eNews from SF Recreation and Parks- January 17, 2024

[SF Recreation and Parks]

Updates, news and events in San Francisco parks   Highlights, News & Announcements   2023 Recreation and Parks Community Report As we jump into 2024, we want to share some of our accomplishments over the past year from our 2023 Community Report. Some highlights include the renovations of UN Plaza, Herz Playground, and the Larsen Pickleball Courts; a number of community program accomplishments through the India Basin Waterfront Park Project that were outlined in its Equitable Development Plan; the San Francisco Bay Sox Girls Baseball Program winning a national championship; the launching of a baseball and softball academy in partnership with the San Francisco Giants and its community fund, and much more! Read the full report at the link below. 2023 Community Report   Rec & Park Celebrates the Life of Director of Operations Denny Kern Last week, we celebrated the life of our Director of Operations, Denny Kern, who passed away in December. Prior to joining our department, he had a storied naval career. On 9/11, he saved numerous lives leading his colleagues at the Pentagon to safety. Over his nearly two-decade tenure at Rec and Park, his guidance and commitment to excellence and innovation ushered in a renaissance for our parks. His leadership spanned 10 work divisions and about 85 percent of our department's employees. While his achievements are numerous and immeasurable, Denny's talent for nurturing individuals and establishing robust systems significantly enhanced and sustained our parks. This transformation not only made our parks more equitable, but also garnered global recognition, solidifying San Francisco's reputation for having one of the best urban park systems. Beyond his tangible contributions, Denny's enduring legacy resides in the people he inspired and mentored. Our thoughts are with his family at this time, and we remain eternally grateful for his invaluable contributions to our parks, city, and country.   New Dual-lined Pickleball Courts Coming to Moscone Park Building off the success of the Larsen Pickleball Complex at Carl Larsen Park, which opened last month, San Francisco Recreation and Park Department officials announced today the department is continuing to provide more pickleball opportunities with dual lines planned for Moscone Park Playground. Under the plan, the two tennis courts at Moscone Park Playground adjacent to the Marina Branch Library will be dual lined to create 6 pickleball courts. The courts are anticipated to be ready in spring of this year. Pickleball is one of the fastest growing sports in the nation, with the organization USA Pickleball reporting a 30 percent increase in membership in 2022. The sport’s explosion over the last few years has led Rec and Park to work steadily to increase the number of places to play. In December, Rec and Park converted a tennis court and a basketball court into 8 new dedicated pickleball courts at Carl Larsen Park. In 2018, the sport was beginning to grow, with just 12 courts throughout the park system. As the sport’s popularity continued to soar over the years, Rec and Park increased that number to 87 total places to play, including 63 outdoor pickleball courts and 24 indoor pickleball facilities. Demand for the sport continues to grow. To meet that demand, every tennis court that Rec and Park repaves will now include dual-painted lines for pickleball. Of the park system’s 139 tennis courts, more than 12 percent have been dual lined for pickleball—and more are on the way. The new dual line courts will be a welcome addition to the Marina District. They were made possible through existing budget funds from Supervisor Catherine Stefani’s Office. For more information, click the link below. Pickleball Coming to Moscone Park   Register for a Play Pass to Enhance Your Recreational Experience Congratulations to the more than 20 Play Pass winners from 2023 that received Rec and Park backpacks, gym bags, yoga mats and more after being entered into a raffle as Play Pass card holders. Play Passes are free, and allow for easier access to drop-in programming and equipment at our recreation facilities. Pass users will continue to be entered into monthly raffle drawings to win Rec and Park swag, as well as other great prizes! If you haven’t taken any programs with us, you will need to set up a free account at sfrecpark.org/register to get a Play Pass. Once an account is made, you can sign up for the Play Pass online under “Passes and Memberships” or at any of our recreation centers. For more information, click the link below. Passes & Membership   Silver Terrace Playground Community Meeting on January 20 Join us for a community meeting on the upcoming renovation of Silver Terrace Playground on Saturday, January 20 from 10 a.m. to noon. Rec and Park, in partnership with KABOOM!, will be renovating this park to create a new children’s play area and nature exploration area, while improving the park’s irrigation system, landscaping, fencing, and picnic seating. This family-friendly event will take place at the playground (1700 Silver Avenue) and will feature children's nature play