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An artistic and beautification project for Glen Park: The Burnside Mural+

July 2, 2021 by Bonnee Waldstein

Renee Berger, Burnside+ Mural Project Director (second from left), whips up enthusiasm for the mural.

Neighbors and friends had a congenial gathering at the Burnside Avenue cul-de-sac the evening of Friday, June 18.  This one block street, along with its sister street to the east, Chilton Avenue, are known for their tight-knit family atmosphere and friendly vibe–like a little town within Glen Park.

The occasion was the kick-off of an exciting new project, Burnside Mural+, which envisions a mural and a tiled stairway. Around forty people attended for drinks, socializing and a fundraising pitch by Project Director Renee Berger. To Berger, a Glen Park resident of Van Buren Street for 26 years, the 600-700 square foot green concrete wall and stairway at the end of the Burnside, with a lone basketball hoop at the center, cried out for a visual narrative, one that would recall and honor some of Glen Park’s glory days and illustrious residents. The idea came to her quite naturally, as she is a San Francisco City Guide, focusing on the famous murals in the Mission District.

With her thirty-year background having a national and international consulting firm for mainly philanthropic organizations such as the Ford Foundation, she dove into the process of bringing the vision to reality. She reached out to SF Public Works, the agency with jurisdiction, asking for the requirements to gain approval for the project. She was quickly joined by Mary Szczepanik, Anne Wintroub, and Allison Arieff, all long-time Glen Park residents who bring enthusiasm and critical skills to the project including fundraising, communications, and design.

Berger stated, “I am incredibly fortunate that these people, all raising children and working full-time, have volunteered, giving their time and talents.”

Wall and stairway at Burnside cul-de-sac. Photo: Kim Sites

The Burnside wall meets the western end of the Greenway via two lower stairways joining into one upper stairway. Greenway leader Nicholas Dewar and his team welcomed Burnside Mural+ and, in a win-win situation for both, the project has been rolled into the fiscal sponsorship of the San Francisco Parks Alliance (SFPA), along with the pre-existing sponsorship for the Greenway. They both, however, maintain independent production schedules and fundraising efforts. Dewar expects that the  Burnside Mural+  will soon become a project of SFPA independent of the Greenway.

Dewar says of the Burnside Mural+ project, “It’s a wonderful idea in a location that seems ideal for a mural and decorated steps.  I’m  very glad that Renee Berger has taken it on.”

The projected cost of the mural is $40,000. So far there are pledges of $5,000. Upon city approval of the project, it will need to advance in several stages of fundraising. First, funds are needed to solicit proposals from several muralists, addressing their ideas and approach.  After the muralist is chosen, and with community invited to give input to the design, there will be another round of fundraising for the mural.  Fundraising is ongoing, however, with another larger event planned for early fall.

Lastly, separate funding will be needed for the tiled steps, which will be a more ambitious and costly process. Grants, such as a Community Challenge Grant, would be needed to complete the projected cost in the range of $150,000 to $175,000.  Regardless, if the initial $40,000 for the mural can be raised, the Glen Park neighborhood and the Greenway will be further beautified and be another focal point of the 17-mile Crosstown Trail, of which the Greenway is one element.

If all goes smoothly, the mural could be completed by mid-year 2022. The tile portion will require a more intensive grant and funding process and, depending upon the source of funding, could be completed in two to four years.

You can find an essay describing the project on the Glen Park Neighborhoods History Project website, which has more detailed information on the Burnside Mural+ and other Glen Park murals. To read, click here.

To sign up for updates and to donate to the Burnside Mural + project, click here.

Filed Under: Burnside mural, Greenway, SFPW, Uncategorized, Volunteer

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Glen Park Association is at Glen Park Greenway.
48 minutes ago
Glen Park Association

More people are discovering our Glen Park Greenway to Glen Canyon Park!

#glenparkgreenway #glenparksf #sanfrancisco #takeawalk #walk #hike #urban #urbanexplorer #crosstowntrail
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More people are discovering our Glen Park Greenway to Glen Canyon Park!

#glenparkgreenway #glenparksf #sanfrancisco #takeawalk  #walk #hike #urban #urbanexplorer #crosstowntrail
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Glen Park Association is at Glen Park Greenway.
4 days ago
Glen Park Association

Saturday’s Glen Park Greenway Work Party is Cancelled.

“I’m very sorry to say that
we have cancelled our Work Party for this Saturday July 12, along with all organized volunteer activity on the Greenway until further notice.
As you may have read in the news, our fiscal sponsor, San Francisco Parks Alliance (SFPA), has shut itself down. Just as SFPA has shut itself down, the Greenway, as an organized part of SFPA, has also been “shut down.” We are busy looking for a suitable alternative fiscal sponsor that is willing to replace SFPA. That search is going well but it is a slow process. We had hoped to find temporary ways to enable the Greenway project to function responsibly as a community activity without a fiscal sponsor. Sadly, despite our best efforts and the help of many others in Glen Park, we have failed. That is why we must cancel our Saturday Work Party and discontinue future work parties and other organized volunteer activity on the Greenway (like weeding and watering) until further notice. We recognize that the Greenway is public open space and that the organizers of the Greenway project have no control over the activities of you or of anyone else on the Greenway. However, if you do venture onto the Greenway to satisfy your urge for outdoor recreation, please be aware that your activity is not in any way organized or sanctioned by the organizers of the Glen Park Greenway project. I’m well aware of the efforts that many of the
Greenway’s supporters are making to get the Greenway organized with a new fiscal sponsor and I’m confident that this will be arranged within weeks or perhaps a few months.
However long it takes, I will contact you with news of our progress.
Many thanks for all that you do for the Greenway.”

Nicholas Dewar, volunteer Project Director

#glenparkgreenway #glenparksf #sanfrancisco @rafaelmandelmand8 @danielluriesf @crosstowntrail
#crosstowntrail #sfparksalliance #publicspace #nature
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1 CommentComment on Facebook

Wonder what’s stopping just organizing it separate from that non-profit. It seems like the volunteers largely come from Glen Park.

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Upper Noe Neighbors

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