**PRESS RELEASE**
San Francisco –Nonprofit Livable City is thrilled to bring over a mile of open space to Folsom Street with Sunday Streets SoMa on Sunday, August 18 from 11am- 4pm. Spanning Folsom from Essex to 10th Street, the car-free route connects western SoMa with the Financial District for attendees to reimagine their city streets as accessible, public and car-free spaces for all.
“Seeing open streets filled with children playing and space for everyone – right next to downtown skyscrapers – shows us a new safe, walkable vision of what our City could be,” said Livable City Associate Director Katy Birnbaum.
Following on the success of last year’s debut, Sunday Streets SoMa continues partnerships with the Leather and LGBTQ Cultural District, honoring the area’s past and present as a haven for the queer and kink communities, and the SOMA Pilipinas, which represents a diverse selection of service groups, small businesses and parks that have served the neighborhood’s thriving Filipino community for decades.
Livable City is also excited to work with the corridor’s Community Benefit Districts – including the East Cut and Yerba Buena – to create an event encouraging neighbors to come celebrate in the streets and learn about the area’s cultural institutions, community resources, small businesses, and civic engagement opportunities.
Visit Folsom between Sixth and Seventh Streets for a Filipino food market hosted by SOMA Pilipinas Filipino Cultural Heritage District and Undiscovered SF with live music, food vendors and a marketplace celebrating the area’s Filipino community.
At Second and Essex Street, The East Cut Community Benefit District’s hub will feature a dog fashion show and music from the SF Rock Project, while Yerba Buena CBD’s Arts and Culture hub between Fourth and Fifth will celebrate with the Gay and Lesbian Freedom Marching Band and 1111 Minna Gallery. Between 9th and 10th Streets, the Leather Hub hosted by the Leather & LGBTQ Cultural District will bring music, resources and information about the area’s history.
Inspired by the Ciclovía in Bogotá, Colombia, Sunday Streets is a series of free, fun events empowering local communities to transform one to four miles of car-congested streets into car-free community spaces for kids to play, seniors to stroll, organizations to connect and neighbors to meet.
Nonprofit Livable City runs both Sunday Streets and Play Streets, a program empowering neighbors to transform their block into an accessible, car-free open space on a regular basis for children, seniors, and neighbors to enjoy. Both programs are sponsored by the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency, as well as other City agencies, and Sunday Streets would not be possible without crucial services like Muni bus re-routing or traffic control officers for public safety.
Project experts from SFMTA and Vision Zero will be on hand throughout the season, providing neighborhood residents and visitors direct access to transit planners and ambassadors dedicated to sustainable streets.
Small businesses, residents, nonprofits and local groups bring activities, volunteers and performances to the car-free routes, with each contributing a distinctive character and energy to the day. A local hire program employs San Francisco residents for outreach and event-day support.
Transforming miles of car-dominated City streets into open space is possible through the collaboration and hard work of hundreds of volunteers, neighbors, nonprofits and small businesses. Donate, exhibit, volunteer or sponsor Sunday Streets in 2019 to be part of a sustainable, greener and more accessible future. For more information, visit www.SundayStreetsSF.com.
Sunday Streets 2019 Season Schedule
March 10 – Mission 1
March 31 – Excelsior 1
April 14 – Tenderloin 1
May 5 – Bayview/Dogpatch
June 9 – Sunset/GGP
July 14 – Mission 2
August 18 – SoMa
September 8 – Tenderloin 2
September 22 – Western Addition
October 20 – Excelsior 2
– MORE –
The Sunday Streets 2019 season is made possible by the following season sponsors: Bay Area Air Quality Management District (BAAQMD), San Francisco Department of Children, Youth & Their Families (DCYF), Mission Housing Development Corporation, SF Recreation and Parks Department, San Francisco Department of Public Works (SFPUC), Genentech, Office of Economic and Workforce Development (OEWD), Sutter/CPMC, Golden State Warriors, iHeartMedia, Skip, Sutter/CPMC, Bay Wheels, and Xfinity/Comcast
About Sunday Streets
Sunday Streets is a program of the nonprofit Livable City, presented in partnership with the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency and the San Francisco Department of Public Health and the Shape Up SF Coalition. Additional City support comes from the Department of Public Works, Recreation & Parks Department, SF Police Department, SF County Transportation Authority, San Francisco Mayor London Breed and her offices and the SF Board of Supervisors.
About Livable City
Livable City is dedicated to increasing affordable housing, improving transportation, land use, open space, and environmental policies, and supporting grassroots initiatives to make San Francisco a safer, healthier, and more accessible city. For more information on Livable City, visit: https://livablecity.org. For more information about Sunday Streets, including the Sunday Streets event activity guide, visit: www.SundayStreetsSF.com. For information on Muni routes and vehicle access, call 511 or go to www.sfgov.org/311.
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