During the 1950s, the San Francisco Redevelopment Agency bulldozed and evicted Japanese and Black families and shopkeepers, called “blight,” to widen Geary Boulevard, divide the two communities and build the corporate Japan Center Mall. Japantown, originally 40 blocks in size, shrank to 14 blocks during WW2 and to 4 blocks due to urban renewal, which James Baldwin aptly called “Black removal.” My family’s store was relocated several times on Buchanan St. See History at: nbstore.com
Today, Japantown and the Fillmore have an opportunity to reclaim their land and plan their futures, thanks to a new federal planning grant. With the new Dept. of Transportation grant, I envision a Geary Blvd. underpass to create a 3-block long plaza connecting the two communities with shops, gardens, affordable housing and entertainment space, as I explore in my “Solar Jive” novel. https://a.co/d/eAMpz09
Dreamscaping Your AI Multiverse 