Year-end bonus: Lyon Street getting more street trees

On both sides of Lyon Street, just downhill from the Green Turk & Lyon sidewalk gardens, more squares of concrete have been pulled up, and the Friends of the Urban Forest is organizing the community for planting tomorrow, Friday 12/15. 

The SF Parks Alliance notes on Instagram the connection of these plantings to our Slow Streets: Slow Lyon St and Golden Gate Ave. 

These new plantings are a great validation of our work and vision, which took shape 12 years ago!

Now if I can figure out how to leverage tomorrow's project to get some desperately needed fresh soil for our beds....! 

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Lessons Learned: How'd It Go at Turk & Lyon?

Photos: Michael Helquist

The concrete’s gone, the plants are in, purple spikes and yellow blossoms flash along the sidewalk. Once it starts raining, the permeable aspect – letting the rain water reach the aquifer instead of the sewer – begins. It’s green, healthy and just the start of what we can do together for a more sustainable future.

Any good project deserves reflection and evaluation. What went really well, what surprised us, what might we have done better, and how well did the city permit process work?

Planning

• For a large project, get input from friends and neighbors – we held a Design Lab last fall to exchange ideas
• Attend the city’s Grey2Green workshop
• Enlist the help of a landscape architect* to prepare drawings to-scale, select materials and plants, order at wholesale outlets and guide the planting
• Have several pairs of eyes read the city’s sidewalk use restrictions
• Host an event to present plans (and a fundraiser, if needed, to cover costs)
• Remember to plan for every stage – including removal of the dirt
• Make it a work party – so much better with music and food provided

From Grey2Green

• Expect concrete cutting and removal to cost at least $5.50 per square foot
• Schedule the concrete work to coincide with street cleaning hours and avoid the risk of damaging vehicles parked nearby during demolition
• Expect to remove a lot of dirt – it will be sand or clay
• Prep the required edging a few days before – the workday will be busy enough
• Place new plants with soil and mulch one inch below the sidewalk or curb surface – this will help contain the rain water and irrigation

After the Planting

• Celebrate and post photos online, thank everyone
• Depending on the season and weather, water frequently to get plants thriving

Now We Know

• Really do plan for dirt removal – we thought of everything but this
• Read the city regs one more time – especially about the edging & courtesy paths
• Do the prep work with the edging materials ahead of time – we rushed to saw 6”x4” beams and drill holes right before the workday started
• Keep at the fundraising – unexpected costs will occur
• Work can proceed in two phases – we left another stretch of sidewalk for the future

Working the System

• City staff are friendly & enthusiastic,** but sometimes difficult to contact initially
• You can’t get begin the work without a permit; allow 2-4 weeks
• An initial inspection is required
• Be sure to get a final inspection – the city sign-off increases liability protection
• City website – DPW Bureau of Urban Forestry -- needs to be more user-friendly

How Much Did It Cost?

• We removed 160 square feet of concrete at $5.50 per square foot
• We purchased almost 100 plants and shrubs – we bought more mature plants
• Plants and soil were obtained from a wholesale firm through our landscape architect
• Total cost: approximately $3400
• Total donations: approximately $3400

Was It Worth It? Stop by Turk & Lyon and then start plans for your own Grey2Green project

* James Munden, senior landscape architect, at Marta Fry Landscape Associates/MFLA Studio, made all the difference to the success of this project

** Thanks to Markos Major, DPW Bureau of Urban Forestry for getting us through the permit process

*** Special thanks to major donors Rev. Sally Bingham, Oz Erickson, The Emerald Fund; and all those who supported this project from start to finish and at points in-between

Jugband, Bluegrass & Folk Headline Green L(a)unch Saturday, July 23

Image: Duncan Ramsay

Turk and Lyon this Saturday -- The corner will rock, buzz, twang, and throb as gardeners, neighbors and friends get in the dirt, amend the soil, shovel, rake, edge new beds, and settle-in new plants. All to the accompaniment of live bluegrass, jug band, folk, and jazz tunes.