activities. Stop by to help workshop the design of this new play space and shape the future of this park. Can't make it this Saturday? Provide feedback by taking the project survey at this link. For translation, interpretation, or other language services, as well as accessibility requests, please call Pete Moore at (415) 496-6204 or pete.j.moore at sfgov.org. Providing at least 72 hours advance notice will help to ensure availability. For additional information, contact Keri Ayers by email at keri.ayers at sfgov.org or by phone at (628) 652-6642. Learn more about the project at the link below. Silver Terrace Playground Renovation   Civic Center Plazas' Free Classes & Activities Be sure to check out all of the amazing drop-in activities and scheduled classes available at the newly renovated UN Plaza and surrounding Civic Center area plazas. From free exercise classes including Rec and Park yoga and Zumba, to getting a mental workout with free chess lessons from the Mechanics' Institute and San Francisco Parks Alliance, we have something for everyone to get active! For more information, including the full amenity list and schedule, click the link below. Civic Center Plazas   Park Padel at Embarcadero Plaza Check out Park Padel's new one-year pop-up courts located in Embarcadero Plaza! Padel, frequently described as a cross between tennis and squash, is one of the fastest growing sports in the world. Like pickleball, padel is easy to learn, social, and usually played as a doubles game on a court about a third of the size of a tennis court. However, padel courts are bounded by glass walls, allowing players to hit the ball off multiple surfaces, much like squash. Free play with advanced reservation takes place Monday through Thursdays from 2 to 4 p.m. For more information and to make a reservation, click the link below. Park Padel   Upcoming Events   Adidas Skateboarding's Dan Mancina Release Event on January 19 Join Adidas and Rec and Park for a casual skate jam, video screening, and release event with Dan Mancina. He is a professional skateboarder who is visually impaired and holds the Guinness World Record for longest 50-50 grind on a skateboard in the category for record-breakers with visual impairments. Mancina and his teammates who ride for Adidas, DLX, Real, Thunder and more will be at the UN Skate Plaza (1140 Market Street) on Friday, January 19 from 2 to 5:45 p.m. for an open community skate session and screening of a two short documentary-style videos about Dan. Learn more about his life, skate influences and colorway for a soon-to-be-released Adidas shoe.   City Job Fair at Southeast Community Center on January 20 Looking for a career change? San Francisco Recreation and Parks, along with other government agencies and community organizations are hosting a series of four Saturday job fairs in 2024 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. The second will be on Saturday, January 20 at the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission's Southeast Community Center (1550 Evans Avenue). Swing by and find the right job for you! For more information, email rpd_recruitment at sfgov.org. Rec and Park Jobs   Mister G Concert at the San Francisco Botanical Garden on January 20 Join the Gardens of Golden Gate Park, Illuminate, and Rec and Park for a family-friendly concert by Latin Grammy Award-winning artist, author, and educator Mister G (Ben Gundersheimer). It will take place in the Celebration Garden at the San Francisco Botanical Garden (1199 9th Avenue) on Saturday, January 20 from 10 a.m. to 1:15 p.m. After the concert, enjoy a book signing and storybook stroll in the Children’s Garden featuring Mister G's book "Señorita Mariposa." There will also be activities highlighting the important role of pollinators led by the Gardens' youth educator. The event is free with admission to the San Francisco Botanical Garden. For more information, click the link below. Mister G at the Botanical Garden   Academy Winter Baseball Clinics Beginning on January 20 Join the Giants Community Fund and Rec and Park for their free academy winter baseball clinics on the Saturdays of January 20, 27 and February 10 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. The clinics will take place at Silver Terrace Playground's (1700 Silver Avenue) Diamond #1 and provide an off-season opportunity for players, ages 10-17, to develop their skills through a variety of infield and outfield drills. For more information and register, click the link below. Winter Baseball Clinics   Bottle Boat Builders Kickoff at SF Model Yacht Club on January 20 Calling all aspiring bottle boat builders! Come out to the San Francisco Model Yacht Club (1217 John F. Kennedy Drive) on Saturday, January 20 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. for the 2024 Bottle Boat Builders Kickoff. Bottle boats are homemade model yachts built from recycled, low cost materials and are a fun and affordable way for novices, especially youth, to experience the joy of model yacht sailing on Spreckels Lake. Aspiring bottle builders and curious novices will have a chance to "meet the bottle fleet" and decide what kind of bottle boat to build. These bottle boats