering climbs in what would become his 50-year love affair with rock climbing.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I got hooked, and I’ve been doing it every day since,” Sherman said. Bay Area climbers might recognize Sherman by his nickname: Verm, short for Vermin.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Verm would go on to become one of the pioneers of a relatively new style of climbing, called bouldering, where climbers perform ambitious, gymnastic moves with no ropes — all while staying relatively close to the ground.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Just because bouldering involves less consequential falls than those taken by climbers on California’s soaring cliff faces, doesn’t mean falling off a boulder didn’t hurt.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We took a real beating back in those days,” Sherman explained of his early bouldering experiments at Indian Rock. “There weren’t that many people, like myself, who were daft enough to go through that and keep beating themselves up.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.climbinggold.com/voices/john-sherman\">Sherman is now a climbing legend\u003c/a> within the Bay Area and beyond.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>He was the first person to scale and document hundreds of new routes in a now-esteemed bouldering area in Texas, called \u003ca href=\"https://tpwd.texas.gov/state-parks/hueco-tanks/activities/#rock-climbing\">Hueco Tanks\u003c/a>, and he \u003ca href=\"https://www.climbing.com/gear/crash-pads-safety-changed-bouldering-forever/\">helped to invent the “crash pads” that boulderers use to cushion their falls\u003c/a> today.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But his most recognizable contribution to the Bay Area’s climbing culture is one that Sherman doesn’t like to talk about. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-14-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094719\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-14-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-14-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-14-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A view of the skyline from the Beaver Street Wall in Corona Heights Park in San Francisco on Aug. 10, 2026. The rock wall is open to climbing and is primarily used for top-rope climbing. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>He invented a system to grade the difficulty of bouldering climbs, dubbed the \u003ca href=\"https://rockclimbingrealms.com/bouldering-grades-explained/\">“V grading system” \u003c/a>— as in, the Vermin grading system. This is a system now widely used by climbing gyms, which rates the easiest climbs at V0 and goes up numerically (V1, V2, V3 and so on) as the difficulty increases.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Sherman said he dislikes how fixated other climbers have become with his grading system.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I just think of climbing grades as the excrement of the climbing experience,” he said. He described the “nutrition” of the climbing experience as being all the things that make climbing worthwhile: the camaraderie, the “kinesthetic flow of the movement” and a communion with nature.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“And then what happens afterwards?” he said. “Out pops a V grade.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">A safer way to fall\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Sherman prefers to think of himself as part of a long lineage of Bay Area climbers who have sharpened their skills on the urban rock faces available to them.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>At Indian Rock, for example, a group of Berkeley law students and mountaineers were \u003ca href=\"https://www.berkeleyside.org/2023/12/07/rock-climbing-indian-rock-mortar-rock\">preparing for ascents in Yosemite Valley as early as the 1930s\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Mountain climbing at the time was extraordinarily dangerous. The gear was heavy and awkward, and the safety equipment didn’t really work. Climbers used ropes made of hemp — stiff, dry, and prone to snapping if pulled too quickly. Most people assumed a fall on a climbing route was fatal.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“The rope’s gonna break, and that’s it, you know?” Sherman said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-09-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094716\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-09-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-09-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260810-BeaverStreetPortraits-09-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">An anchor chain at the top of the Beaver Street Wall in Corona Heights Park in San Francisco on Aug. 10, 2026. The rock wall is open to climbing and is primarily used for top-rope climbing. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But the Berkeley students climbing at Indian Rock developed a counterintuitive idea to change that.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The solution was all in how climbers handled the rope. If a belayer let the rope run through their hands and slowly absorbed the force of a fall, the rope was far less likely to snap — and could actually catch a falling climber without killing them.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Climbers began practicing these controlled, “slow” rope falls by jumping off the boulders at Indian Rock, and they carried the life-saving technique with them to Yosemite. \u003ca href=\"https://www.sciencehistory.org/stories/magazine/nylon-a-revolution-in-textiles/\">By the 1940s, nylon was commercially accessible\u003c/a>, and climbers began making stronger, more shock-absorbent ropes from it.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“And then all of a sudden things got a lot safer,” Sherman said. “The nylon ropes were less prone to breaking than hemp ropes were.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Falling was no longer a death sentence, and the sport became more popular as a result. As new tools and techniques made climbing safer, the goals of the sport shifted too.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Style was more important than difficulty, and you were more respected if you could walk up to a climb and climb it without falling … just figuring it out,” Sherman said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>By the 1960s, climbing was no longer just about the summit — it was about finding a creative way up each rock, and making the act of climbing itself beautiful. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The secret climbs on University of California, Berkeley campus\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Climbers still wanted to test themselves on big routes in Yosemite and Joshua Tree, but the Bay Area’s natural geology was limited, and climbing gyms weren’t yet common. So climbers had to look for training grounds in some unexpected places.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Jordan Schultz is the kind of climber who sees potential everywhere — even across the UC Berkeley campus, where he’s cataloged hundreds of “buildering” routes.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I think I listed, like, 300-plus routes just on campus,” Schultz said. “Pretty much every building is climbable, is what I found out, if you look at it in the right way.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260811-BEAVER-STREET-CLIMBING-01-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094710\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260811-BEAVER-STREET-CLIMBING-01-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260811-BEAVER-STREET-CLIMBING-01-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/260811-BEAVER-STREET-CLIMBING-01-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">From left to right, climbers Ace Landauer, Jordan Schultz, Tilly Holtz and Colin Wills hang from cracks in the “penny wall,” a spot on the UC Berkeley campus where rock climbers practice crack climbing techniques required for climbs in Yosemite Valley. ((Courtesy Jordan Schultz))\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Schultz documented these routes — and the history behind them — in his guidebook, \u003ca href=\"https://campusingbook.com\">\u003cem>Campusing: A Secret History and Buildering Guide to UC Berkeley\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem>. \u003c/em>One of the university’s most famous unofficial routes is a crack running up the side of a brick building that houses the chemistry department.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It doesn’t really look like much when you look at it,” Schultz said. “I think that’s the beautiful part about it. You need to open your eyes to it, you know?”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Climbers have used this crack to practice technique since at least the 1960s, Schultz said, because it mirrors the kind of crack climbing common in Yosemite and other parts of the Sierra.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The spot has another name, too: the Penny Wall. According to Schultz, back in the 1960s, climbers practicing at the crack would stick a penny onto the highest brick they could reach — a marker and quiet challenge to whoever climbed the crack next.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>John Sherman honed his own crack-climbing technique on the Penny Wall. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>And as much as the Bay Area’s outdoor climbing sites have been the home of real breakthroughs in the sport of climbing, he said their true value is in the community of climbers that are drawn to them.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Climbing something like the rock on Beaver Street, tucked into the corner of a busy city, can still feel like being let in on a local secret — passed down by generations of climbers who have left something behind for the next adventurous climber: a penny, a piece of gear, or simply a tip to help newcomers navigate a tricky stretch of rock.