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NOPNANews
nopna.org A Publication of the North of Panhandle Neighborhood Association
Spring 2025
sidewalk gardens
NOPA’s Newest “Residents”
Green shoots reach for sun,
Tiny buds begin to swell,
Life bursts on the path.
The planting event was a delightful way to spend a
crisp Saturday morning. With donuts and coffee in hand,
by Yifat Amir
Have you seen them? Have you heard? NOPA
volunteers first learned the necessary skills for successfully
recently acquired some new sidewalk gardens!
transferring seedlings from pot to soil. Once the live
Plant aficionados and curious neighbors
demo (pun intended) concluded, we dispersed in small
alike came together on an early Saturday morning in
groups to garden beds up and down the blocks on
mid January to sow our sidewalks with fragrant flora.
McAllister, Broderick, Baker, Central, Grove, Hayes, and
From commonly known species such as the California
Divisadero Streets. The scent of fresh wood followed us as
poppy, to lesser-known ones like Sticky Monkey Flower
and Moonshine Yarrow, NOPA’s newest “residents” are
we carried buckets of mulch, used to conserve water and
protect from weeds. Equipped with gardening gloves,
drought tolerant and full of color.
trowels, and knee pads, we dug away.
(continued on page 3)
2 | NOPNANews
FROM THE BOARD
Letter From
the Editor
Hi Neighbors,
Maria Diploudis,
NOPNA News Managing Editor
My name is Maria. I’m the newest addition to the NOPNA Board, and the
NOPNA News Managing Editor. I’ve lived in the neighborhood for fifteen
years, and there is no other part of San Francisco I would rather be in.
I like to think of our neighborhood as a little village within the big city —
a community where people know each other and organize events where
old and new friends gather to enjoy each other’s company. This newsletter
is not just a source of interesting articles, it’s a resource for the community.
A place to find out who your neighbors are, learn about neighborhood
institutions (both old and new), and a guide for upcoming events and
how to get involved.
Please let us know what you think! Email any ideas you have about
articles you’d like to read, or just send your thoughts about the newsletter
in general — what you like and where we can improve.
You can reach me at maria@nopna.org.
If you see me walking around the neighborhood, please
don’t hesitate to come up and say hi! What I love most
about NOPA is the sense of community — there is nothing
better than meeting neighbors and making new friends.
Sign up for our
email newsletter!
NOPNA News is published by the
North of Panhandle Neighborhood
Association for the residents, businesses,
and friends of our neighborhood, which
is bounded by Masonic Avenue and
Turk, and Divisadero and Fell Streets.
PUBLISHER
NOPNA Board of Directors
MANAGING EDITOR
Maria Diploudis
COPY EDITORS
Jason Cauthen, Robin Kutner,
Day Robbins, and Meg Rahner
LAYOUT AND GRAPHIC DESIGN
Brenda Drake Lesch
BUSINESS OUTREACH / ADVERTISING
Anu Rajan
DISTRIBUTION
Will Valentine
PRINTING
Image Printing, San Francisco
2025 NOPNA BOARD
PRESIDENT Tim Hickey
VICE PRESIDENT Anna Selina
TREASURER Caitlin Stanton
CORRESPONDING SECRETARY
Robin Kutner
RECORDING SECRETARY
Jeremy Besmer, Leela Gill
ADDITIONAL BOARD MEMBERS
Martin Almaraz, Sarah Bashford, Ryan Booth,
Jason Cauthen, Sarah Cortez, Amanda Eaken,
Meg Rahner, Shakirah Simley, Maria Diploudis
NOPNA is a non-profit organization
of neighbors who care about
the community, our city, and our
world. Our mission is to establish
neighborhood unity, maintain multi-
ethnic, multi-cultural diversity, foster
a sense of neighborhood pride,
promote a safe and clean community,
and improve the quality of life for all
residents of the neighborhood.
Your financial support (Venmo
@nopnatreasurer) allows NOPNA to
cover the costs of our newsletters,
community building events like our
block party and holiday party, public
art projects in the neighborhood, and
other activities that enrich our
dynamic neighborhood.
Make a difference on our streets
and become a member today!
