This Week: SFMTA Open Houses, Bike to Work, Parking Reform

Here are this week’s highlights from the Streetsblog calendar:

• Monday: Tonight SFMTA District 5 Joint Open House. Join SFMTA for an Open House to learn more about community-based efforts to improve the streets, sidewalks, and public places in the Western Addition, Lower Haight and Hayes Valley neighborhoods. These include: 1) The Western Addition Community-Based Transportation Plan’s goal to improve the community’s transportation options and enhance access to more employment and education opportunities. 2) The Lower Haight Public Realm Plan is working to develop a community-based vision that will complement and enhance the neighborhood’s public spaces. 3) The Page Street Green Connections Project aims to make Page Street more walkable and bikeable in Hayes Valley. This drop-in open house format will allow visitors to learn more about these projects and ask questions of city staff. Monday, May 9, 5:30-7:30 p.m., at John Muir Elementary School, 380 Webster Street, SF. Register at Eventbrite. Light refreshments, Spanish interpretation and child care provided.
• Tuesday: Bike to Work Day plus ribbon cuttings on Oakland protected bike lanes. Telegraph Avenue connects bike-central UC Berkeley area with the Temescal District, three BART stations, the KONO District, Summit-Alta Bates Hospital, and Downtown Oakland. The first phase of an ongoing project to connect all these districts has delivered protected bike lanes from Latham Square to 29th Street. Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf and City Council President Lynette McElhaney will cut a ribbon on Oakland’s first protected bike lanes, on Telegraph Avenue in the KONO District. Tuesday, May 10, 9 a.m., Telegraph Avenue & 20th Street.
• Tuesday: San Francisco’s Residential Parking Permit Community Workshop. The SFMTA is seeking public comment to update and (hopefully) improve San Francisco’s parking permit program. This is one of 11 workshops they are holding throughout the city. Once the public meetings are complete, staff will take recommendations to the SFMTA Board of Directors in fall 2016. Tuesday, May 10 is the session for District 4, 6-8 p.m., at Grace Lutheran, 3201 Ulloa Street, SF.
• Wednesday: Box Dog group ride. Wednesday mornings include a ride on Golden Gate Park trails.  The ride will last one to two hours and loops out to the beach, returning to Box Dog. Often there’s a coffee stop along the way. Pace is described as "chill and social." Any bike will do as long as you’re comfortable “off-road.” Wednesday, May 11, 9-11:00 a.m., 494 14th Street, SF.
• Thursday: In response to a bad bike crash three months ago, Bike East Bay and other advocates stepped up the pressure to fix this two-block-long section of “disappearing bike lane” and got a commitment from the city to remove some parking and put in protected bike lanes. Final designs will be submitted to the City Council at its meeting on Tuesday, May 10. If they are approved—and most observers expect them to be—the lanes will be painted the following day and officially opened on Bike to Work Day. Afterwards, bike riders can join a ride to City Hall to continue the Bike to Work Day celebration there. Thursday, May 12, 8 a.m.., Corner of Bancroft and Fulton, Berkeley.
• Thursday: Bike to Work Day commuter convoys. The San Francisco Bicycle Coalition holds group rides on the morning of Bike to Work Day from each SF Supervisor Districts to City Hall, where they hold a press conference. From the SFBC: "Whether you’re a daily commuter or someone just beginning to explore biking in San Francisco, this ride is for you." Thursday, May 12, roughly 7:30-9 a.m., depending on the district. Details on the venues where the convoys will assemble plus how to RSVP are here.
• Thursday: Is Rent Control Working? SPUR is hosting a panel discussion on rent control. Oakland is now the fourth most expensive rental market in the country. With such strong pressure on the housing market, rents are rising rapidly. The discussion will look at necessary steps that protect tenants but are also fair to landlords. Thursday, May 12, SPUR Oakland, 12:30 p.m., 1544 Broadway, Oakland.
• Sunday: Silicon Valley Bikes! Festival & Bicycle Show: Silicon Valley Bikes is hosting a  day of celebrating cycling and its history, a kids' space for family fun, a BMX stunt rider shows, music, food trucks, craft beer,  a cargo bike village, bike polo demos and more at its bicycle show in San Jose. Sunday, May 15, 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Kelley Park’s History Park, 635 Phelan Avenue, San Jose. Admission is $5.

Keep an eye on the calendar for updated listings. Got an event we should know about? Drop us a line.