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Port of San Francisco

Port of San Francisco

Pier 70 Area

6-25-07Pier 70 Aerial

 

Location

Pier 70 is located on San Francisco’s Central Waterfront, an approximately 65-acre Port-owned site, generally between 18th and 22nd Streets, east of Illinois Street. 

 

History

For over 150 years, some portion of this site has been in use for ship building and repair, or steel production, as well as for other supporting heavy industrial uses.  Pier 70 is where the late 19th century Union Iron Works began and later evolved into the Bethlehem Steel Shipyard.  It is the oldest continuously operating shipyard on the West Coast.  Currently the Port’s ship repair operation occupies a 16-acre portion of the site run by BAE Systems, under lease from the Port.  Pier 70 retains a strong historic character, established by a large collection of historic architectural resources and artifacts throughout the site. 

 

Current Status

The State Office of Historic Preservation (OHP) determined that the site’s approximately 30 historic buildings, structures, and features are eligible for the National Register collectively as contributors to a Pier 70 historic district.  Given the extraordinary historic value of this site, the Port Commission designated a substantial portion of the site as a Development Opportunity area, specifically for the purpose of supporting the Port’s effort to preserve the Union Iron Works and Bethlehem Administration buildings along 20th Street.

 

Master Planning

The Port of San Francisco is conducting a public planning process to develop a master plan for the entire 65-acre site.  The objective of the master plan is to set forth a concept and approach for the use and redevelopment of the Pier 70 area (that may occur in phases) that is supported by the public, and which addresses and reconciles numerous regulatory, economic, maritime, historic preservation, open space and shoreline access issues.  The Port’s commitment to undertaking this project now is largely driven by the desire to preserve and rehabilitate as many buildings as feasible, while preserving the viability of ship repair operations now and over the long-term and, at the same time creating sufficient economic opportunities to attract developers to carry out adaptive redevelopment at Pier 70. 

 

A successful master plan will:

  • develop an economically viable land use program compatible with the ship repair industry;
  • define historic district(s) that can be nominated and ultimately listed on the National Register of Historic Places;
  • provide new waterfront public access and open space;
  • be integrated with the urban design and use program of the larger Central Waterfront area;
  • provide a financing strategy for required infrastructure improvements, including public financing mechanisms; and
  • include a development phasing schedule that allows existing interim uses to remain on site until redevelopment occurs.

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Master Planning
David Beaupre, Master Planning Project Manager
(415) 274-0539     David_Beaupre@sfport.com

Mark Paez, PLanner
(415) 705-8674     Mark_Paez@sfport.com

Carol Bach, Environmental and Regulatory Affairs Manager
(415) 274-0568     Carol.Bach@sfport.com

Pier 70 Composite DOWNSIZED

  • City Seal