potrero view
Photo by Antje Kann.

Photo by Antje Kann.

Workers finsh construction on the new playground.

May 2009

Renovated Franklin Square Playground to Open this Month

By Lori Higa

Friends of Franklin Square Instrumental in Rehabilitating the Neighborhood’s only Green Space

When it comes to building a playground, Friends of Franklin Square (FoFS) doesn’t mess around. The all-volunteer group is about to see its long-held dream of a beautiful new children’s playground come true, with a planned ribbon-cutting ceremony on May 16 at 3:30 p.m.  At a recent FoFS meeting held at Sports Basement, Antje Kann and her husband David Maltz spoke excitedly about the pending playground completion.  The couple, who live on Hampshire and 19th streets, launched the renovation effort three years ago, after a kick-start from neighbor Ariel Braunstein.  Kann and Maltz were motivated by the desire for their two young children, as well as their neighbors, to have access to a clean, safe and modern playground at Franklin Square, which is bounded by 16th and 17th, Bryant and Hampshire streets.        

Next up on FoFS’ agenda is developing a fenced off-leash dog play area, as well as a pedestrian crosswalk joining Franklin Square with the Potrero Center shopping mall across 16th Street.  The plan has been drafted by landscape architectural firm Studio Green, which donated part of their normal fees includes a re-design of the park’s southeastern corner, at 16th and Bryant streets, as well as a mid-block entrance on 16th Street.  “This would provide better visibility into the park, and better access with an expanded stairway into a family-friendly plaza area,” said Maltz.  FoFS also wants to refurbish and re-mount an historic mosaic mural –the Brotherhood of Man, by artist Anthony Stellon – which was commissioned by the late mayor Joe Alioto, and left disassembled at the park years ago.

The playground rehabilitation is a blessing for the neighbors, especially those with children; there is no other play area within a 10-block radius. The park – which dates to the Victorian era, and includes a large playing field and perimeter areas shrouded by bushes and non-native eucalyptus trees – is one of only four significant green spaces in the Mission. “We wanted to create a community resource to bring people together, get to know their neighbors and encourage interactivity,” said Kann.    

The effort started when the park was given an “F” grade by the Neighborhood Parks Council (NPC), a nonprofit whose charter is revitalizing green spaces, in its report card on City parks issued a few years ago.  Neglect, bureaucratic red tape, budget cuts and increasing homeless populations had made Franklin Square a magnet for the dispossessed, with associated drug, alcohol and hazardous litter problems.  The dilapidated wooden play structures leeched arsenic.  Prompted by an official statement of what they’d already observed, Braunstein, Maltz, and Kann revived Friends of Franklin Square, with the goal of transforming the park into a safe and welcoming place for all.

First up was fixing the kids’ play area. Though none of the group considered themselves neighborhood activists, they quickly learned how to navigate the labyrinthine world of the City’s Recreation and Parks Department.  Local businesses donated several thousand dollars to hire Studio Green, which had previously worked with the City on rebuilding the Walter Haas playground in Twin Peaks. With NPC’s help, FoFS secured more than $1 million in capital improvement funds from the City.

The new playground is “greatly expanded, closer to 17th Street and more visible,” Kann explained.   “There are age-appropriate play areas, one for toddlers, a large modern climbing structure for big kids, swings and a curved sandbox.  A transportation theme winds its way throughout, with imaginary rail lines, to stimulate kids’ imaginations,” Kann added.  FoFS wants to throw a big opening party – replete with kids’ activities and more – “to give it a good start.  We really need help getting the word out, especially to new residents in the neighborhood,” Kann said, referring to Mosaica, a $74 million affordable housing, mixed-use development located at 18th and Alabama streets that will consist of 151 units, including 93 rentals for low-income families; 24 units for low-income seniors; and 34 below market rate ownership units. “The people of Mosaica will love having a dedicated play area so close by,” said Braunstein.  Playground rules will be similar to other City parks. “Adults can’t be here without a child or children,” said Kann.   

Although there’s currently a moratorium on new dog parks in the City, that’s not stopping some Franklin Square neighbors from advocating for another one.  According to local photographer, neighbor and new dog owner, Peter Samuels, “There is a significant community of dog walkers in the area…Petco Foundation, SPCA [are] right here, [as is] Wag and the animal hospital. You really have to close your eyes not to see a dog,” he said.   “In fact, there’s more dogs than kids in San Francisco!”  With numerous services and commercial enterprises for pet owners in the neighborhood, there are many opportunities for dog lovers and walkers to get to know their neighbors, Samuels asserted.  “There is astounding interest in creating an enclosed dog run,” he stated.  

Samuels and other dog owners want to make the park a doggy destination, especially for “dog walkers who keep long hours,” pointing out that ”it will be good for the neighborhood; safer and more secure.  The dog run is a natural for neighborhood watch people, it’ll help with social networking, there are definitely other pluses to it,” he said.  In addition, “with all new kids coming to the neighborhood from Mosaica, it might be a good time to start an anti-poop campaign, to get both kids’ and dog walkers’ support,” Samuels enthused.  “Once the moratorium is lifted, the park will be a good test case for building a park where kids and dogs can co-exist,” like McKinley Square in Potrero Hill but unlike Dolores Park, “where the City got burned, for not making a clear distinction between the two areas,  which caused neighbors to fight neighbors for years,” he said.

According to SPCA communications manager Kiska Icard, her organization is a “big advocate for an off-leash dog run,” at the park, adding that “we are committed to working with FoFS.   The average dog owner self-selects.  Responsible dog owners and walkers will weed out the bad dog owners, making it easier to get them to pick-up poop, keeping the park cleaner and safer.”  

The Brotherhood of Man mosaic was created in 1968 for the Martin Luther King, Jr.  pool in Hunters Point.  In 1996, the pool was renovated, and the mosaic was taken down, stored and abandoned at Franklin Square.  Neighbor David Schweisguth discovered this significant work of City-owned public art being used as an outdoor platform on which to stack flower pots.  Schweisguth brought the find to the attention of local mosaic enthusiasts, educators and artists Lillian Sizemore and Jeanne Halpern, who are now trying to restore it to its former glory.

The rare mosaic shows two figures, one black, one white, united above a green earth, sun and cosmos, conjoined by the infinity symbol.  Supervisor Michela Pier-Alioto, Joe Alioto’s niece, has expressed interest in preserving the artwork.  FoFS would like to see the mosaic mounted on the wall dividing the soccer field from the new play area, because “it fits really well with the transportation theme, and the concrete work echoes the curves of the mosaic” said Kann.  According to Kann, funds that the group had raised to restore the mosaic are being spent on removing mold damage, the result of having had been left outside unprotected from the elements.

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