You have a pitbull, you may or may not be homeless (in SF, it's so hard to tell sometimes), you may or may not have tattoos on your face, and you've really been worrying about not having a supermarket parking lot in which to hang out. Have no fear! Cala on Haight at Stanyan closed, officially, on May 24, but the owner (the Guardian says it's Mark Brennan, but the Haight Ashbury Beat calls him John Brennan... Curbed SF will christen him "Brennan") is negotiating with Whole Foods to not only demolish and rebuild an upscalish supermarket, but also build residential units and way more parking. Brennan supposedly tried to woo Trader Joe's, Rainbow Grocery, and Berkeley Bowl, but Whole Foods was the only one who would hold out the five years for destruction/construction. In the meantime, though, Brennan wants to put in a temporary grocer for all of your household and GG Park picnicking needs.
Whole Foods could really change the neighborhood. Soon neighborhood kids will become dizzy with choice over how to spend their panhandling money: organic seaweed and rice balls or used mix cds across the street at Amoeba. Oh, the details: 28,000 square foot store, 62 residential units (including 7 "affordable") built on top, and three levels of subterranean parking. We're guessing it will be similar to the Albertson's extravaganza on Masonic and Fulton.
More details, more questions? Email us at sf@curbed.com.
· April Beat [Haight Ashbury Beat]
· Whole Paycheck [SFBay Guardian]
[Update: Owner is John Brennan, his son is Mark Brennan, Curbed SF will continue to refer to them as the unit "Brennan"]