Seven Coming Up in 2007 in San Francisco
SAN FRANCISCO, CA, April 3, 2007. Officials at the San Francisco Convention & Visitors Bureau are touting "seven up in 2007." Some major events and new developments are on the horizon, including the 50th anniversary of the San Francisco International Film Festival and the transformation of the city's southern hemisphere by several major projects.
Boys Meet Girl: Jersey Boys on Extended Run at Curran Theatre .
Jersey Boys, the Tony Award winner for best musical, is on an extended run through at least April 15 at San Francisco's Curran Theatre, 445 Geary St. The story of Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons, the musical features such hits as "Big Girls Don't Cry," "Sherry," "Walk Like A Man," "Oh, What A Night," and "Can't Take My Eyes Off You." For more information, visit www.shnsf.com or telephone 415-551-2000.Media contact: Jennifer McVey, 415-551-2075.
Precedent Setting San Francisco Federal Building to Open in Spring 2007
LEED-certified buildings represent one of the latest innovations in new building construction. Among the largest applying for this "green" building certification will be the new 575,000 San Francisco Federal Building, Seventh and Mission Streets. Slated to open in the spring of 2007, the 18-story tower is destined to be a landmark without precedent in the U.S. Open work areas located on the building perimeter and private offices and conference spaces in the center core, make the "corner office" a thing of the past. Views of San Francisco's famous skyline are afforded from 90 percent of the workstations. Public amenities will include a caf'e, health and fitness center and conference facilities.
T-Third Light Rail Links Bayshore, Southern Districts to Downtown
Currently operating on weekends only, the new T-Third light rail service goes into full revenue service in April 5, 2007. San Francisco's Municipal Transportation Agency (MTA) has constructed 5.1 miles of track with 18 stations. The full line will start at Sunnydale Avenue, then continue north passing through the new Mission Bay development which includes the Mission Bay Conference Center and the University of California San Francisco - Mission Bay, past AT&T Park, around The Embarcadero, and down Market Street to the Castro Street Station. For more information, visit www.sfmuni.com. Media contact: Maggie Lynch, 415-701-4867, [email protected].
Oldest in Americas: San Francisco International Film Festival Marks 50th Anniversary
The vanguard San Francisco International Film Festival (SFIFF) is the longest-running film festival in the Americas. The first film festival in the Americas to celebrate its 50th anniversary, the SFIFF will honor George Lucas with the one-time-only Irving "Bud" Levine Award at a special Film Society Awards night on May 3 during the festival which runs April 26-May 10, 2007. Named for the founder of the festival, the Levine Award honors Lucas whose works include such box office behemoths as the Star Wars and Indiana Jones series, the latter garnering eight Academy Awards. The festival is an extraordinary showcase of cinematic discovery and innovation in California's most beautiful city. Since 1957 SFIFF has hosted hundreds of prominent guests from Bette Davis to Spike Lee and presented almost 6,000 films from just about 150 countries to nearly two million filmgoers. Groundbreaking from its inception in 1957, San Francisco International has evolved into the film festival of the future by continually discovering breakout filmmakers, new works by acknowledged masters and exciting new local, national and world cinema to introduce to expectant audiences in the Bay Area. In 2006 the Festival introduced KinoTek, spotlighting the use of new technology and cross-platform media. For more information, telephone 415- or visit www.sffs.org. Media contact: Hilary Hart, 415-561-5022, [email protected].
Children's Playground in Golden Gate Park Reopens in June 2007
At the tender age of 12, that child of privilege Nelson Rockefeller once confided to the local press that he liked Golden Gate Park "better than any other park we have played in." It is here, after all, where the first children's playground in a U.S. public park was established in 1887. Closed since February 2006 for a complete transformation, the "Children's Quarters" as it was once known, reopens in June 2007 as the Koret Children's Quarter. Reflective of San Francisco's natural topography, the site will feature grass dunes, climbing wave walls, sea caves and tide pools. An archaeology dig, tree house village, creekbed and water spray play area, and animal sculptures are also part of the proposed improvements. Media contact: Rick Thall, 415-558-4007, [email protected].
