Called the Presidio Tunnel Tops, it features scenic overlooks, trails, picnic areas, gathering spaces and food options with bridge and city views unlike anywhere else in San Francisco. It is surrounded by gardens and meadows that include 180 varieties of plants native to the Presidio.
The Transit Center and Visitor Center make the site accessible and welcoming, and new food options, a pavilion, and a campfire circle.
It officially opens on Sunday, July 17. It will host events and activities from July through October.
Faced with the need to replace the seismically unsafe Doyle Drive, which cut the Presidio in two as it made its way to the Golden Gate Bridge, Bay Area leaders came up with a unique idea. It was to construct the highway into tunnels and reconnect the park by creating new land over their tops. Thus, the name Presidio Tunnel Tops.
This new destination connects the historic center of the Presidio to the park’s Crissy Field waterfront. Access to the park is free.
The Transit Center and Visitor Center make the site accessible via San Francisco’s public transportation system.
A special highlight of Presidio Tunnel Tops is the Outpost—a two-acre nature play area where kids can have unforgettable adventures by swinging, crawling, and climbing on play structures that reflect elements of the Presidio and are built from fallen tree trunks, boulders, and other natural materials.
The renovated Crissy Field Center and new Field Station—an indoor spot where kids explore the Presidio through art, science, or simply their imagination—will help engage people of all ages in self-guided and programmed activities.
James Corner Field Operations, the firm behind New York’s High Line, was selected as the design partner. This exciting new site allows the Partnership for the Presidio to provide more national park experiences to people in the Bay Area and serves as a gateway to the greater Golden Gate National Recreation Area and broader National Park System. Presidio Tunnel Tops was funded by donors to the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy.
You can go to its website here.
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