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Project Details
Architect: ROMA
Design Group
Award: National AIA Award for Regional and Urban
Design 2000
Implementation Status: Completed in 2000.
Main Page - Projects Index
Background
The Mid-Embarcadero project includes a number of inter-related
transportation, transit and open space improvements at the foot of
Market Street along the Embarcadero and adjacent to the landmark
Ferry Building, in one of the most historic and visually prominent
locations in San Francisco. The project came into being after the
earthquake-damaged Embarcadero Freeway, that long served as a
barrier to the waterfront, was removed. Over a period of a more
than a decade, ROMA Design Group worked closely with community
groups and city departments to redesign the area and reconnect it
with the adjacent downtown and city. The project includes a major
new plaza in the center of the roadway and in front of the Ferry
Building; the redesign of Justin Herman Plaza; the design of the
roadway as a recreational and transit-oriented boulevard; the
design of two city blocks as parkland; and pedestrian and public
access improvements along and over the water. In addition, the role
of the area as a hub of transit and as a gateway into the City is
reinstated through ROMA’s design of a major new light rail
transit stop in front of the Ferry Building and two new ferry
terminals on the waterside, connected by waterfront promenades and
public spaces.
Implementation Status
The Embarcadero Plaza, pedestrian promenade and associated
transit stop was completed in 2000, the ferry terminals in 2001,
Ferry Building restoration in in 2003 and pedestrian pier (Pier 14)
in 2006. Future projects (such as the open space improvement of
adjacent blocks and development of housing/mixed use along the
inland edge of the Embarcadero) are in various stages of design and
implementation.
Public Process
The planning and design of the Mid-Embarcadero Transportation
and Open Space Project took place over a period of about five
years, and was initially spearheaded by an anti-freeway activist
group, later expanded into an ad-hoc citizen's advisory committee
and underwent hundreds of public meetings and hearings, both
organized by citizens groups as well as in more formal sessions
with various Commissions (Port Commission, Recreation and Park
Commission, Planning Commission, Arts Commission) as well as the
Board of Supervisors for the City and County of San Francisco.
Community Impact
The Mid-Embarcadero waterfront has moved very rapidly to
establish a new meaning and identity for this portion of the
waterfront. Key to this success is the enhanced role of waterborne
transportation, the extension of the historic “F”-line
service to and along the waterfront, and the renovation of the
Ferry Building with the adjacent farmer’s market that attracts
people from all over the region. The city has pointed the
waterfront in the right direction and now it is clear that the
physical restructuring of the waterfront is in many ways the
modern-day equivalent of Golden Gate Park in its scale and
significance to the life of the city. There is still, though, a
need for additional activities that can activate the approximately
twelve acres of open space. As time moves forward, future steps
will require an openness to change to allow the waterfront to
continue to intensify, reintegrate with the city, and evolve in the
dynamic fashion that has characterized it in the past.
Lessons Learned
This portion of the waterfront has been the focus of public
debate and controversy since the completion of the Embarcadero
Freeway (originally intended to connect the Bay Bridge with the
Golden Gate Bridge) was halted by one of the first freeway revolts
in the country. Once the freeway was removed, many wanted to put in
reinstate an image of the area crystallized in historic photos and
recalling the time of intense trolley and ferry travel. But to
transform the waterfront from what it had become, as a
through-movement corridor, into a vibrant public place demanded
that the historic role of the area be reconceived in modern terms,
in consideration of issues related to scale, enclosure and linkage,
as well as in consideration of the physical and functions
requirements of transportation and transit and the reality of how
the area had evolved during the nearly fifty years since the
freeway had been built. For large scale urban projects such as
this, a major lesson learned was that one single project does not
make the difference, but an inter-related series of projects that
take time, require patience and vision and the commitment to
improvement that will span generations in service of the future
quality of life for the city as a whole.
Overall Sustainable Contribution
This project shifted the role of the area from a
through-movement corridor to one that balances through-movement
with a sense of place. It emphasizes sustainable practices in
focusing on pedestrians, transit and alternative modes of
transportation. It also focuses on inclusivity and creating places
that are capable of serving a mix and variety of people and
activities - not one at the expense of the other, but together and
in areas that are comfortable for groups and large assemblies as
well as for individuals at all times of the day and night. Linked
public spaces including parks, plazas, promenades and piers
establish an open space system with a quality of design and the use
of durable long-lasting materials that helps to spur further
improvement and development of the downtown waterfront and which
will serve generations to come.
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| Mid-embarcadero after. Image by Kim Steele |
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| Mid-embarcadero before the intervention |
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| Mid-embarcadero. Image by Steve Proehl |
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| Pier 7 Boat. Image San Francisco Chronicle |
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| Mid-Embarcadero before the removal of the freeway. |
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