FOG-LINES: SUTRO HEIGHTS

Celebrating Outermost Richmond News, Culture & Lifestyle

Local photographer Adam Warmington

Permits have been filed for 20-unit apartment project dubbed Sutro Cove.

48th Ave @ Sutro Heights Ave.

LINK TO FULL STORY BELOW

Happy Belated Lunar New Year!

Me and my family were out of town for the Lunar New Year festivities at Balboa Village but from everything I've heard and read, the parade and overall energy were incredible. What an amazing community we live in! I couldn't be more excited and proud of how our misty (not this week!) little corner of the city has evolved and continues to flourish. 

As Broke-ass Stuart once wrote: "This blissful part of THE CITY will hold you with open arms while you embark on your adventure. The people, the energy, the food options, the vibe, they all come together to shape this hood into a real jewel."

"In this mystical neighborhood where you feel pretty far from the highrises and city electricity, the fog is thick, the sound of seagulls is loud, small lights are strung between buildings and the smell of the ocean is omnipresent."

"Living in this magical kingdom of eucalyptus, dunes and sea salt spray feeds that part of you that needs intentional attention."

MARCH 2026

• Cliff House & House DJ?

• Sutro Cove Apartments

• Bi-Rite Coming to Outer Richmond

• RFP for Louis

• Vista Del Mar vs Sutro Heights

• Blue Heron Lake (formerly Stow Lake) Boathouse Funding

• 2026 Q1 West Side Real Estate

DISCLAIMER: Our email inboxes can be considered sacred by some of us. I know too well how challenging it can be to constantly sort the junk mail from the important stuff. If the content below is of no interest to you, I apologize in advance and will swiftly remove you from my list upon request. My primary goal is to provide interesting content, spread positivity, and to promote a sense of community in one of the most beautiful neighborhoods in the world.

Neighborhood Foglights

The most recent articles that I've seen with updates on the Cliff House renovations are from autumn of 2025. They mention that the operator who initially targeted a 2024 opening which was then pushed back to 2025 is now targeting 2026 for the opening of a street level cafe and then other restaurant and shop space later in the year. Late 2027 sounds like a reasonable estimation for 100% completion.

I had been skeptical about any of the more optimistic time frames because I walk, ride my bike, or drive down Point Lobos Ave. nearly every day and had not seen much activity at the Cliff House space aside from a rare, lone Swinerton Construction truck (pictured above).

So when that truck (pictured above) started showing up every day late last year and when the green fence came up last month, I was finally feeling more confident about this project finally having some traction!

I hopped off my bicycle after a morning surf check a few weeks ago and had a chat with a Swinerton representative who confirmed that they were in the final stages of assessing the upcoming structural and other upgrades and very near commencing actual construction - WOOT!

Having smaller shops and cafes more like the Ferry Building will provide a neighborhood hub unlike anything the Outer Richmond has ever enjoyed.

Agree? Disagree? Please send comments so I can better report on the neighborhood sentiment in upcoming eblasts.

...in the meantime San Francisco based DJ Seth Finkin has been playing wildly popular sunset sets at the Cliff House and more recently down at the beach below the Cliff House last weekend. This is an amazing way to fill the void of energy soon to be filled by these Clff House shops that will finally open in the hopefully not too distant future! 

​While party goers did manage to trample a good portion of Pee Wee's garden abutting the Kelly's Cove parking lot, Seth took ownership of the situation and promptly offered to help fix up the garden and is determined to be more thoughtful about avoiding such collateral damage during his future events. 

​Legendary Ocean Beach surfer, Bill Bergerson (learn more about Bill here) declined Finkin's offer to assist and will patch up the garden with fellow Kellys old-timers like Sean Scallan, Andy Olive and other volunteers in the near future.

NEW DEVELOPMENT

SFyimby.com reports that the cliffside homes at 641 and 645 48th Ave (pictured below) will be replaced by a 20-unit "enclave" dubbed Sutro Cove.

