Wanted: Bayview workers to build India Basin waterfront park

Liberty-Builders-Embarcadero-light-rail-1995-1996-web, Wanted: Bayview workers to build India Basin waterfront park, Local News & Views
Black workers unite! SF Bay View Publisher Dr. Willie Ratcliff was a prestigious contractor and owned the company Liberty Builders, named for his hometown of East Liberty, Texas. Liberty Builders’ work shone in the Bay Area throughout the ’80s and ’90s, with an all-Black crew that completed jobs on time and often higher-quality than the white-owned businesses, who were awarded most of the City’s contracts – even while the crew faced direct racism and scarcity of amenities on site. Dr. Ratcliff’s crew is pictured here working on the light rail system along the Embarcadero, 1995-1996.

New phase of India Basin project includes business opportunities and job trainings for the community

Making good on its promise to create jobs in the Bayview, the San Francisco Recreation and Park Department is seeking local building professionals who will create the City’s next great waterfront park, a once-in-a-generation project in the heart of the Bayview.

900 Innes Phase 2, which went out to bid late Monday afternoon, is part of the larger India Basin Waterfront Park Project, one of the most significant park projects in San Francisco history. The scope of work for the project, which follows the Phase 1 environmental cleanup of the site, includes:

  • Rehabilitation of the Historic Shipwright’s Cottage, a City landmark.
  • Construction of a food pavilion, shop building and maintenance building.
  • Building two new piers, a floating dock, gangway and marine rails.
  • Site improvements such as utility connections, earthwork, grading, structural fill, foundations, walls, concrete paving, stone and concrete stairs, wood decks, an overlook, a trellis, lighting, landscaping, signage and more.

The India Basin Waterfront Park Project is the City’s most ambitious effort at comprehensive park investment in a historically underserved community. It is guided by an Equitable Development Plan (EDP), a first for San Francisco, with the goal of delivering a park designed by and for Bayview Hunters Point.

A major strategy of the EDP is to create and sustain neighborhood jobs and encourage local firms to participate in construction work at the park. The recently posted bid encourages local contractors and subcontractors to apply. It also utilizes a Best Value (BV) contract, where selection is based on objective criteria to determine the best combination of price and qualifications. 

This BV contract features a questionnaire that will be scored by a panel, with the score being used as additional value a contractor may offer in concert with their bid price. The BV questionnaire specifically seeks information about experience and approach in working with local business enterprise contractors, local workforce and community benefits programs.

The India Basin Waterfront Park project will transform dilapidated industrial spaces and underperforming parks into an expansive 1.7-mile network of green space. The $150 million project is a partnership between the San Francisco Recreation and Park Department (RPD), Trust for Public Land (TPL), San Francisco Parks Alliance (SFPA), the A. Philip Randolph Institute San Francisco (APRI) and the Bayview Hunters Point (BVHP) community.

“India Basin is an opportunity to create a world class waterfront recreation area driven by equity and shaped by the community every step of the way,” said San Francisco Recreation and Park Department General Manager Phil Ginsburg. 

“A clean, healthy and publicly-accessible coastline is a matter of environmental justice, and we are thrilled to partner with Bayview residents and businesses to make it happen.” 

Phase 2 is estimated to cost roughly $27 million, with construction lasting approximately 19 months.

“The Equitable Development Plan is a commitment to the community that they will share in the park’s success in real, tangible ways,” said Jacqueline Flin, executive director of APRI. “This second phase is also the next step in fulfilling commitments to uplift the community through the park project in regard to workforce and business development through jobs, training and opportunities for small businesses.”

APRI hosted a contractor and subcontractor meet-and-greet at the park on Thursday, March 17, where they answered questions about this bid package and connected local businesses with one another. 

In partnership with the San Francisco Office of Economic and Workforce Development (OEWD) and its CityBuild Academy, APRI is also hosting a series of community orientations for free construction trainings ahead of 900 Innes Phase 2 construction that is set to begin this summer. Completion of the training allows graduates access to construction jobs that pay union wages for this second phase for the India Basin Waterfront Park Project and beyond. 

“The Office of Economic and Workforce Development is committed to bringing vital workforce services to residents,” said CityBuild Director Ken Nim. “Through neighborhood training programs and partnerships with community-based organizations such as APRI, we’re ensuring that communities citywide have access to employment services.”

If you are a local contractor or subcontractor interested in attending the meet and greet, or community member interested in attending a construction training orientation, please contact Eva Hopkins at EvaHopkinsAPRISF@gmail.com or 415-821-4777.

Bids are due on Wednesday, April 13, by 2:30 p.m. An online pre-bid meeting will be held on Wednesday, March 23, at 10 a.m. via Zoom. For the meeting link, bid package advertisement and additional information, go to Public Works and SF City Partner.