If you have strolled through the Mission Bay neighborhood of San Francisco recently, you may have seen a curiously joyful pop-up park among all the new construction. After years of planning and months of construction, Parklab Gardens is up and running with a bevy of fun attractions including mini-golf at Stagecoach Greens, popular food trucks, and lawn games, all among floriferous pollinator gardens that circle the park.

In collaboration with Mission Bay Development Group, SPARK Social SF, and Hyphae Design Lab, WHITH began a multi-year effort to incorporate a pollinator-friendly meander into Parklab’s multi-block concept for interim collaborative, mixed-use community spaces. WHITH secured a Complete Neighborhood Grant from the Mayor’s Office of Housing and Community Development for the project and conducted community outreach events to facilitate discussion about the value of parks and pollinator habitat in this dense and diverse neighborhood.

With BASE’s design guidelines for Parklab Gardens, WHITH worked with community partners to facilitate sourcing of pesticide-free plants and lead workshops with the youth of Urban Sprouts to install all the plantings. Within days, we witnessed hummingbirds, butterflies, and bees of all types in the heart of one of San Francisco’s most urban districts.