John King, who will be leading our walking tour of the Ferry Building and the lower end of Market Street on June 12th, will be one of the jurors.
By Patrick Hoge | Examiner staff writer |
Apr 3, 2025 Updated Apr 3, 2025
Market Street, San Francisco’s storied boulevard, has seen better days, with many of its offices and retail establishments standing empty after the COVID-19 pandemic ushered in an era of increased remote work and reduced presence of commuting employees.
Hoping to catalyze a revival on The City’s central thoroughfare, the Urban Land Institute San Francisco and the Civic Joy Fund, with the support of Mayor Daniel Lurie, are co-sponsoring an international “Market Street Reimagined” competition that features a star-studded jury and $100,000 in prizes.
"Market Street is a world-class boulevard and we’re calling on designers, architects, and people from across industries to submit world-class ideas — big or small," Lurie said in a Wednesday announcement that included a video of him appealing to the public for submissions. "We need to reimagine this iconic street, so think bold and get creative to help us shape its future together."
The contest, which will take ideas that could include design concepts or economic development strategies, is open to all and will accept entries until June 1. Inquiries can be sent to MarketStreetCompetition@uli.org.
The jury will convene in July to select winners, with the pool of prize money potentially divided in chunks to reward whoever has the best ideas.
Jurors identified so far include Jony Ive, the former chief designer at Apple and founder of the LoveFrom design firm in Jackson Square, and Po Bronson, the journalist, bestselling author and venture capitalist who is general partner at SOSV and a managing director of the IndieBio startup program.
A special innovation prize will also be awarded by Norman Foster, founder and executive chairman of Foster + Partners, the architecture firm that led the recent $250 million makeover of the Transamerica Pyramid Center and the design of Apple’s headquarters in Cupertino.
“This is a competition to bring ideas from across the world, internationally, to try to revitalize and bring Market Street back to what it was before and its future,” said Eric Tao, managing partner of L37 Development and an Urban Land Institute San Francisco leader.
Win cash with your ‘moonshot’ idea to rejuvenate Market Street
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