Erich Silvester (Hot Steel & Cool Ukulele) will delve into his rich repertoire plucking favorites from the jug band revival of the 1960s to his latest jumping uke sets from last month's San Francisco Free Folk Festival. NOPA's own Wigg Party will also send up the hill its hot band-buds to keep the green glow on the corner through the afternoon.

The day's line-up for work and play goes like this:

10 am

• gardeners assemble
• work begins: weeding, sifting soil, shoveling, adding new soil, edging beds, planting
• tour and description of sidewalk plans -- what will & won't be happening
• chances for door prizes, plant sales, kids stuff

12 - 2pm

• Green Lunch provided (donations welcomed)

12:30 - 4pm

• Live Music begins
• Building Tours
• More cool door prizes & kids play

Stop by for a look, lend a hand, check out the bands, get a great lunch

Saturday, July 23, 10am to 4pm

Turk and Lyon

Info: greenturkandlyon@gmail.com or 415 218 7937

Green L(a)unch Sat July 23 workday / party

Image: Duncan Ramsay

It's going to be Green. It's a Launch and a Lunch, a Workday and a Party.

NOPA neighbors and friends, stop by the corner of Turk and Lyon on Saturday, July 23 to help transform 160 square feet of concrete into landscaped, permeable surfaces. All the better for rainwater to replenish the aquifer, for runoff to be diverted from the sewers, and to provide a more attractive, livelier swath of green along the sidewalks.

The concrete squares will be removed a few days before the event, and the new spaces will be ready for topsoil, plants and permeable materials. Volunteer gardeners will amend the soil -- what lies below sidewalks at least 50 years old? -- and prepare the beds for planting. Helpers 16 years of age and older are encouraged to help with lifting, shoveling, and raking. Bring tools and gloves if you can.

But it's a party, too, with live music, games, door prizes, kids stuff, sparkling green drinks, and a remarkable lunch. Think double tomato crostini, bite-size caprese salad, stuffed sweet peppers, inside out carrot cupcakes, and take-home treats. Donations appreciated for lunch.

Help make NOPA greener one corner, one block, one building at a time.

Saturday, July 23, 10 am to 4pm

Lunch at Noon, Music starts at 12:30pm

Turk & Lyon at St. Cyprian's

More info: greenturkandlyon@gmail.com

SAVE THE DATE: Green L(a)unch Party & Workday Sat July 23

Bring some green to the top of Lyon at Turk

20 + concrete squares to be removed for landscaping

Our Green Turk & Lyon project is about to delve into the dirt to make this corner greener, more sustainable, and definitely more permeable (let the rain soak in, fill the aquifier and spare the sewer system). On Saturday, July 23rd neighbors from the North Panhandle, Anza Vista, Alamo Square, the Richmond, and the Haight (and anyone else too) will gather at Cyprian's to make the city's latest greening project happen.

Stop by, lend a hand and celebrate during the Turk & Lyon Green L(a) unch -- project kick-off, free green lunch and desserts, green door prizes, info on how you can transform your own sidewalk, and live music through the afternoon.

For those wanting to get in the dirt, we'll mix top soil into more than 20 squares formerly covered by concrete, place pavers for convenient crossing, and start the planting for a new community green spot. Tools will be available but bring your own if you can (trowels, rakes, shovels and gloves).

Free lunch at noon (we guarantee you'll get your green quotient for the day)

Live music in the afternoon. Bring an instrument!

The Green Basics:

Green L(a)unch Party & Workday

Saturday, July 23, 10 am - 4 pm

Free lunch at noon, donations appreciated

Green door prizes, kids activities

Work in the dirt: tools provided and bring what you can

Information: greenturkandlyon@gmail.com

RSVP: help us plan for lunch, let us know if you'll join the launch

While you're there, check out Cyprian's, the neighborhood's newest performance venue. (We've got a concert planned with SF Live Arts for the evening of July 27 too).