would be made to the specifications for one of the races in the Bruce Ettinger Bottle Yacht Regatta, which will be held on Sunday, June 9. For more information and to RSVP, click the link below. Bottle Boat Builders   Light Up the Night Bike Parade in Golden Gate Park on January 20 Join the San Francisco Parks Alliance and San Francisco Bike Coalition for their Light Up the Night Bike Parade in Golden Gate Park on Saturday, January 20 from 5 to 7 p.m. Bring your best set of lit wheels for an illuminated ride through the park. The starting point will be in front of the Conservatory of Flowers on the JFK Promenade. For more information, click the link below. Light Up the Night Bike Parade   Party at the Bench on the Great Highway on January 26 Join the Friends of Great Highway Park for a community celebration to commemorate a new bench, uniquely made from repurposed wood from our parks, coming to the Great Highway. It will take place on Friday, January 26 from 4 to 5 p.m. at Noriega Street and the Great Highway and will feature live jazz and more! For more information, click the link below. Great Highway Park   YPTMTC's "The Prom" Opens at the Randall Museum on January 26 Join the Young People's Teen Musical Theatre Company (YPTMTC) for its musical production of The Prom. It focuses on four eccentric Broadway stars that are in desperate need of a new stage. When they hear that trouble is brewing around a small-town prom, they know that it’s time to put a spotlight on the issue, as well as themselves. The show will run at the Randall Museum (199 Museum Way) on the weekends of January 26 and February 2 with Friday and Saturday shows beginning at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday shows beginning at 2 p.m. For more information and to purchase tickets, click the link below. The Prom   Programming   Sign Up for Bayview United Soccer Club Bayview United is San Francisco's first primarily Black youth soccer team for boys and girls, grades K-5. Since 2019, this free equity-driven program aims to increase access in the Bayview-Hunters Point (BVHP) community to the world’s game. It has set out to create a top tier soccer program with its home field at Youngblood Coleman Playground (1398 Hudson Avenue), and is open to players of all backgrounds and experience levels in the BVHP community. If interested, contact Fulton Mitchell at (415) 361-2872.   Mobile Rec at Margaret Hayward Playground on January 20 Mobile Rec comes to Margaret Hayward Playground (1016 Laguna Street) on Saturday, January 20 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Enjoy free BMX biking, skateboarding and more. Equipment will be provided. Grind rails and catch some air! Equipment will be provided. For more information, click the link below. Mobile Rec   Sundays at the Beach on the Great Highway: Tai Chi on January 21 Join the Friends of Great Highway Park for its Sundays at the Beach programming. These free activities from chair yoga to live music, will be hosted four times a month. The next program will be Tai Chi on Sunday, January 21, at Judah Street and the Great Highway at 10 a.m. For more information, click the link below. Great Highway Park   Movie Night at Glen Park Recreation Center on January 23 Join our staff at Glen Canyon Park Recreation Center (70 Elk Street) for classic movie nights! The next one will take place on Tuesday, January 23, beginning at 6 p.m. featuring the 1925 film "The Freshman." Come out to meet your neighbors and to enjoy these vintage films. For more information, contact the center at (415) 239-4007.   SFMTA Photo Archive at Harvey Milk Photo Center through February 3 Swing by the Harvey Milk Photo Center (50 Scott Street) to check out the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency's (SFMTA) photo exhibit. Curated by Jeremy Menzies and Melissa Castro Keesor, this exhibit draws on the 120-year-old collections of photographs in the SFMTA photo department and archive. Capturing everything from buses and streetcars to major historical events, the images inadvertently document the growth of San Francisco from a sandy backwater into a major metropolis. The gallery is open Tuesday through Thursday from 3 to 8:30 p.m. and Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. through February 3. For more information, click the link below. SFMTA Photo Exhibit   Denny Kern Speaking at the 15th William Hammond Hall Awards As we remember our Director of Operations Denny Kern, our Video of the Week focuses on his remarks at the 15th William Hammond Hall Awards at TPC Harding Park last summer. The award ceremony recognizes the excellent work of our staff in stewarding our city's parkland.  Despite being in the midst of fighting his illness, he was able to give these remarks one last time to the staff he oversaw and cherished. Thank you Denny.   San Francisco Recreation and Parks | sfrecpark.org         SF Recreation and Parks | McLaren Lodge-Golden Gate Park, 501 Stanyan Street, San Francisco , CA 94117 Unsubscribe house at digitalkingdom.org Constant Contact Data Notice Sent by rpdinfo at sfgov.org powered by Try email marketing for free today!
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