Icon On The Waterfront

How a reimagined Ferry Building revitalized San Francisco’s downtown shoreline

- Renee Brincks

SAN FRANCISCO’S ICONIC Ferry Building anchors Market Street, with two symmetrical wings extending from its 245-foot tower like open arms welcoming travelers to the waterfront. This legendary Embarcadero structure has served as a symbol of the city for more than a century, starting as a major transit hub and standing tall through two major earthquakes to become today’s community gathering space and culinary destination.

Before bridges spanned the San Francisco Bay, the Ferry Building served as a major entry point for passengers arriving from the north and east. Soon after its 1898 opening, the structure saw more than 50,000 commuters each day—and that made it the second busiest transit terminal in the world.

“Passengers came through the secondfloor grand hall and walked down the historic stairs under the clock tower to the foot of Market Street. They were greeted by dozens and dozens of trolley cars and train lines,” says Jane Connors, general manager at Equity Office, the company that manages the Ferry Building.

By the late 1930s, however, cars started crossing the newly constructed Bay and Golden Gate bridges. Two decades later, a new double-decker freeway opened to Embarcadero traffic and visually separated the Ferry Building from downtown San Francisco. Soon, local ferry companies ended service. The terminal was divided into offices, and linoleum was laid over the second floor’s stunning marble mosaic tile.

Though ferries eventually returned, the Ferry Building remained an afterthought until the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake. As the damaged Embarcadero Freeway was removed, it sparked a community-wide conversation about the waterfront.