You know it don't come easy

Nothing's easy in San Francisco and the proposed Contemporary Art Museum of the Presidio (CAMP) is no exception. 

Conceived as a permanent home for the modern art collection of Don and Doris Fisher, CAMP would occupy a site on the Main Parade at the Presidio.  It's a prominent location and one that has drawn a big response.  Last July, at a public meeting of the Presidio Trust board, there were so many in attendance that not everyone could be let into the meeting room.  Opinions
ranged from "fantastic!" to "never in the Presidio!" with an apparent majority being against the museum.

Or at least against the museum in that location.

Since that meeting, there has been a fair amount of discussion about where this museum could go.  There are four options, as I see them. 

Main Parade, Presidio:  This is the location favored by the Fishers and is the location specified in the original RFP released by the Presidio Trust.  It is front and center in the Presidio with fantastic views of the Bay.  You might call this location
the heart of the Presidio.  As such, it is an important historic location as the Main Parade is ringed by historic military buildings.  It's this historic location combined with the modern design of CAMP that has generated so much opposition.  For a
site that seemed like it had the backing of the entire San Francisco political establishment a short time ago, it has turned out to be unpopular with the neighbors.

Infantry Terrace, Presidio:  This location is to the south of the Main Parade, up a hill and into some trees.  John King of the Chronicle has recently been advocating for this site and as a compromise it has some merit.

A non-Presidio location:  There has been a lot of chatter about taking CAMP out of the Presidio altogether.  Alternate sites  include downtown or the Central Waterfront/Dogpatch.  This takes the location out of the hands of the Presidio Trust (and I
suppose they would have to change the name too) and puts the San Francisco Planning Department and Board of  Supervisors in a leading role.

A non-San Francisco location:  If no one can agree on where this museum can go, at some point would the Fishers throw up their hands and go talk to other cities?

Let's look at these options in reverse order.

Don't look for the Fishers to take their collection to another town.  Not that plenty of other cities wouldn't accept it with open arms.  The Fishers are San Franciscans all the way and have been some of the largest philanthropists in the city.  According to some who know them, it would take extreme provocation to cause them to turn their backs on San Francisco.

The non-Presidio locations are fraught with difficulties.  Downtown and the existing Yerba Buena museum district don't have a natural place for a museum, much less an available piece of ground.  Dogpatch?  Remote with little around it at this point and not likely to attract the numbers of visitors this museum ought to have.  But the number one problem is that I just don't see the Fishers debating the pros and cons of their museum with our Board of Supervisors.  Can anyone imagine Supervisor Chris Daly screaming in a public meeting and Don Fisher taking it?  I didn't think so.

The Infantry Terrace is a compromise solution, but to me it feels like putting a Tiffany's in the alley behind WalMart.  It's a hidden location that says "we don't want anyone to know we accepted this rich guy's art as a gift".  Infantry Terrace is a non-starter.

The Main Parade is really where this building wants to be and, frankly, the importance of the art collection makes it worthy
of a prominent spot.  The historic issues are important but not insurmountable.  I think we can expect to see Richard Gluckman (the architect) doing some redesign to respond to the Trust's comments and the public concern.  Gluckman is one of the finest museum architects alive and certainly up to the task.  The real issue is this:  will the opponents of the museum ever let anything be built there, no matter what the design is? 

That is the tricky diplomatic path of public consensus that Fisher and the Trust and Gluckman have to wend their way through.  How effectively they can do that, will determine whether future San Franciscans enjoy an art collection worthy of the gods.

 

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Due to some computer craziness at the Examiner servers, I haven't been able to retrieve the emails of everyone who subscribed in the SF Living:  Home Tour contest.  And that means the contest is still open!  Tickets for two to both days, September 13-14, see eight architect-designed homes in the City at your own pace.  If you paid for them, they's set you back $300.  But if you subscribe to this column, you're entered to win them.  Last chance, I promise.

Topics: San Francisco Architecture , Contemporary Art Museum of the Presidio , Richard Gluckman