The next chapter in San Francisco’s story is unfolding, and it’s happening right here. The heart of the City is getting a makeover. The Civic Center Public Realm Plan recasts the plaza as a larger, tree-encircled space, connected to Market Street via a long park. Civic Center’s public realm will be designed as a flexible place that welcomes daily life, with diverse activities over the course of the day and evening, weekdays and weekends. The plan also calls for a bike and pedestrian-friendly redesign of surrounding streets. It’ll all unfolding steps from SERIF.
The Civic Center Public Realm Plan will create a unified vision for long-term improvements to Civic Center’s plazas, streets, and other public spaces. Civic Center shares the details on the released plans:
Civic Center Plaza grants garden rooms framing new lawns and the playgrounds create a lively, verdant frame for a large gathering space centered on City Hall. Throw in a mirror fountain and you have the perfect place to reflect.
Fulton Mall features lawn terraces between the Library and the Asian Art Museum, framed by benches and places to sit in sun or shade. New pavilions and seating on the Library terrace create a quiet place.
Leavenworth Street will be transformed to a neighborhood park with a dog park, fitness park, community message board, and game tables. Dramatic lighting and special paving serves as a welcome mat that connects the Tenderloin to Civic Center’s public spaces.
UN Plaza will include an adaptation of the existing fountain. A civic promenade from Market Street to City Hall is a space for commemoration of the UN Charter, the history of Civic Center, and of local/neighborhood heroes. New places to eat and recreate on Leavenworth St and at BART add vitality at the plaza’s edges.
The War Memorial Gateway plaza concept includes a gracious western entry into the War Memorial Complex and Historic Civic Center District by regrading and repaving the existing pathways and roadways to create a flexible use plaza that forms a beautiful civic gateway between Hayes Valley and the War Memorial Complex.
Self-expression is not limited to public spaces. SERIF. Find your kind.
Image Credit: civiccentersf.org
San Francisco happens here. Welcome to Mid-Market, where SoMa meets the Tenderloin meets downtown. Stretching from Fifth Street to Van Ness between Mission and Market, discover a new generation of restaurants and bars cropping up alongside long-standing landmarks of the City’s theater, music, and LGBTQ scenes. For decades, this location has served as a vibrant portion of the Market Street corridor. This is home to some of the hottest names in tech, and the stomping ground of San Francisco’s famously colorful characters. Where some see disorder, we see a mosaic.
Serif rises 12 stories in the heart of San Francisco at 960 Market Street, surrounded by some of San Francisco’s most notable architecture, cultural venues and reminders of the City’s rich history.
Catch a Show… The Debut is Around the Corner.
Alonzo King Lines Ballet is a celebrated contemporary ballet company that has been guided since 1982 by the unique artistic vision of Alonzo King.
American Conservatory Theater (ACT) is a Tony-Award Winning Nonprofit Theater that hosts The Strand Theater and acts as a ticket house to the nearby Geary Theater in Union Square.
The Strand Theater, housed in ACT you cannot miss this striking red performance center featuring some of the most talented artists in the Bay Area. An intimate playhouse, it holds just under 300 people and is mostly ground level seating with a small balcony section.
Golden Gate Theater is another classic in Mid-Market. You will see Broadway shows, musicals, and so much more.
The Warfield is one of San Francisco’s most legendary music venues. The Warfield originally opened as a vaudeville theatre in 1922.
Asian Art Museum features a world-class collection of over 18,000 rotating artworks from across Asia, plus exhibitions and installations.
Eat, Drink & Be Merry.
While there are plenty of fine dining and drinking options to be had in nearby neighborhoods like Hayes Valley and SOMA, SF’s Mid-Market is holding its own with a few inventive entities and flavors from around the world. Dive into a bowl of lunchtime noodles at Kagawa-Ya Udon, and enjoy a taste of Rome at nearby 54 Mint or Montesacro Pinseria Romana, the first Roman Pinseria Romana to open in the US.
Dottie’s True Blue Café or Mavelous is the perfect spot to start your day and Charmaine’s rooftop bar 120 feet above Market Street is the perfect place to end it. Enjoy the bold flavors of Burma at nearby Burma Club in Mint Plaza or grab some Flying Falafel to-go. The Market on Market at the foot of Twitter HQ is brimming with an upscale selection of groceries, beer and wine, plus houses a city-wide destination food hall.
Happy Hour is never far with popular spots like The Cavalier and BIIG set to make a grand return and there’s always something on tap at Fermentation Lab or Mikkeler. Just south of Market, City Beer Store features a selection of hard-to-find bottled beers to-go, beer snacks, sweets and a weekly meal package.
Wednesdays and Sundays year-round at UN Plaza, the Bay Area’s best selection of farmers set up shop offering goods and the finest picks from their harvest at the Heart of the City Farmers Market. And if you are looking for an espresso or some local grind to go with your stroll, Mid-Market even has a map for that, visit the Mid-Market coffee map.
Market Street is flat, pedestrian-friendly and equipped with well-utilized bike lanes, but you can also travel up and down the city’s main thoroughfare riding one of the restored streetcars (some 150 years old) along the F-Market & Wharves Muni line.
Boredom Free. Mid-Market is the confluence of the eclectic. Where business meets pleasure. Where cultures collide. Where everything is a little more…exciting. SF is at your fingertips when you live at SERIF. Come take a look around and enjoy the heart of San Francisco.
Welcome to our new blog for SERIF, where you’ll be right at home with everything San Francisco has to offer. Street art. Local music. 7 am nightcaps. And that’s just our block. Boredom free, we’re connected to the beating heart of the City. Artistic, cultural, fun – SERIF is a reflection of San Francisco. It’s our natural habitat – our backyard. We plan to bring you the inside scoop on what’s happening at 960 Market, Mid-Market and the surrounding neighborhoods, plus the City of San Francisco.
We’re going behind-the-scenes to share the stories behind the design of Serif – meet our team of placemakers and get to know some of our favorite spots in the neighborhood to make the most of the lifestyle. Find a curated list of local happenings, read about our latest milestone, discover a new neighborhood destination, dig deeper into our amenities or the art, architecture and culture that makes our neighborhood one of a kind. Trends come and go, San Francisco is forever. The next chapter in San Francisco is unfolding. And it’s happening right now. The thriving energy of Mid-Market is just getting started, join us for the latest milestones in the making.
Most cities welcome you. San Francisco embraces you. Find your kind at Serif.
Watch our story unfold. Home is only the half of it. Residences, retail, hospitality and more are on the way. Help us showcase some love for the city we call home by sharing your urban love story in photos, tag us on Instagram @SerifSanFrancisco #SerifSF. Check back often for the latest news and updates.
Your friends at SERIF