Archive for the ‘Restoration’ Category
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Award-Winning Restoration
We couldn’t have been more pleased when the restoration of the Conservatory won Project of the Year Award 2009 for Historic Restorations (under $5 million). The award was granted to the San Francisco Department of Public Works by the Northern California chapter of the American Public Works Association covering 11 counties. See the restored Conservatory lit at dusk.
Learn more about the colorful history of the Conservatory. Curious about our custom paint palette?
Project: City + County of SF … Read More
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Grand Re-Opening
The Grand Re-Opening Day (December 5, 2009) was more wonderful that the Friends dared dream. Over 400 people showed up. We made that morning’s San Francisco Chronicle with a photo on the front page, the sun shone, bagpipes played, the mayor and dignitaries came, family and friends were there, the ribbon was cut, tours were given, the high-tea spread was bountiful, kids made souvenir buttons, and the community came together.
Here’s a three-minute video of Mayor Newsom saluting the Friends … Read More
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Ribbon Cutting
The ribbon was cut by Mayor Gavin Newsom and Friends Co-Chairs Arnold Levine and Stacy Garfinkel. We were happy that State Senator Mark Leno, longtime friend of the project, could be on hand as well. See more photos of the Ribbon Cutting.… Read More
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The Friends
The Friends of Sunnyside Conservatory began with a few neighborhood residents, each discovering the Conservatory and having that Alice-in-Wonderland feeling of entering another world.
In 1999, with a notice in the Sunnyside Neighborhood Association newsletter, Arnold Levine officially organized the group as the Friends. He and Stacy Garfinkel have served as Friends’ Co-Chairs since the group’s founding. Our advocacy + stewardship success could never have happened without a dedicated steering committee: Chester Harstough, Andrea O’Leary, Sally Ross, pro-bono landscape … Read More
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Before + After…We Did It!
The story of the restoration interweaves the Friends’ decade of advocacy, pilot programming, and inventive, can-do spirit with the Merralls’s original vision.
Friends had to build a coalition of many constituencies (including immediate neighbors, area residents, city employees, elected officials, the design team) and navigate the inevitable trying moments, delays, and bureaucracy that come along with a large public works project.
We had to educate ourselves about the design process–from the drafting of the conceptual design (drawn by Vera Gates), … Read More
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Interior
Light floods the interior of the Conservatory, trimmed in salvaged old growth redwood. A custom ringed chandelier is an unforgettable signature element. The solid wood wall in the interior used to lead to the east wing of the Conservatory, demolished in 1978 when a permit was given in error. The Conservatory is officially San Francisco Historical Landmark #78.
Here’s a one-minute video featuring the interior of the Conservatory on Opening Day (to view on a mobile phone, click here). Video … Read More
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