Bayview Buzz: SFMTA fixes T-line, oyster bar to replace long-shuttered cafe

“Bayview Buzz” is a recurring column on changes, tidbits and other news from Bayview. Got news? Send tips to marina@missionlocal.com.

The SFMTA has completed a two-weekend-long cleanup of Muni platforms along Third Street, and the T-Third line is now open again for weekend service. 

Workers repainted the platforms, replaced broken glass, and made other repairs and upgrades that the agency said haven’t been made since the T-Third line was first installed in 2007. 

“It definitely is an improvement,” wrote Earl Shaddix in his weekly newsletter. Shaddix is the director of the nonprofit Economic Development on Third Street, which works in collaboration with the city’s Office of Economic and Workplace Development.

“Although, those roofs and glass just don’t seem to clean up very well. I don’t mean to be picky, but it always looks dirty to me, no matter how hard they try,” said Shaddix. 

Shaddix says he would like to see more upgrades to the platform, including changing the platforms’ roofs, once the T-Third closes for the replacement of the Islais Creek Bridge about two years from now. 

Bayview Oyster Bar, a “modern seafood” restaurant, will open at 5114 Third St., the former home of Word. A Cafe, which shut its doors in 2021, shortly after the COVID-19 pandemic brought foot traffic in the neighborhood to a screeching halt. 

“COVID pretty much killed it,” said Kat Anderson, a San Francisco Parks and Recreation commissioner who was also Word. A’s co-owner.

So far, the only sign that developments are happening with the space is a chalkboard sign that has appeared on the long-shuttered storefront reading, “Coming soon. The Meetin’ Place.” 

But, according to OEWD, the storefront’s new tenant is a recipient of a storefront opportunity grant, one of seven Bayview restaurants and nine businesses that are slated to open on the Third Street corridor with the help of the city.

The grants range from $50,000 to $100,000 and can be used for tenant improvements, equipment, inventory and permits. 

Two small fires caused by fireworks damaged a Bayview business and a neighborhood park in the weeks following Fourth of July celebrations. 

In the early hours of the morning on July 14, a fire caused by fireworks near The Shack, a convenience store and late-night pizza joint, caused nearly $50,000 in damage, according to the fire department’s public information officer.

The Shack went back to its usual operations the same day, though damage could be seen to the building’s outdoor storage space and roof. 

The week before, a grass fire the San Francisco Fire Department said was caused by fireworks charred the vegetation above Palou Phelps Playground. 

The hill has been at the forefront of a heated debate between nearby residents who help maintain it as a native wildflower grassland and want the city to buy several private lots in the center of the hill, which developers plan to transform into four five-story condo duplexes. 

“It’s a really special place,” said Mie Yaginuma, a member of the neighborhood group, Friends of Palou Phelps. The nonprofit Nature in the City regularly hosts tours of the hill, showcasing how many species live in one of the few natural, open space areas in the neighborhood. 

Last week, the Board of Supervisors passed legislation introduced by Supervisor Alan Wong that would impose stricter penalties for illegal fireworks, including fines and possible misdemeanor charges. 

Supervisor Shamann Walton, who represents the neighborhood, voted no on the measure, as did District 9 Supervisor Jackie Fielder.  

Fielder cited concerns that the measure would disproportionately impact low-income communities of color, including the Mission and Bayview, which have high rates of incidents involving fireworks.

“Six months in jail is a long time for a sparkler,” said Fielder.

Native plants in the city’s grasslands actually thrive when exposed to low-intensity fire, as long as the fire isn’t too hot: Local ecologist Josiah Clark once hypothesized to Mission Local that the abundance of native plants in McClaren park were due, in part, to the occasional small firecracker blaze. 

If Palou’s volunteers manage to keep invasives from establishing a beachhead, the wildflower bloom on the hill should be impressive come spring.