City Park
The Salesforce Transit Center features a public 5.4-acre rooftop park. The 1,400 foot long elevated park has a wide range of activities and amenities, including an outdoor amphitheater, gardens, trails, open grass areas, and children’s play space, as well as space for a future restaurant. In addition to being a generous amenity for the quickly developing Transbay neighborhood, the rooftop park doubles as a “green roof” for the transit center, one of many environmentally-friendly building features. A landscaped green roof, also known as a “vegetative” or “living” roof, offers significant environmental benefits. It shades much of the ground-level sidewalk when the sun is strongest and provides biological habitat for flora and fauna and public open space for visitors. It also acts as insulation for interior spaces, moderating heat build-up in warm weather and retaining heat during cooler weather. Unlike asphalt paving or dark colored roofing surfaces, planting on the green roof cools the surrounding environment and improves air quality by acting as a carbon sink. As a biological organism itself, the park helps capture and filter the exhaust in the area and helps improve air quality in the neighborhood. Just over a quarter mile long, the park design includes active space allowing organized events like concerts and fairs along with quiet areas where visitors can relax in informal natural settings. The vibrant plaza located in the center of the park receives the largest influx of visitors from the building’s main escalators and elevators which connect to the ground level. Plenty of seating and daily events and activities are offered on the main plaza. The park’s western end features an amphitheater and stage for programmed performances. Botanic displays and open lawn areas allow visitors to enjoy the park. Children also find places for active and dynamic exploration. These areas fit seamlessly into the overall park plan and contain gardens, water features and other elements that offer varied perceptions and experiences for the young and young at heart.
Highlights of the Rooftop Public Park include:
- Green roof with sustainable design features
- Public space including both quiet and active areas
- Space for a future restaurant
- Open air amphitheater
- Display gardens featuring climate-appropriate plants
- Children’s play space
- Pedestrian bridges connecting surrounding development to the park
- Several different public access points, including a privately-operated gondola available at Mission and Fremont streets
