When the Great Highway became San Francisco’s newest car-free park, many west-siders were furious. They complained of traffic jams and speeding drivers. Some demanded their local supervisor be recalled for supporting the park.
But while they might not be over their anger just yet, many of the haters appear to have concluded that they might as well get some vitamin D — fog willing — and exercise while they exorcise their grumbles. Flag down a power-walker, cyclist, or skateboarder at the newly christened Sunset Dunes, and you’ll likely find yourself talking to someone who voted against Proposition K.
NoPa resident Tim Evans called closing the Great Highway “so selfish it makes me sick” but conceded that he likes the new park anyway.
“I enjoy it, but we shouldn’t have built it in the first place,” the 48-year-old said.
“We’ll walk it, but closing it off is selfish,” said Peggy O’Donnell, 74, who lives at 27th Avenue and Vicente Street.
To get a sense of who’s actually using the park, The Standard spent April 8 to 11 chatting up everyone from triathletes logging training miles to moms pushing strollers along the three-mile stretch. Of the 104 people interviewed, 64, or 61%, live in west-side neighborhoods that voted strongly against Prop. K, including the Sunset, Parkside, Richmond, and Parkmerced.
Many who walked and rolled along the park said they voted against the ballot measure that permanently closed a stretch of the highway to cars, and they want it reopened to vehicles.
People visiting from other neighborhoods were few. The Standard canvassed parkgoers from 19 other city neighborhoods, including the Mission, West Portal, and Cole Valley, but no more than three came from any one of them.
Most people (53.8%) said they like the park; the remainder were lukewarm. Twenty-two people said they dislike the park, and 26 said they had mixed feelings or were ambivalent.
“I love the parks in SF, but we don’t need more,” said Izzy Moore, a 26-year-old Sunset resident who was on a run down the road. “But if it’s closed, I’m gonna use it.”
Jason Seto, who lives at 26th Avenue and Fulton Street, said closing roads to cars doesn’t make them safer for cyclists like him.
The 41-year-old said he’s concerned about traffic, and the previous situation, in which the Great Highway was closed to cars only on weekends, was a good compromise. The influx of cars on neighboring streets will only irritate drivers, who then speed and blow through stop signs, he said.
Twenty-three park users mentioned concerns about traffic, including longer commute times and frustrated drivers. In a recent analysis, a city contractor found that traffic has indeed spiked in the Sunset since the road closure. City officials and proponents of the park argue that the issue will improve as drivers adjust to their new routes.
Still, Seto argued that the best way forward is for drivers and cyclists to figure out how to coexist.
“We can share the roads,” he said. “We don’t need to close the whole road to make a bike path.”
But Jorge Diaz, who lives in Parkmerced, said he often had to ride his bike on the shoulder of the Great Highway when it was open to cars — a stressful experience.
“I was worried about distracted drivers hitting me in the bike lane,” said Diaz, 55. “I wouldn’t take the other path because there were people walking dogs over there.”
Nearly everyone polled acknowledged that having a long, flat, paved straightaway is an asset to families with young children, who may struggle walking through the sand on Ocean Beach or are learning how to ride bikes.
“It’s good for kids,” said Matt McKenna, 36. “And it’s nice seeing a lot of pedestrians down here, especially between Noriega and Sloat, which tends to be more desolate.”
Strapping on a pair of roller skates, Kelsey Williams, 35, said the road closure makes her feel safer.
“I can ride without worrying about cars hitting me,” Williams said.
Cameryn Lino, who lives in Oakland, said she supports closing the park during the weekdays.
“More people have remote work now; everyone stands to benefit,” said Lino, 22, who was skating at the park.
But commuters who used to rely on the Great Highway are not pleased.
Clutching a skateboard, Arak Lim said the closure has added around 15 minutes to his trip to Palo Alto, where he works as a nurse at Stanford Hospital. Still, he was enjoying the road to skate on.
“It’s hella congested on Sunset. And it’s not as pretty,” said Lim, 30, who used to commute down the Great Highway three times a week. “This used to be a drive I looked forward to.”
On Saturday, 13,000 people enjoyed the park during its grand opening, according to the Recreation and Parks Department. Between April 7 and April 11, it drew 16,800. Sunset Dunes is already the city’s third most-attended park.
“We love that the west side is turning out to enjoy it,” parks department spokesperson Tamara Aparton said in an email. “We’re in the business of building public spaces that bring people together, and it’s gratifying to see that happening.”
Vin Budhai, who is leading the recall campaign against Supervisor Joel Engardio, said he isn’t surprised by the enthusiasm of those using the park, but The Standard’s survey doesn’t capture the whole picture.
“It doesn’t include the parents trying to get to school drop-offs, the seniors trying to reach medical appointments, or the veterans heading to the VA Hospital,” Budhai said in an email. “These folks aren’t walking on the dunes — they’ve been pushed onto longer, more dangerous routes through residential neighborhoods.”
Meanwhile, Engardio said he was glad to hear that despite the pushback, his west-side constituents are making up the lion’s share of park visitors. He added that “many” in the neighborhood have told him they like Sunset Dunes.
“I believe as more people use the park, they will come to see Sunset Dunes is good for the environment, good for our local economy, and will benefit our Sunset neighborhoods for generations to come,” the supervisor said in a statement.