Issue 190, Spring 2010 - Telegraph Hill Dwellers

COLUMBUS AVENUE:
A GREAT URBAN DIAGONAL AXIS
Story and Photos By Howard Wong, AIA
The great urban diagonal axis, Columbus Avenue,
links the Financial District to Fisherman’s
Wharf and is accentuated by a sequence of
open spaces that open to public vistas: at Redwood
Park, Transamerica Pyramid Plaza, Language of the
Birds Plaza, Washington Square Park, Marini Plaza,
Triangle Park and Joseph
Conrad Square.
This sequence of
urban nodes is a big part
of what makes our neighborhood
beautiful. Often
taken for granted, these
open spaces that abut the diagonal boulevard that
is Columbus provide contiguous open areas which
explode to simultaneous views of historical sites—
where one can feel so much of the city.
Worth preserving for future generations,
Washington Square was once slated for an underground
garage, a name change and cluttered landscaping,
but was protected
by neighborhood activists
and land-marking.
Joseph Conrad Square
was once a rubble-filled
lot. The Language of the
Birds Plaza was a traffic
lane. Triangle Park was
a parking lot, saved from
building construction for
continued on next page
Joseph Conrad Square on Columbus
(above), and Redwood Park (below).
12 Issue #190 • Spring 2010