A former nuclear-testing site in San Francisco is turning into an $8 billion neighborhood for the mi
The San Francisco Shipyard was once home to a nuclear-testing site where scientists ran tests on ships exposed to nuclear radiation. Now, many San Franciscans call it home.
Developer Five Point, a spinoff of mega-developer Lennar, has set out to transform the abandoned San Francisco Naval Shipyard into a vibrant live-work community with 12,000 new homes and approximately five million square feet of office and commercial space.
But the San Francisco Shipyard's future is uncertain amid allegations of a botched cleanup.
The US Navy has learned through a third-party data review that Tetra Tech, a government contractor tasked with the cleanup and testing of nuclear contamination at the shipyard, faked more soil tests than previously thought, to speed along the city's largest redevelopment project. Ex-Tetra Tech workers claimed to swap samples from areas known to be highly contaminated with dirt from clean areas, and manipulate computer data that analyzed radiation levels.
According to investigations by Curbed SF and NBC Bay Area, almost half of the toxic waste-site cleanup was "suspect" or has "evidence of potential data manipulation or falsification."
Approximately 300 townhouses and condominiums have sold at the shipyard, and Five Point plans to build 11,000 more units on the city's waterfront. The Navy has said that residents who already live there are "100% safe," because the existing housing is located on land that was used for military housing and non-industrial activities, a representative with Five Point confirmed.
Take a look inside the rebranded San Francisco Shipyard.
The bus ride to the San Francisco Shipyard reminds me of the approach to Walt Disney World when I was a kid. For half a mile back, roads signs welcome you to a real-estate wonderland.
After a roughly 45-minute bus ride from downtown, I arrived at the San Francisco Shipyard.
It was less glamorous than I expected. Wire fences separated swaths of dirt from other plots of dirt. A few residents walked their furry companions along the paved roads.
The city bus drops residents off along the back of the development, where rows of condominiums meet what remains of the retired San Francisco Naval Shipyard.
Hunters Point was a private commercial shipyard from 1869 until the start of World War II, when the Navy bought the property. The military repaired ships and submarines there.
Source: United States Environmental Protection Agency
From 1948 to 1969, it hosted a then-secret laboratory that ran tests on ships exposed to nuclear weapons, as well as research on the effects of radiation on living organisms.
Military equipment and ships contaminated by atomic bomb explosions were left at Hunters Point, and toxic substances including petroleum fuels, pesticides, and heavy metals seeped into and polluted the soil at Hunters Point, the San Francisco Chronicle reported in 2015.
Source: United States Environmental Protection Agency and SF Weekly
After the shipyard closed, it was declared a "superfund" site — a toxic-waste site where the US Environmental Protection Agency can force parties responsible for the contamination to either perform cleanups or reimburse the government to do the work.
Source: US Environmental Protection Agency
The cleanup of contamination at the shipyard has been ongoing for more than 20 years — and it's prompted investigations that are steeped in scandal. A 2000 investigation by SF Weekly found "troubling evidence" that the Navy mishandled the radioactive waste it produced. It reportedly dumped huge amounts of contaminated sand into the San Francisco Bay and sprinkled radioactive material on- and-off-base "as if it were fertilizer" to practice cleanup.
Approximately 70 acres of the 500 total acres at Hunters Point have been cleaned up by the Navy, passed inspections by the EPA, and sold from the city of San Francisco to Five Point.
Beginning in 2012, several employees of Tetra Tech, a government-contractor that was paid to clean up the site, admitted to faking soil tests — swapping samples from areas known to be highly contaminated with dirt from clean areas. Now all the soil samples are being reviewed, causing delays in the transfer of land from the Navy to the City of San Francisco to the developers.
Still, Five Point and Lennar (which is responsible for building and selling the first 1,000 homes at the shipyard) aren't waiting for the cleanup to finish before building in the area.
Construction is well underway on the parcels that passed inspection. Five Point's CEO said in a recent earnings call that the developer is shifting focus to part of the project at nearby Candlestick Park, where the San Francisco Giants once played, because it doesn't have cleanup issues.
Kofi Bonner, Five Point's regional president in the Bay Area, describes the shipyard development as "a new community within an old city."
It's an understatement to call the shipyard a housing development. The project will eventually cover nearly 800 acres and span about two miles from the farthest points.
(The roughly 800 acres of neighborhood will include the shipyard and Candlestick Park.)
The condominium buildings are typical of new urban developments: washed in neutral colors with a familiar industrial flare. Wrought-iron railings wrap around the balconies.
A fully furnished model unit that I toured featured massive windows, appliances from Bosch, hardwood floors, carpeting in the bedrooms, and contemporary finishes.
The rooms were small but affordable by Bay Area standards.
In 2017, Lennar's range of inventory at the shipyard averaged $860 per square foot — nearly $200 less than the average price per-square-foot in San Francisco, according to Trulia.
One- and two-bedroom units range between roughly $600,000s and $1.2 million — typical of starter homes in San Francisco — while three-bedroom units go up to $1.5 million.
About 10% of all units will be priced below $257,000 and reserved for low- and middle-income buyers. Those units "won't skimp" on any high-end finishes, according to Lennar.
Source: Lennar
All units come with one or two parking spots, which is especially important because there are few shops, restaurants, or grocery stores within walking distance of the shipyard (yet).
While Lennar is responsible for building the first 926 housing units at the shipyard, its spinoff Five Point is tasked with developing the community in and around those new homes.
(Five Point will appoint Lennar or another contractor to build the remaining 11,000 housing units across the shipyard and Candlestick Park in phase two of construction.)
Five Point wants to squeeze an entire shopping district into the plans. A planned retail corridor will have a movie theater, a supermarket, and approximately 400,000 square feet of retail space.
City buses will someday provide transportation between downtown and the shipyard. In the meantime, residents can take a free shuttle that runs every 30 minutes during the work day.
The shipyard dips a toe into the "agrihood" — or agricultural neighborhood — trend with its 250 acres of green space, including a grasslands ecology park, trails, and sports fields.
Ships once pulled in here for repairs.
The dock is the future site of a waterfront promenade where residents will someday enjoy live music, catch a water taxi to San Francisco's Embarcadero, or just take in the views.
The shipyard might sound dreamy to the millennial homebuyer, but those amenities may be years and years away. The plans are subject to change as the cost of construction rises.
The shipyard is one of the most ambitious real-estate developments that San Francisco has ever seen. The project is expected to cost $8 billion, and it will finish in the early 2030s.
Source: Office of the Mayor
I walked around parts of the shipyard overlooking the Naval property. It was quiet, except for the soft chatter of a couple touring the property before an appointment.
Five Point and Lennar are selling prospective buyers not on the housing, but on the vision for a neighborhood that, like an all-inclusive resort, gives residents few reasons to leave.
Build it, they hope, and prospective homebuyers will come.
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