Torn-up zone’s holiday spirit
Winter Walk dresses up Union Square blocks
For the past three holiday seasons, San Francisco has transformed the Central Subway construction zone on two blocks of Stockton Street just south of Union Square into a shoppers’ respite.
Construction stops, holes are fenced off and dirt is covered with fake grass. Benches, tables, food trucks and carolers take the place of jackhammers.
Winter Walk, as it’s officially known, has become a holiday tradition. An estimated 750,000 visitors stopped by in 2016.
On Saturday, the newish tradition returns — for what may be the last time.
By this time next year, if plans go as scheduled, construction on Stockton between Ellis and Geary streets will have been
“You just see people’s faces light up as they turn the corner, especially people who know it’s a construction site the other 11 months.” Karin Flood, Union Square Business Improvement District
completed and the street repaved and reopened, and it will be heavy with vehicle traffic.
But some Union Square businesses want to close Stockton during the holidays to make Winter Walk a permanent seasonal experience.
“We are hoping to be able to close it off for the holidays” every year, said Karin Flood, executive director of the Union Square Business Improvement District. The group plans to start campaigning for it next year, soon after this year’s Winter Walk ends.
A proposal last year by the Municipal Transportation Agency to make the closure year-round — and permanent — died last year after Chinatown leader Rose Pak, now deceased, fought the effort. She and Chinatown interests argued that Stockton Street is vital to the neighborhood because it is a key route between their community and Interstate 80.
Construction of the subway’s Chinatown station, which has been delayed, has already hurt the community, they said. Some downtown hoteliers also objected to closing Stockton Street permanently, saying the closure would make it difficult for visitors to drive to their accommodations.
But many Union Square merchants supported the plan, maintaining that the city has managed to survive for four years without those two blocks of Stockton Street, and that the closure enhances the area.
MTA officials, unable to quickly resolve the dispute, gave up on the plan late last year.
“Without a clear consensus, the MTA chose not to continue to pursue the effort,” said Paul Rose, an agency spokesman.
Winter Walk began in 2014 as a way to keep subway construction from dispersing dust and noise and detracting from the holiday shopping experience.
“It’s a wonderful opportunity for people people to walk down the street,” Flood said. “You just see people’s faces light up as they turn the corner, especially people who know it’s a construction site the other 11 months.”
Winter Walk will open at 7 a.m. Saturday, and run through New Year’s Eve. In addition to the fake grass and daily visits from food trucks, it will feature a pair of beer and wine gardens, live entertainment and carolers, and holiday-theme selfie stations.
Once it closes, Stockton Street will be turned over to contractors building the Union Square/Market Street station, then, later next year, to drivers and vehicles. But Flood holds out some hope that Winter Walk may be able to live on.
“We’re going to try and see if there is a will and an interest to keep doing it,” Flood said. “It’s been an incredible amenity.”