Balboa Park Pool
San Francisco, California

San Francisco is in the process of upgrading its nine public pools. Balboa Park Pool, which opened in Spring of 2019, is the first to be completed in this program. Numerous public meetings were held leading up to the final design to assure that the community’s voices were heard. The project was fully reviewed by various agencies including the Planning Department, Parks Commission, Historic Preservation Commission, and Arts Commission. Improvements include expansive windows, structural and mechanical upgrades to the building, a fully renovated pool, locker rooms with showers, a movable pool divider to accommodate fluctuating swimming programs, a new community room and a 37’x13’ mural by local artist Jason Jägel. 

Miller Company Landscape Architects collaborated with the joint venture architecture team to redesign the building’s complicated entry sequence. We were required to maintain the existing  curving ramp and railings remaining from the the original 1957 building design that had fallen into disrepair. Our design includes the full renovation of the ramp and new stairs at the entry with integrated terraced planting areas filled with vivid succulents. We incorporated the grove of existing olive trees at the front of the building with seating and swirling graphics painted onto the pavement to enliven the parking lot. New native and drought tolerant plantings are in place underlying the existing trees and surrounding the entry ramp. A safe route for pedestrian access from the sidewalk to the building has been established and a sitting area has been created furnished with benches and bike racks. The parking area has been reconfigured to maximize the amount of public parking per the community’s request as Balboa Pool is a very popular facility and sits adjacent to the 21-acre Balboa Park. 


Awards
2021 Preservation Design Award for Rehabilitation - California Preservation Foundation

In The News
“A Midcentury Pool Complex in San Francisco Gets a Modern Refresh” - Metropolis Magazine, August 2019

Year Completed: 2019
Owner: San Francisco Recreation and Parks
Architects: Kuth Ranieri / ELS
MCLA Team: Jeffrey Miller, Rebecca Ewing,
Maya Nagasaka