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Islais Creek

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Template:Geobox River Islais Creek or Islais Creek Channel (previously known as Du Vrees Creek, Islais Channel and Islais Swamp)[1] is a small creek in San Francisco, California. The current name of the creek is said to be derived from a Salinan Native American word "slay" or "islay," the name for the Prunus ilicifolia wild cherries.

Originally the residing place for the Ohlone Indian until the 1700s, the area surrounding the Islais Creek has become a major industrial hub since the Gold Rush. As more and more industries began to settle near the creek bank, the condition of the creek worsened. After the devastated earthquake in 1906, the city decided to reclaim the creek using earthquake debris, reducing the waterbody to its present size. Though much of Islais Creek has been converted to an underground culvert, remnants still exist today at both Glen Canyon Park and Third Street. Several community organizations are dedicated to preserve these remnants, as they are important wildlife habitats.

Course

The original Islais Creek stretched from the San Francisco Bay 3.5 miles (5.6 km) west into the Glen Canyon Park[2] and O’Shaughnessy Hollow.[3] The creek, once the largest body of water within San Francisco covering an area of 5,000 acres (7.813 sq mi; 20.234 km2)[4], had two branches. One branch originated near the southern slope of Twin Peaks, formerly known as San Miguel Hills, slightly north of today's Portola Drive. It then coursed through Glen Canyon and through what is now Bosworth Street until it reached the bottom of the Mission Street viaduct at I-280. The other branch began at the Cayuga Avenue and Regent Street intersection. The creek flowed from the intersection down to the Mission Street viaduct where the two branches joined. Together, as a much wider body of water, it passed through Geneva Avenue and Alemany Boulevard, before empting into the Islais Creek estuary, near today's Industrial Street, in the San Francisco Bay.[5][4]

The nearby Precita Creek, which originated from Noe Valley, also flowed into the Islais Creek estuary, joining Islais Creek at present day César Chávez Boulevard and Evans Avenue intersection.[6] The mouth of the creek was nearly 2 miles (3.2 km) wide, providing up to 85% of the drinking water in San Francisco.[3][6] Due to urban development, however, the watershed of Islais Creek has been reduced by roughly 80% from its historical extent.[2] A large number of neighborhoods in San Francisco today, such as Bernal Heights, Hunters Point, Visitacion Valley, parts of the Mission and Potrero Hill, was once covered by the extent of the creek. Today, a small creek remains inside Glen Canyon Park[2] and near Third Street where the creek emptied in the San Francisco Bay.

History

A T-Third Street train crossing the Islais Creek

The history of Islais Creek can be traced back to the 1700s, where large numbers of Ohlone Indians resided along the creek.[6] The creek first appeared on Mexican maps in 1834, named for the Los Islais[7] or the Islay cherries. Later in 1850, water from the creek was used to irrigate crops in the city.[8] The Gold Rush marked the decline of the creek as large numbers of gold rushers swarmed into the city.[8] In 1871, the area surrounding the creek became known as the city’s "New Butchertown" as more than 100 slaughterhouses operated along the creek. Since then, the condition of the creek deteriorated, literally becoming a dumping place of garbage, sewage, animal waste, and unsold meat products. The condition became so bad that the creek was commonly referred to as "Shit Creek" by San Franciscans, according to historian Karl Kortum.[7][9]

After the 1906 earthquake, San Francisco Board of Supervisors voted to fill up the creek with earthquake debris, reducing the creek to its present size.[6] During World War II, it served as parking areas for large ocean-going tugs. The creek also located the largest copra coconut processing plant in the entire United States West Coast.[4] In fact, the abandoned five-story high copra crane, used to transport large amount of copras from ships to the plant as late as 1974, still remains on the creek bank today and is preserved as a historic landmark.[8][10] In the 1950s, Islais Creek was home to the largest sardine canning industry in the world. The deteriorated condition of the creek gradually improved after a water treatment plant was constructed in 1970.[8] Today, the majority of the creek is covered and transformed into a culvert with its remnants flowing at Glen Canyon and near the bay.

