Assault
Last month, a Potrero Hill resident was attacked inside Kansas Food Market, located at the corner of 23rd and Kansas streets. Kate Ryken, 45, was buying a bag of chips when she felt blows to the back of her head, imparting bruises all over her scalp. The San Francisco Police Department identified the suspect as 26-year-old Jessica Blazee, who may have been recently discharged from nearby San Francisco General Hospital. Blazee was booked at the San Francisco County Jail on suspicion of assault with force likely to commit great bodily injury and for a parole violation.
Shelter
An April municipal count found a 21 percent citywide decline in the number of vehicles believed to be occupied by unhoused people, from 908 to 719. Neighborhoods that experienced the steepest drops were the Central Waterfront, 115 to 48, Produce Market, 141 to 79, and Outer Sunset, 70 to 28. Areas with the biggest jumps in vehicles were Outer Richmond, which doubled from 18 to 36, Mission, 28 to 48, and Potrero Hill, four to 23. Faustino Choc, 54, was paying $1,000 for a shared bedroom above a liquor store in Potrero Hill when he became sick and was forced to stop working. Choc, who emigrated from Guatemala 10 years ago, held down three jobs to pay rent and send money to his family. After he was hospitalized with a fungal infection, he lost his jobs and used his last paychecks to buy an RV. Choc, who parks his vehicle on the same block as his former apartment, said he tried to get a spot at the city’s safe parking site but was turned away. “We try not to make too much trash and the neighbors don’t complain, but I’m not going to feel comfortable here because I live on the street,” he told the San Francisco Chronicle. “I don’t want to stay (here) all the time. If I become better, I will work again and then I can pay rent.”
Amazon
As its plans to build a massive logistics center in Showplace Square are being vetted by municipal authorities, Amazon ceased operations at a small fulfillment facility it established as an UltraFastFresh site to deliver groceries at 888 Tennessee Street, across from Esprit Park, according to a California Employment Development Department WARN notice. The move will impact 85 workers, according to the announcement. An Amazon spokesperson indicated that employees will be offered other jobs, and that it’ll continue to fulfill customers’ orders from alternative locations. In response to complaints from neighbors, in 2021 Amazon made improvements to the area around the Tennessee Street facility.
Curry
The vacant, two-story masonry and concrete building that, for more than half-century, has stood at the corner of 20th and Illinois streets was sold to Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry. The property, located at 600 20th Street, within walking distance of Chase Center, traded hands for $8.5 million, nearly six times higher than its 2021 sales price. s brokered the deal. The property, which has been pitched for redevelopment into a five-story mixed-use structure, will serve as the headquarters for Thirty Ink, Curry’s off-court business enterprise, presently located on Howard Street. Thirty is Curry’s Jersey number.
Endowed
San Francisco Center for the Book was awarded a $25,000 Grants for Arts Projects from the National Endowment for the Arts. The funds will support the fall exhibition, David Anthony King: Book Projects and Zines, 1977 – 2019, curated by Matt Borruso and Luca Antonucci. David Anthony King (1948 – 2019) was a British-born artist, graphic designer, and musician best known for designing the Crass symbol.
