A generous grant awarded to Life Frames, Inc. in January 2018 by the California Natural Resources Agency under Proposition 1 – California Urban Rivers Grant Program – is helping the ecological transformation of Seneca Avenue between San Jose and Cayuga Avenues in the Islais Creek Watershed. As planned by Bonnie Ora Sherk and Life Frames, Inc. in conjunction with hydrogeologists from Ramboll, the long, wide, currently barren street of Seneca Avenue will be developed into a series of Rain Gardens to help address climate changes and mitigate flooding in the Cayuga Valley from storm water overflows in the sewer system and the historic, flooding, Islais Creek under Balboa High School and along Cayuga Avenue.

This Seneca transformation will also expand the OMI/Excelsior Living Library & Think Park at the campuses of the local schools, by planting hundreds of California native trees and understory plants.  This work will also expand the A.L.L. Nature Walk linking schools, parks, public housing, streets, and other open spaces in the Islais Creek Watershed, the largest Watershed in San Francisco.

Work is in progress with preliminary marking for concrete removal being done with the San Francisco Public Works Department (special mention to Chris Buck, Urban Forester, San Francisco Public Works and Inspector Susan Nawbury, and Rick Maia, Landscape Chief for San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD)). Documents and Conceptual Site Plans have been submitted for work authorization under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) for the site development. Once authorized, contractor Catarino Mendoza and his crew will be removing tons of concrete to give way to the soil underneath.

Stay tuned to follow additional updates about the development of this urban greening project that will involve the participation of K-12 students from the four neighboring SFUSD Schools bordered by Seneca (Leadership HS, San Miguel Early Education School, James Denman Middle School, Balboa High School), SF Conservation Corps, and interested neighbors from the community, in adding new soil and compost, and the planting and staking of California Native Trees and Understory Plants, and mulching the new Rain Gardens.