Join Livable City for a Press Conference at Sunday Streets Mission

PRESS CONFERENCE DETAILS:

DATE: March 8th, 2020

TIME: 12:00pm 

LOCATION: Valencia Gardens, Valencia Street at Rosa Parks Lane

DESCRIPTION: On March 8, join Livable City at Sunday Streets Mission for a press conference launching the biggest season yet of San Francisco’s open streets program. In 2020, Livable City debuts two new routes as Sunday Streets expands to provide more free recreation, community-building and open space for fun, health and human connection with 11 citywide events. The fun begins on March 8, when Sunday Streets Mission transforms Valencia Street from Duboce to 26th Street into a car-free temporary park for all from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

MEDIA CONTACTS:

Pre-Event Day // Mary Strope – 415-344-0489 // mary@livablecity.org

Event-Day // Katy Birnbaum – 707-548-6218

SPEAKERS:

Confirmed: Supervisor Rafael Mandelman, Sunday Streets Director Katy Birnbaum, Livable City Executive Director Tom Radulovich

Invited: Mayor London Breed, Supervisor Hillary Ronen, OEWD Director Joaquin Torres, SFMTA Director Jeffrey Tumlin, SFDPH Director Dr. Grant Colfax, DCYF Executive Director Maria Su, NEN Director Daniel Homsey, Mission Housing Deputy Executive Director Marcia Contreras

2020 TALKING POINTS

• 2020 is the 12th season of Sunday Streets!

• Sunday Streets is San Francisco’s open streets program, hosting 11 yearly events, primarily in underserved neighborhoods lacking in recreational opportunities and open space. This series of free, fun events empowers local communities to transform one to four miles of car-congested streets into car-free community spaces for kids to play, seniors to stroll, organizations to connect and neighbors to meet, 

• Sunday Streets is a program of the nonprofit Livable City and is presented in partnership SFMTA, SF DPH, and the City and County of San Francisco. It began in 2008 as a Mayoral initiative under now-Governor Gavin Newsom and was developed in partnership with the San Francisco ShapeUp Coalition. 

• Social Cohesion & Resilience – Sunday Streets creates social connection, a key to positive mental health and a necessary component of resilience and disaster preparedness. Not only do the events provide a space for people to meet on a human scale, but the year-round planning process builds capacity and connection. With 85 percent of attendees from San Francisco and 51 percent living within walking distance of the route, Sunday Streets is an event truly by and for SF residents.

• Growing Together – Sunday Streets is growing, with a landmark 11 events this year, making it one of the country’s largest open streets programs. Sunday Streets grows through a community-driven process of evaluation, outreach, and engagement, inviting residents to shape the program’s future according to their neighborhood’s needs. At the events, neighborhoods celebrate their resources by collaborating with a diverse group of stakeholders to create culturally reflective, destination-worthy programming provided by local nonprofits, small businesses, government organizations and neighborhood groups.

• Mode Shift – At Sunday Streets, residents explore their neighborhoods on foot and bike and discover walking and biking paths for everyday trips, a critical component to meeting SFMTA’s Climate Action Strategy goal: shifting 80% of all trips taken to sustainable modes by 2030.

March 8th, 2020 Partnership Roundup

• “Come to Your Census” Zone with SF Counts and Office of Civic Engagement and Immigrant Affairs (OCEIA): 2020 census information, choreographed Capoeira performance followed by a public a demonstration and invitation to participate from 12:30-1:30 p.m. at 15th and 16th Streets                         
• Summer Resource Fair Pop-Up with SF Department of Children, Youth and Their Families (DCYF) : Petting zoo, onsite summer program sign-ups between 14th and 15th Streets
• Play Streets Block Party with Mission Housing Development Corporation : with games, prizes and sports between 14th and 15th Streets
• Neighborfest Zone with the Neighborhood Empowerment Network (NEN) and sponsored by LISTOS: with disaster preparedness activities, giveaways and resources between 24th and 25th Streets