SAN FRANCISCO — The long-discussed remake of the open space between Market Street and the waterfront is beginning to leave a more concrete trail through City Hall’s permitting system.
Two building-permit applications surfaced this week at 1 Clay Street and 4 Clay Street, both describing a renovation intended to combine Embarcadero Plaza and Sue Bierman Park into a roughly five-acre park.
The 1 Clay application carries an estimated cost of $9 million. The 4 Clay application lists $1.5 million. Both were created Aug. 26 and were still in triage, rather than issued for construction, in the latest DataSF records captured by SF News Today.
That distinction matters. The filings show the project moving deeper into design and city review. They are not evidence that a $10.5 million construction contract has suddenly started.
What do the new Embarcadero Plaza permits describe?
The wording is unusually informative for a permit record. Both applications describe a park renovation that would unify the two existing public spaces and include a multi-purpose lawn, stage and overhead trellis, enclosed dog-play area, fitness area, seating and picnic areas, along with landscaping and other outdoor improvements.
That closely matches the concept approved by the Recreation and Park Commission in June. Rec and Park describes the overall plan as a $40 million public-private effort to transform roughly five acres into a connected waterfront park. Official project page.
Does this mean construction is about to start?
Not necessarily. The city’s current project page still lists “Construction begins: TBD” and “Open to the Public: TBD.” The fresh permits fit the detailed design and engineering phase, but applications in triage still have review ahead of them.
Until permits are issued and the city announces a construction schedule, people walking through the plaza should not read these records as notice that fencing goes up tomorrow morning.
Where is the $40 million coming from?
Rec and Park says the city has identified roughly $18 million in public funding, while the Downtown Development Corporation is working to secure up to $20 million in private support. Crankstart is providing $10 million, with another $10 million intended to be raised from additional donors.
BXP has also committed design support and funding connected with park visitor restrooms. The financing structure helps explain why individual permit records carry smaller estimated values than the overall project price. The permit figures should not simply be added up and treated as the final project cost.
Could Embarcadero Plaza also get a new name?
Possibly. The San Francisco Chronicle reported Friday that the city plans to propose renaming Embarcadero Plaza as Art Agnos Plaza, while Sue Bierman Park would become Sue Bierman Commons and the combined five-acre space would be known as Embarcadero Park.
The proposal still requires city action. SF News Today could independently verify the Sept. 2 Recreation and Park Commission Capital Committee meeting on the department calendar, but not the specific naming agenda item in the official searchable material available Friday morning. We are therefore attributing the proposed names to the Chronicle rather than presenting them as an independently obtained city document.
What would actually change at the park?
If built substantially as approved, the project would make Embarcadero Plaza and Sue Bierman Park function more like one connected waterfront park, with new pathways, landscaping, gathering spaces, fitness uses, picnic areas, a dog park, art and a performance stage.
For now, the Aug. 26 permits tell us something narrower but useful: the $40 million concept has moved beyond renderings and community meetings into active permit review. SF News Today will track the applications for issuance, revisions and a firm construction schedule.