Our post yesterday about the sudden closure of On the Corner got us thinking about all the shuttered storefronts in our otherwise-vibrant neighborhood. Some are huge, some are tiny, some are new to the graveyard, some have been closed for years. All of them need a little love.
Here’s our rundown of the top 9 eligible spaces in the Lower Haight.
Formerly known as: Designer Brands #4
This slender beauty may be into designer brands, but don’t call it a gold-digger; it comes with its own ATM, thankyouverymuch.
Formerly known as: Alternative Herbal Health Services, a marijuana dispensary
You may find this one a little bland now that it’s given up pot, but at 940 square feet and $2000/month, you could do worse.
Formerly known as: Custom Orthopedic Appliances, LLC
Do you like to laugh? Because this one has a bit with a porcelain dog and a cigar-store Indian that used to KILL at the orthopedist conventions…
Formerly known as: Ceiba Records
This one’s so freaky-deaky, with its hypnotic windows and voodoo paintjob, the previous owners had to move to the Upper Haight.
Formerly known as: The San Francisco Patients Cooperative, a marijuana dispensary
Don’t call this cool character a burnout. Miles Davis once played here back in the 60s, when it was a jazz club known as the Both/And. It doesn’t get much cooler than that.
Formerly known as: Maire Rua Hair Salon
Despite the sunny outlook, this Irish stunner is a little shy. What’s hiding behind all that newspaper, we wonder?
Formerly known as: Martini Cleaners
This one’s large and in charge. The last known suitor, a Batteries Plus chain store circa 2007, was promptly kicked to the curb. Guess this unit’s just waiting for the right tenant to come along. Could it be you?
Formerly known as: Pedersen Linoleum
Like a store with a little junk in the trunk? Because this one has plenty. So much, in fact, that we’re not 100% sure it’s vacant. But we’ve never seen it with anybody, and it doesn’t answer our calls, so we’re gonna go ahead and mark this one “available.”
And your number one vacant Lower Haight storefront…. drumroll please………
Formerly known as: Delaney Laundromat
You can’t help but walk past this beauty and wonder why it’s not taken. It’s a great size, it gets lots of light, and it’s on a busy intersection. We sure hope this place finds a tenant soon, because it deserves happiness — even if not with us.
And here’s a bonus: the top three vacant storefronts that may already be spoken for:
Formerly known as: Pearson’s Appliances
This little tease left the door open, giving us a quick peek inside. There’s some sort of renovation going on in there. We’re not exactly sure what’s up, but we’re definitely intrigued.
Formerly known as: Cleis Press
We’d love to spend sunny afternoons by the park with this petite treat, but it’s giving us mixed signals. We can see “For Lease” signs in the windows, but we fear this place may have already been snatched up by a healing center. Quit playing games with our heart, 557 Waller.
Formerly known as: La Carreta Taqueria
We feared this spicy Mexican dish had run for the border, but new signage reading “Estrella Taqueria” makes us think it’s just going through an identity crisis. ¡Vamos a ver!
So what’s your favorite? Did we leave any off the list? Let us know in the comments.