Yesterday, a fire severely damaged Pier 29 at the bay's edge in San Francisco. Built in 1915, the pier like so many other places in San Francisco, was designed to help California compete with other international cities and ports like New York. Highly visited events like the Panama Pacific International Exposition of 1915 and San Diego's Panama-California Exposition of the same year all attest to early investments in California.
At the moment of writing this post, it is unclear if the pier, under the Port Authority for San Francisco, is registered as a historic site. If anyone has information, please feel free to post a comment here.
The fire highlights how we both perceive historic places and their use for contemporary needs. We see the pier as old and immediately tag "historic" to its label, but what exactly does historic mean? Is it historic enough to warrant rebuilding, and if so, will the severe damage alter its status?
More and more preservationists are adopting a reuse and repurpose position so that buildings are less vulnerable to the wrecking ball. For this pier, it means reuse as a major cruise ship port and future offices and regatta station of the America's Cup. Authorities say that the damage will not interrupt the building schedule, but what exactly does that mean? Will the pier receive a new facade, or will it be reconstructed? We'll be watching!
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