A view of the San Francisco skyline in October from Walter Haas Playground Park in Glen Park. Time Out recently named Glen Park among the coolest neighborhoods in the world.

A woman walks her dogs at the Burnside Mural and Steps in the Glen Park neighborhood in October.

Diamond Street is a hub in the Glen Park neighborhood of San Francisco.

On Tuesday, I got off BART in San Francisco’s Glen Park neighborhood, where I live, popped into the public library for a new novel, stopped at Gus’ Market to grab dinner and on the way out, ran into my good friend Anne, who was on her way to pick her kid up from school. We walked together for several blocks before parting ways, both of us smiling because a few unexpected minutes with a good friend at the end of a long day is a gift. 

In 2000, the Chronicle ran a story with the headline, “Neighbors still say hi in ‘village’ of Glen Park.” I am happy to report that in 2026, they still do.

Glen Park was selected by Time Out as one of the world’s 39 (why 39?!) coolest neighborhoods in September. We can debate whether it’s “cool,” but I believe Glen Park is a model for what a successful neighborhood feels like. It’s the density that helps guarantee its liveliness — people are out and about because there are places for them to go. 

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San Francisco’s new “Family Zoning” plan, together with California’s bolstered efforts (and legislation) to expand housing production, means that neighborhoods throughout the city are going to have to change whether they want to or not. The village, as Glen Park locals call it, offers a good model for the future.

As of December, I’ve lived in Glen Park for 20 years. Our daughter was born here — we moved into our house 10 days before she was born. It was the canyon that sold us — how were........

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