San Francisco, CA – Mayor London N. Breed today joined community members and state leaders to celebrate the opening of the southern half of India Basin Waterfront Park, one of the most significant park projects in modern San Francisco history. The $200 million environmental justice investment connects Bayview-Hunter’s Point residents to a healthy shoreline, providing waterfront access for the first time in generations, transforming a former brownfield into a thriving public space.
Today’s opening of the new park at 900 Innes Ave. is part of the larger India Basin Waterfront Park project, which began in 2021 and will combine the park with the adjacent India Basin Shoreline Park, creating a spacious 10-acre park that will deliver miles of winding trails, waterfront recreation, unbridled shore access and resiliency to sea level rise. Community members are now able to enjoy three new buildings: a food pavilion for local vendors and community cooking classes, a makers’ shop for boat building and other community projects, and an operations and maintenance building.
The new park also features two new public piers, a floating dock, restrooms, an accessible walkway, and native landscaping, and a 5,580 square foot ground mural titled “Lady Bayview” by Raylene Gorum, an artist with family roots in the Bayview. The artwork is inspired by the Big Five of Bayview, a group of Black women leaders who, in the 1960s and 1970s, successfully advocated for housing, health and labor issues, a local theater and more. The historic Shipwright’s Cottage, a San Francisco Landmark, now serves as a welcome center.
“This park is an important investment in the Bayview Hunters Point community and a big step in creating equity when it comes to thriving neighborhoods in San Francisco,” said Mayor London Breed. “All San Franciscans deserve a beautiful, safe place to gather with friends and family, exercise and for kids to play. I want to thank our state partners, and the generous philanthropic contributions that have tremendously helped us create a beautiful new open space for our southeastern neighborhoods and for generations to come.”
Public and private dollars have significantly contributed to the overall $200 million price tag, including $69 million in state funding secured by Governor Gavin Newsom, Sen. Scott Wiener, Assemblymembers Phil Ting, David Chu, and Matt Haney, the 2020 Health and Recovery Bond, and Proposition 68 grants. Philanthropic funding includes a $25 million donation from the John Pritzker Family Fund, $20 million from Crankstart, and other major contributions from Marc and Lynne Benioff, the Hellman Foundation, Mimi and Peter Haas Fund, Rebecca and Cal Henderson, Baker Street Foundation, the Fisher Family, the Horace W. Goldsmith Foundation, and others.
“As a former San Francisco Supervisor and Chair of the India Basin Waterfront Task Force, the India Basin Waterfront Park was a project I championed with the goal to create a vibrant, healthy, and connected community that benefits everyone,” stated Controller Malia M. Cohen. “This park is a crown jewel of this neighborhood and San Francisco. It represents a significant win for our city, the community, and the stakeholders that partnered together to ensure the park became a reality. Honoring the Bayview’s rich history, arts, and culture, this open space looks, feels, and operates as an integrated park. I encourage everyone to visit, work, and play in this beautiful park.”
The parcel at 900 Innes Ave. was first acquired by Rec and Park in 2014. Prior to its construction, in 2021, specially trained crews led by Bayview-Hunters Point’s Rubecon Builders led an 18-month cleanup process, removing contamination left over from the boat building and vessel repair industry in the soil and sediment. During this process, abandoned and dilapidated structures were removed, while soft-bottom intertidal and subtidal habitats were restored.
With the southern half of the park now complete, construction crews will next begin improvements at the nearby India Basin Shoreline Park, which was originally constructed in the 1990s. Improvements include major regrading work to ease steep slopes and restoration of the shoreline habitat and native plant landscaping. In addition, the park will receive new amenities including a gravel beach; a cookout terrace and grilling area; a new boathouse, pier, and dock for kayaking and fishing; a renovated children’s play area; two new basketball courts; an adult fitness station; a renovated Bay Trail connecting the area to adjacent waterfront parks; a bicycle path; new lighting and seating; and permanent public art.
“The opening of the southern half of India Basin Waterfront Park is a historic milestone for Bayview-Hunters Point,” said Supervisor Shamann Walton. "This project represents more than just the revitalization of land; it symbolizes our community's resilience, determination, and commitment to environmental justice. By transforming this once-neglected space into a thriving, accessible public park, we’re not only honoring the history and culture of Bayview but also ensuring that future generations have equitable access to green space, healthy recreation, and economic opportunity right here in our neighborhood.”
“This park is a milestone not only for San Francisco, but for the Bayview Hunters Point community. It marks the realization of a promise made to the community to provide unbridled waterfront access—a community that has often seen commitments go unfulfilled,” said Rec and Park General Manager Phil Ginsburg. “With 900 Innes Ave. now open, the stage has been set for this area to transform into an outdoor oasis along the Bay. Thanks to the community’s voice and our partners, we’re creating a stronger and more resilient Bayview Hunters Point, where residents can thrive.”
The Bayview nonprofit En2Action will manage the food pavilion, providing space to neighborhood food vendors as well as culinary skills training, business incubation, weekend pop-ups and a youth kitchen club. Nationally recognized Bronx, NY-based youth development organization Rocking the Boat will provide year around youth and community rowing and boat building programming.
“Rocking the Boat could not be more thrilled to be launching our first-ever programmatic replication in the Bayview-Hunters Point neighborhood of San Francisco,” said Rocking the Boat Founder and Executive Director Adam Green. “For 26 years we have been using the mediums of wooden boatbuilding, environmental science, and sailing to offer life-changing opportunities to young people in the South Bronx. The many parallels between our two communities are uncanny—we think this bodes well for the program to be wildly successful here.”