Contact NOPNA
issue 1 : 2025 | 3
(continued from page 1)
sidewalk gardens
native, drought-tolerant plants. Not
only do these gardens help beautify
the neighborhood, but they will also
provide habitat to pollinators as well as
divert rain into the soil and away from
our storm sewer system, which can
often be overwhelmed during storms.
We are so grateful to the neighbors
and community members who
volunteered with us as well as NOPNA
for making this planting possible.”
Faletti’s Foods also helped make
the sidewalk gardens a reality.
Thanks to their generous inclusion
of this initiative in the no-bag tokens
donation scheme, customers could
donate to the cause with ease. This
helped us raise the money we
needed for the project.
Now that the gardens have been
planted, it’s up to us to care for and
maintain them. Please do your part
by not trampling (or letting your dog
stomp or pee on) the plants. And just
as importantly, I hope that you will find
joy in watching our young greenery
grow!
New blooms line the path,
Buzzing bees and gentle breeze,
Joy in every step.
I enjoyed chatting with folks while
we gardened. I met my neighbor for
the first time! And I heard others also
express enthusiasm for connecting
with the community.
The sidewalk garden project was
led by NOPNA’s own Sarah Bashford
in conjunction with the NOPNA team
and Friends of the Urban Forest,
a non-profit organization committed
to revitalizing San Francisco’s
urban forest and mitigating
environmental problems through
planting and caring for trees and
sidewalk gardens.
Brian Wiedenmeier, Executive
Director of Friends of the Urban
Forest, said “Friends of the Urban
Forest was proud to partner with
NOPNA to remove over 1,100
square feet of concrete and plant
common name
Sticky Monkey Flower
Blue-eyed Grass
appendix
scientific name
Diplacus aurantiacus
Sisyrinchium bellum
Achillea millefolium x ‘Moonshine Moonshine Yarrow
Penstemon heterophyllus
Foothill Penstemon
Festuca californica
California Fescue
Symphyotrichum chilense
California Aster
Frankenia salina
Alkali Heath
Eschscholzia californica
California poppies
Yifat loves bumping into familiar faces while walking around the neighborhood. She also enjoys
the smells and colors of fresh flowers and playing with dirt.
NOPNA NEWS
VOLUNTEER
OPPORTUNITIES
NOPNA News is a volunteer-driv-
en publication created by and
for our neighbors. If you’d like to
get involved and be a part of its
creation, join us — we’d love any
contribution of your skills, voice,
or time.
There are several areas where
we are always looking for more
support:
PHOTOGRAPHY — Do you have
a great eye and a decent camera?
Volunteer to capture the beauty
and humanity of our neighbor-
hood in photographs.
DELIVERY — If you want 30-45
minutes of exercise every three
months, become a deliverer and
help these 4,000 issues find their
way into your neighbors’ hands!
WRITING — We’re always look-
ing for folks interested in writing
content. You can pick a topic or,
if you prefer, we can assign you a
story.
COPY-EDITING — Did you catch
the (intentional) errors in this
issue? We want to hear from you!
Would you like to have input on
the tone or content of the next
issue? Reach out!
If any of these roles interest you,
or if you have other ideas for ways
to contribute, we’d love to hear
from you at board@nopna.org.
4 | NOPNANews
SIT DOWN WITH
SUPERVISOR MAHMOOD by Jason Cauthen
NOPNA News had a chance to sit
down with our new District 5 (D5)
Supervisor: Bilal Mahmood. The
Supervisor was able to take some
time from his busy schedule to tell
us a bit about himself, his priorities
for his time in office, and why he
believes D5 represents the “best
of San Francisco.”
Supervisor Mahmood’s first
contact with D5 was during his
childhood, when he and his family
would go to the Tenderloin for
Pakistani food. There he saw the
beauty of a district where immigrants,
refugees, and others could start a
business and find a path to upward
mobility for their families.
Things have never been easy in the
Tenderloin, but post-pandemic life
was marked by worsening conditions
for many (caused by anti-Asian
hate, the fentanyl crisis, a housing
shortage, crime, and concerns about
physical safety). Realizing these and
other issues could only be effectively
addressed by policy change,
Mahmood left his prior philanthropic
career to run for Supervisor. He
committed to improving conditions
and restoring that path to the
middle class he remembers from his
childhood visits.
