Jane Warner Plaza Concept Vision

In partnership with District 8 Supervisor Rafael Mandelman’s Office, the San Francisco County Transportation Authority, and SFMTA, SF Public Works Bureau of Landscape Architecture has reimagined the new Jane Warner Plaza as a flexible community space that celebrates the life of the late, beloved community police officer, Jane Warner. This is a conceptual visualization study.

 

The challenging multi-modal site is bordered by Market Street, 17th Street, and Castro Street and must maintain current operations of the SFMTA F line which divides the site into two distinct sides.  In the short-term, the design team is proposing to improve the south side of 17th Street by raising the main plaza area to the level of the sidewalk with plantings and bollards at the edges for protection. The materials palette for Jane Warner Plaza will repeat some of that of Harvey Milk Plaza to provide unity on both sides of Castro Street.   The central plaza space is envisioned to be flexible and functional while also considering maintenance and operational needs of the space. The longer-term vision is to improve the existing wide sidewalk area along Market Street should the gas station site be developed resulting in a linear plaza from Collingwood Street to the Café bar once both Harvey Milk Plaza and Jane Warner Plaza are realized.

 

Together, the improvements will act as a unified gateway to the main Castro Street business district. The proposed concept will not only provide a place for the community to celebrate and gather, but it will also be designed to help support local businesses by being a destination in which people will want to spend time. Through public art and design features, the plaza will empower the underrepresented communities of the LGBT community and give voice the inspiring power of women. This conceptual visualization effort will be used to help identify potential funding opportunities for the detailed design and construction of this important public space.