SF: The Heights, Chp. 1

Golden Gate Heights is a neighborhood perched above the Inner Sunset to the North, the ocean to the West, Cole Valley to the South and West Portal to the East. You can see all these places, not to mention every other inch of the city, Marin, Oakland, and possibly galaxies beyond the Milky Way from the tops of these hills.

GG Heights basically starts at 8th Avenue and Moraga and continues up to Quintara and extends down to 15th Ave, but not with any logical precision. People can get very lost as the streets start to cross at random and strange little allies appear suddenly and intersect haphazardly. Meanwhile parks and islands split streets apart into one way avenues that stop and start again later, behind the land mass in their way. While this chow mein noodle architecture is confounding, it’s also charming, as houses are tucked in impossible angles, overlooking sheer cliffs and the neighborhood parks offer world class views.

Grand View Park is basically a steep ridge top boasting a panoramic view; on a clear day you can see the entire San Francisco Bay Area. Nearby, Hilltop Park is more densely forested. Bring your dog as he/she is welcome off leash, or bring your tennis racket and play a round for free. Down a small slope on the western edge of this park, you can rest and take in the Pacific Ocean – an ideal spot for a picnic at sunset.

On 9th Ave at Noriega, find several more tennis courts, basketball court and excellent playground. If that’s not enough green for you, step across Laguna Honda and hike up to Crestmont Heights, with acres of eucalyptus forest awaiting your exploration. (And of course, the Golden Gate Park herself is not more than a 10 minute walk.)

With the mansions of Forest Hill and the UCSF Medical Center at Parnassus as closest neighbors, Golden Gate Heights enjoys almost zero crime, zero graffiti –in fact, I’ve yet to see a gum wrapper on any of these streets. Proximity to the restaurants, bars, and shops of the Inner Sunset means you don’t need a car, and you have several bus lines plus the N-Judah very close (but not close enough to hear!) if you want to head downtown. Still, if you do drive, parking is not really an issue once you pass Moraga.

The architecture up here is all over the map: Marina style, Victorian, Modern- but almost all the building are well cared for, with gardens and yards and fresh coats of paint. Many families, many dogs, and many cats- it’s a little bit suburban but exceedingly convenient to all urban amenities. As such, homes are not cheap. I’ve never seen anything under $700,000, and multi-family properties are rare with single-family homes dominating the landscape. But if I had that money, this is one place I would certainly spend it; in the Golden Gate Heights, you get what you pay for.

Want to take a look? Here are a few GG Heights listings:

2115 12th Ave.

1862 15th Ave.