Our Work: Projects

Moss Metamorphosis

SF Alliance was awarded grants for the improvement of Moss Street in 2020.

Over the course of four years, we’ve worked closely with neighbors to make Moss Street a safe and welcoming habitat for local plants, animals, and humans alike through new string lighting, murals, planters, and more.

Timeline: Phase one was completed spring 2023, phase two is ongoing

The Vision

The SF Parks Alliance office is located on the corner of Moss and Folsom Street. This project was an incredible opportunity to work directly with our neighbors, demonstrate the power of our placemaking work, and envision a better future for the street that we call home! In 2020 we received funding from a Community Challenge Grant from the City Administrator’s Office and a Watershed Stewardship Grant from the SF Public Utilities Commission for murals, lighting, streetscape improvements and stormwater features on Moss Street.

Community Input

Across multiple community meetings, monthly neighbor steering meetings, community events, and block parties, the local community guided designs and project development. Neighbors were excited about sidewalk gardens, lights and artwork, but were hesitant about our idea for a community parklet. Ultimately we pivoted from the original design for a “stormwater parklet” and built sidewalk “stormwater planters” instead. You can view all content from the first community meeting here, second community meeting here, and neighbor steering meetings here.

History as a Tidal Wetland

Did you know Moss Street used to be a tidal wetland? Tidal marshes provide many benefits to coast communities: they protect against storm surges and flooding, improve air quality, and create necessary habitats for fish and wildlife. As we continue to envision the future of Moss Street, we are committed to recognizing this history and making sure that the street remains a safe and welcoming habitat for local plants, animals, and humans alike.

In 2022, both murals were completed on Moss Street, the mural on the south side of the alley by artist Amandalynn honors the local ecological history of the area, while the mural on the north side, “Hot Off the Press” by 1AM and The BoxSF, celebrates the neighborhood’s legacy of printmaking.
The lighting installations at both ends of Moss Street bring a modern interpretation of nature overhead. Designed and installed by Joshua Hubert of Glow Fidelity, the lights are fully programmable to add illumination to the block and to celebrate any occasion.
Designed by landscape architects at MITHUN, the composition of sidewalk gardens, permeable paving, rainwater cisterns, and raised planters replace roughly 500 square feet of impervious surface with beautiful drought-tolerant gardens. The rainwater cisterns capture up to 650 gallons of water that can be used for irrigation and sidewalk cleaning. The planters are illustrated with graphics depicting the history of the site as a tidal wetland, naming some of the flora and fauna that lived in the area pre-development. These sidewalk improvements will attract pollinators (like butterflies) and will divert up to 80,000 gallons of rainwater per year from the storm drain system, making the neighborhood more resilient against flooding and drought.