The parking of Lot 337

A controversy is developing about Lot 337, the 14 acres of shoreline just south of the Giant's ball field.

The Port of San Francisco, which owns this land, has the sometimes conflicting missions of accumulating funds for Port projects and of preserving the "Public Trust" requirements for open space, public access, and views of the Bay.

Lot 337 currently has some open space along Mission Creek's outlet to the Bay and 2,500 parking spaces for Giants fans. This public land was approved as temporary parking when the ball park opened for the 2000 season. The ball park is served by two light-rail lines, two bus routes, improved Caltrain service, and ferries. Now is the time to make better use of this site.

The Port is proposing high-rises close to the Bay to help subsidize a large parking structure. The San Francisco Group is working to ensure that the site will include at least five acres of Public Trust-consistent open space, and that development on the rest of the site should respect the heights of the existing historical piers. Public lands should not used for parking. There are many private parking lots in the area, and the public should not have to subsidize parking built on public land.

Howard Strassner