Bayview/Hunter's Point residents celebrate development of India Basin shoreline park
SAN FRANCISCO -- Community leaders and residents celebrated a major step forward in the redevelopment of the India Basin waterfront project Saturday as cleanup has been completed on one site that will become part of a major city park in the Bayview-Hunters Point community.
The $200 million project has finished its first phase, renovating a former shipbuilding site by cleaning up the water and the land.
When finished, the two parks joining that construction site will create 1.7 miles of continuous waterfront, similar to the length of Chrissy Field.
"Investments have generally not come this way and we've taken the brunt of the history of industry in this city," said Jacqueline Flin, the executive director of the A. Philip Randolph Institute San Francisco, a non-profit focused on serving the residents of the Bayview-Hunters Point neighborhood. "It does develop some sense of fear that this park isn't really being developed for them."
City staff said they took an equitable development planning approach that has government step back and let the community get more say in the process. APRISF along with the San Francisco Parks Alliance and rust for Public Land for the Parks for People Program have helped make sure residents feel included in the project.
"India Basin is just a really key project," Terence Wu, a project associate with Trust for Public Land for the Parks for People Program, told KPIX.
The project still requires crews to break ground at the site on 900 Innes Ave. Construction will take two years with the majority of the project set to finish in 2025.
"It still needs clean up, we rode our bikes along a long path to get here and some of it is still really filthy so the city has a long way to go, but it's really good to see people making an effort," said Dan Goodin, a nearby resident who brought his son to the free community day event Saturday. "It's encouraging to see and would love to see more it."
People could get on the water with kayaks provided by the parks department on Saturday and also try out a mobile climbing wall. Staff also provided kites for families to fly and take home.
Michelle Carrington, a resident of the Bayview-Hunters Point neighborhood for 70 years. She has volunteered to give her input throughout the process.
"My community has always been my soul and it's time for us to give out and give back," she said.
Cleaning up the site located on the south end took18 months. The parcel was acquired by the city in 2014 and will become the heart of the new park.
City staff say this is the first ever Equitable Development Plan in San Francisco history. community involvement is a must so that India Basin Waterfront Park will truly be made for and by the people of Bayview-Hunters Point.
"We've brought together partners throughout this community that have done the work," Flin said.
While there will be more work beyond 2025, community leaders are excited about the potential for this site that hopes to become much more than a park. Developers are working on plans to add residential and commercial space to this part of the neighborhood as well.
"It's one of the most inspiring things I've ever been a part of," said Phil Ginsburg, SF Recreation and Parks Dept GM of the project. "This is going to be as special and unique of a park as any in San Francisco and I would argue any in the country."
