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The Tenderloin gets a lot of bad rap. But there is beauty in this neighborhood. Check out this video. Mark Ellinger points out the "beauty underlying the decay" that is often missed in our beautiful architecture. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hLQlFY4bg4I
And many people don't know that the Tenderloin has one of the finest Arts/garden in the city known as the Tenderloin National Forest. http://www.luggagestoregallery.org/tnf
Then there are the 9 historic sidewalk plaques that Uptown Tenderloin Inc is placing to commemorate some of the key historic spots of the Tenderloin like the Blackhawk Cafe, Hyde street studios and others. Soon to open will be the Tenderloin Museum.
The Cadillac Hotel often sponsors jazz, blues and other music during lunch hours on some Fridays as does Boeddeker Park.
People like Elaine Zamora the former director of the North of Market Tenderloin Community Benefit District used to say, "Just because people are poor doesn't mean they like living in squalor." Elaine and many others in the TL have done their part to bring music, art, community, safety and hope to a forgotten neighborhood.
The TL has character. You can see it in the architecture and in the people. One of my favorite characters just on the edge of the "official" TL is Paul Grech a mechanic. The chronicle posted a video called "The Family Truck" that shows the kind of people our neighborhood is made of. http://blog.sfgate.com/cityexposed/page/3/
Next time you come down to the Tenderloin.....don't run through it...walk through it...it's not Northbeach, Haight, or the Mission but its got character and the more you look below the surface the more it has something to teach you. Most people drive through it as fast as they can and never take the time to see the beauty that is there. The TL has soul. Yea..its gets a lot of bad rap but this neighborhood has a long history that has always been at the center of SF.