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Port briefs commission on waterfront land use plan update, sea-level-rise and financing challenges
Summary
Port staff presented an overview of the Waterfront Land Use Plan update, flagged aging pier infrastructure, sea-level-rise and seawall seismic concerns, and solicited participation in a waterfront plan working group and advisory teams to guide priorities and financing options.
Port representatives briefed the Historic Preservation Commission on an update to the Port of San Francisco Waterfront Land Use Plan, emphasizing the need to balance maritime uses, public access, aging infrastructure and rising sea levels.
Mark Paez, Preservation Coordinator for the Port of San Francisco, framed the briefing as an opportunity for preservation stakeholders to contribute to waterfront planning. Diane Oshima, Planning Manager with the Port’s Planning and Development Division, outlined work already completed and said the port has added more than 60 acres of open space over the past 17 years and presented options for managing piers and bulkhead buildings.
Oshima highlighted sea-level-rise scenarios and engineering constraints: she said projected rises through 2100 will require different protection strategies and that the seawall’s structural study is underway. “By 2100 we’re gonna be having to look at a different context for flood control,” Oshima said, adding that some piers are more vulnerable than others and that priority choices about where to invest will be necessary.
Commissioners asked about implications for the port’s public-private development model. Oshima explained that lenders typically require long-term lease certainty (historically up to 66-year ground leases) to finance large rehabilitation projects; with sea-level-rise uncertainty the viable financing window could shrink and the port is exploring alternative financing tools such as infrastructure financing districts.
Port staff said they will solicit applicants for a waterfront plan working group and a set of technical advisory teams (solicitations open through July 17) and that the planning outreach is expected to run roughly 18–24 months. Commissioners encouraged active Historic Preservation Commission participation, and staff offered to coordinate continued engagement at the staff level and through advisory teams.
