I usually don't post pieces that are about things that are in the planning stages. But, there should be big changes coming to Piers 27 and 29 over the next 4 quarters or year that will be fun to watch. 2026 promises to bring a very different look to Pier 27 for cruise-ships.

Several days ago I wrote to Marcus Davies of the San Francisco Arts Commission regarding the public art project slated for Pier 27. Here's his response:

"Hi Greg,

Thanks for your inquiry. To give a brief overview, the artwork is going through final design now, which will be followed by engineering and permitting, then fabrication and installation. I anticipate installation of the finished artwork to take place in Q1 2026.

Regards,

Marcus"

And:

Massive art and culture hub coming to S.F. pier that’s been empty for more than a decade

By Laura Waxmann, Reporter April 22, 2025 - San Francisco Chronicle

On a mission to claim some of downtown San Francisco’s languishing commercial buildings as affordable spaces for the city’s artists and culture groups, the Community Arts Stabilization Trust has set its sights on a vacant pier.

On Tuesday, the community-centered real estate organization, known as CAST, scored approval from the city’s Port Commission to reimagine a roughly 100,000-square-foot warehouse that spans Pier 29 and has largely sat vacant for more than a decade as artist studios and for arts and cultural programming. 

The lease deal is for a two-year activation term, which will begin following a six month construction period in which CAST plans to make improvements to the property. The organization also has an option to request a two-year extension of its lease once it expires.  

CAST’s proposal for Pier 29 includes a partnership with Art + Water, a new organization by the Hawkins Project, which is a local nonprofit associated with the philanthropic endeavors of author Dave Eggers and artist J.D. Beltran, who also serves on the city’s Arts Commission. 

Eggers is the co-founder of 826 Valencia, a youth writing center located in the city’s Mission District. At Pier 29, Art + Water will occupy some 30 “art pods” designed by CAST, which will span just over half of the existing warehouse. Some of the remaining space will be sublet to other arts groups, and a portion will be built out as convertible space for cultural programming and events that can accommodate up to 2,500 people.

Once the project is completed, it will become San Francisco’s largest combined studio and exhibition space, according to the Port. It will also reboot a vacant warehouse that has been empty since the 2013 America’s Cup. The building was previously used for storage and parking — it burned down prior to the sailing competition but was quickly rebuilt, said Port Executive Director Elaine Forbes. 

“It was an amazing historic rebuild. We did it in nine months. It’s a beautiful building that we haven’t had much activity in,” she said. 

Activating the stretch of the waterfront between the cruise ship terminal at Pier 27 and Fisherman’s Wharf at Pier 39 has been a growing priority of the Port, Forbes said.

Massive art and culture hub coming to S.F. pier that’s been empty for more than a decade

Greg