SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS RADIO) – Block parties were held around San Francisco on Sunday, as part of the city’s second annual Phoenix Day.
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The event aims to create temporary open space in neighborhoods most lacking – and the most desperate need for open space is San Francisco’s Tenderloin.
The neighborhood has the highest concentration of kids, seniors, and people with disabilities, in mostly small apartments.
Yet the neighborhood has the least open space at just 12 acres of park space.
According to San Francisco's Director of Transportation Jeffrey Tumlin, this kind of event illuminates the need for public lands, but also fosters a sense of safety and community, especially for kids.
The event itself is simple, with some music and a few activities, but the impact is great. And this type of event can be used as a model throughout the city.
"Sunday streets shows us how great the need is," he said. "Also how uplifting the possibility is, if we prioritize the highest public good."
And theses types of gatherings also foster a greater willingness to use public transit.
"The transit system is really dependent upon people being able to walk to their bus stop and feel safe and comfortable doing so," he said.
The Sunday Streets program hosts Phoenix Day as well as other events that block of streets to traffic and allow people to gather safely and enjoy themselves.
The program serves more than 100,000 people in neighborhoods throughout the city.
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