Visitacion Valley (;
Spanish: ''Valle de la Visitación''), colloquially referred to as Viz Valley,
is a neighborhood located in the southeastern quadrant of
San Francisco
San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17t ...
,
California
California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
.
Visitacion Valley is roughly defined by
McLaren Park and Gleneagles Golf Course to the West, Mansell Blvd and Portola to the north, Bayview Hill and
Candlestick Cove to the east, and the
San Francisco
San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17t ...
/
San Mateo County line to the south. The streets of this neighborhood straddle the border between San Francisco and
Daly City
Daly City () is the second most populous city in San Mateo County, California, United States, with population of 104,901 according to the 2020 census. Located in the San Francisco Bay Area, and immediately south of San Francisco (sharing its ...
, hence partially blending with the adjacent Daly City neighborhood of Bayshore. The grounds of the
Cow Palace
The Cow Palace (originally the California State Livestock Pavilion) is an indoor arena located in Daly City, California, situated on the city's northern border with neighboring San Francisco. Because the border passes through the property, a por ...
, straddling the San Francisco/Daly City border, are partially within Visitacion Valley.
Name
Visitacion Valley takes its name from
Rancho Cañada de Guadalupe la Visitación y Rodeo Viejo Rancho Cañada de Guadalupe la Visitación y Rodeo Viejo (also called Ridley's Rancho) was a Mexican land grant in present-day San Mateo County, California and San Francisco County, California given in 1841 by Governor Juan Alvarado to Jacob P. ...
, a large tract of land that also included the Bayshore district of Daly City, the city of
Brisbane
Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...
, and
San Bruno Mountain
San Bruno Mountain is horst fault block mountain located in northern San Mateo County, California; with some northern slopes crossing over into southern San Francisco, it is also surrounded by San Francisco Bay and the cities of Brisbane, Colma ...
.
The term "Visitacion" is Spanish and a reference to the
Visitation in Luke 1:39 of the Bible. It is a visit by
Mary, bearing the child Jesus, to her cousin
Elizabeth, who despite her advanced years is pregnant with
John the Baptist
John the Baptist or , , or , ;Wetterau, Bruce. ''World history''. New York: Henry Holt and Company. 1994. syc, ܝܘܿܚܲܢܵܢ ܡܲܥܡܕ݂ܵܢܵܐ, Yoḥanān Maʿmḏānā; he, יוחנן המטביל, Yohanān HaMatbil; la, Ioannes Bapti ...
. John leapt in the womb as Mary entered, knowing that he is in the presence of the Savior.
History
The area is a largely family-oriented
working-class
The working class (or labouring class) comprises those engaged in manual-labour occupations or industrial work, who are remunerated via waged or salaried contracts. Working-class occupations (see also " Designation of workers by collar colou ...
neighborhood. Average incomes and rents for the area are much lower than the citywide average. The area was originally settled by
Irish,
Spaniard American
Spaniards, or Spanish people, are a Romance ethnic group native to Spain. Within Spain, there are a number of national and regional ethnic identities that reflect the country's complex history, including a number of different languages, both ind ...
,
Italian immigrants who worked in the nearby factories, as well as for Southern Pacific Railroad. The neighborhood once had the largest
Maltese population outside of
Malta
Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...
. The construction of the nearby
Hunters Point Naval Shipyard
The Hunters Point Naval Shipyard was a United States Navy shipyard in San Francisco, California, located on of waterfront at Hunters Point in the southeast corner of the city.
Originally, Hunters Point was a commercial shipyard establishe ...
during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
, led to a massive influx of
African Americans
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
who worked in the shipyards. Many settled in the Sunnydale Projects which were originally constructed as barracks to house workers. After the war ended, more African Americans relocated from the
Fillmore District
The Fillmore District is a historical neighborhood in San Francisco located to the southwest of Nob Hill, west of Market Street and north of the Mission District.Oaks, Robert F. San Francisco's Fillmore District. lectronic resource n.p.: Char ...
and the
Western Addition
The Western Addition is a district in San Francisco, California, United States.
Location
The Western Addition is located between Van Ness Avenue, the Richmond District, the Haight-Ashbury and Lower Haight neighborhoods, and Pacific Heights.
