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One of two units in a SoMa building, this tri-level loft has 2 bedrooms, 2.5 baths, and 1,764 square feet to its address. Its listing says it was built in 2000, and there's no one above or below — and with that parking space below, it looks more like a townhouse than a condo. On top of that, there aren't any HOA fees for 551 Natoma. The neighborhood's on the gradual upswing too, lying within the "beautification redevelopment" area, if that's of any encouragement to would-be buyers. Asking price: $719,100, almost $80K cheaper than its October debut price.
· 551 Natoma St #2 [Redfin]

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Three designs for a park are moseying their way through the "idea-gathering phase" for half of the parking lot at 17th and Folsom. Owned by SFPUC and leased by UCSF, the lot as it exists today holds 220 cars, and has actually been slated for some sort of park for several years now. For the lot's northern half, planners envision a 70-ish-unit affordable housing development later down the line. As for the park itself, "Eco-People Park," "Revolution Park," and "Mission Creek Commons" concepts would all include some variation on the community garden concept, with one of them including an amphitheatre, another a community gathering space with underground cistern, and another including a "bike-powered carousel" (fun!). While Mission Loca@l reports a generally positive community response, nearby business owners are — not unexpectedly — having a bit of a fit over the loss of parking spaces. In this particular case, the worry's over losing employees who would rather quit than take the BART. Says one business owner: "My impression is (city planners et al) have absolutely no interest at all in this issue."
· Imagine a Revolution – Park [Mission Loc@l]
· Proposed Park Site at 17th and Folsom (With Larger PDFs) [SF Planning]

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Then: $3,300,000
Now: ~$1,300,000
You Save: $2,000,000 or 60.6 percent!

The firehouse lovers amongst our readers were sorely missing a fire pole at 229 Oak — it's a Freudian thing, OK? — but Firehouse 33 at 117 Broad, which began its "flamboyant" search for a buyer over two years ago, will be returning to the market this month, fire pole intact. Just to be clear, the asking price, which started out at an astronomical $3.3 mil for the Oceanview home, actually has the owners' fire engine tour business baked in. For prospective buyers who aren't so much interested in running a tour in a "big red shiny Mack fire engine," the asking price will end up being somewhere in the neighborhood of $1 to $1.1 million. Takers? We hear it's "fun, fun, fun"! More photos at Firehouse 33's website.
· Firehouse 33 [Website]
· 1896 San Francisco Firehouse For Sale!!! [Luba SF]
· PriceChopper: Burning It Down at 117 Broad Street [Curbed SF]
· Fire Sale in Ocean View [Curbed SF]

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A few reporters at Central City Extra went digging through the grime on Mid-Market, and came out with a 2,100-word piece describing what the hell's going on there. We don't really need a blow by blow — Warfield owner David Addington describes his mother-in-law's unpleasant run-in with a panhandler's colostomy bag — but there's a fairly meaty rundown of the history of Market's beleaguered drag. The story reminds us that as late as the '70s,

There were plenty of people on the street, lots of things to do. The St. Francis, Embassy and Strand theaters were operating, Merrill’s was bustling, Hibernia Bank was opening new accounts. People came and went with great regularity — to an amusement arcade, the Market Street Cinema and, just off Market and Seventh streets, the Main Post Office and the busy Greyhound Bus Station.

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["The Narrow Road," via Curbed SF Flickr photog Some girl named Jen]

· Searching for the Dwell mockers of Unhappy Hipsters [Curbed LA]
· Dogpatch: not as cool as we thought? [SFGate]
· For the first time ever, NYC tearing down housing high-rise [NYT]
· Magic sensors for finding parking spaces [Tech Review]
· Contractors who specialize in pot dispensaries [IBA]
· Alameda development has lots of hurdles to clear [SFBT]

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Well, this is veering into the danger zone on the charm-o-meter: it's a 3-bed, 2-bath full-floor condo in a 1910 arts and crafts building. The condo totals 2,174 square feet: layout looks a bit old school, but the kitchen's predictably all shiny and stainless. The second bedroom "can be used as a double parlor," and homeowners fees are $328 a month. Asking price: $1,180,000.
· 69 Waller St [Redfin]

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The SF Examiner reports that "Little Embarcadero," or what the Embarcadero turns into west of Powell Street, is gearing up for a pedestrian makeover that'll first and foremost get rid of all the fencing blocking off Pier 43½. But the pier, which has been off limits since 2008 because it was getting weak in its old age, will actually be largely demolished — leaving a historic bell display at the tip of the pier intact and a 12-foot pedestrian walkway up to the bell. The old Pier 43 ferry arch stays, the big expanse of concrete goes. Little Embarcadero should then get an Embarcadero-style promenade with mobile vendors and some seating. The proposal goes before the Bay Conservation and Development Commission tonight.
· Port hopes Embarcadero promenade will grow [SF Examiner]
· Fun with Planning: Renowned Urbanist Manhandles Fisherman's Wharf [Curbed SF]

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Marketed as an alternative to a single family home, this Sea Cliff/Lake townhouse is a Daniel Solomon design, circa 2000. It's got 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, and 1,245 square feet, with an open floorplan, a roof deck, in-unit laundry, and one parking space. HOAs are $200 a month, and the asking price is $799,000. Interesting thing they did with that split bathroom business.
· 249A 27th Ave [Website]

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