China Basin Park

Bound by 3rd Street, McCovey Cove and the San Francisco Bay, China Basin Park is a 5-acre waterfront park intended to be the cultural and recreational centerpiece for the planned Mission Rock neighborhood—foregrounding the pulsing, living systems of the Bay.

Firmly rooted in the character of Bay Area neighborhoods and anchored by an open and generous lawn, China Basin Park also provides a future-ready intertidal landscape and beach. Tidal shelves carved into the park ‘give back’ to nature while creating a shifting, biodiverse intertidal landscape and water access point. The park’s topography shapes diverse spaces—including an open lawn with expansive views of the Bay Bridge and Oracle Park; a central plaza and restaurant pavilion; and a lifted grove lit by catenary lights, designed for flexible programming and cultural events. A segment of the Bay Trail also runs directly through the site, linking it to a 500-mile regional trail network that connects 47 cities. The softened park edge contrasts to the area’s bulkheads and hard coastal infrastructure, bringing a more textured natural experience in reach of the city’s growing population.

Once open water, the project area is built entirely on fill from the 1906 earthquake, which in turn sits atop Bay silt. Adjacent to the site, McCovey Cove was named after Willie McCovey, a beloved Hall of Famer and legendary first baseman for the Giants. The team’s stadium lies just across the cove. During games, kayakers race to fish out home runs from the water as they come flying over the right field wall, dubbed “Splash Hits.” Lefty O’Doul Bridge connects crowds between Mission Rock and the stadium on game day. The park promises to condense the energy of the urban destinations surrounding it while offering unfettered access to the water’s edge, showcasing the area’s distinct history and ecology.

Learn more:

• Read John King in The San Francisco Chronicle (2019).