ago, when a couple of long-time Bayview Hunters Point residents had the idea to plant flowers and food in the public med
IMPLEMENTING GREEN CONNECTIONS: THE NEXT TWENTY YEARS
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HOW WILL GREEN CONNECTIONS BE IMPLEMENTED?
reen Connections is a long-term planning project that sets high ambitions for 115 miles of our streets. The plan puts forward a goal of implementing the network over a twentyyear period. The scale of the Green Connections network creates opportunities to coordinate with city projects and private development. Additionally, community members and neighborhood groups will play an important role in the Network’s development.
Projects Delivered by the City
Coordination with Private Development
Neighborhood-led Projects
Green Connections could be designed and implemented through a City-led community-based planning processes. In this instance, City agencies would design and build the improvements based on community input. The City’s streetscape projects are generally built by the San Francisco Department of Public Works (DPW), the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) and the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC).
Green Connections projects could be designed and implemented through partnerships between City Agencies and private developers. In this instance, private developers would design and build the improvements based on input from community members and city agencies.
Green Connections projects could be initiated by local residents, community groups and/or business owners. These groups could design, implement and/or maintain Green Connections. This approach builds on a number of recent programs designed to leverage the creativity and initiative of individuals in the development of the City’s public spaces. A Community Resources List has been developed as part of the project and provides additional guidance on technical assistance and funding.
Green Connections will not create a new program, rather, it calls for coordinating with existing initiatives for traffic calming, stormwater management, and bicycle and pedestrian improvements. Guerrero Planting, San Jose Avenue at Guerrero and 28th Streets Median Greening & Community Stewardship
Spear Street Living Street, Rincon Hill The Rincon Hill Plan calls for the creation of ‘living streets’ along Spear, Main, and Beale Streets, involving widening one sidewalk from 10 to 30 feet and incorporating landscaping, seating areas, and other public amenities to create linear parks along the sidewalk. The adjacent development at 300 Spear Street was required to construct the first block of the living street on Spear Street between Folsom and Harrison Streets. Additional blocks are expected to be constructed by other private developments as part of their conditions of approval. Leland Avenue Streetscape Improvement Project, San Francisco Department of Public Works, San Francisco Redevelopment Agency, San Francisco Planning Department and San Francisco Public Utilities Commission The project included new street trees, curb ramps, corner bulb-outs, stormwater management facilities, pedestrian-scale lighting, decorative-stamped crosswalks to promote pedestrian safety, sidewalk furniture and public art.
HOW WILL GREEN CONNECTIONS BE FUNDED? Implementation of the Network over the 20 year life of the plan will be achieved organically through coordination with existing programs related to traffic calming, bicycle planning, pedestrian safety, stormwater management, sewer repair and street repaving.
WHAT ADDITIONAL FUNDING IS NEEDED TO COMPLETE THE GREEN CONNECTIONS NETWORK IN TWENTY YEARS? Funding for core components of the project should be identified and secured. Rough cost estimations have been developed to help articulate funding needs outside of already programmed dollars. Funding for these key Green Connections programs should be secured to implement core components of the plan that may not be part of an existing capital plan.
Need: Basic Signage and Wayfinding
Calculation: • 115 Miles • $500,000 Sign design, fabrication, and installation (1) • $75,000 Sign Planning and Graphic Design
Projected Average Annual Costs: Most likely the City would install the wayfinding and signage as one program rather than over a 20 year period.
Projected Total Costs (20 Years): $0.575 Million
Need: Project Coordination Supplemental Fund The fund will allow the City to include basic Green Connections streetscape elements to ongoing projects on the network that do not have funds to meet the programs objectives
Calculation:
Calculation:
• Estimated $1.5M per mile to enhance on going projects and add minimum level Green Connections interventions.
• Averaging 5 blocks
Projected Average Annual Costs: $1.8 Million
$36 Million
http://greenconnections.sfplanning.org
The City should aim to install a minimum of 12 showcase projects over the life of the plan (see right). These major projects will have higher costs than an average Green Connection project. They may be part of other planned improvements and therefore not entirely “new” funding needs.
• Estimated 24 miles of potential project coordination (20% of the network)
Projected Total Costs (20 Years):
Footnotes: 1. Based on SFMTA’s estimate for the bicycle signage program of roughly 8 signs per mile $500 per sign for design, fabrication, and installation. 2. Based on DPW’s average costs for Full Complete Street Enhancements 3. Note that several projects in the City’s existing CIP may fulfill some of this funding goal.
Need: Showcase Projects
• 12 demonstration level projects over 20 years • Averaging $1.8 Million per block (2) • Average $9 Million per project
Projected Average Annual Costs: $5.5 Million
Projected Total Costs (20 Years): $110 Million (3)
Mission Community Market Placemaking and Farmers Market
Shotwell Street Sidewalk landscaping
WILL EVERY GREEN CONNECTION LOOK AND FEEL THE SAME? Segments along the network will have a different look and feel. The level of intervention will vary based on existing conditions, coordination opportunities, available funding and community support.
