guerrilla curatorship

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San Francisco Public Library, in its push to demolish two historic library branches and inappropriately to renovate at least two other historic branches, violated the public’s right to obtain public information and make public comment, according to San Francisco’s official open government watchdog group, the Sunshine Ordinance Task Force (SOTF).

And the Board of Appeals, just before it heard an appeal of the Ortega Branch demolition permit, enforced newly-created rules of reduced access to its office files that were unlawful, the SOTF found.

Fortunately, as these violations are publicly adjudicated, awareness is growing about bad plans and planning process, as well as the City’s many valuable branch library buildings.

Our efforts have helped alert architectural preservationists to the value of Park Branch library and helped lead to a scheduled Sept. 2 discussion at the Historic Preservation Commission (HPC) on whether to landmark the City’s Park Branch library and some half-dozen Appleton and Wolfard libraries, of which North Beach and Ortega branches are examples, and both of which are scheduled for demolition and replacement by new buildings.

Park Branch, built by the City in 1909 without Carnegie money, is San Francisco’s oldest library building. It has a generous open floor plan 100 feet long by 41 feet wide, soaring 23-foot high ceiling, built-in perimeter book shelves, and enormous windows on all four sides that allow great quantities of daylight to flood in. The branch is scheduled to close for renovation for a year, starting immediately after its 100th birthday party Oct. 29. The eight Appleton and Wolfard libraries in the city were built in the 1950s and 1960s, also providing much light and usually a windowed connection with a park or garden.

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