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“When you do go to these little areas, and make the effort to meet the locals [climbing there], the experience is so much richer,” Sherman said. “It doesn’t have to be Yosemite to give you a climbing experience and a community to hang out with.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"transcript\">Episode transcript\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price:\u003c/strong> I’m Olivia Allen-Price and you’re listening to Bay Curious.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>When I was about six months pregnant with my first child, a friend of a friend passed along a maternity climbing harness … a full body nylon contraption that allows pregnant people to keep rock climbing.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Now, I was not a rock climber at the time, but thought — “hey, why not? A lot of other activities I love, like running, have gotten really hard, but my legs are stronger than ever. Let’s climb!”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Soon I found myself halfway up a wall in Pinnacles National Park … having a blast, but also hearing the voice of my mother inside my head: \u003cem>“Oh, Olivia. You would.”\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>To be honest, my stint with rock climbing was relatively short, but I was into it long enough to hit up most of the bigger climbing areas in the Bay Area. And I learned you don’t have to drive all the way to Yosemite to feel the thrill of scaling a cliff. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>There are a handful of urban climbing areas you might have walked past without a second look.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Bay Curious listener Ravi Bhoraskar [[boh-RAHS-car]] stumbled across one of those hidden rock walls … tucked into the hills of San Francisco.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar: \u003c/strong>It looked to me like a residential street. A bunch of cute houses, \u003cs>uh,\u003c/s> and, like, a little narrow path in the middle.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price: \u003c/strong>Beaver Street itself is just two blocks long. It climbs from Castro Street up a steep hill towards Corona Heights. The Castro Theater is just a few blocks away.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>And tucked into the curve of Beaver Street is a narrow park.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar: \u003c/strong>And as you come in, you get this giant piece of shiny rock, which is the Beaver Street Wall. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price: \u003c/strong>This big slab of rock towers 60 feet above a kids’ playground. It’s got these diagonal streaks of red and tan rock that honestly make it look almost like a slice of bacon. And it has an unusual texture…\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar: \u003c/strong>It’s kind of like a shiny, almost slippery-looking surface, with some holes that you can potentially use to climb on.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price: \u003c/strong>This interested Ravi because he recently got into rock climbing. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar: \u003c/strong>Mostly indoors at the climbing gym. I was excited to learn that there is, like, at least one climbing spot right within the city, like, easily reachable by bus.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price: \u003c/strong>And he wants to know … what is that slippery, striped bacon rock?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar: \u003c/strong>How did it end up there, and why does it look so cool?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price: \u003c/strong>And most importantly…\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar: \u003c/strong>Like, can I climb it?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price: \u003c/strong>Today we’re going to get answers for Ravi, of course. But we’ll also explore how Bay Area climbers have used city parks to practice their skills for decades — and ultimately push the sport forward. Turns out there’s a lot of rock climbing history anchored right here in the Bay Area.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>KQED producer Francesca Fenzi headed to Beaver Street with Ravi … to check out this unusual rock.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Birds singing, slight traffic sounds\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi:\u003c/strong> Ravi and I arrive at Corona Heights Park on a sunny weekend afternoon. We can hear birds singing … and the faint sound of traffic from Market Street carrying up the hill.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>There’s a playground, a dense pocket of trees, and then … this glistening rock wall.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar: \u003c/strong>It’s not wet, but it \u003cem>looks\u003c/em> wet. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>The shiny surface is interrupted by a single jagged crack, which runs about six stories high. And at the base of the rock is a sign … which gives us a clue about how it got here.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> Known as a slickenslide, this smooth rock face was once inside a fault. Its surface was polished by millions of years of geological activity.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>It’s Slicken SIDE actually. Try saying that three times fast! \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Slickenside forms when two rocks inside a fault rub against each other. Imagine pressing your hands together as hard as you can and then sliding them back and forth. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>That friction creates heat — and tiny dust particles which act like a fluid — to polish the rock until it looks glassy and smooth. Just like the wall at Beaver Street. The colorful stripes even show the direction the fault was moving when a Slickenside was formed.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>According to the sign, this rock is thought to be one of the largest exposed Slickenside formations in the world. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> Capitals, “Please do not chip holes in the rock face or alter the rock in any way.” And then it’s taped over Um, climbing on these rocks is by permit only. To obtain a permit, call some number.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>I looked into getting a permit and it turns out you no longer need one to climb at Beaver Street. So Ravi is going to try to climb it today.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>And to make sure we don’t damage the rock, we’ve enlisted some help.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart:\u003c/strong> Hey, how you doing? I’m Max. Hey, Ravi. Ravi, nice to meet you. Nice to meet you. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Max Stewart owns a guiding company, called SAANO Adventures. And he’s offered to help us set up an anchor and climbing rope on the Beaver Street wall… \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart:\u003c/strong> I’d be happy to. Did you bring some shoes? \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> I brought some shoes. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>Yeah? Okay. Cool.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Outdoor rocks don’t come with built-in safety equipment like the climbs in a gym, so we’ll need to secure our rope to something sturdy at the top of the rock wall.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>There’s a little staircase here. Yep, there it is.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Max leads us up and around the back side of the rock, to the top of a windy hill. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>I can pick out landmarks like the diagonal slash of Market Street below, the Salesforce tower and the Bay Bridge in the distance. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Directly in front of us is a steep drop off. It looks a lot more intimidating from up here! \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart:\u003c/strong> Isn’t that wild? So the playground. we met just right down there. There’s the sign that you were reading.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Separating us from the edge of the cliff is a chain link fence. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart:\u003c/strong> And then a bunch of heavy duty chains that we’re gonna use.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>These heavy duty chains bolted into the top of the wall are perfect for setting up what’s called a “top rope” climb, where a rope runs from the ground, up to an anchor, and back down to the climber, catching them if they fall.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart:\u003c/strong> Always a little weird!\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Max explains that this is the same setup used by climbing gyms … even if it looks a bit different outside.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi in scene: \u003c/strong>Oh, man. That was impressive. [to Ravi] Is this what you were expecting? \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> No, not at all. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi in scene: \u003c/strong>A little different than the climbing gym, huh? \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> Yeah, yeah, definitely.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>I’ve climbed outside a bit myself and part of what I love is the sense of possibility. There aren’t any predetermined holds, you can find your own route up to the top. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>Every single person is gonna have their own method for solving this. the gyms I think are a really good place to get started, to kinda just learn the ropes, but I really encourage people as soon as, you feel like you can do it, to get outside.