Hayes Valley, San Francisco, California

Hayes Valley is a neighborhood in San Francisco, California, between the historical districts of Alamo Square and Civic Center. Victorian, Queen Anne, and Edwardian townhouses rub shoulders with hip boutiques, excellent restaurants, and public housing complexes.

Although its boundaries are ill defined, Hayes Valley is generally considered to be the area north and south of Hayes Street between Webster (near Alamo Square) and Franklin (near Civic Center) streets.

Geography

Hayes Valley is centered along the commercial district of Hayes Street from approximately Laguna Street in the west to Franklin Street in the east. [http://www.sfgate.com/chronicle/pictures/2004/03/28/ba_hayes28gr.jpg]

The Hayes Valley Neighborhood Association considers the neighborhood as a whole to be bound by Webster Street in the west, Franklin Street in the east, Fulton Street in the north, and Hermann Street and Market Street in the south, with an extension as far west as Fillmore, between Haight Street and Hermann Street. (The latter definition overlaps considerably with the Lower Haight.) [http://www.hayesvalleysf.org/images_site/map_hv.gif]

The San Francisco Association of Realtors considers the Hayes Valley to be synonymous with "District 6B", and extending from McAllister Street in the north, to Market Street and Duboce Street in the south, Gough Street in the east, and Webster Street (north of Fell Street) and Divisidero Street (south of Fell Street) forming the western boundaries. [http://www.propertiessanfrancisco.com/Neighborhoods/district6.htm] (This definition includes the entire Lower Haight within Hayes Valley.)

Adjacent neighborhoods include the Lower Haight and small parts of the Duboce Triangle and SoMa in the south, Alamo Square in the west, and the Fillmore District/Western Addition to the north.

History

At one time the Central Freeway ran though the neighborhood, but it was closed after the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake and eventually demolished. In an aerial photograph the path of the highway can easily be seen running through the neighborhood in the form of empty lots and surface parking lots, many of which are now slated for development of new senior and affordable housing.

As of 2005, a section of the freeway has been rebuilt to exit at Market Street, with a boulevard running north from the exit at Market Street through the Hayes Valley along Octavia Street to Fell Street. Between Fell Street and Hayes Street, Patricia's Green at coord|37|46|34.43|N|122|25|27.92|W, replaces the middle lanes of this new Octavia Boulevard. It provides seating, green space, and a play structure for the neighborhood. In 2005, it was the showcase for a temple structure for the renowned artist David Best. The green named after neighborhood activist Patricia Walkup, who co-led the campaign to tear down part of the Central Freeway.

Transportation

Hayes Valley is served by several San Francisco Municipal Railway (MUNI) buses, including the #21 (which runs through Hayes Valley on its east-west route between Golden Gate Park and the Ferry Building), the #5 (also east-west), and the #22 (which runs north-south along Fillmore Street).

Commerce

Rapidly gentrifying Hayes Valley has an eclectic mix of boutiques, high-end restaurants, and hip stores.

Cafés, Bars and Restaurants

* [http://www.absinthe.com Absinthe] - Brasserie (398 Hayes Street at Gough)
* Arlequin to Go - Coffee (384 Hayes Street at Gough)
* [http://www.barjules.com Bar Jules ] - (608 Hayes Street at Laguna)
* [http://www.bluebottlecoffee.net Blue Bottle Coffee Co.] - Coffee (315 Linden Street at Gough)
* Cafe Terra Cotta - Coffee (201 Octavia Street at Lily) - (No Longer in Business) [ [http://www.yelp.com/biz/cafe-terra-cotta-san-francisco] Yelp Website Retrieved June 5, 2008]
* Caffe Delle Stelle - Italian (395 Hayes Street at Gough)
* [http://www.frjtzfries.com/ Frjtz] - Belgian fries (581 Hayes Street at Laguna)
* [http://www.domosf.com/ Domo] - Sushi (511 Laguna at Fell)
* [http://www.hayesstreetgrill.com Hayes Street Grill] - Grill (324 Hayes Street at Franklin)
* Il Borgo - Italian (500 Fell Street at Laguna)
* [http://www.jardiniere.com Jardiniere] - French (300 Grove Street at Franklin)
* Las Estrellas - Mexican (330 Gough Street at Hayes)
* Momi Toby's Revolution Cafe & Art Bar - Coffee (528 Lagua Street at Linden)
* [http://www.moderntea.com Modern Tea] - Tea and California cuisine (602 Hayes Street at Laguna)
* [http://www.patxispizza.com Patxis Chicago Pizza] - Pizza (511 Hayes Street at Octavia)
* Sebo - Sushi (517 Hayes Street at Octavia)
* Stelline - Italian (330 Gough Street at Linden)
* [http://www.sugarloungesf.com Sugar Lounge] - Bar/Lounge (377 Hayes Street at Gough)
* [http://www.suppenkuche.com/ Suppenküche] - German beer house (525 Laguna Street at Hayes)
* [http://www.peaceindustry.com/locations.html Peace Industry] - Art, Felt Rugs (535 Octavia Boulevard at Ivy)

References

External links

* [http://www.hayesvalleysf.org/ Hayes Valley Neighborhood Association]
* [http://wikitravel.org/en/San_Francisco/Hayes_Valley WikiTravel: Hayes Valley]
* [http://www.sfgate.com/traveler/guide/sf/neighborhoods/hayesvalley.shtml San Francisco Neighborhood Guide: Hayes Valley] , "SFGate.com".
* [http://www.tripfilms.com/Travel_Video-v96-San_Francisco-Hayes_Valley-Video.html Video about Hayes Valley]
* [http://www.sfstation.com/districts/hayesvalley.html SFStation: Districts: Hayes Valley]
* [http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2004/03/28/BAGQE5SL3K1.DTL "A changing Hayes Valley wants to retain funky vibe"] by Joe Garofoli, "San Francisco Chronicle", March 28, 2004.
* [http://www.viamagazine.com/weekenders/hayes_valley05.asp "Hayes Valley: Cruise a revived city scene for smart design and indie shops"] , by Deborah Franklin, "Via", November 2005.