 |
||
|
|
|
|||||||||
|
 |
|||||||||||||
 |
|||||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
||
|
HAYES VALLEY |
|||||||||||||
|
Hayes Valley came to prominence when film director Erich von Stroheim chose the corner of Hayes and Laguna for the filming of his 1924 epic "Greed." His affections were for a 19th-century Victorian that had been built in the early 1880s by Col. Michael Hayes as an amusement pavilion, though word has it Hayes constructed the building to lure an extension of the streetcar line to Hayes Valley. The building survived the 1906 earthquake and fire and at the time of filming was occupied only on the ground floor, by a French laundry and the Hayes Valley Pharmacy, which remained in business until the 1960s. Stroheim created signs for a dentist's office and a photographer's workplace for the movie, which fooled some locals into believing they were real. The film included numerous shots from the top floor of the building looking down on Hayes Valley. He also used 595-597 Hayes, a building that acted as a storeroom in the 1920s, as the site of the saloon in the film. The success of Hayes Valley's current commercial district was boosted in part by the destruction caused by the 1989 earthquake to the Central Freeway, which had entrance ramps on Franklin and Gough streets. The freeway was an eyesore and created noise pollution that kept businesses and foot traffic away. Not long after that part of the freeway came down, the community began to transform, and commerce moved in. Unlike some other parts of San Francisco, Hayes Valley has managed to retain a sense of community and a nonexclusive feel despite the fast build-up and high price tags. Some of the businesses that braved the less-than-savory days are still around, such as the Hayes Street Grill, now twice its original size. But many of the shops sprouted up in the '90s, making Hayes Valley a real destination spot. The combination results in a wide diversity in clientele. While high-end San Franciscans sip $7 cocktails at Absinthe, across the street many are powering down an entire soul-food meal for the same price at Powell's Place. Now, tourists also head here specifically for the shopping, for one-of-a-kinds like a buffalo-leather chair or an exclusive Sue Wong Art Deco gown. BEST TIME TO GO Octavia's Haze Gallery: Glassworks of varying shapes, textures and colors line the interior of this corner shop. The works, all unique, are mainly produced by Bay Area, national and Italian artists. Octavia's Haze Gallery also spotlights paintings by national as well as local artists in exhibits that change every 45 days. |
|||||||||||||
|
Octavia’s Haze Gallery |
|||||||||||||
|
|
|||||||||||||
Fifteen years ago, the thought of finding one of San Francisco's ultra-chic corridors in Hayes Valley would have been considered absurd. Like New York City's
Times Square of old, the area, bordered by the Van Ness performing-arts district and the Western Addition around Laguna Street, was a seedy reminder for opera and symphony patrons of the city's homeless and drug
problems. But over the past decade, Hayes Valley has developed into a haven for haute couture. Where the terms "ladies of the street" and "gentlemen of the street" once identified those who conducted an illegal exchange
of various earthly sins for money, today they refer to the street's myriad window shoppers and restaurant-goers. Where the crack houses and tenements once stood, now there are trendy fashion boutiques, SoHo-style
funky art galleries, high-end interior-decorating shops, top-notch restaurants and hip nightspots. 