Turk & Lyon Closer To A Greener, Friendlier Future

Green Possibilities for Turk Street near Lyon

Image: James Munden, Marta Fry Landscape Associates

Green Turk & Lyon Fundraiser at Chile Pies Photos: Dale Danley

Jarie Bolander (left), NOPNA President, and with Honoree Michael Helquist

Thanks to everyone who joined the party and fundraiser at Chile Pies (& Ice Cream) last week -- all 60 of you and those unable to attend who also donated to the Green Turk & Lyon project. Your support helped raise $1100 that will bring greener sidewalks, benches and bike racks to the southeast corner of Turk and Lyon.

An occasion like this is always the result of help and contributions from many people. Thank you to everyone and special thanks to

• Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi for designating community member Michael Helquist as District 5 Person of the Month for June and especially for all his efforts to support individuals and groups in this amazing district
• Vallie Brown, Ross's legislative aide, who takes good ideas and guides them to implementation
• Trevor Logan, owner of Green Chile Kitchen and Chile Pies. His generosity and support of the fundraiser has been remarkable
• Kalie Nickless, manager of Chile Pies, who made all arrangements incredibly easy
• James Munden, neighbor and landscape architect with Marta Fry Landscape Architects, whose images of the Green Turk & Lyon project inspire us to create a model for green permeable sidewalks in NOPA
• The members of St. Cyprian's Episcopal Church, led by Pastor Will Scott, for their ongoing engagement with the community and eagerness to transform the sidewalks along the church property for a green neighborhood respite
• NOPNA, the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition, Sunday Streets, Walk SF, Fix Masonic and NOPA VELO for co-sponsoring the fundraiser

Next steps for the project will be a community meeting in July to review designs, workplans, and a timeline for removing the concrete and enlivening the Turk and Lyon corner. Date and time will be posted here on Green Turk and Lyon. Take a look at the corner this Saturday night, June 4, before a special concert, an Evening of Song, at Cyprian's.

Interested in volunteering or want more information?: greenturkandlyon@gmail.com

To donate to the project: so far we're set up to accept checks made out to St. Cyprian's Episcopal Church; please write on memo line: "Turk & Lyon Project". All donations will go to a separate Turk & Lyon account. Thank you!

Note: A variation of this story is being co-published -- as a time-saver -- with the site BIKE NOPA.

Turk and Lyon: How It Looks Now

Green Turk & Lyon: A plan to bring a little more green along Lyon and Turk

Envision a landscaped greenway on Lyon from the tree on the right to the corner of Turk

Turk street view -- more plantings here, bike racks, landscaped expanses along curb

A good start with four street trees along Turk near Lyon but so much potential for more

Photos: Michael Helquist

The Green Turk & Lyon project is all about creating community and transforming long stretches of concrete into a landscaped expanse that is greener, more sustainable and more inviting. The photos here represent the "before." In the months ahead neighbors will work with a designer to develop final designs for the "after."

The next phase of development begins tonight Wednesday, May 25, 5:30 pm to 7:30 pm with a fundraiser. Donate $15 - $20 to make the neighborhood greener, and get a free slice of pie, beer, wine, New Mexican hot chocolate, and other specialties from Chile Pies, 601 Baker at Fulton.

Each $5 of your donation will remove one square foot of concrete. All proceeds go to the Turk and Lyon Project.

An "after" view of Turk with more planting, bike racks,

and design reflecting lines of building

Image: James Munden, Marta Fry Landscape Architects

Vision for A Greener, More Sustainable Turk and Lyon

Lyon Street at Turk Re-envisioned

Image: James Munden, Marta Fry Landscape Architects

The Green Turk and Lyon project envisions creating community with a cool, green streetscape along Lyon and Turk Streets in the North Panhandle neighborhood of the Western Addition.