Chinatown to get Green, World Class Rec Center
$21 Million Renovation Will be City’s Largest Park Bond-Funded Project
SAN FRANCISCO– One of the oldest and most used recreation centers in San Francisco will be transformed into a green, state-of-the-art jewel in a $21 million makeover approved by the Recreation and Parks Commission in October 2008. The 1950s-era Chinese Recreation Center and Playground is the single largest capital project funded under voter-approved park bond measures, and will be one of the flagship public recreation facilities on the West Coast when it is completed in 2011.
“The Chinatown community and the city as a whole have been eagerly anticipating this moment, when we move forward and give this community the world-class facility it so richly deserves,” said commission president Larry Martin.
The San Francisco Recreation and Park Department, in concert with architects from the Department of Public Works, presented the conceptual plan to rave reviews at a task force and two community meetings in September and early-October.
The plan for the three story building, located on the corner of Mason and Washington streets in the population dense Chinatown neighborhood, includes a gymnasium, multi-purpose rooms, a kitchen, much-needed storage areas, new playgrounds for tots and school-age children and outdoor sports courts.
The project will meet the U.S. Green Building Council’s standards for LEED Silver Certification, and the Department will strive to include an array of green construction elements including optimized natural lighting, energy efficient heating and ventilation systems, water efficient plumbing, and a
solar roof.
“The City has an enormous responsibility to bring relevant, state-of-the-art and efficient recreation facilities to the public,” said Jared Blumenfeld, interim general manager of the Recreation and Park
Department. “San Francisco is world-class in every way, and its parks and recreation facilities need to continue to reflect that notion.”
