Mission Bay, San Francisco
Mission Bay is a neighborhood on the east side of San Francisco, California. It is bordered by China Basin to the north, Dogpatch to the south, and San Francisco Bay to the east. Originally an industrial district, it underwent development fueled by the construction of the UCSF Mission Bay campus, and is currently in the final stages of development and construction. It is the site of the Chase Center. Location. Mission Bay is bounded by Townsend Street on the north, Third Street and San Francisco Bay on the east, Mariposa Street on the south, and 7th  Street and Interstate 280 on the west. History. Before urbanization, Mission Bay was nestled inside of a +500 acre salt marsh and lagoon, and was occupied by year-round tidal waters. This area was a natural habitat and refuge for large water fowl populations that included ducks, geese, herons, egrets, ospreys and gulls. The Native American tribes who resided in this area were the Costanoan people who spoke eight different languages which delineated between the various tribelets. The tribe most prevalent in the Bay area was the Patwin people who resided in the area for over 5,000 years. Beginning in  the mid-1800s, Mission Bay was used as a convenient place to deposit refuse from building projects. It was later used as a dumping ground for debris from the 1906 earthquake. As the marsh quickly stabilized with the weight of the infill, the area quickly became an industrial district. By 1850 the area was used for shipbuilding and repair, butchery and meat production, and oyster and clam fishing. With the addition of the railroad, Mission Bay became the home to shipyards, canneries, a sugar refinery and various warehouses. In 1998 the area was announced by the Board of Supervisors as a  redevelopment project. Much of the land had long been a railyard of the Southern Pacific Railroad Company, and was transferred to Catellus Development Corporation when it was spun off as part of the aborted merger of Southern Pacific and the Santa Fe Railway. Catellus subsequently sold or sub-contracted several parcels to other developers. It has rapidly evolved into a wealthy neighborhood of luxury condominiums, hospitals, and biotechnology research and development. From 2010 to 2020, Mission Bay population increased by over 200%. Attractions and characteristics. Mission Bay was the original headquarters of the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine prior to  the organization's move to Oakland. It is also the headquarters, at 550 Terry Francois Blvd, of the Old Navy brand of The Gap clothing retailer. It is the location of a new research campus of the University of California, San Francisco, UCSF Mission Bay Mission Bay is served by the N Judah and T Third Street lines of San Francisco's Muni Metro. The N Judah links the neighborhood to Downtown, BART, Hayes Valley and the Sunset District, and the T Third Street links to downtown, BART, and the Bayview and Visitacion Valley neighborhoods. Several other Muni bus and  trolley bus lines link the area to neighborhoods to the north, west and south. The Caltrain commuter rail system connects Mission Bay with San Jose and Gilroy. The proposed Central Subway project will make the link between Mission Bay, Oracle Park, Market Street-Union Square, and Chinatown even faster. Although near to and often associated with Oracle Park, the ballpark is in the adjacent South Beach neighborhood. UCSF has built a new 289-bed hospital serving children, women, and cancer patients which opened in February 2015. Construction of the hospital began in October 2010. Mission Bay has a large residential  component with approximately 6,404 apartments and/or condos planned (1,806 of them to be designated affordable). Other notable buildings in Mission Bay include The Gladstone Institute, the Mission Bay medical offices of Kaiser Permanente, and soon-to-be-completed "The Exchange", developed by Kilroy Realty Corp., which will be 100% occupied by Dropbox upon completion in 2019. Mission Bay Parks completed as of fall 2010 include: Mission Creek, Mission Bay Commons lots on Mission Bay Boulevard between Radiance and the Nektar/Bayer buildings, the 5th street plaza, the sports courts, Koret Quad and China Basin Park. Future Mission Bay parks plans  include Bay Front Park, a little league diamond and a junior soccer field.