Though faced with unique
challenges, D5 exhibits “the best
of San Francisco,” according to
Mahmood. Being at the heart of
many challenges means we also
have some of the most innovative
solutions. D5 has the most co-op
housing in the city (the supervisor
mentioned Freedom West as a long-
standing example of this) and D5
pioneered transportation safety
with the introduction of The Wiggle
long before other parts of the city
considered bike infrastructure.
These types of solutions are an
opportunity to set an example for
the rest of the city.
During his first days in office,
Supervisor Mahmood committed to
addressing the crises and challenges
we see on our streets. To address
the housing shortage, he is focused
on permitting reform to streamline
the process. He mentioned his
partnership with Mayor Lurie to
address the fentanyl crisis, police
staffing, and writing additional
legislation for a coordinated effort
to shut down open-air drug markets.
His goal is to reduce the number
of people who are unhoused and
suffering from addiction, which
he plans to accomplish through a
combination of “healthy street”’
services and building 1,500
additional shelter beds this year.
He also seeks to address good
governance, and is focused on
reforming “competitive” contract
bidding rules — a process currently
so onerous that many contracts get
only one (or zero) bids.
The Supervisor has many
touchpoints in our own
neighborhood, and he shared
that his runs in the Panhandle with
friends have been a weekend escape
from the weekday stresses of the
campaign and the job. He plans to
participate in Bay to Breakers for
the first time this year! He has met
with community leaders at local
favorites like Brenda’s Meat and
Three and held campaign meetings
in Karma Cafe. Schlock’s Bagels
and Eddie’s also rank among the
(continued on page 5)
issue 1 : 2025 | 5
EXTRAORDINARY DENTIST
WOO YOUNG LEE
by Maria Diploudis
Dr. Woo Young Lee of Grace
Dental Group is passionate about
dentistry, and that is evident not only
in his remarkable expertise but also in
his infectious smile (which you can tell
is there even when he wears a mask).
He is a General Dentist well versed
in orthodontics, Invisalign, implants,
and wisdom teeth extractions. Dr. Lee
wanted to be a dentist ever since he
was a small child, after an accident
involving a slide left him without his
two front teeth from the ages of 4-7,
until his adult teeth grew.
He was born in Korea, and moved
to San Francisco with his family when
he was fifteen. Dr. Lee graduated
from Washington High School and
went on to attend NYU Dental
School, class of 2004. He was living
in Tucson, AZ when he found a job
opening at Grace Dental Group.
He wanted to move back to San
Francisco, so he applied for the job
and got it — it was the first job he
applied to, and he has been working
with Grace Dental Group ever since.
Dr. Lee joined as an Associate Dentist
in 2006 to replace the founding
dentist as he prepared to retire. (The
founding dentist has since moved to
Cambodia, where he opened a school
for orphans.)
Grace Dental Group relocated to
350 Divisadero in June of 2024, after
over twenty years in the Fillmore
District, because they outgrew their
previous location. They wanted to
move to NOPA because they love
the neighborhood and the other
merchants, and they thought the
people living in this neighborhood
looked truly happy. They now have
six chairs, fourteen staff, and a Zen
Garden in the backyard.
The number one philosophy
of Grace Dental Group is to
listen to patients, and present a
comprehensive care plan — not only
to do the minimal work necessary
at the time, but to understand the
wants and needs of the patient. The
goal is to leave them satisfied, able
to chew comfortably, and to educate
them. “We treat each patient as
our own family,” explained Practice
Administration Manager James Bae.
Grace Dental Group is open
Monday-Thursday, 8am-6pm and
on first and third Saturdays, 9am-
6pm. Walk-ins are welcome! For
more information, you can visit
gracedentalgroup.com or find them
on Facebook or Yelp. You can also
call them at (415) 921-8867.
Maria Diploudis has lived in NOPA for fifteen
years. You’ve probably seen her walking
around the neighborhood or performing
stand-up comedy somewhere in the city.
Supervisor’s favorite spots.
Despite an active first few weeks
in office, the Supervisor described
his approach as one where he seeks
to listen first to better understand
the issues that matter most to
community members and avoid
“aspirational goals set without
considering local implementations”
(which he cites as a reason why the
City’s Vision Zero initiative failed). He
appreciates the “eyes and ears on
the ground” and wants to host more
town halls to better understand
community needs. He supports
events that bring different members
of the community together.
