Sunday Streets stops in Bayview

The Sunday Streets program will close much of 3rd Street this Sunday from 11am to 4pm. The 3rd Street closure begins at King Street near the ball park, runs through Mission Bay and Dogpatch, and ends halfway through Bayview.

Unlike last year when just the northbound side of 3rd Street was closed to traffic, the southbound lanes on 3rd Street will also be closed.

Residents are urged not to park on 3rd as all vehicles parked along the route will be towed beginning at 7am. Cross traffic will be limited to certain intersections (see graphic). Recommended MUNI lines include the 23, 24, 44, 54 and T-Third.

Hubs of activity along the Sunday Streets route include the Bayview Opera House (4705 3rd) where many community-serving organizations will share information and services. The UCSF School of Dentistry, for example, will provide free dental screening for children with no appointment required. Contact UCSF by email for more information.

The Bayview-Dogpatch Music Festival, a joint venture with Sunday Streets, will be located near the Bayview Opera House. That Festival includes live music and, from 2pm to 3pm, Circus Bella, “San Francisco's own open air, one-ring circus.” Circus Bella performs contemporary acts of daring physical feats to an original score performed by live musicians.

The 3rd Street Corridor Program’s Shrimp N Grits and Bar BQ cook-off and tasting contest, one of last year’s most popular events, returns in a new location: Mendell Plaza beginning at 1pm. Last year’s winner, Old Skool Café, wants to take the prize again this year.

Children and youth activities will take place on the grounds of the Joseph Lee Recreation Center, sponsored by BMagic. Other youth activities and live music are planned for 3rd and Galvez where the Sunday Streets volunteer check-in and sponsor areas will be located.

In Dogpatch, activities are planned for Warm Water Cove between 23rd and 24th, on 3rd between 22nd and 23rd, on 22nd at Tennessee, 22nd and Indiana, 18th and Indiana, and Esprit Park on 19th and Indiana.

The Sunday Streets event is part of a series of free events put on by the City of San Francisco to encourage health, community and fun.

See coverage of Sunday Streets 2011

See coverage of Sunday Streets 2009

See coverage of Sunday Streets 2008

See you on Third...TODAY!

The northbound lane of Third Street will be closed from Evans to Mendell Sunday June 12th from 11am to 4pm as part of the city's Sunday Streets program. Community serving organizations have organized activities from free health services to a battle of the Bayview cooks.

All sorts of family-friendly fun opportunities will line Third Street with concentrated activity at the Bayview Opera House and Bayview Plaza. The weather wizards promise some of Bayview's famous sunshine, just for the occasion.

Something for everyone at music festival

"You've never seen anything like it," James Moore says of the Shrimp N' Grits Cook-Off.

James manages the Third Street Corridor Program, and is an organizer for the 2nd Annual Bayview Music Street Festival to be held tomorrow from noon to 5pm. While the lineup of musical acts is impressive (it includes Juan Escovedo and the Latin All-Stars, Ashling Cole of Graham Central Station, Rhonda Benin and the Soulful Strut, and Clifford Brown III and the Brewing Company), the down home, back-slapping fun may be what most folks remember.

James has sat in every other meeting room in the neighborhood these past months making sure Bayview Hunters Point residents know about the festival on Galvez Avenue at Third Street (Next to Bayview Plaza).

His eyes light up when he mentions the “People’s Choice Shrimp N’ Grits Cook-Off” which will pit local food luminaries against one another between 2pm and 4pm. Tasting tickets for the contest will be sold for $5, with proceeds benefiting Renaissance Entrepreneurship Center.

The festival will also include local arts and crafts vendors, roller skate rentals, and a church dessert contest.

Health and fun meet-up at Opera House

The Bayview Opera House will host a collaborative health fair, tomorrow from 11am to 4pm, that will feature free health screenings alongside active-living opportunities for children and adults alike.

The collaborative health fair is the second that organizers have brought to the Opera House, and promises to be the best yet. UCSF clinicians will provide free dental screenings and fluoride treatments for community youth. Health workers from the SF Department of Public Health will provide prenatal care to expectant mothers. Massage therapists from California Pacific Medical Center will be on hand to relax moms, and help ensure their kids are healthy and strong.

A big hit last year, emergency responders from EMS Division, Station 49 will be back with their 40 foot MCU vehicle to promote an upcoming CPR class. Other reasons to stop by the event include free arts activities for kids, yoga, bikes, a 40 foot graffiti wall, Zumba class (Mendell Plaza at 11:30am), music and other live performance.

Gospel Singer Bridgette Bailey will perform inside the Bayview Opera House Ruth Williams Memorial Theatre, 4705 3rd St., at 3pm. A $10 donation is requested.