After more than 15 years in development, construction of San Francisco’s new Mexican Museum at the downtown Yerba Buena Center moved closer to final approval March 21 when the city’s planning commission certified an environmental report for the project.
The report assessed how a proposed 47-story tower in a vacant lot at 706 Mission St.—a plan developed by Millenium Projects—would impact an already bustling redevelopment area. If later approved, the building could provide a new $36 million state-of-the-art home for the Mexican Museum, in addition to 215 residential units above it.
“It’s a significant step forward in the development of the new museum,” Museum Director David de la Torre said. “I would say for our supporters and the public to watch the progress in the next several months.”
“This is a project of the people. It is a cultural project that will really make the entire city proud,” said Adrian Bermudez, who was among more than a dozen ardent supporters at the meeting.
Advocates included artists, residents of the community and even government officials.
“The importance of your decision today has implications far beyond San Francisco and into Mexico. As Mexico’s nationals come to San Francisco, the Mexican Museum is and will continue to be a tourist cultural destination,” said Andrew Kluger, one of four honorary consuls of Mexico in the United States, who urged the commission to verify the report.
However, not everyone was ready to welcome the addition of the museum just yet.
Critics argued the report for the project did not include a complete study of the effects on pedestrians or residents in the area.
Katherin Moore and Hisashi Sugaya were among the only commissioners reluctant to approve the report.
“Pedestrian safety is about understanding the new shift when it comes to a strong, pro-transit city and a push for an increased network of bicycles in the city. All of these things need to be looked at together,” Moore said. “While the environmental impact report is very thorough, it is still not complete.”
Nevertheless, the commission approved the report in a 4-2 vote allowing the museum to advance to other hearings that will ultimately decide its fate.
The museum, which was founded in 1975 in the Mission District, features a 14,000-piece collection that includes a variety of Mexican and Chicano artwork. Officials said several pieces remain in storage unable to be displayed due to lack of space.
Most notably, the museum became an affiliate of the Smithsonian Institution last year joining one of the largest museum networks in the country.
The larger space would allow the museum to expand its programming, offering educational programs for children and adults.
“The educational system in this country is not really educating people in the United States about Latinos,” said Roberto Hernandez, a community activist in the Mission District.
“The educational program of the Mexican Museum will not only be for Latinos, but for all people to really learn about who Latinos are.”
Over the past few weeks, museum officials hosted several meetings with members of the community to help garner support for the project.
“Mexicans built the Contemporary Jewish Museum. We also built the Museum of African Diaspora. Now that we’re done building all your museums, we’re going to build our own,” Hernandez said during a community meeting at the Casa Sanchez restaurant in the Mission District earlier this month.
For Raymond Solomon, a sheet-metal worker involved in constructing the de Young Museum and the Contemporary Jewish Museum, working on the new museum could soon be a reality.
“When I go around the city, I know I’ve done some of that work or I’ve hung from the 14th floor on that basket doing that work,” he said. “To be part of that would fill me with great pride.”
According to museum officials, the project’s development has been elongated after suffering from various setbacks including funding issues. “Now that we’ve got this green light we need to capitalize on it and we need to broaden the museum’s base of support,” de La Torre added.
The next planning commission’s meeting to discuss the museum is scheduled for April 4 at 12 p.m. at City Hall.