When I asked the Supervisor what
neighbors can expect to see from
his office in the next few months,
his response focused on three
things: unsheltered homelessness
and housing, fentanyl and drug
market intervention, and transit
infrastructure and traffic safety.
However, the Supervisor does
not allow himself the luxury of
addressing one priority at a time, as
he sees the issues of the city to be
tightly interconnected. Safety issues
lead to fewer people downtown,
which reduces parking revenue,
which leads to transit cutbacks,
which impact Vision Zero goals,
which reduce safety of kids and
families, and so on... Hopefully his
approach can effectively address
some of these challenges and
reinvigorate upward mobility
for families that first excited the
Supervisor about D5 as a child.
Jason Cauthen is raising a second generation
of San Francisco natives who you may see
biking around the neighborhood and is looking
forward to the whimsy, athleticism, and revelry
of Bay to Breakers again this spring.
6 | NOPNANews
WESTSIDE CUTS & STYLE
by Maria Diploudis
Steve Thorner (left)
and Jordan Ross
(right), founders of
Westside Cuts & Style,
in the 1990s
When Westside Cuts & Style first
opened, most of the clientele lived
in the neighborhood. Now people
commute from all over — from the
east bay and as far as Sacramento
— sometimes every week to get a
haircut from a place that feels like
what the neighborhood used to be
like. Nate’s grandmother moved to
the neighborhood from Little Rock,
AR in the mid 1970’s. Nate was born
in this neighborhood (at the Kaiser
on Geary) and he grew up where
he still lives, Vallejo and American
Canyon. He has fond childhood
memories of visiting his grandmother
and exploring the neighborhood in
the late 70s.
Westside Cuts & Style is a living
piece of what NOPA once was —
preserving and keeping history alive,
providing service to the community,
and creating a community itself. Steve
Nate the Barber has worked at
Westside Cuts & Style since
1996, back when his father owned the
business. Nate’s father, Steve Thorner,
opened the barbershop in 1993
along with his partner Jordan Ross,
who he met at barber college. Steve
encouraged Nate to be a barber,
and he took a liking to the craft —
he liked helping “people feel better
about themselves.”
Brandon “Razor B” (left)
and Nate the Barber (right)
passed away a few years ago, but he
lives on through the barbershop and
the work of his son, Nate. In addition
to keeping his father’s legacy alive,
Nate identified his main motivation is
“to show kids that look like me that
you can still run a business.”
I spoke with JG, a client that has
been coming to Westside Cuts &
Style from the very beginning, when
(continued on page 7)
Westside Cuts
& Style is a living
piece of what NOPA
once was — preserving
and keeping history
alive, providing service
to the community,
and creating a
community itself.
Steve used to cut his hair. Now he comes in once a week
for Nate to freshen up his hairstyle. JG was born and raised
in the neighborhood, and explained that what keeps him
coming back to this barbershop is the nostalgia: “People
who are not around anymore, it feels like they are around.
Feels like what the neighborhood used to feel like.”
Nate Ford (a different Nate) was also in the barbershop
getting his hair cut by the other barber, Brandon. Ford
has been coming to Westside Cuts & Styles for about 10
years. He used to live in the neighborhood, but now lives
somewhere else in the city. In 1990, Ford founded the SF
Rebels, a basketball team for kids of all ages. Ford partnered
with Nate the Barber to provide free back-to-school haircuts,
backpacks, and supplies in August every year through a
program called “Homegrown Hair.” They also organize an
annual toy drive. For more information, visit www.sfrebels.
org. “They pushed us out but we still come back. It’s a
community... Nate inherited something and kept it going.
How many people cut hair for free on their day off? He’s
determined to keep this place open for his dad,” said Ford.
Brandon, aka Razor B — one of two barbers at Westside
Cuts & Style — has worked at the barbershop for fifteen
years. His family had to move out of San Francisco in
2005, but Razor B was born and raised here, and as a kid
he played with SF Rebels. Several barbers have gotten
their start at Westside Cuts & Style, and then went on to
open their own
shop. Nate likes to
encourage potential
in the right people
— there is currently
a third chair
available for the
right person, barber
or stylist. Westside
Cuts & Style is open
Monday-Saturday,
10-7. You can
find them on
booksee, follow
@natethebarber on
social media, or call
415-673-8667.
Walk-ins welcome!
