L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, MARCH 5, 2015 www.italoamericano.com L'Italo-Americano 5 POPOS – Italian Urban Piazzas The words piazza and plaza h a v e t h e s a m e G r e e k o r i g i n (although some scholars insist the origin is Latin), with plaza being the Spanish adaption and piazza the Italian one. Let's opt for Italian for the purposes of this article! W h e n o n e t h i n k s o f t h e world's most cherished outdoor spaces, one probably thinks of Italy's grand piazzas. Have you ever wished you could be magi- cally transported there? With a little imagination you can with San Francisco's POPOS. Call them whatever you like, the official definition of a POPOS is a Privately Owned Public Open Space and they are preva- l e n t i n d o w n t o w n S a n Francisco. T r a d i t i o n a l p i a z z a s a r e defined as an open public place, especially those found in Italian towns, surrounded by buildings and often the center of outdoor a c t i v i t i e s . T h e p i a z z a h a s played a vital role and has been a s i g n i f i c a n t p a r t o f I t a l i a n cities going back to medieval time. New or old, piazzas have always been a place of contem- plation, rest and rejuvenation, a place for gathering together and a place to ponder the meaning of Life. So, could POPOS be a new "urban" word for piazza? San Francisco's urban piaz- zas are scattered both north and south of Market Street, with a total of 68, which range in size and style from rooftop decks to the cherished Redwood Park at the base of the Transamerica Pyramid. Urban open spaces like these are the pride and joy o f l a r g e c i t i e s a n d i n S a n Francisco, a city where over 250,000 people converge on a daily basis, they are an urban oasis that take the form of mini- parks, gardens and walkways. T h e y a r e m u c h s o u g h t a f t e r places where we can sit, relax, eat, read or meet with friends. San Francisco's first POPOS were established when develop- ers were encouraged to make space available outside of the building for public use. This type of mitigation measure gave developers the possibility of building taller, bigger buildings or canceling out certain con- struction restrictions. In other words, the earliest of the pri- v a t e l y o w n e d p u b l i c s p a c e s were created through incentive plans to encourage the develop- ment of more open space in San Francisco's downtown area. T h e f i r s t S a n F r a n c i s c o POPOS dates back to 1959 and is located at One Bush Street. It is described as "A beautifully designed and maintained urban g a r d e n s u r r o u n d i n g t h e f i r s t postwar high-rise building — a 'tower in a park.' It features river rocks embedded in con- c r e t e , i n l a i d w i t h a s t r i k i n g design of bands of grey slate. The plantings consist of cherry, willow and pine trees and ever- green ground cover. The garden l i e s b e l o w s t r e e t l e v e l a n d resembles a moat." P r i o r t o t h e c i t y ' s 1 9 8 5 Downtown Plan, commercial developers included POPOS in their buildings under three cir- c u m s t a n c e s : v o l u n t a r i l y , i n exchange for a density bonus, or a s a c o n d i t i o n o f a p p r o v a l . Since 1985, however, POPOS have been created pursuant to t h e r e q u i r e m e n t s o f t h e Downtown Plan. Generally accepted elements of a modern piazza include: A strong enclosure, like being in human-scaled outdoor rooms; wall continuity surrounded by buildings with pedestrian-sized passageways; accessible ground floors acting as open stages, often filled with fountains, mon- uments and other landscaping elements; people-watching as sport which makes a piazza a piazza, a stage where there is spontaneous human activity. San Francisco's POPOS dif- fer greatly in design from the a w e - i n s p i r i n g m a j e s t i c Redwood Park at the base of the Transamerica Pyramid building to the landscaped pedestrian walkway of the Embarcadero Center to rooftop sun decks and terraces, such as the one at 150 C a l i f o r n i a S t r e e t . T h e t w o POPOS I chose to highlight here a r e R e d w o o d P a r k a n d 5 5 5 California Street. R e d w o o d P a r k i s l o c a t e d n e a r t h e i n t e r s e c t i o n o f Montgomery and Clay Streets. Built in 1972, it is nestled at the base of the iconic Transamerica P y r a m i d . S u r r o u n d e d b y Redwood trees and ferns, the fountain pond, with sculptures o f f r o g s o n l i l y p a d s , i s absolutely delightful. There are grassy areas and wooden bench- es with take-out food services nearby. T h e P O P O S a t 5 5 5 California Street is stunning. It is located in the A.P. Giannini Plaza which sits at the base of the towering Bank of America building, now referred to as the 555 California Street building. The seating area is quite elegant a n d b r i l l i a n t l y l a n d s c a p e d . Leave it to an Italian immigrant to establish one of the largest b a n k s i n t h e w o r l d w h e n h e f o u n d e d t h e B a n k o f I t a l y , which eventually became the Bank of America, and later the Transamerica Corporation. Actually, to tie this up nicely, since one POPOS is at the base of the Transamerica building and the other one is at the base of the Bank of America build- ing, we could say they are both the result of A.P. Giannini's extraordinary business acumen as one of San Francisco's most important Italian Americans. A guide to San Francisco's POPOS, including a detailed listing, photographs and a map c a n b e f o u n d a t https://www.spur.org/sites/defa ult/files/migrated/anchors/popo s-guide.pdf. F o r I t a l i a n s a n d I t a l i a n lovers, there is actually the pos- sibility a new piazza might be c o m i n g t o t h e N o r t h B e a c h D i s t r i c t o f S a n F r a n c i s c o ' s Little Italy. It's called Piazza SF. This piazza has been "under consideration" for several years now but new reports seem to i n d i c a t e f u n d i n g m i g h t b e a p r o b l e m . R e a d m o r e a b o u t Piazza SF in a future article by Catherine Accardi. Catherine is a San Francisco historian and author of "San Francisco's N o r t h B e a c h & T e l e g r a p h Hill". CATHERINE ACCARDI POPOS at 555 California Street in A.P. Giannini Plaza at the base of the Bank of America building. Photo: Catherine Accardi POPOS at 555 California Street in A.P. Giannini Plaza with seating area. Photo: Catherine Accardi Redwood Park with frogs on lily pads. Photo: Catherine Accardi

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