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi in scene: \u003c/strong>Is this gonna be your first time climbing outside? \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> Uh, yes. Yes, this will be. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>No way, really? \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> Yeah.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>Oh, it’s so fun.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Sound of climbing over chain link fence\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart:\u003c/strong> When was the last time you were hopping [00:07:00] fences to go climbing. Hey. It feels kinda like you’re doing stuff you’re not supposed to do, hopping fences and … It’s like good clean fun, but still kind of a throwback, you know?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>No laws were broken in the making of this podcast! But Max is right. Setting up the rope above Beaver Street really does feel like getting away with something.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Music starts\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>A lot of urban climbs FEEL illicit because it seems kind of unnatural to be doing something we associate with mountains right in our backyards. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But, there’s actually a long history of Bay Area climbers using whatever they can find to ready themselves for those more ambitious, wild ascents. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Beaver Street is one of the only rocks you can climb outdoors in San Francisco, but just across the bay, in the Berkeley Hills, is another city park where climbers have been pushing the limits of the sport for almost a century.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>John Sherman grew up in Berkeley. And he remembers getting introduced to climbing there.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman:\u003c/strong> Well, it’s kind of a funny story. Some friends and I in high school, we scored some beer. Of course, we weren’t of legal drinking age, so we were really excited, and we wanted to find some place where \u003cs>we, you know, \u003c/s>we’d be semi-hidden to drink it.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>So they made their way to Indian Rock park, a collection of volcanic boulders that was once an Ohlone meeting spot. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>And we were sitting on the steps there drinking this beer we had gotten, and I saw people climbing there.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>The climbers were just a few feet off the ground … practicing gravity-defying moves.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>That day I got fascinated with it, and I wanted to try it myself.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Pretty soon, he was taking the bus to Indian Rock every day after school.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>And I would always have my climbing shoes in my book bag along with my textbooks and stuff, and I would stop there on the way home every day, go to Indian Rock and boulder till it got dark and then walk home.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>He was at the rock so often that his brother started describing himself as an only child.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>I got hooked, and I’ve been doing it every day since. And, you know, it’s been over 50 years now.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>The type of climbing John was doing is called bouldering. There aren’t any ropes, but people climb closer to the ground, using pads to cushion a fall. At least, they do now. But in the early days…\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>We took a real beating and there weren’t that many people like myself who were daft enough to go through that and keep beating themselves up like that.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>John is a bit of a legend. He was the first person to climb a bunch of famous bouldering routes, he helped invent those cushioned pads, AND he created a system for ranking the difficulty of climbs — called the V grading system — that’s widely used today. It starts with the easiest climbs at V0 and goes up from there as the climbing gets harder — V1, V2 and so on. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The V comes from John’s lifelong nickname, given to him by a biology teacher at El Cerrito High.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>So he called me Sherman the Vermin. Got shortened to Verm and just kind of stuck.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>John actually hates how fixated other climbers get on his V grading system.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>I just think of climbing grades as the excrement of the climbing experience. After you do a wonderful, you know, boulder problem, and you enjoy the setting that you’re in, the camaraderie of your climbing partners, the kinesthetic flow of the moves and everything, and then what happens afterwards? Out pops a V grade.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Instead, John likes to think of himself as part of a long line of climbers honing their skills at Indian Rock.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>The early history that I know of that’s documented goes back to like the 1930s\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>At that time, a group of Berkeley law students — and mountaineers — had their sights on Yosemite Valley.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>And here is a collection of rocks where they could train.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>The training part was important. Because at the time mountain climbing was super dangerous. The gear was heavy and awkward. The safety equipment didn’t really work.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Climbers were using these flimsy ropes made out of hemp that were stiff and dry and tended to break if they got pulled apart too quickly.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>John says most people assumed that falling on a climbing route was a death sentence.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>The rope’s gonna break and that’s it, you know?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>But these Berkeley students, climbing at Indian Rock. They came up with a counterintuitive idea.\u003cbr>\u003cbr>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price:\u003c/strong> More on their idea and how it revolutionized climbing after this quick break. Stay with us.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Sponsor message\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price:\u003c/strong> UC Berkeley Students climbing at Indian Rock wanted to make climbing safer, and they discovered a technique that would really change the game. Francesca Fenzi takes it from here.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi:\u003c/strong> It was all in how you handled the rope… \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>If you let it run through your hands and slowly break the fall, that rope might not snap, and you can actually catch the leader if they fall, and they’re not gonna die.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>This was huge. Climbers started practicing these “slow” rope falls by jumping off the boulders at Indian Rock. And they brought these life-saving skills to Yosemite with them.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>A decade later, in the 1940s, nylon was widely available. And climbers started using the stretchy fiber to make stronger, more shock-absorbant ropes.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>And then all of a sudden things got a lot safer. The nylon ropes were less prone to breaking than hemp ropes were.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Falling on a rock climb was no longer a death sentence and that made the sport a lot more popular.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>As new tools and techniques made climbs safer, the goals of climbing changed, too.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>John Sherman: \u003c/strong>Style was more important than difficulty.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>John says by the time he got hooked, rock climbing was no longer just about getting to the top. It was about finding creative ways up a rock, and making the act of climbing itself beautiful.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Climbers were \u003cem>still \u003c/em>eager to test themselves on the big climbs in places like Yosemite and Joshua Tree. But the Bay Area’s natural geology was limiting. And climbing gyms — with their variety of simulated rock types — weren’t as common as they are today.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>So for Bay Area climbers to take their skills to the next level … they had to look in some unexpected places.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Jordan Schulz: \u003c/strong>Pretty much every building is climbable is what I found out, if you look at it in the right way.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Jordan Schulz is the kind of climber who looks at it “the right way.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>He’s 23 and sees climbing opportunities everywhere. Even the UC Berkeley campus, where he’s showing me one of the university’s most famous climbing “routes.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>It’s a crack in the side of a brick building that houses the Chemistry department. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Jordan Schulz: \u003c/strong>This is the crack we’re looking at right here. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>It takes me a moment to “see” it the way Jordan does.