About twenty years back I worked for the recreation and parks department

Downtown in what is termed as the civic center complex

The complex stretched from civic center proper down to union square

and all the parks and recreation centers in between

in the tenderloin

then south to soma, potrero hill, and a lil east to dogpatch

it was a good time – always busy, often exciting, never dull

sometimes frustrating, heart wrenching, plunge you into the depths

let’s go on a walkabout tour of a few of the parks

back and forth through time

as seen through the eyes of a gardener and custodian

to understand how history, design, installation, and maintenance

create the patterns of these green spaces

in an otherwise hard and dull urban jungle

UNION SQUARE, SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA – SEPTEMBER 17, 2015