While it might have been nice for a couple of wealthy families to purchase these beautiful old "fixer" homes as-is for $2 millionish each and spend another couple of million each to restore them to their former grandeur, the yimby in me says, let's house 20 families instead of 2 and create a cool little community and enhance the energy around Sutro Heights Park. All of these new families are future patrons of the Cliff House's new shops too!

I try to remain open to change and often remind myself, that we live in a dynamic, evolving, world-class city where old buildings will sometimes be replaced by new ones. SF GATE STORY

Bi-Rite in the Hood

From the moment the store was vacated, I had been telling a very active commercial broker in my office that the old grocery store space at 6001 California would be perfect for the newest Luke's Local, Gus's or Bi-Rite. Low and behold my wish has come true and it just hit the presses last week that Bi-Rite will indeed be setting up shop in the Richmond. I'm sure it will be bustling! Keep in mind that the new store probably won't open until well into 2027 IF we're lucky! Speaking of Lucky, San Francisco is losing another major grocery store on Masonic and Fulton. Has anyone been to Sprouts? I haven't but maybe they're a possible new tenant and looking for SF footprint? TIme will tell and my intuitions have been on point :-)

​FULL STORY HERE

CHANGE.org

Petition Park Service to Lease Louis'

Wouldn't it be glorious if the old Louis' was graced with a wrap-around, heated patio where diners could soak in the salt air and the views and enjoy a nice warm meal?

SIGN PETITION HERE

Vista del Mar?

Have you ever looked at on online map of our neighborhood and noticed an area of the Outer Richmond demarcated as Vista del Mar? But wait, don't we live in Sutro Heights? Is there a difference? 

​The maps below indicate that Vista Del Mar is almost a smaller enclave within Sutro Heights which is an enclave within the Outer Richmond. I had never even heard of Vista Del Mar until Google Maps came around. 

​Did anyone notice in the YIMBY article above that the Sutro Cove apartments were considered an enclave in the Vista del Mar neighborhood? Did the developers PR people use that name because they use Google Maps or because Vista Mar truly is a thing. Can someone please enlighten me? 

​If anyone can confirm or deny the accuracy of these maps and/or the origins of these names, PLEASE email me so that I can clarify in my next edition of this newsletter.

Blue Heron Lake Boat House Upgrades

I vaguely remember hearing that they had changed the name of Stow Lake to Blue Heron Lake which has recently received $850K in federal funding for what I hope will be some very thoughtful and beautiful upgrades for the community and tourists alike to enjoy for years to come!

​Interesting thought: If you could magically pan west in the above 1900 image of the original boat house with the sparsely inhabited Richmond District in the background, you would eventually see the 22 acre estate of Adolph Sutro -- one of San Francisco history's most recognizable names!

​Since learning that William W. Stow was later "canceled" for allegedly being a pretty fierce anti-semite, it seems to me that it may have been quite a slap in the face to Mr. Sutro when they honored Mr. Stow so prominently just down the hill from his "Vista del Mar" estate -- 90s drama!

​...or maybe not. I was just enlightened by AI that (not who) explained that Sutro was "widely secular and seldom observant" so I suppose he may not be rolling in his land rich/cash poor grave BUT... hate is hate and shouldn't be tolerated in my opinion.

Craig Epstein

Sutro Heights Is My Home

Father,

Husband,

San Franciscan/Richmond Raised

Nature Lover, Outdoor Enthusiast,

Real Estate Advisor & Client Advocate

Solutions Driven/Problem Solver,

Optimist, Fun in the Fog & Sun

Compass Founding Agent

Top 1.5% Agent in U.S. (Real Trends)

Top Agent Network Member

How Our Neighborhood Is Thriving

2025

2026

MARKET QUICK FACTOIDS:

• Q1 values have appreciated wildly with historically frothy bidding wars

• ​Inventory is incredibly scarce

• ​Low inventory combined with slightly lower rates is driving the market

• ​AI hiring and absorption of downtown office space fueling the fire

• ​Massive geopolitical unrest, Straight of Hormuz oil drama and YET..

• ​Record prices being broken in Richmond District every week!

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