Maria Diploudis has lived in NOPA for fifteen years. You’ve probably seen
her walking around the neighborhood or performing stand-up comedy
somewhere in the city.
issue 1 : 2025 | 7
UPCOMING EVENTS
Mar 28 — Happy Hour at Fly Bar
May 15 — NOPNA Happy Hour
May 31 — NOPA Block Party
Jul 17 — NOPNA Community Meeting
Sep 18 — NOPNA Community Meeting
Sep TBD — Sunday Streets Western Addition
Oct TBD — Phoenix Day Block Party
Oct 31 — NOPA Halloween Extravaganza
Nov 20 — NOPNA Community Meeting
Dec 12 — Volunteer Holiday Party
New Monthly Events! Beginning in March,
the NOPNA Board is going to be creating some
new ways to meet neighbors. These will be
updated frequently so please follow us on social
media or watch your email inbox — look for
happy hours at local businesses, community dog
walks, fun runs, game nights, and volunteer
opportunities! Our goal is to hold four events like
this each month (one on each week).
Join us for a drink afterward at our first Fourth
Friday Happy Hour! Come meet some neighbors
and support a local business in the neighborhood.
The first 15 people get a free drink, on us!
Our first Fourth Friday Happy Hour will be at
Fly Bar from 5pm-7ish on Friday, March 28. Hope
to see you there!
RECURRING EVENTS:
NOPNA General Meetings —
Brahma Kumaris Meditation Center, 401 Baker
Street, 6:30pm, 3rd Thursday of ODD months
SFPD Park Station Community Meeting —
1899 Waller St, 7:00pm, 2nd Tuesday of
every month
Divisadero Farmers Market —
DMV Parking Lot, Broderick at Fell, Sundays,
10:00am-2:00pm.
Follow us on Facebook and/or Instagram at
“nopna_org” - you can also sign up for email
updates at www.nopna.org!
8 | NOPNANews
OUT&
ABOUT
THE GLUTEN GREATS
by Sarah Otis
Bob’s on Baker
Bob’s on Baker
The Mill
The Mill
NOPA’s gluten establishments
deserve their rise to fame,
considering their lines are out
the door on weekends.
Walking with friends to Bob’s on
Baker (601 Baker) to buy a donut
and coffee is a sweet treat on
monotonous days. This neighborhood
staple draws an eclectic mix of
tourists, passersby, and locals. The
NOPA branch of Bob’s Donuts offers
the same delicious flavors as its 24-
hour Polk Street counterpart and a
quieter, more welcoming atmosphere.
The shop has a handful of seats,
a small TV, and a wall full of loyal
customers’ donut-themed gifted
art. A Hall of Fame is dedicated
to winners of Bob’s three-minute
giant donut challenge — the fastest
recorded time at this location is 1:47.
(These giant donuts also double
as a yummy, affordable alternative
to traditional birthday cake; order
ahead.) To learn more about this Bay
Area institution’s rich history, watch
Circle of Donuts, a 2023 short film
about Bob’s.
Another local favorite is The Mill
(736 Divisadero) — a partnership
between Josey Baker Bread and Four
Barrel Coffee. It sources pastries
from Loquat, a middle eastern bakery
on Gough, and Compagnon, a
bakery most famous for its chocolate
croissants. I like to visit on rainy
days, when I crave a warm drink and
background chatter, and I’ve been
asked to bring bread from The Mill
to friends across the Bay. The space
serves coffee and drinks all day,
and their bread and pastries get
snatched up by eager customers
between restocks. The Mill is always
full with running clubs, friends
and colleagues meeting, patrons
journaling, and neighbors grabbing
a coffee mid-errand. You’ll see to-go
customers waiting along a wooden
bench, enjoying the art installations
and plants above them, and remote
workers holding onto spots at the
communal table for as long as their
laptops last without outlets or Wi-Fi.
Still, the beautiful atmosphere and
prices are worth the trouble.
The Mill fosters community through
multiple avenues: rotating local fine
artist displays (including a fiber art
display from its own employee),
occasional collaborations with pop-up
bakeries, and more. If you’re ready to
enter the bread-making world, sign
up for Josey Baker Bread’s sourdough
bread and sourdough pizza making
classes at The Mill.