Light Intervention ~~ Would include signage and wayfinding, and lower cost improvements like bicycle stencils and street murals. ~~ May feature basic greening like sidewalk landscaping gardens and filling in gaps in street trees. ~~ May feature basic traffic calming measures.
Moderate Intervention
Showcase Intervention
~~ Would include the amenities of a light intervention
~~ Most successfully achieves project goals.
~~ May include minor sidewalk enhancements, curb extensions and stormwater infrastructure, or intersection treatments that help calm traffic. ~~ More clearly embody the goals of Green Connections, will involve a greater level of community engagement, and may involve a more holistic streetscape design.
~~ May feature reductions in traffic volumes and dedication of space for habitat or community gathering. ~~ The Design Toolkit contains elements that could be incorporated into showcase projects such as: Super Bulbs, Intersection Islands, Diverters, Street Parks and Play Streets.
IMPLEMENTING GREEN CONNECTIONS: WHAT ROLE CAN YOU PLAY?
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cross San Francisco, dedicated residents and neighborhood groups have collaborated with city agencies to organize street cleanup and beautification events, create community gardens, advocate for streetscape and traffic safety improvements, and initiate other projects that make our neighborhoods healthier and more livable. When community members take the initiative to improve our public spaces, everyone benefits – participants can help ensure that projects that meet local needs and preferences, neighbors get to know one another, and over time residents may develop a greater sense of pride in their neighborhood, paving the way for additional community-building ideas and projects.
Building on the success of these grassroots efforts, Green Connections envisions that neighborhood-led projects will be one critical mechanism to implement the Green Connections network, enabling local residents, business owners, neighborhood groups and community stakeholders to take a more active role in building out the network in close collaboration with the City.
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BUILDING COMMUNITY FROM THE GROUND UP:
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Neighborhoods develop vibrant public spaces San Francisco has countless examples of community members coming together to create new open space projects. For example, through SFDPW’s Sidewalk Landscaping Permit program, residents have replaced swaths of barren concrete with landscaped areas that enliven their streets. Similarly, residents and community groups have organized to create and upgrade over 100 new open spaces through the SFDPW’s Streets Park Program, which allows residents to build gardens on underutilized DPW land, such as medians and utility rights-of-way.
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Here are other inspiring examples where community members have organized to contribute creative, attractive, and well-used spaces to our urban landscape.
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Pennsylvania Street Gardens
In 2008, a few neighbors in Potrero Hill saw potential in a large, trash-strewn lot adjacent to a highway offramp, and with the help of many volunteers gradually transformed it into the thriving Pennsylvania Street Garden, which provides walking paths, hundreds of species of native and drought-tolerant plants, seating, and a dog park. In order to obtain permission to use the space, residents worked closely with Caltrans, the SFDPW Street Parks program, and the San Francisco Parks Alliance, and the garden has been such a success that neighbors have started gardens in three other public sites nearby.
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Guerrero Street
Neighbors on Guerrero Street were concerned about heavy traffic and fast speeds, and partnered with the neighborhood association, San Jose/Guerrero Coalition To Save Our Streets, to advocate for traffic calming solutions that would reduce traffic safety hazards while beautifying the street. The group successfully persuaded the City to pass legislation calling for a street redesign, which included reducing traffic from 6 lanes to 4 lanes, lowering speed limits, adding bike lanes, and greening the median with low-maintenance plants (which neighbors helped implement by raising funds and organizing planting days).
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Shotwell Street
In 2004, a resident on Shotwell Street decided to tear up a portion of sidewalk in front her home to build a garden, but realized that she would first need to learn to navigate the city approvals and permitting process. She ultimately succeeded in creating a beautiful garden in front of her home, inspiring many of her neighbors to follow suit and spawning the local organization PlantSF, which provides information to other interested sidewalk gardeners around the city. In response to growing interest in sidewalk landscaping, SFDPW created a streamlined Sidewalk Landscaping Permit program to encourage other gardeners to develop projects.
IMPLEMENTING NEIGHBORHOOD-LED PROJECTS: WHAT ARE THE STEPS?
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
City approvals
For additional information on permitting, funding, street design elements, and other how-to information, visit
The types of requirements, permits, and fees will vary depending on the project. The Better Streets website (right) details the process for a range of streetscape improvements.
Neighborhood support Building support - presenting design ideas at neighborhood events or neighborhood group meetings can build goodwill, allow people to voice their ideas and concerns, and encourage longer-term stewardship of the project.
Resources Funding is likely to be a challenge to implementation. There are a range of City, philanthropic, and private sources that can provide funding, in-kind donations, and other resources (see Community Resource List, right).
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Visitacion Valley Greenway
Over a period of 16 years, community members worked tirelessly to advocate for and build the Visitacion Valley Greenway, six gardens on formerly vacant SFPUC right of way that form a ribbon of green space across the neighborhood. Each garden has a different theme –a landscaped plaza, herb garden, community garden, agricultural plot, native garden, and children’s garden— and incorporates artwork, recycled materials, and elements such as seating and outdoor classrooms. Among the many partners and supporters of the project are SFPUC, SF Recreation & Parks Department, the Trust for Public Land, and funders SF Beautiful, SF Parks Alliance, and the Community Challenge Grant.