T ...
because the Urban Renewal program uprooted them and their businesses, demolished the neighborhood for the City’s financial gain, and as a small consolation: redevelopment programs provided inexpensive housing. Also, African Americans choice of residency was very limited at the time. Many landlords would not rent to African Americans and/or would inflate rent for African Americans. The area still has a 15% African American population; however, this number has been declining in recent years due to the rising cost of living in San Francisco and
black flight
Black flight is a term applied to the migration of African Americans from predominantly black or mixed inner-city areas in the United States to suburbs and newly constructed homes on the outer edges of cities. While more attention has been paid ...
to the
East Bay
The East Bay is the eastern region of the San Francisco Bay Area and includes cities along the eastern shores of the San Francisco Bay and San Pablo Bay. The region has grown to include inland communities in Alameda and Contra Costa counties ...
area. The Black population is being supplanted by rising rent prices, set by landlords who seek to make more profits than longtime residents can afford to pay.
The former army barracks turned housing projects on Sunnydale Avenue, the
Sunnydale Projects, is the largest in San Francisco and remains one of the most violent areas of the city. The two high-rise apartment buildings, Geneva Towers, originally built as private housing in the 1960s, were converted to public housing in the 1970s. They suffered through dilapidation and poor maintenance throughout the 1980s and were plagued by gangs and drug activity. The City ordered the destruction of the buildings in 1998 and replaced them with lower-density units. Since the crackdown on crack cocaine in the mid-1990s and the demolition of the Geneva Towers public housing complex, crime in the neighborhood has been reduced, though many of the same problems remain. The
Chinese American
Chinese Americans are Americans of Han Chinese ancestry. Chinese Americans constitute a subgroup of East Asian Americans which also constitute a subgroup of Asian Americans. Many Chinese Americans along with their ancestors trace lineage from ...
residency has grown and more businesses have opened on Leland Avenue.
Characteristics
The St. James Presbyterian Church was erected at 240 Leland Avenue in 1906. The current building was built in 1923 and designed by
San Francisco Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area, often referred to as simply the Bay Area, is a populous region surrounding the San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun Bay estuaries in Northern California. The Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay Area G ...
native architect
Julia Morgan
Julia Morgan (January 20, 1872 – February 2, 1957) was an American architect and engineer. She designed more than 700 buildings in California during a long and prolific career.Erica Reder"Julia Morgan was a local in ''The New Fillmore'', 1 Febr ...
.
In 1907, Archbishop
Patrick William Riordan established a new
parish
A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or ...
in the Visitacion Valley. The original church was built on Cora Street, between Sunnydale and Visitacion avenues.
In 1909, the church was located at the corner of Loehr Street and Visitacion Avenue. The third church was located between Raymond Avenue and Delta Street, using the material from the second church.
The current Church of the Visitacion is located at 655 Sunnydale Avenue, which has been there since at least 1961. The Our Lady of the Visitacion School private Catholic
K–8 school is located on the premises. Its student population is close to 50%
Filipino Americans
Filipino Americans ( fil, Mga Pilipinong Amerikano) are Americans of Filipino ancestry. Filipinos and other Asian ethnicities in North America were first documented in the 16th century as slaves and prisoners on ships sailing to and from New ...
. Former California governor
Peter Hardeman Burnett
Peter Hardeman Burnett (November 15, 1807May 17, 1895) was an American politician who served as the first elected Governor of California from December 20, 1849, to January 9, 1851. Burnett was elected Governor almost one year before California's ...
's house was also on the premises, on what was then called Burnet Grove. The house was later torn down to make way for the construction of the school.
The neighborhood was featured in the 2004 television film ''
Sucker Free City''.
The annual Visitacion Valley Festival, a street fair hosted along the commercial Leland Avenue and organized by the volunteer group Visitacion Valley Connections, began in 2006.
The Visitacion Valley Community Center began printing the free ''Visitacion Valley Grapevine'' community newspaper in 1986. It had a 25-year run and ceased production in 2011 due to statewide budget cuts.
Recent developments
The Visitacion Valley Redevelopment Area for the area centering at Leland Avenue and Bayshore Boulevard, including the former
Schlage
Schlage (pronounced ) is an American lock manufacturer founded in 1920 by Walter Schlage. Schlage was headquartered in San Francisco from its inception until it relocated to Colorado Springs, Colorado in 1997. Schlage also produces high-securi ...
