Noe Valley, San Francisco

Noe Valley
—  Neighborhood of San Francisco  —
Noe Valley
Location within San Francisco
Noe Valley Location within Central San Francisco
Coordinates (24th St. & Noe St.): 37°45′05.2″N 122°25′54.7″W / 37.751444°N 122.431861°W / 37.751444; -122.431861Coordinates: 37°45′05.2″N 122°25′54.7″W / 37.751444°N 122.431861°W / 37.751444; -122.431861
Government
- Board of Supervisors	Scott Wiener
- State Assembly	Tom Ammiano (D)
- State Senate	Mark Leno (D)
- U.S. House	Nancy Pelosi (D)
Area[1]
- Total	3 km2 (1.147 sq mi)
- Land	3 km2 (1.147 sq mi)
Population (2008)[2]
- Total	21,106
- Density	7,107/km2 (18,407/sq mi)
ZIP Code	94103, 94110, 94114, 94131
Area code(s)	415

Noe Valley (pronounced /ˈnoʊ.iː/ noh-ee) is a neighborhood in the central part of San Francisco, California.

Location

Its borders are generally considered to be 22nd Street to the north, Randall Street to the south, Dolores Street to the east, and Grand View Avenue to the west. These borders are understood to be somewhat flexible, particularly by real estate agents. The Castro (Eureka Valley) is directly to Noe Valley's north, although the border is not well defined and can stretch into Noe Valley, and The Mission is to its east.

History

Original newspaper advertisement for sale of housing lots in Noe Valley, April 6, 1854,

The neighborhood is named after José de Jesús Noé, the last Mexican alcalde (mayor) of Yerba Buena (present day San Francisco), who owned this land as part of his Rancho San Miguel. Noé sold the land, later to be known as Noe Valley, to John Meirs Horner in 1854, and at this time the land was called Horner's Addition. The original Noé adobe house was located in the vicinity of the present day intersection of 23rd Street and Douglass Street.

Noe Valley was primarily developed at the end of the 19th century and at the beginning of the 20th century, especially in the years just after the 1906 San Francisco Earthquake. As a result, the neighborhood contains many examples of the "classic" Victorian and Edwardian residential architecture for which San Francisco is famous. As a working-class neighborhood, Noe Valley houses were built in rows, with some of the efficient, low-cost homes being more ornate than others, depending on the owner's taste and finances. Today, Noe Valley has one of the highest concentration of row houses in San Francisco, with streets having three to four and sometimes as many as a dozen on the same side. However, few facades in such rows of houses remain unchanged since their creation in the late 19th and early 20th century.

St. Paul's Catholic Church, at Valley and Church streets, was the setting for the movie Sister Act.

Many Noe Valley streets were laid out and named by John Meirs Horner, who named Elizabeth Street after his wife and Jersey Street after the state where he was born. Most of Noe Valley is still called Horner's Addition for tax purposes by the city assessor's office. Present day 24th Street was named "Park Street", and 25th Street was named "Temple Street" after his Mormon faith.

Attractions and characteristics

Like many other San Francisco neighborhoods, Noe Valley started out as a working-class neighborhood for employees and their families in the area's once-thriving blue-collar economy, but has since undergone successive waves of gentrification and is now considered an upscale neighborhood. It is home to many urban professionals, particularly young couples with children, and it is not unusual for a well-maintained house in Noe Valley to sell for two million dollars or more.^[3] Traffic flow is limited - one main North access through Castro Street to Eureka Valley, one main West access up Clipper Street toward the former Twin Peaks toll plaza and West of the city, several East accesses to Mission through 24th, Cesar Chavez and other numbered streets, and the main North-South Church Street access used by the J Church Muni Light Rail.

Public transit includes the J Church, which runs down Church St until 30th. The 24 Muni Bus also runs through Noe Valley. Its route comes from the north on Castro St, and switches to Noe at Clipper. It then exits the neighborhood via 30th St.

The neighborhood is primarily residential, although there are two bustling commercial strips. The first along 24th Street, between Church Street and Diamond Street, and the second, less dense corridor along Church Street, between 24th Street and 30th Street.

Gallery

• 
• 
• 

References

1. ^ [1]
2. ^ [2]
3. ^ Noe Valley Voice. Noe Valley Home Sales, July/August 2006, p. 17.

External links

San Francisco Bay Area portal

• Noe Valley Neighborhood Guide
• Noe Valley Neighborhood Website