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi in scene: \u003c/strong>To me, I’m looking at a brick wall with a parking sign on it. Yeah. And there’s a gap in the wall that’s maybe about an inch and a half thick. And it runs from the base of the wall to the the next story up.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Jordan Schulz: \u003c/strong>Yeah. That’s the climb. It doesn’t really look like much when you look at it. And then I think that’s the beautiful part about it, is that you need to open your eyes to it, you know?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Jordan says climbers have been using the crack in this building to practice their technique since at least the 1960s\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Jordan Schulz: \u003c/strong>A lot of the style of climbing in Yosemite and the Sierras features a lot of cracks in the rock. And so, it offers a good training ground to learn some crack climbing technique that would help people climb better in the mountains.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Jordan says this spot has another name: the Penny Wall. Back in the 60s, when a climber was practicing at the crack, they’d stick a penny onto the highest brick they could reach.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Jordan Schulz: \u003c/strong>And so people would see, like, how high was the penny, and every so often it would get higher.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>A challenge to the next climber…\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Jordan Schulz: \u003c/strong>A subtle way of communicating you know, who climbed a little higher and moved the penny up.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Back at Beaver Street, our question asker Ravi is getting ready to place his own metaphorical penny on the wall.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: All right, Ravi, let’s get your shoes on- Yep\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>He’s about to climb outside for the first time.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi in scene:\u003c/strong> How are you feeling about climbing it? \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> I’m excited. I’m also, yeah, a li- little nervous. Like, I don’t want to slip, but, no, mostly excited. Mostly feeling excited about climbing this.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>Your belay is on. And climbing. Okay. Climb on, sir.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>The Bay Area’s outdoor rock walls have been home to major breakthroughs in the sport. But as Max would say, they’re also good clean fun.\u003cstrong> \u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>What do you think of outdoor climbing versus, uh, in the gym? \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> This is great. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>Isn’t it so nice?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>And urban climbs like this one — tucked into corners of busy cities — feel like secrets, passed along by other members of this special club. People who’ve contributed a penny, or a pair of chains, or advice about how to get around a tricky stretch of rock.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>Try and utilize that crack as much as possible. This guy’s got some bragging rights having this be his first outdoor climb, and he’s just absolutely sending it. Okay, I’m gonna lower you nice and slow. Just walk those feet down. Hey, nice work, man. That was amazing. Good job, man. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> Thank you. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>First outdoor climb. Yeah. What a classic too, man. This is a, uh- That was amazing … that’s no slouch of a climb, man. That was, uh, you worked hard for that.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi: \u003c/strong>Whether you’re a seasoned mountaineer, or a new climber, like Ravi, a neighborhood rock can feel just as magical as Yosemite.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>What’d you think of that glass section in the middle there? \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> The glass section was definitely interesting. That was wild. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>Well, what do you think? Should we, uh, pull these ropes?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Sounds or rope falling from a great height\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Max Stewart: \u003c/strong>Boom. That’s it. That’s the sound of the end of it.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Classical music plays\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Francesca Fenzi in scene: \u003c/strong>That song is the perfect soundtrack. Was that your cellphone?\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Ravi Bhoraskar:\u003c/strong> Yeah, it was.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Olivia Allen-Price:\u003c/strong> That story was brought to us by KQED reporter Francesca Fenzi.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>I’ve got two requests for you on our way out. First, Head to \u003ca href=\"http://baycurious.org\">BayCurious.org\u003c/a> and VOTE in our public voting round to help us decide what story we should tackle next. All it takes is a few seconds and one click.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Second, consider becoming a member of KQED and supporting Bay Curious. We are relying more on listener donations than we have in the past and every dollar helps us to keep bringing you stories like this one. Head to \u003ca href=\"http://donate.kqed.org/podcasts\">donate.kqed.org/podcasts\u003c/a> to get started.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"title": "San Francisco Police Misread License Plate and Violently Arrested Driver, Watchdog Says",
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"headTitle": "San Francisco Police Misread License Plate and Violently Arrested Driver, Watchdog Says | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cp>The \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/san-francisco\">San Francisco\u003c/a> public defender’s office is demanding accountability after a watchdog agency \u003ca href=\"https://sfpublicdefender.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/16/2026/08/DPA-Ludwig-Findings.pdf\">found\u003c/a> two police officers used excessive force during a wrongful July 2024 arrest of a man they believed had stolen a car. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The man, Matthew Ludwig, was stopped at a traffic light in downtown San Francisco when Officer Vinesh Govindbhai smashed Ludwig’s driver’s side window with a baton, pulled him out of the car, pinned him down on the pavement and pepper-sprayed him in the face, according to a May 2025 complaint with the Department of Police Accountability.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It was actually Mr. Ludwig who was trying to de-escalate the encounter,” said Brian Cox, integrity manager with the San Francisco public defender’s office, who analyzed the body camera footage of the incident and filed Ludwig’s \u003ca href=\"https://sfpublicdefender.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/16/2026/08/DPA-Complaint-Ludwig.pdf\">claim\u003c/a> with the DPA.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/SFPDForce_1.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094753\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/SFPDForce_1.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/SFPDForce_1-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/SFPDForce_1-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Still from body-camera footage of the July 4, 2024, arrest of Matthew Ludwig by San Francisco Police Department officers. (Courtesy of SF Public Defender via YouTube)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“He’s telling the cops, ‘Be cool.’ ‘Take it easy.’ But at each turn, it was the cops who escalated the situation,” Cox said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In police reports, Govindbhai and Officer Jonathan Zepeda said they’d followed Ludwig’s Honda Accord for several miles because they believed it was stolen. Only later, after the officers handcuffed Ludwig, did they realize they had entered the wrong license plate number, which was for a Toyota, not a Honda, the agency found. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The SFPD declined to comment on the matter, citing ongoing litigation.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/shorts/2fBPUh_cREg\">Footage\u003c/a> shows Govindbhai opening the door and dragging Ludwig out by his hoodie as the driver protests.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>After struggling to handcuff Ludwig, whose left hand was pinned under his body, Govindbhai said, “You’re about to get sprayed.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>He then pepper-sprayed Ludwig just inches from his face, a violation of department policy, which requires a minimum distance of 4.5 feet. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>They referred Ludwig for charges of resisting arrest and impounded his car.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>According to the public defender’s office, Ludwig couldn’t afford to pay the fee to get his car released, and it was auctioned off. He was also charged with resisting arrest.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The District Attorney’s office dropped the matter after Ludwig died in September 2025.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In March, the DPA report sustained allegations that the officers violated SFPD policy by conducting a traffic stop, using excessive force, pepper spraying Ludwig and issuing a citation — all without cause.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“ He was attacked and injured and ultimately charged and dragged through the criminal legal system,” Cox said, “because they got the license plate wrong.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cox called for the officers to be disciplined and for an audit of the policies and information used to determine whether a car is stolen. That information currently is a black box, he said.