Green Connections Website Community Resource List
http://greenconnections.sfplanning.org Community Resource List DECEMBER 2013
Maintenance & stewardship plan Project organizers should consider maintenance and other ongoing needs early on and integrate them into the design. A group of volunteers or a community benefit district (CBD) could potentially provide long-term maintenance and stewardship of the project.
http://greenconnections.sfplanning.org
SF Better Streets website www.sfbetterstreets.org
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Quesada Gardens
The Quesada Gardens Initiative started over a decade ago, when a couple of long-time Bayview Hunters Point residents had the idea to plant flowers and food in the public median along Quesada Avenue, a street then known as a magnet for crime and drug dealing. From this simple action, the initiative has grown to encompass many community-building opportunities, including a thriving network of backyard and community gardens, educational programs, public artwork, and community events. Over the years, the program has enlisted the support of thousands of volunteers and has been able to secure City, private, and philanthropic resources.
IMPLEMENTING GREEN CONNECTIONS: UPCOMING PROJECTS
UPCOMING PROJECTS
PROJECT LIST
This map highlights some of the upcoming projects that overlap with the Green Connections network, scheduled for implementation over the next 5 years. These projects vary in scale and include: community-led ecological and stewardship projects, neighborhood traffic calming projects, pedestrian enhancements around schools, and complete streetscape designs. Implementing these projects is an important first step in developing a citywide network of Green Connections.
A colored dot has been placed next to each project to indicate how the project meets the broader goals of Green Connections. Some projects have design components that will meet all of the goals of a Green Connection, such as the Wiggle Neighborhood Green Corridor Project or the Mansell Corridor Improvement Project. Some projects will need additional funding to fully meet the goals of a Green Connection, such as Safe Routes to School projects and neighborhood traffic calming projects.
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7TH STREET EN TRIPS 7th Street, from Market St. to 16th St.
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28TH AVE CROSSWALK ENHANCEMENTS 28th Ave and to be determined cross-streets
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ALAMO ELEMENTARY (SR2S) 23rd Ave, from Geary Blvd to Lake St.
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JAMES DENMEN MIDDLE SCHOOL (SR2S) Cayuga Ave, from Niagara and Navajo
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LONGFELLOW ELEMENTARY SCHOOL (SR2S) Brunswick St between Oliver and Guttenberg
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MANSELL CORRIDOR IMPROVEMENT PROJECT Mansell St. from University St. to Dublin St.
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OAKDALE AVENUE GREEN CONNECTION Oakdale Ave. from Lane St/ to Quint St.
BLUE GREENWAY Various locations along the southeastern waterfront
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PAGE STREET GREEN CONNECTION Page St, from Buchanan St. to Market St.
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BUENA VISTA/17TH/ROOSEVELT TRAFFIC CALMING Buena Vista/17th/Roosevelt
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PERSIA TRIANGLE: PAVEMENT TO PARKS Heart of the Excelsior at Persia, Mission and Ocean Ave.
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CENTRAL RICHMOND TRAFFIC CALMING Lake St. at 17th, 21st and 24th Avenues; Cabrillo Street at 14th Ave
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SAFE PASSAGE ENHANCEMENTS Jones St. and Ellis St., exact location to be determined
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CESAR CHAVEZ (SR2S) Area around South Van Ness and 22nd St.
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VICENTE STREETSCAPE ENHANCEMENTS Vicente St. from, 14th Ave to 19th Ave
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EMBARCADERO ENHANCEMENT Embarcadero, from Fort Mason to Mariposa St.
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VISITACION VALLEY GREEN NODES Exact locations to be determined
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FOLSOM STREETSCAPE IMPROVEMENTS Folsom St., from Embarcadero St. to 12th St.
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WASHINGTON STREET PORTSMOUTH SQUARE ENHANCEMENTS Washington St. from, Kearny St. to Walter U Lum Place
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GREAT HIGHWAY STREETSCAPE IMPROVEMENT PROJECT Great Highway, Lincoln to Fulton
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WIGGLE NEIGHBORHOOD GREEN CORRIDOR Various locations along the Wiggle
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GREEN HAIRSTREAK CORRIDOR 14th Ave/15th Ave, from Moraga St. to Quintara St.
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WEST PORTAL TRAFFIC CALMING PROJECT 14th Ave, from Vicente to Ulloa
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HOLLOWAY BUFFERED BIKE LANE Holloway Ave., from Varela to Font Blvd.
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2ND STREET IMPROVEMENT PROJECT 2nd St., from Market St. to King St.
LEGEND Green Connections Project Goals Public health: Increase active transportation to parks Sustainability: Enhance urban ecology Livability: Support neighborhood stewardship and placemaking
http://greenconnections.sfplanning.org
