Agency Details:

San Francisco Beautiful creates, enhances and protects the unique beauty and livability of San Francisco through neighborhood improvement grants, beautification awards and civic initiatives. Since 1947, we’ve worked to reduce visual blight, promote neighborhood conservation and preserve our historic treasures.

Description:
San Francisco Beautiful is the only organization in San Francisco whose sole purpose is to protect and enhance the urban environment in which we live and work. SFB works year round to improve the quality of our daily lives, strengthen our communities, and empower our fellow citizens to maintain the character of the city’s parks, neighborhoods and streets.

What We Do
San Franciscans’ activism is what continues to make our city desirable, beautiful and, above all, livable. San Francisco Beautiful seeks in a variety of ways to encourage and recognize these efforts.

Initiate and Enact
➢ San Francisco Beautiful’s Civic Initiatives Program is the core of our work. Recognizing and responding to pressing problems throughout the city—from crumbling landmarks to precious parklands suffering from years of neglect—San Francisco Beautiful staff and volunteers create, organize and support partnerships between civic leaders, community-based groups, and other organizations to promote sound and sustainable urban planning policies and programs

Empower and Encourage
➢ Our Friedel Klussmann Grants Program funds community-based improvement projects in all of the City’s thirty-six neighborhoods, helping concerned citizens to become activists and make a difference to the place they call home
➢ The Beautification Awards, presented at our annual dinner, recognize and reward citizen activism projects that improve the quality of life in the City

Educate and Inform
➢ Through our quarterly newsletter, The Cable, we keep our nearly 1000 members—and their families and friends—informed about our successes and achievements, and aware of potential threats to our urban environment
➢ Our new website, currently under development thanks to a technical service grant from the Taproot Foundation, will greatly enhance our ability to interact with the people we serve—those who live, work and play in San Francisco
➢ Our presence in the public eye—on television, in print, and out and about in the City—allows us to successfully maintain public awareness of new and ongoing threats to San Francisco’s environmental and historic integrity and promote efforts to counteract these threats.

History:
San Francisco Beautiful: A History in Brief

1940s & ‘50s
• Group under guidance of Friedel Klussmann planted miles of trees throughout the downtown area and neighborhood commercial districts
• Supported and encouraged all City beautification efforts
• Worked to stop the creation of offensive and unattractive public objects such as indiscriminate billboards
• Opposed the building of poorly-planned and self defeating freeways which threatened the City’s livability
• Dedicated much time to cleaning up our city streets and stopping the litter problem

1960s
• The greening of the concrete: the planting of trees in the downtown area and in the neighborhoods. Trees were planted as donations to honor individuals and from city gas tax fund
• Promoted moving utility lines underground
• Preserved the unique historic gold light lamp posts on Market Street
• Stopped the construction of a large restaurant proposed for Golden Gate Park
• Developed conservation measures which have led to the creation of a Golden Gate National Recreation Area including Forts Funston and Miley, the Marin coast military areas and the Sutro Point area
• September 8, 1965 IRS rules SFB is tax exempt – 1966 received status
• July 1961 began to collect $5 annual dues

1970s
• Joined forces with the California Anti-litter League and related city departments to fight the litter problem on city streets
• Insisted that citizen approval be obtained in the construction of many of the new skyscraper buildings downtown
• Supported the study of ferry boats as a commute alternative to Marin County from the City
• Aided the reversal of decision to add a second automobile deck to the Golden Gate Bridge
• Began the Beautification Awards Programs in May to recognize individuals and groups with awards for beautification of their homes, gardens, businesses, etc

1980s
• Preserved the historic Greenwich Garden Path and Vallejo Stairway which are just two of the many stairways and access routes SFB has helped to save and enhance
• Helped fund and advocated for citywide street lighting improvements and more sensible utility boxes on public sidewalks
• Sponsored graffiti clean-up and mural refurbishing projects for youth
• Worked in conjunction with other organizations to clean up and plant greenery in areas such as the North Beach Housing Project and the Tenderloin.

1990s
• Contributed a major grant for the illumination of the Palace of Fine Arts and collaborated on the lighting of Aquatic Park and Balclutha at Hyde Street Pier
• Chaired the Citizen’s Advisory Committee on the Central Embarcadero Roadway Project
• Formed the Beautification and Urban Design Plan as a mechanism for coalition building
• Opened the discussion that led to an ordinance allowing sidewalk cafes
• Funded stairway enhancements across the city
• Granted funding to numerous groups for beautification efforts
• Helped expand a computerized Volunteer Network for environmental programs which serves as a free, over the phone volunteer and referral service
• Worked to remove sidewalk clutter with new, attractive modular newsracks
• Advocated for the Octavia Boulevard Plan and the demolition of the raised Central Freeway
• Worked to create a stewardship program for Lake Merced via the creation of the Lake Merced Task Force
• Worked toward the renovation of the Geneva Office Building and Power House and Golden Gate Park’s Murphy’s Windmill
• Published the booklet, “Rooftop Gardens: From Conception to Construction”
• Initiated the ballot proposition leading to a volunteer business tax to fund Neighborhood Beautification and Graffiti Cleanup fund
• Joined the consortium that created the San Francisco Prize - an international design competition that focuses on civic improvement
• Participated in the public process of the Civic Center Plaza
• Won the fight to stop electronic jumbo billboards in Union Square

2000 to present
• Conceived the No New Billboard Campaign that, through overwhelming voter approval (79%), put an end to additional billboards in the city
• Co-sponsored a Mayoral Forum on quality of life issues
• Help write planning codes that control utility pole postings and banners
• Continue Friedel Klussmann Grants Program by funding to numerous groups for community improvements – have awarded over #1,000,000 in grants.
• Continue the Beautification Awards Program
• Participated in the public process of the Bloomingdales Settlement Fund
• Participate in developing good public polices regarding projects including: Crissy Field, Golden Gate Park Music Concourse, Rincon Hill Plan, Treasure Island, United Nations Plaza, The Presidio and Main Parade Grounds, Piers 27-31, Doyle Drive Replacement, Southwest Gateway, Transbay Terminal, Chain Stores, Mid-Market Plan, the Blue Greenway, Marina Bay Trail and Surplus Property Protection
• Participating in the Better Streets Plan and the Marina Bay Trail, Northeast Waterfront Advisory Council, Graffiti Abatement Task Force, Community Challenge Grants Advisory Committee
• Published the Cable Car Report analyzing the state of the cable car system

Contact person: Sheila Kolenc, Executive Director, (phone), (email)

Address:

100 Bush Street Suite 1580 San Francisco, CA 94104 (See a map)

Web Site: http://www.sfbeautiful.org

Directions:

Nearest Metro/Subway Stop: Montgomery ST,   Walk distance (in minutes): 2   Nearest Bus Stop: All Market Steet Lines

Miscellaneous Information

Besides English, which languages are spoken at your agency?
	No others
What is the minimum age for volunteers at your agency?
	16
Is your agency wheelchair accessible?
	Yes
Does your agency have the capacity to host groups of more than 10?
	Yes
Does your agency have the capacity to host groups of more than 20?
	No

Last updated on May 12, 2010