Hidden city

WEEK 24

After the last several weeks exploring some crazy new things, my “first” for this week is decidedly calmer. A break from facing my fears.

I turned to my backyard in San Francisco to discover the city’s POPOS. These are Privately-Owned Public Open Spaces – not unique to SF – but perhaps because of the city’s normally glorious weather and compact downtown, they are bite-sized treats in the form of a plaza, terrace, atrium or small park.

The SF downtown planning code changed in 1985, requiring developers to devote one square foot of public space for every 50 square feet of commercial space they built. I find it quaint for a city like San Francisco to provide space for its citizens to relax and not feel crowded by sky scrapers. There is so much natural space and light in this city – certainly compared to the canyons of Midtown Manhattan – and when I spend time in SF, I notice immediately the sky around me and the healthy moisture of the air on my skin.

My mission was to find the best POPOS inside or on top of office buildings or enclosed in gated parks. Not simply 24/7 open plazas. I wanted the mystery and secrecy and sense of trespassing.

First stop: 150 California. I entered a nondescript office building and asked the guard about the 6^th floor sun terrace. He pointed me to an elevator, and up I went. Sadly, the sun had already left the premises, but the setting was pleasant – albeit dominated by an odd jungle-gym like metal sculpture (the Burner in me was itching to climb it). I sat and took a work call, which felt a bit illicit. The best part was the view of the beautiful urban garden across the street at 101 California.

I then walked to 343 Sansome, a gorgeous skinny art deco building that I’m sure I’ve passed by without notice numerous times. And I am the girl who always looks up when she walks. Riding the elevator with a bunch of office-goers, I felt like the villian in an action movie. Surely, they were on to me. I exited the 15^th floor to a large deck with olive trees – how cool is that – and an unobstructed view of the Transamerica Pyramid.

Back at ground level I strolled nearby to Commercial Street. How have I missed this fabulous treasure of old buildings? Each day we literally walk on history with no awareness. A quick online search revealed that the eastern edge of Commercial Street at Sansome was the original San Francisco waterfront, and I stumbled upon a plaque marking the headquarters for the Hudson’s Bay company in 1841. Across the street, I found my destination: tiny Empire Park at 648 Commercial. Behind an iron gate sat mixed groups of people reading and on their phones in this intimate though slightly rundown space.

My fourth stop was the most dramatic, the Transamerica Redwood Park. I’ve walked by the base of the Transamerica Pyramid hundreds of times, but usually on the weekend, and the park isn’t open. I arrived around 3:30pm, and despite the waning sun, the day was warm and surprisingly not windy. Perfect to take in this impeccably maintained Redwood forest in the heart of the financial district. The park was built in 1972 at the time the building was constructed. I learned that the pyramid was despised back then for being so unconventional – no one knew what to do with this shape designed, by the way, to let sunlight reach the street. Today, of course, the building is essential San Francisco and the park an absolute delight. Along with a half acre of towering local redwoods, there is a fountain of frog sculptures dedicated to Mark Twain’s story of the Calaveras County jumping frog which, as a quick aside, figured into my childhood driving through Angels Camp and Murphys on the way to ski each weekend in Bear Valley. A story for another day…

I headed South of Market to my final stop at 543 Howard Street. San Francisco doesn’t often get its architecture right, but there are a few deco buildings like this one from 1927 that nod to the neighborhood’s manufacturing roots.

The roof deck was a gem, with ample sun and seating and perfect (I mean perfect) views of the new Salesforce Tower and Park. A private gift in exactly the way I imagine POPOS were envisioned. I could see easily spending the day outside here, getting things done.