Lock Factory, was adopted by the Board of Supervisors in April 2009. Home Depot proposed to build a big box store in March 2000. This proposal was dropped in January 2001 after opposition by neighborhood interests and local politicians.
The San Francisco Board of Supervisors approved interim rezoning to low-density commercial in January 2001. A
transit-oriented mixed-use development (Visitacion Valley TOD Project) will be constructed on the former Schlage Lock Factory and Southern Pacific Rail Yard following demolition of existing buildings, except for the Historic Office Building, and brownfield remediation, which started after Remediation Action Plan was approved on November 16, 2009. This project will feature a grocery store, condos, parks, and other new redevelopment designed to revitalize the neighborhood. Due to local redevelopment budgets all across California being cut by Governor
Jerry Brown
Edmund Gerald Brown Jr. (born April 7, 1938) is an American lawyer, author, and politician who served as the 34th and 39th governor of California from 1975 to 1983 and 2011 to 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, he was elected Secretary of S ...
, development was delayed until 2014 and construction is currently expected to finish by 2021.
Redevelopment also came in the construction of a new
Muni Metro
Muni Metro is a light rail system serving San Francisco, California, United States. Operated by the San Francisco Municipal Railway (Muni), a part of the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA), Muni Metro served an average of 15 ...
line called the
T Third Street, which terminates at
Sunnydale Station. The extension into the neighborhood is part of a major project to
ultimately extend Muni to the northeast section of the city, thus granting easy and faster access for the neighborhood's Chinese residents to
Chinatown
A Chinatown () is an ethnic enclave of Chinese people located outside Greater China, most often in an urban setting. Areas known as "Chinatown" exist throughout the world, including Europe, North America, South America, Asia, Africa and Aust ...
and for future development along Third Street.
The old Visitacion Valley Branch of the
San Francisco Public Library
The San Francisco Public Library is the public library system of the city and county of San Francisco. The Main Library is located at Civic Center, at 100 Larkin Street. The library system has won several awards, such as '' Library Journals ...
was leased out of a small storefront at 45 Leland Ave. The new, permanent branch is now closer to Visitacion Valley Elementary School. It opened on July 30, 2011 at 201 Leland Ave, at the site of the former Super Fair Market.
Education
Elementary
* Visitacion Valley Elementary School
* El Dorado Elementary School
Middle school
* Visitacion Valley Middle School
* Our Lady of the Visitacion School (
K–8)
Notable past residents
*
Peter Hardeman Burnett
Peter Hardeman Burnett (November 15, 1807May 17, 1895) was an American politician who served as the first elected Governor of California from December 20, 1849, to January 9, 1851. Burnett was elected Governor almost one year before California's ...
, California governor (1849–1851)
*
Rikishi
A , or, more colloquially, , is a professional sumo wrestler. follow and live by the centuries-old rules of the sumo profession, with most coming from Japan, the only country where sumo is practiced professionally. Participation in official t ...
(Solofa F. Fatu Jr.), American professional wrestler
*
Dan White, San Francisco supervisor who assassinated Supervisor
Harvey Milk
Harvey Bernard Milk (May 22, 1930 – November 27, 1978) was an American politician and the first openly gay man to be elected to public office in California, as a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. Milk was born and raised in ...
and Mayor
George Moscone in 1978
Gallery
File:Visitacion Valley 1869.jpg, Elevation map of Visitacion Valley, 1869
File:Geneva Towers & Cow Palace, 1996 (28819591851) (cropped).jpg, Geneva Towers and Cow Palace
The Cow Palace (originally the California State Livestock Pavilion) is an indoor arena located in Daly City, California, situated on the city's northern border with neighboring San Francisco. Because the border passes through the property, a por ...
, 1996
File:New library (6183515277).jpg, Exterior of new Visitacion Valley Branch library, 2011
File:Arleta Station 3250.JPG, Arleta Station along the T Third Street light rail line, 2012
File:Church of the Visitacion.jpg, Exterior of the Church of the Visitacion, February 2020
References
External links
Visitacion Valley TOD ProjectVisitacion Valley Community Development CorporationSan Francisco Visitacion ValleyVisitacion Valley Branch LibraryVisitacion Valley Facebook Fan's Page
{{Neighborhoods of San Francisco
Neighborhoods in San Francisco