Paradise is already paved
By: Ken Garcia
Examiner Staff Writer
April 10, 2009
What’s become abundantly clear in the battle about a proposed modern-art museum in the Presidio is that even if the architect came up with the most beautiful design, if a quiet spot could be found for it and if a majority of San Franciscans voted in favor of it, a small band of activists would rather have a parking lot than a billion-dollar gift.
This is what passes as reasonable discourse in San Francisco. The situation is not unlike the tiny group who opposed the underground parking garage in Golden Gate Park that serves two of The City’s newest and finest cultural attractions, which cost a number of individuals millions of dollars in legal fees.
The garage was built and the museums opened, and now record crowds are pouring in to Golden Gate Park. And, miracle of miracles, no one is complaining.
Gap Inc. founder Don Fisher and his wife want to build the museum in the Presidio, and his original plan for a boxy 50-foot-tall design was found to be a poor fit for the site. He was asked to either move the building or scale it back. His architectural team did just that, coming up with a graceful, unobtrusive structure that fits with the original Army post grounds much better than before.
Still, the protests continue.
Too much traffic, too much history, you name it — there is no argument being left unturned. The truth is, critics do not want any new buildings in San Francisco’s only national park — it’s just that kind of open thinking that makes The City a planner’s nightmare.
Here’s a thought: Maybe Fisher could start inviting the public to view what is unquestionably one of the finest modern-art collections in the world. Then, they could travel to the Presidio and view the giant asphalt parking lot that is the main landscape feature of the site and decide if they would rather see Calder sculptures or dusty cars.
Somehow, the Presidio survived the building of the new Lucas Film Digital Arts Center, and there is little doubt it could easily handle a new lodge, restaurants or other tourist attractions — and that certainly includes the Contemporary Art Museum of the Presidio. Neighborhood groups and military historians fighting so hard to stop the museum fail to remember one thing: The Presidio is not their backyard, it’s San Francisco’s.
Names you can forget in the race for governor
Hard to believe that so many people are battling to become leader of a state teetering on bankruptcy. But as the race for California governor shows, political ambition is not steeped in any sense of reality.
That would explain why two new candidates have surfaced recently, one being from the field of education and the other from the world of denim.
Needless to say, the campaigns of Jack O’Connell, state superintendent of public instruction, and Guess Inc. guru Georges Marciano have received little attention, and probably will continue to, because they are not likely to go anywhere. O’Connell scored all of 2 percent in a recent field poll of Democratic candidates, and Marciano did not score at all because he had yet to announce his candidacy.
O’Connell is a good and competent guy, running from the worst possible office perch (see Bill Honig), and Marciano is apparently thinking of running as an independent, which makes him a curiosity at best. The truth is, we did not even know he lived in California, let alone was considering expanding his jeans franchise to Sacramento.
Somehow, being a fashion-apparel promoter seems like the wrong fit for any candidate.
Can’t bring a bike to the Big House
Remember when Lance Armstrong’s bike was stolen during this year’s Tour of California and he asked for its return, no questions asked? Well, Armstrong is not asking questions, but the police are.
Sacramento police arrested two men this week in connection with the theft of Armstrong and two of his teammates’ bikes. Lee Crider, 39, was charged with burglary and grand theft, and Dung Le, the man who returned Armstrong’s bike, was charged with possession of stolen property.
Le had described himself as an Armstrong fan when he returned the $10,000 bike that was stolen from a parked truck during the Sacramento time trials. The other two bikes were never returned.
Police said Le purchased the bike from Crider, before returning it amid much publicity three days later. Chances are pretty good that Le wishes he had just asked for an autograph.
Endangered species not only ones who like golf
Proving once again that a constituency exists for just about every reptile, marsh and plant in San Francisco, self-styled eco warrior Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi is trying to make the world, or at least a tiny part of the Peninsula, safe for garter snakes and red-legged frogs.
A noble goal, for sure, though the many loyal golfers who think Pacifica’s Sharp Park Golf Course is the poor man’s Augusta would much prefer that San Francisco tackle a more saintly pursuit — say global warming — and leave their beloved greens alone.
Mirkarimi’s proposed legislation, which would turn the golf course into a nature preserve and hand it to the National Park Service, is about as absurd as turning Harding Park into a flying-disc arena. But it’s a headline-grabber, and the supervisor’s colleagues know how much Mirkarimi enjoys that.
If officials were really serious about taking leave of one of The City’s popular golf courses, it would make a lot more sense to lease it to the city of Pacifica — which actually does want it. The National Park Service has neither the time nor personnel and money to do anything with the site other than let it be, as we know from its fine stewardship of the Presidio.
Golf hacks and frogs have peacefully coexisted for decades, as anyone who has ever visited Florida or Hawaii can attest. The course’s boglike nature in winter can be a problem, but it’s also part of its enduring charm.
Check out Ken Garcia’s new blog at www.sfexaminer.com/opinion. If you’d like to dish the dirt, chew the fat or wag the tongue, e-mail kgarcia@sfexaminer.com
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