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The man, Matthew Ludwig, was stopped at a traffic light in downtown San Francisco when Officer Vinesh Govindbhai smashed Ludwig’s driver’s side window with a baton, pulled him out of the car, pinned him down on the pavement and pepper-sprayed him in the face, according to a May 2025 complaint with the Department of Police Accountability.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In police reports, Govindbhai and Officer Jonathan Zepeda said they’d followed Ludwig’s Honda Accord for several miles because they believed it was stolen. Only later, after the officers handcuffed Ludwig, did they realize they had entered the wrong license plate number, which was for a Toyota, not a Honda, the agency found. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/shorts/2fBPUh_cREg\">Footage\u003c/a> shows Govindbhai opening the door and dragging Ludwig out by his hoodie as the driver protests.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In March, the DPA report sustained allegations that the officers violated SFPD policy by conducting a traffic stop, using excessive force, pepper spraying Ludwig and issuing a citation — all without cause.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“ He was attacked and injured and ultimately charged and dragged through the criminal legal system,” Cox said, “because they got the license plate wrong.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Cox called for the officers to be disciplined and for an audit of the policies and information used to determine whether a car is stolen. That information currently is a black box, he said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "The city’s public defender has called for an audit of how and why officers can determine whether a car is stolen. ",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>The \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/san-francisco\">San Francisco\u003c/a> public defender’s office is demanding accountability after a watchdog agency \u003ca href=\"https://sfpublicdefender.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/16/2026/08/DPA-Ludwig-Findings.pdf\">found\u003c/a> two police officers used excessive force during a wrongful July 2024 arrest of a man they believed had stolen a car. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The man, Matthew Ludwig, was stopped at a traffic light in downtown San Francisco when Officer Vinesh Govindbhai smashed Ludwig’s driver’s side window with a baton, pulled him out of the car, pinned him down on the pavement and pepper-sprayed him in the face, according to a May 2025 complaint with the Department of Police Accountability.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It was actually Mr. Ludwig who was trying to de-escalate the encounter,” said Brian Cox, integrity manager with the San Francisco public defender’s office, who analyzed the body camera footage of the incident and filed Ludwig’s \u003ca href=\"https://sfpublicdefender.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/16/2026/08/DPA-Complaint-Ludwig.pdf\">claim\u003c/a> with the DPA.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/SFPDForce_1.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094753\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/SFPDForce_1.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/SFPDForce_1-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/SFPDForce_1-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Still from body-camera footage of the July 4, 2024, arrest of Matthew Ludwig by San Francisco Police Department officers. (Courtesy of SF Public Defender via YouTube)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“He’s telling the cops, ‘Be cool.’ ‘Take it easy.’ But at each turn, it was the cops who escalated the situation,” Cox said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In police reports, Govindbhai and Officer Jonathan Zepeda said they’d followed Ludwig’s Honda Accord for several miles because they believed it was stolen. Only later, after the officers handcuffed Ludwig, did they realize they had entered the wrong license plate number, which was for a Toyota, not a Honda, the agency found. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The SFPD declined to comment on the matter, citing ongoing litigation.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/shorts/2fBPUh_cREg\">Footage\u003c/a> shows Govindbhai opening the door and dragging Ludwig out by his hoodie as the driver protests.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>After struggling to handcuff Ludwig, whose left hand was pinned under his body, Govindbhai said, “You’re about to get sprayed.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>He then pepper-sprayed Ludwig just inches from his face, a violation of department policy, which requires a minimum distance of 4.5 feet. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>They referred Ludwig for charges of resisting arrest and impounded his car.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>According to the public defender’s office, Ludwig couldn’t afford to pay the fee to get his car released, and it was auctioned off. He was also charged with resisting arrest.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The District Attorney’s office dropped the matter after Ludwig died in September 2025.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In March, the DPA report sustained allegations that the officers violated SFPD policy by conducting a traffic stop, using excessive force, pepper spraying Ludwig and issuing a citation — all without cause.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“ He was attacked and injured and ultimately charged and dragged through the criminal legal system,” Cox said, “because they got the license plate wrong.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cox called for the officers to be disciplined and for an audit of the policies and information used to determine whether a car is stolen. That information currently is a black box, he said.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"content": "\u003cp>If you know your \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/bart\">BART train’s\u003c/a> arrival time down to the minute, check it again. On Monday, almost all of them are moving.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>BART rolls out a new \u003ca href=\"https://www.bart.gov/schedules/pdfs\">systemwide schedule\u003c/a> Aug. 10, shifting most departures by a few minutes — and, the agency said, cutting wait times and easing crowding across the network. Alicia Trost, BART’s chief communications officer, said riders should look up their trip in advance.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Make sure you know if your train has been moved by a minute or two, because you’re going to be frustrated,” Trost said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The agency said nearly all of the timetable changes trace back to Daly City Station. It sits next to a BART yard, and trains heading out of service have to cross a tangle of track switches to reach it, holding up trains still carrying riders. Trost said BART made changes so that no longer happens.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1346\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/DalyCityStationGetty.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094457\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/DalyCityStationGetty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/DalyCityStationGetty-160x108.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/DalyCityStationGetty-1536x1034.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The platform at the Daly City Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) station is deserted on April 8, 2020, in Daly City, California. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.bart.gov/schedules/pdfs\">Starting Monday\u003c/a>, Daly City becomes a center platform station like Embarcadero or Montgomery. All San Francisco-bound trains leave from one platform. Platform 3 becomes exit-only, where Blue and Green Line trains unload before heading to the yard. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Center platforms are the easiest to use, Trost said, because riders don’t have to figure out whether they’re on the right side.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>If you’re on a Blue or Green line train headed to San Francisco International Airport, BART advises switching to a Red or Yellow line train at Balboa Park, where the transfer happens on the same platform. Transferring at Daly City now means changing platforms.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Here’s what changes Monday:\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\u003cli>Richmond-bound from San Francisco: Yellow and Red line trains spaced an even 10 minutes apart, instead of 5 and 15 minutes\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>Dublin- and Berryessa-bound: Gaps for the Green and Blue lines narrow from three and 17 minutes to eight and 12 minutes\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>Bay Fair: Dublin riders headed to San José transfer across the platform to a waiting train, down from a 19-minute wait\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>MacArthur: Antioch riders headed toward Berkeley, El Cerrito or Richmond get a 4-minute connection, saving 17 minutes\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>Pittsburg: Better-timed connections to and from the BART-to-Antioch shuttle\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>SFO: Red and Yellow line trains no longer sit at the platform together, easing confusion over which leaves first\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>Millbrae: Some Caltrain connections shift, and BART has posted a new transfer timetable\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>For Richmond-bound riders, the 10-minute spacing means taking the direct Red line or catching a Yellow line train and transferring at 19th Street. Trost said the MacArthur transfer is built with enough room to walk down the stairs and back up without running, and tied the new Bay Fair connection to growing demand from the Tri-Valley.