Castro

Few neighborhoods, along with the Haight and Chinatown, signify San Francisco to outsiders the way the Castro does. It’s also a neighborhood where people from all over the world want to call home as it’s one of the country’s few safe LGBTQ spaces.

While rent and home prices are officially absurd, a lot of choice things happened in the iconic neighborhood this year. For example, the filming of Cleve Jones and Dustin Lance Black’s newest effort, When We Rise, transformed the streets. And those pretty new escalator rainbow lights sure were nifty.

What’s more, 2017 should prove interesting within wonk circles when a new district supervisor is appointed to take over for Scott Wiener, who will head to Sacramento as our state senator.

Inner Richmond

As noted before, the Inner Richmond is home to USF and thus a major hub for college students. This also makes the neighborhood a decent (though not at all inexpensive) neighborhood for renters.

In addition to bordering Golden Gate Park, the Inner Richmond is more economically diverse than its competitor.

But what really pulls this downright adorable neighborhood to the top is Clement Street. A stretch of street laced with Chinese, Cambodian, Korean, Burmese, and Russian restaurants, it’s also a popular nightlife spot (free from the smug, self-conscious attitude found in the Mission) as well as home to one of the few remaining spots in San Francisco with an independent bookstore.

Polls are open. You have until 10 a.m. Thursday to vote for which hood will advance. May the grooviest neighborhood win!