Locals knew the renovation of Esprit Park, located in San Francisco’s Dogpatch neighborhood, would be controversial, but no one anticipated the vandalism. In summer 2023, a San Francisco arborist examined five wilting poplar trees and found small man-made holes believed to contain toxins. The trees had been deliberately poisoned under “mysterious circumstances,” according to a statement released by Friends of Esprit Park, the neighborhood association that had come to the forefront during the park’s endless redesign, which had begun six years prior. The poplars would require removal, as would two failing redwoods, slapping on a couple more months before Esprit’s reopening, then scheduled for the fall.
In January 2023, Esprit Park, the only city park in Dogpatch and the former corporate park for the popular eponymous ’80s clothing brand, had closed for renovations. The 1.83-acre green space had been unable to keep up with the neighborhood’s exponential growth; between 2010 and 2020, Dogpatch’s population had grown by more than 200 percent. Plus, there was all the foot traffic—an influx of the hip and hungry visiting the area’s impressive art and food scene, located less than three miles from downtown San Francisco.
But what the area had in cache it lacked in infrastructure. Like much of San Francisco, there were few trash cans and insufficient public restrooms. Topping the list was also a lack of green space—which had sparked a face-off between two of Dogpatch’s fastest-growing populations: tots and dogs.
Showdown
Since 2001, when it was officially transferred to San Francisco’s Recreation and Parks Department, Esprit had become increasingly dog-friendly. Katherine Doumani, the former president and current vice president of the Dogpatch Neighborhood Association (DNA), says she observed up to 40 dogs playing in Esprit at the same time, running off leash and tearing up the sod. Meanwhile, Dogpatch had become increasingly kid-friendly. Donovan Lacy is president of the DNA and board president of the Green Benefit District, an organization that manages funding allocated to Esprit Park’s redesign, among other projects. Lacy says he measures Dogpatch’s growth by the number of children in his building—when he moved in 15 years ago, there were 3. Today, there are 12. “Those folks want somewhere to go,” he says, referring to recreational areas available to families.
The $8.5 million Esprit renovation, intended to strike harmony between the warring camps as well as refresh the overall area, was announced in fall 2017. DNA encouraged neighbors to take an active role in the process. “We want to hear everyone’s voice,” Lacy said at the time. This slowed things down, inspiring endless meetings, heated emotions, and numerous splinter groups. A dog-friendly advocacy group, Toes and Paws for Green Space, emerged as a vocal protector of canine rights. New residents moved in and threatened to restart the community-engagement process. The years dragged on.
At the end of 2020, the San Francisco Recreation and Parks Department finally arrived at six proposals, drawn up by David Fletcher, the owner of landscape architecture firm Fletcher Studio. The stakes were high: “We have the only chance to do something successful,” says Fletcher, whose business has been working in Dogpatch since 2008. “It’s a gritty approach to placemaking.”
In February 2021, the department approved a concept design. The selected layout would feature a dog-free south meadow and an off-leash north meadow bisected by a concrete pathway, trees, and a seat wall. The park’s corners would be anchored by four plazas containing a variety of seating options as well as exercise equipment (but no playground). A compromise, yes, but make no mistake: In preserving their freedom to roam wild, Dogpatch had gone to the dogs.
The park’s fall 2023 reopening was postponed until the following spring. In October 2024, Lacy said, “Now we’ll be lucky if it’s the end of this year.” Finally, the Recreation and Parks Department announced a February 2025 opening. This time, they meant it.
A Park Divided
Last Wednesday, heavy rain paused briefly for the official opening of Dogpatch’s Esprit Park. “I’m not going to say the curse is over, but the sky did open,” says Lacy. The mood on the ground, seven years after the planning process had begun, was ecstatic.
But all is far from well. Lacy and Doumani are discouraged by the city’s protocol for awarding contracts to developers who’d proposed the lowest bid, a practice they believe contributed to Esprit’s numerous work delays. “There’s no teeth in any of their contracts,” Doumani says.
There’s also the problem of the park barrier itself, which is easy to circumnavigate (for certain discerning parents of children or dogs). Doumani and Lacy voiced concerns about noncompliance. Meanwhile, Fletcher finds the park’s fluidity meaningful: “It’s no longer a place that divides,” Fletcher says, gesturing to a large fence meant to separate canines and humans. “It’s a place that brings us together.”•
Julie Zigoris is a storyteller in San Francisco, where she works to uncover the people and places that make the city unique. Her work has been honored by the Society of Professional of Journalists, the San Francisco Press Club, the Los Angeles Press Club, and the Journalism Association of Community Colleges.