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>BART is framing all of this as improvement without new spending. The agency is heading toward a fiscal cliff, as emergency funding that carried it through the pandemic runs out this fiscal year. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Fares that once covered roughly \u003ca href=\"https://www.bart.gov/about/financials/crisis\">70% \u003c/a>of BART’s operating budget now cover a fraction of that, though BART has seen some \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12081663/the-ohtani-effect-and-more-whats-behind-bay-area-transits-comeback\">recent ridership recovery\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>A regional sales tax measure to fund BART, Muni, Caltrain and AC Transit \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12084841/campaign-to-fund-bay-area-transit-smashes-signature-gathering-goal\">qualified for the November ballot\u003c/a> in May. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“That is why, in order to do better, we have to find a way to save money somewhere else or to just do things more efficiently with what we have,” Trost said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The schedule absorbs the 10-car trains BART added July 20 during peak hours, with shorter, six- and eight-car trains off-peak to keep costs flat. It also accommodates late-night construction between Daly City and Millbrae, where crews are replacing the train-control system. Expect delays through that stretch after 9 p.m., Sunday through Thursday.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>KQED’s \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/author/kmonahan\">\u003cem>Katherine Monahan\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem> contributed to this report.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>BART rolls out a new \u003ca href=\"https://www.bart.gov/schedules/pdfs\">systemwide schedule\u003c/a> Aug. 10, shifting most departures by a few minutes — and, the agency said, cutting wait times and easing crowding across the network. Alicia Trost, BART’s chief communications officer, said riders should look up their trip in advance.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Make sure you know if your train has been moved by a minute or two, because you’re going to be frustrated,” Trost said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The agency said nearly all of the timetable changes trace back to Daly City Station. It sits next to a BART yard, and trains heading out of service have to cross a tangle of track switches to reach it, holding up trains still carrying riders. Trost said BART made changes so that no longer happens.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.bart.gov/schedules/pdfs\">Starting Monday\u003c/a>, Daly City becomes a center platform station like Embarcadero or Montgomery. All San Francisco-bound trains leave from one platform. Platform 3 becomes exit-only, where Blue and Green Line trains unload before heading to the yard. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Center platforms are the easiest to use, Trost said, because riders don’t have to figure out whether they’re on the right side.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>If you’re on a Blue or Green line train headed to San Francisco International Airport, BART advises switching to a Red or Yellow line train at Balboa Park, where the transfer happens on the same platform. Transferring at Daly City now means changing platforms.\u003c/p>\n",
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"Richmond-bound from San Francisco: Yellow and Red line trains spaced an even 10 minutes apart, instead of 5 and 15 minutes",
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"Bay Fair: Dublin riders headed to San José transfer across the platform to a waiting train, down from a 19-minute wait",
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"Pittsburg: Better-timed connections to and from the BART-to-Antioch shuttle",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cli>Dublin- and Berryessa-bound: Gaps for the Green and Blue lines narrow from three and 17 minutes to eight and 12 minutes\u003c/li>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“That is why, in order to do better, we have to find a way to save money somewhere else or to just do things more efficiently with what we have,” Trost said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The schedule absorbs the 10-car trains BART added July 20 during peak hours, with shorter, six- and eight-car trains off-peak to keep costs flat. It also accommodates late-night construction between Daly City and Millbrae, where crews are replacing the train-control system. Expect delays through that stretch after 9 p.m., Sunday through Thursday.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cem>KQED’s \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/author/kmonahan\">\u003cem>Katherine Monahan\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem> contributed to this report.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "A single change at Daly City Station ripples across the system, shifting departure times and cutting some transfer waits as much as 17 minutes.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>If you know your \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/bart\">BART train’s\u003c/a> arrival time down to the minute, check it again. On Monday, almost all of them are moving.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>BART rolls out a new \u003ca href=\"https://www.bart.gov/schedules/pdfs\">systemwide schedule\u003c/a> Aug. 10, shifting most departures by a few minutes — and, the agency said, cutting wait times and easing crowding across the network. Alicia Trost, BART’s chief communications officer, said riders should look up their trip in advance.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Make sure you know if your train has been moved by a minute or two, because you’re going to be frustrated,” Trost said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The agency said nearly all of the timetable changes trace back to Daly City Station. It sits next to a BART yard, and trains heading out of service have to cross a tangle of track switches to reach it, holding up trains still carrying riders. Trost said BART made changes so that no longer happens.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1346\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/DalyCityStationGetty.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12094457\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/DalyCityStationGetty.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/DalyCityStationGetty-160x108.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/08/DalyCityStationGetty-1536x1034.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The platform at the Daly City Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) station is deserted on April 8, 2020, in Daly City, California. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.bart.gov/schedules/pdfs\">Starting Monday\u003c/a>, Daly City becomes a center platform station like Embarcadero or Montgomery. All San Francisco-bound trains leave from one platform. Platform 3 becomes exit-only, where Blue and Green Line trains unload before heading to the yard. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Center platforms are the easiest to use, Trost said, because riders don’t have to figure out whether they’re on the right side.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>If you’re on a Blue or Green line train headed to San Francisco International Airport, BART advises switching to a Red or Yellow line train at Balboa Park, where the transfer happens on the same platform. Transferring at Daly City now means changing platforms.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Here’s what changes Monday:\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\u003cli>Richmond-bound from San Francisco: Yellow and Red line trains spaced an even 10 minutes apart, instead of 5 and 15 minutes\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>Dublin- and Berryessa-bound: Gaps for the Green and Blue lines narrow from three and 17 minutes to eight and 12 minutes\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>Bay Fair: Dublin riders headed to San José transfer across the platform to a waiting train, down from a 19-minute wait\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>MacArthur: Antioch riders headed toward Berkeley, El Cerrito or Richmond get a 4-minute connection, saving 17 minutes\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>Pittsburg: Better-timed connections to and from the BART-to-Antioch shuttle\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>SFO: Red and Yellow line trains no longer sit at the platform together, easing confusion over which leaves first\u003c/li>\n\n\n\n\u003cli>Millbrae: Some Caltrain connections shift, and BART has posted a new transfer timetable\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>For Richmond-bound riders, the 10-minute spacing means taking the direct Red line or catching a Yellow line train and transferring at 19th Street. Trost said the MacArthur transfer is built with enough room to walk down the stairs and back up without running, and tied the new Bay Fair connection to growing demand from the Tri-Valley.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>BART is framing all of this as improvement without new spending. The agency is heading toward a fiscal cliff, as emergency funding that carried it through the pandemic runs out this fiscal year. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Fares that once covered roughly \u003ca href=\"https://www.bart.gov/about/financials/crisis\">70% \u003c/a>of BART’s operating budget now cover a fraction of that, though BART has seen some \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12081663/the-ohtani-effect-and-more-whats-behind-bay-area-transits-comeback\">recent ridership recovery\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>A regional sales tax measure to fund BART, Muni, Caltrain and AC Transit \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12084841/campaign-to-fund-bay-area-transit-smashes-signature-gathering-goal\">qualified for the November ballot\u003c/a> in May. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“That is why, in order to do better, we have to find a way to save money somewhere else or to just do things more efficiently with what we have,” Trost said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The schedule absorbs the 10-car trains BART added July 20 during peak hours, with shorter, six- and eight-car trains off-peak to keep costs flat. It also accommodates late-night construction between Daly City and Millbrae, where crews are replacing the train-control system. Expect delays through that stretch after 9 p.m., Sunday through Thursday.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>KQED’s \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/author/kmonahan\">\u003cem>Katherine Monahan\u003c/em>\u003c/a>\u003cem> contributed to this report.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"order": 1
