Mission Local presents: Promises, Parks & the Tenderloin

On March 19 at the Tenderloin Museum, Mission Local reporter Eleni Balakrishnan and a team of experts will dig into the mystery. Why does the Tenderloin have so few green spaces? Why do the neighborhood’s new public spaces keep disappearing? And what has been done about it and what can we do about it?

The conversation will bring together:

• Aseel Fara, who was raised in the Tenderloin and now works for the Planning Department
• Curtis Bradford, a community organizer for the Tenderloin Neighborhood Development Corporation, who was heavily involved in Tenderloin Community Action Plan to bring investments to the neighborhood
• Cyntia Salazar, who works with the Tenderloin Community Benefit District and once worked as a park captain coordinator for Macaulay Park.

Artwork will be on display from the youth of the Boys & Girls Club’s Tenderloin Clubhouse in response to the prompt: What do you envision for your community parks and green spaces?

Appetizers will be provided by Cantoo, a local Venezuelan-Chinese fusion restaurant. Come snack, mingle and share ideas with the staff of Mission Local.

Dive Deeper Into the Making of the Event

The Tenderloin is one of San Francisco’s most densely populated neighborhoods and one of the most underserved when it comes to public green spaces. Over the years, multiple efforts to create new parks and community — a point underscored in the the reporting of Mission Local’s Eleni Balakrishnan.

In 2022, the city allocated $2 million to develop a car-free green corridor known as the Greenway. The project was envisioned as a transformative investment in a safe, car-free, green corridor for the community. However, it ultimately becoming another unrealized promise to revitalize the neighborhood through much-needed green infrastructure.

More recently in October, Mayor Lurie directed funding toward renovations of the Tenderloin Children’s Playground—one of the few existing green play spaces available to local youth. Meanwhile, community organizations have continued with their grassroots efforts to steward and strengthen beloved spaces like the TL National Forest. These efforts are deeply valued and widely appreciated.

Still, many residents continue to call for more green spaces and longtime community advocates remain committed to activating the Greenway corridor. This event will dive into this history and grapple with: Where do we go from here? Together, we will reflect on what has worked, what hasn’t, and how we can build a greener future for the Tenderloin.

Know what’s Happening Next — before everyone else does.

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Host or Publisher Mission Local