Planning Department

Residents are enjoying a more livable outer Bryant Street since the city implemented a road diet last month, reducing four traffic lanes to two (plus left-turn bays at some intersections) between 23rd and Cesar Chavez Streets. Neighbors joined Friends of the Urban Forest on Sunday on the block between 26th Street and Cesar Chavez to add trees and plants to two new medians -- visual signals that drivers should slow down as they enter the neighborhood from the 101 freeway.

Bringing safe bike infrastructure and shared, pedestrian-priority streets to San Francisco are just a couple of popular ideas among users on ImproveSF.com, a city-sponsored website which features a platform for residents to provide input on the Planning Department's "Green Connections" project.

Crews began work yesterday on an overhaul of Jefferson Street in Fisherman's Wharf that will expand pedestrian space, reduce the number of cars, and create a more welcoming public realm for the throngs of tourists that regularly crowd the street. Improvements on the first two blocks of Jefferson, between Jones and Hyde Streets, were fast-tracked for completion in time for America's Cup, which is set to begin on July 4. Construction was originally scheduled to begin in October, but it was pushed back to January for unspecified reasons.

San Francisco's world-famous commercial strip on Castro Street, which gained a popular pedestrian plaza in 2009, is poised to become a more inviting destination as the SF Planning Department develops plans to widen the sidewalks and install other improvements from 17th Street to 19th Street.

Buildings in San Francisco would be required to include more bicycle parking under legislation being developed by the Planning Department.

Update 3/5/13: This bill was finally approved by the Board of Supervisors.

City planners continue developing a vision for a network of lush, pleasant streets prioritized for walking and biking between the city's parks and waterfronts. Staff from the SF Planning Department plans to present its draft network [PDF] for the "Green Connections" project at an open house next Wednesday, October 3, and the public is invited to weigh in on the selected routes.

A bill allowing many residential parking spaces to be rented to residents citywide was passed unanimously by the SF Board of Supervisors yesterday despite criticisms that it could encourage car commuting and discourage property owners from converting garages to housing units.

When Park(ing) Day started in San Francisco seven years ago, setting up camp on a sliver of street space normally reserved for storing cars was a somewhat radical idea. But these days, evidence of the movement's continuing success can be seen year-round with more than 35 (and counting) semi-permanent, city-sanctioned parklets around the city.