Inner Mission
The Mission is a colorful neighborhood in San Francisco that is
surrounded by Valencia Street on the west, Hwy 101 on the east and
north, and Ceaser Chavaz Street on the south. This neighborhood is full
of colorful Victorians and converted warehouses. A stroll through its
heart will take you down 24th Street where Latin music and the smell of
Mexican food floats through the windows of colorful eateries and shops.
Valencia Street and 16th Street, the area's others retail corridors,
have taquerias, noodle shops, and creperies that line the streets. You
can find charming pockets of Victorian cottages and flats on 22nd and
23rd street, along alleys like Lexington between 18th and 22nd, or on
Shotwell between 20th and 23rd. Loft lovers have a choice between crisp
new construction and converted warehouse lofts. New construction is
exemplified at 2875-21st and 725. The converted warehouse lofts are at
720 York in the Mill Building or at 728 Alabama in the Alabama Lofts.
Much of the Mission district survived the 1906 earthquake and fire,
and refugees, primarily Italians and Irish, flooded in from across the
city. They were joined by Mexican immigrants from the 1910 Mexican
Revolution and Central Americans fleeing political oppression. Wave
after wave of primarily Latino immigrants arrived in the ensuing years,
melding the area into a rich and vibrant cultural community. As
evidenced in the neighborhood murals in Balmy Alley, the Cesar Chavez
School, the 24th Street Bart Station and numerous other locations,
working class social causes and art and music thrive in the Mission.
The latest wave of immigrants ? young, affluent, high-tech set, lured
by burritos and bungalows with potential ? is creating quite a stir and
the gentrification debate roars on.
