India Basin Waterfront
- CLIENT \\
Build : - LOCATION \\
San Francisco, CA - SIZE \\
27 acres
India Basin is a post-industrial waterfront in a high-tech city. Bionic is the lead landscape architect for its transformation from a feral and forgotten place to a new expansion of the city enabled with a super-natural landscape designed for the future. Over 7 acres will be dedicated to open space and coastal wetlands designed to be resilient to shocks and changes over time. The shoreline is designed to adapt over time to sea level rise through living shorelines. The team worked closely with Bay Agencies to reframe policies on waterfront development and coastal adaption.
Terraced wetlands enable upland habitat migration from freshwater wetlands to brackish and tidal marsh over time as sea levels rise.
A perched beach provides amentiy space in the short term and evolves into a tidally-influenced beach in the long term.
A system of pond and wetland infrastructure manages 100% of the site’s stormwater and wastewater for re-use in the park and habitats. Excess water is sold to adjacent properties for district-scale sustainability.
A non-profit stewardship trust funded through tax increment financing will fund and manage long-term operations, maintenance, programming, and coastal adaptation.
Pilot projects activate the site early by employing technologies and restoration methods for long term success.
All parts of the design promote diverse ecologies.
All cut soils are managed on site for a net zero offhaul.
A resilient bay edge including eel grass restoration, floating wetlands, terraced wetlands, and a bioengineered reef provide shoreline protection, wave attenuation, habitat creation, and terraces for upland habitat migration.