Sunset Beacon - September 2004

photo: Francis da Silva

It's Elementary: Lauren Steinhauer, who recently published a novel about
Sherlock Holmes, is pictured while dressed like the English detective.

Major Earthquake Could Destroy Sunset Reservoir
Sunset residents got their first glimpse of a SF Public Utilities Commission (PUC) plan to reinforce the Sunset Reservoir with cement pillars to protect it in the event of a major earthquake.

Lincoln High School Inaugurates Academy of Information Technology
Starting with the Fall 2004 semester, the Sunset District's Abraham Lincoln High School will be one of two high schools in the San Francisco Unified School District to implement a new program that will provide specialized training to students interested in the field of information technology. The other school selected to participate is Galileo High School.

Neighbors Call for Ouster of Golden Gate Park Refueling Station
A plan by the SF Recreation and Park Department to put a compressed natural gas (CNG) station in Golden Gate Park has run into opposition from members of the Sierra Club and park employees.

Park Death Ruled a Suicide
Firefighters make grisly discovery in burning car
Police have identified the body found in a suspicious car fire in Golden Gate Park as that of Rodney De La Cruz, 26, and believe that his death was a suicide.

New Park Near Ocean Beach Lifts Local Residents' Spirits
Fed up with problems emanating from a vacant lot across the street from their business, coffeehouse owners Buffy and Pat Maguire led a charge to transform an eyesore into an oasis.
"We were having issues with troublemakers coming off the N-Judah streetcar or living in campers nearby," Java Beach co-owner Pat Maguire said. "There was a lot of littering, fighting and harassing of neighbors.

Giant Rats on the Move in Sherlock Holmes Adventure
The journey from technical writing to producing a novel is a complex one, according to author Lauren Steinhauer.
"I did not plan it this way," Steinhauer said. He admits his first novel, "Sherlock Holmes' Lost Adventure - The True Story of The Giant Rats of Sumatra," took him 20 years to finish.

Earthquake Shacks Prepared for Move to Treasure Island
On Aug. 10, volunteers from local companies prepared to move four 1906 earthquake refugee shacks at 4329 Kirkham St., in the Sunset District, to Treasure Island in San Francisco Bay.