“En2Action is excited to launch programming at the food pavilion, offering a platform for local chefs and small businesses to expand their reach and engage with the community,” said En2Action Executive Director Andrea Baker. “What’s special about this launch is that many of the vendors are emerging entrepreneurs from our business incubator program, Ujamma Kitchen. This is one of our cornerstone programs and we’re proud to uplift our participants and provide a new space where they can thrive.”
India Basin Waterfront Park is one of only a few parks in the nation to be guided by an Equitable Development Plan (EDP) developed by the community. The EDP ensures the park’s features and programming are culturally relevant and directly benefits the Bayview-Hunters Point community.
The landmark plan was developed through a two-year community-driven process in which Rec and Park partners APRI and Trust for Public Land worked with an EDP leadership team consisting of Bayview-Hunters Point residents to ensure the park’s design and programming preserves the neighborhood’s identity and culture; spurs workforce and business development; and creates opportunities for youth; among other initiatives. The design of the new park was created through a partnership with Jensen Architects and GGN.
“Economic problems require economic investments. The India Basin Waterfront Project is proof of that,” said EDP Leadership Committee member Latoya Pitcher. “When you engage communities in large-scale projects like this and position residents as subject-matter experts and key stakeholders, communities are empowered to lead. The result is a transformative and long-lasting foundation for economic prosperity that will benefit generations to come.”
A core principle of the project is delivering community benefits at every stage. Contracts were awarded to19 Bayview-Hunters Point contractors and suppliers during the building of the park, including 16 BIPOC-owned businesses, totaling over $15 million in value. Local workforce hiring has also been a priority A workforce development program through partners APRI and the San Francisco Office of Economic and Workforce Development and its CityBuild Construction Training Academy graduated 16 trainees, several of whom secured jobs with Swinerton Construction to help build the park, while others used their newfound skills to secure other family-sustaining jobs. Rec and Park’s pre-apprenticeship program, launching in January, will train residents in landscape maintenance and urban forestry, preparing them for City and private sector jobs.
The EDP leadership also prioritized water safety for neighborhood youth. The Bayview Safety Swim and Splash program, led jointly by Rec and Park and the YMCA of Greater San Francisco, has provided free swimming lessons to more than 639 Bayview-Hunters Point kids over the past 3 years. The goal is to ensure that youth are comfortable and confident in the water, meaning that they can swim, float, breathe, and get to safety if needed.
“This park is a love letter to Bayview residents. It’s a living record of a tremendous effort to anchor in the cultural vibrancy of our beautiful neighborhood,” said APRI Executive Director Jackie Bryant. “This very special place is one in which so many community members contributed to by sharing their hopes and dreams for stronger and healthier future. I’m very proud of the ways in which we’ve transformed a vision into reality.”
The India Basin Waterfront Park project is made possible through a partnership between the San Francisco Recreation and Park Department, A. Philip Randolph Institute San Francisco (APRI), Trust for Public Land, the San Francisco Parks Alliance, the San Francisco Foundation, and the Bayview-Hunters Point community.
“India Basin Waterfront Park is more than just green space—it’s a testament to our city’s commitment to equitable development, ensuring all communities have access to vibrant, welcoming public spaces,” said SF Parks Alliance CEO Drew Becher. “The opening of 900 Innes marks a decade of dedication and collaboration to make this vision a reality, and we’re thrilled for the community to finally experience and enjoy this space.”
"India Basin Waterfront Park is more than just a park with incredible views and worldclass trails—it’s a symbol of healing, equity, and opportunity for the Bayview-Hunters Point community,” said Guillermo Rodriguez, California Director, Trust for Public Land. “This $200 million park development is like no other in the country. Driven by the community from the start, TPL is proud of the hand-in-hand partnership with local residents in transforming this once-neglected space into a vibrant, inclusive hub that reflects the community’s rich history and bright future. This is a significant first step in addressing decades of environmental injustice and creating lasting economic and health benefits for generations to come."
“Residents have long fought for environmental and health justice in Bayview-Hunters Point,” said Fred Blackwell, CEO of the San Francisco Foundation. “The India Basin Waterfront Park Project is a win we must celebrate in our ongoing efforts to create an equitable San Francisco and Bay Area.”
“I’d like to thank the Recreation and Park Department, Bayview community, and artist Raylene Gorum, for partnering with the Arts Commission to create this larger-than-life installation that not only honors leaders in the Bayview community but highlights the maritime history of India Basin that is now a permanent part of the Waterfront Park,” said Director of Cultural Affairs Ralph Remington. “The Arts Commission is honored to work with and provide artists, like Raylene Gorum, whose family has roots in the Bayview, an opportunity to create works that share stories that for so long have been left untold.”
Today, Bayview-Hunters Point is home to a vibrant and diverse community, consisting of predominantly Black, Asian, and Latino San Franciscans. As early as the 1860s, the India Basin area was a hub to a thriving wooden boat-building industry, cultivating a robust maritime community and serving as an integral part of California’s commercial economy. Around the same time, Chinese fishermen descended onto the area, as its shallow waters facilitated the harvesting of shrimp. Visitors to the new park can learn more about the history of India Basin through displays and exhibitions at the restored Shipwright’s Cottage.
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