Other gluten delights in NOPA
include the blackforest cake from
Hahdough (1221 Fell), and the most
stacked bagel I’ve had from Schlok’s
Bagels & Lox (1263 Fell). For our
gluten-free folks, I recommend
checking out the crepes at Bistro
La Chaumière (607 Divisadero).
Sarah Otis loves to explore San Francisco
on foot and stay in the know about delicious
flavors nearby.
issue 1 : 2025 | 9
GOLDEN GATE-CENTRAL
MARKET CHRONICLES by Shelley Pu
Shelley has been a San Francisco/NOPA resi-
dent since 2022. She loves the neighborhood
and can often be found making her way to
Divisadero for hot yoga or some duck fat fries.
to open their own store before
eventually branching off to Golden
Gate-Central Market.
With their shop open nearly
every day — closing only on
Christmas and New Year’s Day —
Yam and Isha cherish their free time
by exploring the Bay Area, often
seeking out nature in Marin County.
Closer to home, you may spot them
strolling through NOPA with Bobo.
As proud members of the NOPA
community, they love connecting with
their neighbors and appreciate the
warmth and friendliness that make
the area so special. Their greatest
hope for the shop is simply to keep
it running and
continue serving
the community
they love.
To the
neighborhood
and customers,
Yam would
like to say:
“Thank you for
supporting and
being on our
side all the
time.” If you
haven’t had
the chance yet,
please stop by
to meet Yam
and Isha and
experience their
warmth and
hospitality —
and hopefully
leave with some
delicious snacks
too!
In a city full of beloved corner
stores, Golden Gate-Central Market
has made its mark in NOPA. Upon
entering the store, you are welcomed
both by the soft glow of neon lights
as well as the adorable Bobo, a fluffy
goldendoodle often found perched
on a chair at the counter.
Located on the southwest corner
of its namesake streets, this little
market has been around for over 35
years. Yam Kunwar and Isha Karki
took over ownership in the summer of
2022. Since then, they have worked
tirelessly to revamp the interiors
and fill the shelves with all kinds
of products, including household
necessities, unique snacks, funky
wines, and top-shelf liquors.
Originally from Nepal, Yam also
lived in Singapore and New Jersey,
studying and working in network
engineering. Thirteen years ago,
while freelancing in IT, he had an
opportunity to move to California.
He initially worked at a 7-Eleven to
learn the ins and outs of running a
store, then partnered with a friend
10 | NOPNANews
(SLIGHTLY LATE) NOVEMBER 2024
ELECTION RESULTS
While the country votes in an almost even split,
according to the Department of Elections
databases, our NOPA neighbors vote more progressive
than most.
but the data still gives us a good idea about where our
neighbors stand on various positions. See how we voted
compared to the city and state below:
Voting precincts can stretch into other neighborhoods
by Tim Hickey
PRESIDENT
Harris
Trump
NOPA
City
State
U.S.
90.0%
80.0%
58.5%
48.3%
6.3%
15.5%
38.3%
49.8%
DS
SUPERVISOR
(First Round)
Autumn
Hope
Looijen
Bilal
Mahmood
Scotty
Jacobs
Allen
Jones
Dean
Preston
NOPA
CITY
6.4%
8.8%
40.4%
12.1%
39.9%
9.4%
0.9%
1.5%
40.2%
40.0%
MAYOR
(First Round)
NOPA
CITY
Mark
Farrell
13%
18%
Daniel
Lurie
21%
26%
Aaron
Peskin
30%
23%
London
Breed
31%
24%
Ahsha
Safaí
2%
3%
Ellen Lee
Zhou
1%
2%
Prop 3
Right to Marry
Yes
94%
85%
No
6%
15%
Prop 6
Involuntary
Servitude Ban
Yes
80%
67%
No
20%
33%
Prop 33
Rent Control
Measure O
Body Rights
Measure K
Upper Great
Highway Park
Yes
49%
43%
No
51%
57%
Yes
93%
84%
No
7%
16%
Yes
72%
55%
No
28%
45%
NOPA
CITY
EMAIL US
TO GET
INVOLVED:
issue 1 : 2025 | 11
NOPA NEIGHBORS:
FRANI CODO
by Day Robins
stairs with relative ease — and her
SPCA-rescued cat, Nelly.
