What boundaries do you mentally set for Dogpatch? Mine stretch from Mariposa to Islais Creek, and the other side of Pennsylvania to the bay, plus “Upper Dogpatch,” often incorrectly referred to as “Potrero Hill,” the boundaries of which are less important, since they will be expanding shortly to annex a nearby hill*.

Click here to interact with this map:

Please feel free to send me boundaries and a link to attribution.

* we have a deepwater port, and it’s only a matter of time before we get our own aircraft carrier.

A week or so ago I posted a link to a thesis that someone had written about gentrification in Dogpatch*. I’m a busy guy (and the only person writing this blog), so I posted it with little commentary.

From Lodging in Public:

Via the Dogpatch Howler, here’s a San Francisco State geography thesis on gentrification in Dogpatch that doesn’t mention the role of police harassment against poor people in changing the atmosphere of the place. This strikes me as a substantial omission.

This is a substantial omission from a public discourse about how a neighborhood changes. I’d say that it even deserves a second thesis of its own. I would read, excerpt, and link to such a thing. Really, I’d do the same for anything that talks about the neighborhood, whether praising it or damning it.

Also from Lodging in Public:

Look, for your sake a whole population of people living in cars and RVs and trucks and tents was kicked out of one of the last San Francisco places where you could still feel a little breath of continuity with the Gold Rush.

It is the rare individual who can sound wistful about days of homeless camps, but this is still a very good point. As this neighborhood changed, and as it continues to change, persons who had called it home have been and will be forced out. I know people who are getting priced out, but Bridegam is reminding us that the counts on the census forms are more than just numbers, they are human beings — and not every one of those human beings makes it to the census.

I’m a little stymied as to how to feel. I have to work someplace and I have to live someplace. This is the best place I have ever lived, but living here makes me part of changes with repercussions. I’ve met neighbors who are getting priced out, and the whole thing leaves me feeling defeated. What good is my modest success if my neighbor cannot have it as well?

I’ve been trying to dig up more information on the neighborhood after 1912 and before 1990, with a special emphasis on the post-war period, but it’s slow going. I guess that I will have to add in research into Dogpatch homeless to my stack of topics, which is a fairly nebulous topic. Please keep sending me links, and I’ll keep posting things.

Hopefully I can get back to my normal snarky and silly posts, too.

The city saw fit to issue a “Notice Of Violation Blighted Vacant Lot” for our favorite local graffiti canvas. This is not without reason, as it was filled with garbage for most of the last year, and now is full of nothing but graffiti. What would you like to see in that spot? My vote is an entrance to a subway leading to the Mission so I can more easily vary my daily burrito intake.

However, as long as we’re talking about blighted properties that should be rehabilitated, let’s talk city property. The old police station and emergency room are wallowing in bird excretions — a state unbecoming such beautiful historical buildings. What is your vote for a new lease on their lives? Mine is for them to be turned into free office space for local bloggers*.

* Just kidding — unless you’re into that.

Having an impromptu parade is okay, but dealing meth and heroin is strictly a no-no:

Narcotics, Warrant Arrest:
On March 16th at 4:23 pm, officers patrolling in the area of 22nd and Tennessee spotted a subject walking in the area that they recognized. They knew that the subject had a felony warrant for his arrest for a probation violation. The suspect initially refused to comply with the officers’ orders to stop and continued walking until one of the officers ran ahead of him and cut him off, placing him under arrest. During his search, officers discovered nearly 9 grams of methamphetamine, 1.2 grams of heroin, and some marijuana inside the suspect’s jacket pocket. Due to the amount of methamphetamine found, coupled with the absence of any ingestion devices, it was believed that the suspect was selling the narcotic. He was booked on the methamphetamine for sale, heroin possession, and his no bail parole violation warrant at Bayview Station. (SFPD Case No. 120216254)

Stick to salted caramel chocolates, folks.

It’s my blog, I can post pictures of people skateboarding across the street from my house if I want to.