In 1965, Life magazine declared San Francisco the capital of gay America. And the Castro was its beating heart.

Made quickly and with minimal fuss, a park for skateboarders revived a downtown site — and offered a few lessons for urban revitalization.

SAN FRANCISCO – In the classic film “The Birds,’’ flocks of crows and other species suddenly and viciously attack people for no apparent reason. Now another Bay Area-based mystery has ...