Major League Baseball All-Star Week at Bat July 6-10, 2007
Baseball's midsummer classic is coming to San Francisco and will bring exciting activities for fans of all ages. Moscone West Convention Center will be the site of a five-day celebration of the national pastime with an unparalleled interactive baseball festival known as Major League Baseball All-Star FanFest. There will be exhibits and attractions, Major League clinics and seminars, free autograph sessions, live entertainment, memorabilia and much more. For information about FanFest and other All-Star Week activities, including the XM Satellite Radio All-Star Futures Game, Taco Bell Legends/Celebrity Softball Game, Gatorade All-Star Workout Day featuring Home Run Derby, the Red Carpet Show and other events, visit www.sfgiants.com. Media contact: Susan Goodenow, 212-931-7882, [email protected] or Shana Daum, 415-972-2491, [email protected].
New Campus of the University of California San Francisco Speeds Pace of Biomedical Research
Visitors to the city arriving via I-280 will notice ongoing construction adjacent to the freeway. This is the 43-acre campus of the University of California San Francisco Mission Bay, a new life sciences campus for teaching and research. The anchor of the city's Mission Bay development, the new campus will be constructed in phases and at full build-out will have 20 structures. October 2005 marked completion of the $800 million first phase which includes three research buildings, campus community center, student housing, parking structures and open space. For more information, visit www.ucsf.edu. Media contact: UCSF Public Affairs, 415-476-2557.
Still to Come in 2008 and beyond:
New InterContinental Hotel Rises Near Moscone Center
A 32-story, 550-room InterContinental San Francisco is under construction at 888 Howard St., adjacent to Moscone West. The hotel will include a street-level restaurant and bar wrapping around the corner of Fifth and Howard street in an L-shape; 46,000 square feet of meeting and pre-function space; a spa; swimming pool, and parking. Construction started in July 2005 and opening in February 2008 is anticipated. Media contact: Gail Gerber, 415-616-6951, [email protected].
The Contemporary Jewish Museum to Have a New Home
The 60,000 square feet Contemporary Jewish Museum will move into its new home in spring 2008 at the historic Jessie Street Substation building, across from Yerba Buena Gardens near Moscone Center. This project is the first U.S. commission for acclaimed architect Daniel Libeskind, who will preserve and expand the former 1907 Power Substation, transforming it into a unique 21st-century museum that will include space for changing exhibitions, a core exhibition, media production, art workshops, lectures, films, performances and school programs. For more information, call 415-591-8800 or visit www.thecjm.org. Media contact: Stacey Silver, 415-344-8833, [email protected].
California Academy of Sciences Returns to Golden Gate Park in 2008
Slated to open in late 2008 the $429 million project will feature a "living," planted roof blanketed with more than 1.7 million native plants; two large "project labs," where the public can interact with staff scientists as they work; a new Morrison Planetarium; a new Steinhart Aquarium with a two-story swamp and 212,000-gallon, 20-feet deep living Philippine coral reef habitat; a dramatic, multi-level Rainforest exhibit; live animals, including penguins; and a new piazza in the heart of the building. For more information visit www.calacademy.com/newacademy or call 415-321-8000. Media contact: Stephanie Stone, 415-321-8119, [email protected].
San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge
Completed in 1936, the Bay Bridge earned the honor of being declared the seventh wonder of the world in 1955 by the American Society of Civil Engineers. It is currently undergoing a major seismic retrofit, the most ambitious public works project in California history. Slated for completion in 2013, the estimated cost of the new bridge is $5.487 billion. The seismic retrofit of the west span has already been completed; the east span of the bridge is being replaced with an elegant skyway made up of 452 pre-cast concrete slabs. The complexity of the project is heightened with the need to accommodate a daily flow of 280,000 vehicles and minimize closures. It will all be worth it. The expected lifespan of this mighty bay behemoth is 150 years. For more information, visit www.baybridgeinfo.org. Media contact: Bay Bridge Public Information Office, 510-286-7167.
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