Hundreds of school-aged children in the Mission district are set to receive free swimming lessons as a result of an $11,500 donation to the Recreation and Park Department. The children, mostly third- and fourth-graders, will get a chance to learn their strokes at Garfield Pool, a public swimming site that is near four public elementary schools. Helen Hilton Raiser, a local philanthropist, offered to donate the money for the program as a way to improve swimming safety among San Francisco’s youth, said Rec and Park general manager Phil Ginsburg. Read More

Glen Canyon Park, a 66-acre public recreation area that features some of San Francisco’s most untouched natural landscapes, is poised to undergo a facelift later this year. Read More

Wiggle room on BART may be a little harder to come by during Friday’s commute, when the transit agency will start experimenting with allowing bikes on trains at all times. BART currently bans bikes on certain lines during the busy weekday commute hours. However, the agency is embarking upon an ambitious policy to increase cyclists’ access, and during August bikes will be allowed onboard all day Fridays. Read More

Union Square, a neighborhood that has been torn up and rearranged as part of the Central Subway construction work, faces more changes starting this weekend. On Saturday, the section of Grant Street between Geary and Sutter streets will be converted to two-way traffic. On Monday, Stockton Street will be shuttered to all cars except for emergency vehicles between Ellis and Geary street, according to the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency, which is overseeing the project. Read More

The forward momentum of free Muni rides for The City’s youth, an idea passionately championed by advocates during the past two years, came to an abrupt halt Wednesday. By a razor-thin 8-7 vote, the Metropolitan Transportation Commission, the region’s lead transit financing agency, declined to dedicate $4 million for Muni’s plan, effectively stalling the movement for the foreseeable future. About 50 students and youth leaders chanted slogans of defiance after the meeting, prompting the arrival of several police officers at the agency’s Oakland headquarters. Read More

With the general election just a few months away, BART’s board of directors will likely appoint an interim replacement with no long-term goals to fill the seat vacated by Bob Franklin. Franklin, a former board president who represented BART’s District 3 in the East Bay, stepped down June 30 to accept another position with the transit agency. The board must appoint a replacement for Franklin within 60 days or that duty would fall to the nearest jurisdiction’s Board of Supervisors, which in this case is Alameda County. Read More

Muni passengers may want to be more mindful of their actions in the near future. The agency is set to outfit about one-third of its fleet with state-of-the-art surveillance equipment. On Tuesday, the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency board of directors will vote on a $6 million contract to install digital video cameras on 357 buses. The program will be entirely funded by a grant provided by the Department of Homeland Security. Read More