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"id": "code-switch-life-kit",
"title": "Code Switch / Life Kit",
"info": "\u003cem>Code Switch\u003c/em>, which listeners will hear in the first part of the hour, has fearless and much-needed conversations about race. Hosted by journalists of color, the show tackles the subject of race head-on, exploring how it impacts every part of society — from politics and pop culture to history, sports and more.\u003cbr />\u003cbr />\u003cem>Life Kit\u003c/em>, which will be in the second part of the hour, guides you through spaces and feelings no one prepares you for — from finances to mental health, from workplace microaggressions to imposter syndrome, from relationships to parenting. The show features experts with real world experience and shares their knowledge. Because everyone needs a little help being human.\u003cbr />\u003cbr />\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/podcasts/510312/codeswitch\">\u003cem>Code Switch\u003c/em> offical site and podcast\u003c/a>\u003cbr />\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/lifekit\">\u003cem>Life Kit\u003c/em> offical site and podcast\u003c/a>\u003cbr />",
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"meta": {
"site": "radio",
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"id": "commonwealth-club",
"title": "Commonwealth Club of California Podcast",
"info": "The Commonwealth Club of California is the nation's oldest and largest public affairs forum. As a non-partisan forum, The Club brings to the public airwaves diverse viewpoints on important topics. The Club's weekly radio broadcast - the oldest in the U.S., dating back to 1924 - is carried across the nation on public radio stations and is now podcasting. Our website archive features audio of our recent programs, as well as selected speeches from our long and distinguished history. This podcast feed is usually updated twice a week and is always un-edited.",
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"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Commonwealth-Club-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
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"meta": {
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"source": "Commonwealth Club of California"
},
"link": "/radio/program/commonwealth-club",
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"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cDovL3d3dy5jb21tb253ZWFsdGhjbHViLm9yZy9hdWRpby9wb2RjYXN0L3dlZWtseS54bWw",
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"id": "forum",
"title": "Forum",
"tagline": "The conversation starts here",
"info": "KQED’s live call-in program discussing local, state, national and international issues, as well as in-depth interviews.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 9am-11am, 10pm-11pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Forum-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED Forum with Mina Kim and Alexis Madrigal",
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"source": "kqed",
"order": 9
},
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"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM5NTU3MzgxNjMz",
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"id": "freakonomics-radio",
"title": "Freakonomics Radio",
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"officialWebsiteLink": "http://freakonomics.com/",
"airtime": "SUN 1am-2am, SAT 3pm-4pm",
"meta": {
"site": "radio",
"source": "WNYC"
},
"link": "/radio/program/freakonomics-radio",
"subscribe": {
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"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/freakonomics-radio/id354668519",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/podcasts/WNYC-Podcasts/Freakonomics-Radio-p272293/",
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},
"fresh-air": {
"id": "fresh-air",
"title": "Fresh Air",
"info": "Hosted by Terry Gross, \u003cem>Fresh Air from WHYY\u003c/em> is the Peabody Award-winning weekday magazine of contemporary arts and issues. One of public radio's most popular programs, Fresh Air features intimate conversations with today's biggest luminaries.",
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"meta": {
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"link": "/radio/program/fresh-air",
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"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=214089682&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory",
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"info": "A live production of NPR and WBUR Boston, in collaboration with stations across the country, Here & Now reflects the fluid world of news as it's happening in the middle of the day, with timely, in-depth news, interviews and conversation. Hosted by Robin Young, Jeremy Hobson and Tonya Mosley.",
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"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510051/podcast.xml"
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},
"hidden-brain": {
"id": "hidden-brain",
"title": "Hidden Brain",
"info": "Shankar Vedantam uses science and storytelling to reveal the unconscious patterns that drive human behavior, shape our choices and direct our relationships.",
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"airtime": "SUN 7pm-8pm",
"meta": {
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"source": "NPR"
},
"link": "/radio/program/hidden-brain",
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},
"how-i-built-this": {
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"title": "How I Built This with Guy Raz",
"info": "Guy Raz dives into the stories behind some of the world's best known companies. How I Built This weaves a narrative journey about innovators, entrepreneurs and idealists—and the movements they built.",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2018/05/howIBuiltThis.png",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/510313/how-i-built-this",
"airtime": "SUN 7:30pm-8pm",
"meta": {
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"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/how-i-built-this",
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"npr": "https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/3zxy",
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/how-i-built-this-with-guy-raz/id1150510297?mt=2",
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"hyphenacion": {
"id": "hyphenacion",
"title": "Hyphenación",
"tagline": "Where conversation and cultura meet",
"info": "What kind of no sabo word is Hyphenación? For us, it’s about living within a hyphenation. Like being a third-gen Mexican-American from the Texas border now living that Bay Area Chicano life. Like Xorje! Each week we bring together a couple of hyphenated Latinos to talk all about personal life choices: family, careers, relationships, belonging … everything is on the table. ",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Hyphenacion_FinalAssets_PodcastTile.png",
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"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/hyphenacion",
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"order": 15
},
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"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/2p3Fifq96nw9BPcmFdIq0o?si=39209f7b25774f38",
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},
"jerrybrown": {
"id": "jerrybrown",
"title": "The Political Mind of Jerry Brown",
"tagline": "Lessons from a lifetime in politics",
"info": "The Political Mind of Jerry Brown brings listeners the wisdom of the former Governor, Mayor, and presidential candidate. Scott Shafer interviewed Brown for more than 40 hours, covering the former governor's life and half-century in the political game – and Brown has some lessons he'd like to share. ",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-Political-Mind-of-Jerry-Brown-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
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"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/jerrybrown",
"meta": {
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"source": "kqed",
"order": 18
},
"link": "/podcasts/jerrybrown",
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}
},
"latino-usa": {
"id": "latino-usa",
"title": "Latino USA",
"airtime": "MON 1am-2am, SUN 6pm-7pm",
"info": "Latino USA, the radio journal of news and culture, is the only national, English-language radio program produced from a Latino perspective.",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/latinoUsa.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "http://latinousa.org/",
