12/17/2023 0 Comments 16th ave tiled stepsSince then, we’ve been back three times! In the summer it’s foggy and visibility isn’t that great, but in the winter, it’s clear and gorgeous and the view is amazing.Īlso known as The Moraga Steps, the 16th Avenue Tiled Steps consist of 163 separate mosaic tile panels that are surrounded by well-kept gardens. Instead of hitting all of the same, crowded, San Francisco tourist hot spots, we were looking for some different, more obscure sights to see in the city - we wanted to find some secret San Francisco surprises - and she and highly recommended we visit the secret staircase. We first heard about these mosaic steps from my mother-in-law when we were planning a weekend trip to San Francisco. The 163 step staircase, originally built in 1926, was transformed by residents of the quiet, residential neighborhood into an impressive mosaic tile display of beauty. The San Francisco Succulent Society members donated succulents to further enhance the gardens in 2010.The 16th Avenue Tiled Steps are a stunningly beautiful and artistic surprise located in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Heights Neighborhood.A 2006 grant from San Francisco Beautiful was used to develop the north side of the stairway gardens.Volunteer Days for the steps are held twice a year, once on Earth Day weekend, and once in the fall.The gardens on the south side of the mosaic stairway were donated by the Xavier family.The steps have a sister stairway in Caltagirone Italy known as the Scala Steps.More than 220 neighbors sponsored handmade tiles to fund the majority of the project, and more than 300 people helped with the tile installation.August 27 th is “16th Avenue Tiled Steps Day”.Through their restoration efforts, Californian native plants specifically chosen to support the green hairstreak butterfly were added to the upper areas of the surrounding hillsides. In 2014, Nature in the City helped turn the steps and gardens into a butterfly habitat. The gardens have over the years become a large draw on their own, and are one of the few parts that require constant care and fundraising. On both sides of the steps there are gardens filled with native Californian flowers, shrubs, and succulents. Thanks to his position as Mayor for the day, he was able to lend an official hand to the proceedings and to declare August 27 as the official “16th Avenue Tiled Steps Day”.Īlong with the mosaic steps, there is a large garden component to the beautification project of the neighborhood. Project supervisor and local politician Sean Elsbernd was also on hand for the unveiling of the steps. Francesco Pignataro, Mayor of Caltagirone, Italy, took part in the ceremony as a representative of the sister stairway, the Scala Steps. On August 27th, 2005, an opening day ceremony was held for the completion of the project complete with lion dancers leading the inaugural trip up the steps. Neighbors sponsored specific handmade tiles within the mosaic, and three mosaic workshops were held to further increase local participation in the production of the required panels. The majority of the project to beautify the steps was paid for by tile sponsorship. The theme for the mosaic was from the sea to the stars and features shells, fish, and other sea creatures twisting their way up the steps among celestial bodies rather than through the ocean. They enlisted the help of artists Aileen Barr and Colette Crutcher creation of a design of 163 mosaic panels leading their way up the steps. Jessie Audette and Alice Yee Xavier, both residents of the Golden Gate Heights neighborhood, started the 16 th Avenue Tiled Steps project in 2003 as a way to connect neighbors and beautify an otherwise ordinary and drab staircase. The project was a neighborhood collaboration to create natural themed mosaic in the Golden Gate Heights neighborhood up a 163 step stairway The 16th Avenue Tiled Steps are an example of community enrichment artwork and collective achievement. Tucked away at the southern end of San Francisco, about 15 minutes from Golden Gate Park near 1700 16th Ave, between Noriega St & Moraga St.
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