Courtesy of SFgate.com
Last week the Planning department released the draft report for re-creating Japantown. As with all of the other neighborhood plans, there is lots of discussion of the history of the area, but this plan differs from the Eastern Neighborhoods plan by focusing very specifically on a few blocks. We learn in the Community Heritage section that the area is greatly diminished in size, which makes the remaining part even more important.
San Francisco’s Japantown is one of 3 in the country, so it’s in vital need of preservation. That said, what’s left is a hollow shell representing a culture that has had better days in our city. After being squeezed out post earthquake/fire, the Japanese Relocation Act and the Redevelopment Agency did their best to distort what was left. The blocks in focus stretches mainly from Fillmore to Laguna, and Geary to Bush. The actual area encompassed by the plan is quite small, which directly leads to the specific recommendations for certain blocks.
As I mentioned before, the fact very precise zoning is implemented shows much promise for the area. Currently the towers of The Sequoias stand out as the tallest buildings for blocks around, and the long expressway of Geary provides an unrelenting wall for the pedestrian.
Tomorrow I’ll discuss the new zoning plans in particular, but I want to praise the effort by the Planning Department to reign in the region after regaining control from the Redevelopment Agency. Through their timely efforts, what is left of the culture of the area can be preserved, and the promise of such a large and vital neighborhood can be realized.
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