Frani exudes kindness and loves
kids. She has noticed that younger
people are moving to NOPA
and having children. “It’s kind of
nice to hear the little kids again,”
she whispered with a smile. Her
morning routine follows Cammy on
a slow and intentional walk down
McAllister Street to Matching Half
and back, or wherever Cammy
wants to go.
Frani studied graphic design at
SF State and worked for almost
two decades as a graphic designer,
despite never having obtained a
formal degree. When she moved
to the neighborhood, Frani
remembers fewer restaurants and
a junk shop that was never open
on the corner where Early to Rise
now stands. “One Saturday, they
opened the doors and just
sold everything that was in
there,” she recalled.
When asked whether she would
change anything about NOPA, she
stated flatly and without hesitation:
“Well, I’d like to get rid of our
landlord.” Frani’s first landlord (who
died of AIDS just two years after
she moved in) would travel with
his partner and bring back gifts for
Sammy — including a “too cute”
kid-sized motorcycle jacket.
“We just stayed and stayed,”
she explained, “NOPA has the
friendliest people.” If you see
Frani and Cammy on a walk, stop
to say hello!
Day Robins is a soccer girl from Humboldt
County, California. She moved to San Francisco
in 2022 after studying law in Virginia, and has
lived in NOPA since late last year.
F rani Codo, an Irish-Italian
fog and dog-lover
who hails from Joliet,
Illinois, moved to the
neighborhood in 1987 with
her late husband Dan —
to the same apartment in
which she lives today.
“Fed up” with her
casino-famous hometown,
she moved to San Mateo
in her late twenties to live
with a friend working at
Genentech. Shortly after,
she met Dan, they got
married and had a son,
Sam (“Sammy”). Today,
she lives with her beloved
eighteen-year old dog,
Cammy — who can still
power up one flight of
The Spring Market is
Here!
Mollie + Declan's Current Listings
Pending | 239 Broderick St.
Steps From the Divisadero Corridor
4 Beds | 3.5 Baths | 3392 SqFt
Spacious decks on both levels
Expansive chef-inspired kitchen
Elegant primary suite w/ luxury features
Offered @ $3,295,000
Sold | 1350 Fell St.
AIA Architectural Masterpiece
4 Beds | 3.5 Baths | 3 Car Parking
3 Levels
Floor-to-Ceiling Windows
Incredibly Unique Interior Atrium
Sold @ $4,400,000
Sold | 847 Fillmore St.
Grand Alamo Square Victorian
4 Beds | 3.5 Baths | Legal 2nd Unit
Prefect Walk-Out Yard
480 Sq. Ft. Roof Deck w/ Incredible Views
Sold @ $4,700,000
“
Hello NOPA neighbors, I’m very happy to announce that all indicators are showing
that the San Francisco market is back. The spring season is starting with a
BOOM! We’ve had great successes with three of our recent listings this month.
Multiple offers, strong buyer pools, quick showing cycles. The buyers out there are
feverish, and aplenty! If you’ve been considering selling over the last two years,
when the market was slow and unpredictable, this is a dynamic time to consider
making a move.
We’ve also had great successes with our buyers, and while the market has picked
up with great momentum, these current interest rates seem to be the new norm.
The cringey cliché “Marry the home, date the rate,“ has never seemed more
relevant than it is now. Lenders are introducing very creative ways to help buyers
accept today’s rates with new options for rate drops down the road. And if you’d
like to stay in the neighborhood, we’ve got a few great listings up our sleeves.
If there’s anything we can do, any questions we can answer, please reach out.
Hearing from those in our community means the world to us - Always has!
Best-
Mollie + Declan
MOLLIE POE + DECLAN HICKEY
NOPA Property Owners, NOPNA Business Members, and trusted
neighborhood Realtors® for over 25 years.
Compass SF Founding Members.
Nationally Ranked Industry Leaders and SF Top Producers since 2003.
415.902.2447 | mollie@compass.com | declan@compass.com
DRE 01239280 + 01356209
Compass is a real estate broker licensed by the State of California and abides by Equal Housing Opportunity laws. License Number 01991628, 01527235, 1527365. All material presented here-
in is intended for informational purposes only and is compiled from sources deemed reliable but has not been verified. Changes in price, condition, sale or withdrawal may be made without
notice. No statement is made as to accuracy of any description. All measurements and square footage are approximate.
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