Southeast Community Center

The new Southeast Community Center completes a commitment from the SFPUC to the Bayview neighborhood, which bore the environmental and social impacts of a water treatment plant located in its midst. The newly opened complex achieves a rich synthesis of architectural design, landscape architecture and public art and offers a hub for the local community. The new center houses a low-cost childcare center, nonprofit workspaces, multi-purpose rooms, cafe, and a stand-alone pavilion for music, dances, and other events. Open spaces include an amphitheater, gardens, and play areas for children. Social services supporting workforce development and education are provided. Accessible by Muni bus and the T-line, the new building is a center for the local community to gather, play and learn. Set back from the street, the building conveys civic importance while offering landscaped open space in the foreground for public use. The tall “front porch” welcomes the community to its front door. The building is clad in a rich collage of patterns that evoke textiles while integrating a weave of overhangs and sunshades to protect it from heat and glare. The design encourages exploration and play behind a berm that buffers noise from busy Third Street. Green infrastructure stores stormwater in bioswales and an on-site wetland, while 200 trees and indigenous plants support pollinators and birds. Significant public art is visible to passersby. Additional art by local artists is found throughout the building.