Many local community organizations were set up to improve the condition of the creek and nearby areas. Friends of Islais Creek, established back in 1984, and David Erickson, a local community figure, were committed to build a waterfront park in Islais Creek. The initial plan for a park was finally launched in 1988 with a $50,000 grant from the State Department of Water Resources as well as community groups in The Bayview. With an additional of $100,000 federal and local grants as well as supports from non-profit organizations and governmental agencies, namely the Sierra Club, San Francisco Municipal Railway (Muni), Department of Public Works, Public Utilities Commission, Port of San Francisco, and Caltrans, the park was finished in 1998.[8][11][12] Located adjacent to Pier 80 on the shores of the creek, the Muwekma Ohlone Park or the Muwekma Ohlone Sanctuary is named after the native inhabitants and has since became an important habitat for a wide array of wildlife, including the Pacific Chorus Frog and Mission blue butterfly.[3][6]

On November 19 2001, construction crews, while preparing to drill an electrical conduit (consisting of six large 115kV electrical cables) across the creek for the Muni Metro T Third Street light rail line, cracked the concrete sewer underground which carries more than 80 million gallons of sewage a day. The incident flooded the creek and its adjacent Muwekma Ohlone Park with sewage. The park had to be excavated to make way for the repairing of the sewer pipe.[13][11] It was estimated that it would take more than $101,660 to repair and $65,000 for wildlife habitat restoration.[11]

Health hazard

Since Islais Creek is a culvert that carries storm water, domestic sewage, and industrial wastewater combined, it is possible for the sewage to overflow. Such overflow can cause a public health hazard as Islais Creek displays higher level of heavy metals, PCBs, bacteria, as well as organochlorines than other parts of the San Francisco Bay.[14][15]

Transportation

The Third Street Bridge is currently the only major crossing of the creek, carrying T Third Street light rail line and Third Street.[16] The Port of San Francisco had also planned to extend Illnois Street across Islais Creek back in 2002 to relieve traffic for Third Street. The bridge is currently under construction.[17]

Notes and references

  1. ^ According to the Geographic Names Information System by USGS, other lesser known variant names for Islais Creek or Islais Creek Channel include Arroyo Islais, El Arroyo De Los Yslais, Islar Creek, and Du Urees Creek.
  2. ^ a b c Glen Canyon Park and O’Shaughnessy Hollow (PDF), San Francisco Recreation and Parks Department, 2006, pp. Section 6.3 of Significant Natural Resources Areas Management Plan, retrieved 2007-02-03, This section contains several detailed maps on "Soils, Land Features, and Trails," "Vegetation," and "Sensitive Species and Bird Habitat.
  3. ^ a b c Amber Hasselbring (2007-04-20). "Conversation about Islais Creek and the Now Destroyed Muwekema Ohlone Park". Neighborhood Public Radio. Retrieved 2008-08-20. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  4. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference Islais1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ William C. Sharpsteen. "Vanished Waters of Southeastern San Francisco". California Historical Society Quarterly, Vol. XXI, No. 2, June 1941. The Virtual Museum of the City of San Francisco. Retrieved 2008-05-25.
  6. ^ a b c d e "Islais Creek Basin P.1-5" (PDF). San Francisco Public Utilities Commission. September, 2007. Retrieved 2008-08-21. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  7. ^ a b Carl Nolte (1996-11-30). "New Current for Historic S.F. Waterway". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2007-11-02. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  8. ^ a b c d e Cite error: The named reference NPC was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  9. ^ Kevin Cutler (April, 2006). "Islais Creek: From Stream to Sewer". The Noe Valley Voice. Retrieved 2008-08-20. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  10. ^ Jeanne Alexander. "A bird's eye view of The Blue Greenway: Islais Creek". Neighborhood Parks Council. Retrieved 2008-08-20.
  11. ^ a b c Joe Garofoli (2003-07-28). "Urban oasis garden in legal limbo in S.F." San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2007-11-02. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  12. ^ Paul McHugh (2001-06-28). "Ultimate dream: a bay water trail". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2007-11-02. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  13. ^ Maurice B. George (2004-07-29). "Muni destroys park, dumps sewage, wastes millions crossing Islais Creek". Indybay. Retrieved 2008-08-21. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  14. ^ Randall Frost (2005-03-26). "Storm Runoffs May Pose Health, Environmental Risks". Neighborhood Newswire. Retrieved 2008-08-21.
  15. ^ Kennish, Michael (1991-11-19). Ecology of Estuaries: Anthropogenic Effects. CRC Press. p. 512. ISBN 0849380413. Retrieved 2008-08-24.
  16. ^ Michael Cabanatuan (2007-01-06). "3rd Street light rail nearly at finish line". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2007-11-03. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  17. ^ "Major Commercial Development, Maritime, and Open Space Projects". Port of San Francisco. Retrieved 2008-08-04.

See also

External links

Template:Geolinks-US-hoodscale

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