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},
"link": "/radio/program/latino-usa",
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"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=79681317&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory",
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"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510016/podcast.xml"
}
},
"marketplace": {
"id": "marketplace",
"title": "Marketplace",
"info": "Our flagship program, helmed by Kai Ryssdal, examines what the day in money delivered, through stories, conversations, newsworthy numbers and more. Updated Monday through Friday at about 3:30 p.m. PT.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 4pm-4:30pm, MON-WED 6:30pm-7pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Marketplace-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.marketplace.org/",
"meta": {
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"source": "American Public Media"
},
"link": "/radio/program/marketplace",
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"rss": "https://feeds.publicradio.org/public_feeds/marketplace-pm/rss/rss"
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},
"masters-of-scale": {
"id": "masters-of-scale",
"title": "Masters of Scale",
"info": "Masters of Scale is an original podcast in which LinkedIn co-founder and Greylock Partner Reid Hoffman sets out to describe and prove theories that explain how great entrepreneurs take their companies from zero to a gazillion in ingenious fashion.",
"airtime": "Every other Wednesday June 12 through October 16 at 8pm (repeats Thursdays at 2am)",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Masters-of-Scale-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://mastersofscale.com/",
"meta": {
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"source": "WaitWhat"
},
"link": "/radio/program/masters-of-scale",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "http://mastersofscale.app.link/",
"rss": "https://rss.art19.com/masters-of-scale"
}
},
"mindshift": {
"id": "mindshift",
"title": "MindShift",
"tagline": "A podcast about the future of learning and how we raise our kids",
"info": "The MindShift podcast explores the innovations in education that are shaping how kids learn. Hosts Ki Sung and Katrina Schwartz introduce listeners to educators, researchers, parents and students who are developing effective ways to improve how kids learn. We cover topics like how fed-up administrators are developing surprising tactics to deal with classroom disruptions; how listening to podcasts are helping kids develop reading skills; the consequences of overparenting; and why interdisciplinary learning can engage students on all ends of the traditional achievement spectrum. This podcast is part of the MindShift education site, a division of KQED News. KQED is an NPR/PBS member station based in San Francisco. You can also visit the MindShift website for episodes and supplemental blog posts or tweet us \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/MindShiftKQED\">@MindShiftKQED\u003c/a> or visit us at \u003ca href=\"/mindshift\">MindShift.KQED.org\u003c/a>",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Mindshift-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED MindShift: How We Will Learn",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/mindshift/",
"meta": {
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"source": "kqed",
"order": 12
},
"link": "/podcasts/mindshift",
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"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/mindshift-podcast/id1078765985",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM1NzY0NjAwNDI5",
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"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/stories-teachers-share",
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}
},
"morning-edition": {
"id": "morning-edition",
"title": "Morning Edition",
"info": "\u003cem>Morning Edition\u003c/em> takes listeners around the country and the world with multi-faceted stories and commentaries every weekday. Hosts Steve Inskeep, David Greene and Rachel Martin bring you the latest breaking news and features to prepare you for the day.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 3am-9am",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Morning-Edition-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/programs/morning-edition/",
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"link": "/radio/program/morning-edition"
},
"onourwatch": {
"id": "onourwatch",
"title": "On Our Watch",
"tagline": "Deeply-reported investigative journalism",
"info": "For decades, the process for how police police themselves has been inconsistent – if not opaque. In some states, like California, these proceedings were completely hidden. After a new police transparency law unsealed scores of internal affairs files, our reporters set out to examine these cases and the shadow world of police discipline. On Our Watch brings listeners into the rooms where officers are questioned and witnesses are interrogated to find out who this system is really protecting. Is it the officers, or the public they've sworn to serve?",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/On-Our-Watch-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "On Our Watch from NPR and KQED",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/onourwatch",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 11
},
"link": "/podcasts/onourwatch",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1567098962",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5ucHIub3JnLzUxMDM2MC9wb2RjYXN0LnhtbD9zYz1nb29nbGVwb2RjYXN0cw",
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"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/show/on-our-watch",
"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510360/podcast.xml"
}
},
"on-the-media": {
"id": "on-the-media",
"title": "On The Media",
"info": "Our weekly podcast explores how the media 'sausage' is made, casts an incisive eye on fluctuations in the marketplace of ideas, and examines threats to the freedom of information and expression in America and abroad. For one hour a week, the show tries to lift the veil from the process of \"making media,\" especially news media, because it's through that lens that we see the world and the world sees us",
"airtime": "SUN 2pm-3pm, MON 12am-1am",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/onTheMedia.png",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.wnycstudios.org/shows/otm",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "wnyc"
},
"link": "/radio/program/on-the-media",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/on-the-media/id73330715?mt=2",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/On-the-Media-p69/",
"rss": "http://feeds.wnyc.org/onthemedia"
}
},
"pbs-newshour": {
"id": "pbs-newshour",
"title": "PBS NewsHour",
"info": "Analysis, background reports and updates from the PBS NewsHour putting today's news in context.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 3pm-4pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/PBS-News-Hour-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.pbs.org/newshour/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "pbs"
},
"link": "/radio/program/pbs-newshour",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/pbs-newshour-full-show/id394432287?mt=2",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/PBS-NewsHour---Full-Show-p425698/",
"rss": "https://www.pbs.org/newshour/feeds/rss/podcasts/show"
}
},
"perspectives": {
"id": "perspectives",
"title": "Perspectives",
"tagline": "KQED's series of daily listener commentaries since 1991",
"info": "KQED's series of daily listener commentaries since 1991.",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Perspectives_Tile_Final.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED Perspectives",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/perspectives/",
"meta": {
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"source": "kqed",
"order": 14
},
"link": "/perspectives",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/id73801135",
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/432309616/perspectives",
"rss": "https://ww2.kqed.org/perspectives/category/perspectives/feed/",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93dzIua3FlZC5vcmcvcGVyc3BlY3RpdmVzL2NhdGVnb3J5L3BlcnNwZWN0aXZlcy9mZWVkLw"
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},
"planet-money": {
"id": "planet-money",
"title": "Planet Money",
"info": "The economy explained. Imagine you could call up a friend and say, Meet me at the bar and tell me what's going on with the economy. Now imagine that's actually a fun evening.",
"airtime": "SUN 3pm-4pm",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/planetmoney.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/sections/money/",
"meta": {
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"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/planet-money",
"subscribe": {
"npr": "https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/M4f5",
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/planet-money/id290783428?mt=2",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/podcasts/Business--Economics-Podcasts/Planet-Money-p164680/",
"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510289/podcast.xml"
}
},
"politicalbreakdown": {
"id": "politicalbreakdown",
"title": "Political Breakdown",
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"checkPleaseReducer": {
"filterData": {
"region": {
"key": "Restaurant Region",
"filters": [
"Any Region"
]
},
"cuisine": {
"key": "Restaurant Cuisine",
"filters": [
"Any Cuisine"
]
}
},
"restaurantDataById": {},
"restaurantIdsSorted": [],
"error": null
},
"userAgentReducer": {
"userAgent": "Mozilla/5.0 AppleWebKit/537.36 (KHTML, like Gecko; compatible; ClaudeBot/1.0; +claudebot@anthropic.com)",
"isBot": true
},
"requestOutcomesReducer": {
"notFound": []
}
}
