In November, our monthly cleanup (third Saturday of the month) took place on 11/17. The winds had stirred up a lot of debris along the streets that week, so we had plenty to sweep up. DPW's trucks were circling the neighborhood to pick up our trash bags as we went along. Our next cleanup is December 15th.
MONTHLY MEETING
Our monthly meeting was on 11/19 at It's A Grind at 7pm, as usual on the third Monday of the month. As usual, we heard from SFPD and our various committees (planning, beautification). Our merchant spotlight featured Barbara Patinkin, owner of Classic Communication on California at Polk. We also heard from The Prado Group, the developer who will be redeveloping the Cala Foods property in coming years. Adam Light from the SF Planning Department was on hand to introduce himself and his department's work. We also heard from Lisa Hoffmann and Cecile Soto from SF's Emergency Service Center (ever wondered how those 911 calls get managed and routed??)
To commemorate the end of our first year as a neighborhood organization, we recognized key contributors who have helped build the Middle Polk Neighborhood Association:
- We honored one of our neighbor/volunteers Rachel Markowitz as a neighbor who has attended more meetings and cleanups than anyone we can think of! She has always been a strong neighborhood supporter, both with her words AND her actions. Thanks for making an active difference in our first year, Rachel!
- An obvious merchant choice, we also recognized the owners of It's A Grind, Michael and Netta Fedor, along with their staff, for giving us the run of their coffee house for our meetings each month. They also hosts numerous Leadership Team meetings, are the meeting point for all our cleanups, and they devote real estate in their basement to our cleanup supplies. This is truly the 'home base' for Middle Polk! Where would we be without your generosity? Thank you, Michael, Netta and the It's A Grind staff!
- To honor one of the year's biggest civic contributors, we recognized Northern Station's former Captain Kevin Dillon. He was around long before MPNA ever existed. Once we began to take shape he was a constant for us, providing advice, input and listening to our many concerns about neighborhood crime. He provided much input and helped us learn what we could do as a neighborhood to make a difference. He's retired from SFPD now, and we'll miss his frequent contact and input, not to mention friendship. We assured him that even in retirement, he is more than welcome to come grab a cup of coffee at our meetings every third Monday of the month!
