Harvey Milk Plaza

What is needed here is a massive reorganization of Milk Plaza; small moves and incremental change just won’t do! We propose a lifting and contouring of the existing grades, to form a plaza with a strong relationship to the street, an ideal location for public gathering and a fitting memorial to Harvey Milk.    

Our proposal starts with the relocation of the stairs and escalator to the western side of the plaza. This move focuses the exit from the Muni Station toward Sutro Tower, a San Francisco landmark. By flipping the circulation to the west, the eastern portion is transformed into a unified plaza, removing existing barriers and creating a heroic and inspiring memorial for Harvey Milk. 

Along the north edge of the plaza, we’ve connected to Market Street with a cascading and sculptural staircase. This creates an ideal urban perch and a fitting backdrop for a memorial to Harvey Milk. Within the faceted landform that envelops the plaza stairs, we’ve proposed a lighting element that artistically references the Candlelight March. The faceted pre-cast concrete panels, marked by hundreds of LEDs, will provide a soft glow and a lasting remembrance of the moving and poetic tribute displayed on the fateful day of Harvey Milk’s death. It is here that we’ve chosen to place a life-sized statue of Harvey looking out over the Castro, atop his soap box and bullhorn in hand, in this location that he distinctly made famous. 

We envision a future when people say, “Meet me at Milk Plaza.” This phrase isn’t currently in the lexicon of San Franciscans, and we believe it should be. The new plaza will be the important gathering node the Castro deserves. In times of joy and in times of sadness, we will meet at Harvey Milk Plaza. The plaza will also provide a proper place for those who pilgrimage to the Castro, to memorialize Harvey, cry with Harvey, be weird with Harvey, but most importantly, celebrate equality with Harvey.

Harvey sparked a massive cultural shift; let’s be equally profound with the plaza we build to remember his legacy.

MEMORIAL CONCEPT

Standing proudly overlooking the neighborhood he loved, our memorial is simple but truly fitting for a man who strove for equality. While we understand that there are those that may come to the plaza to mourn, our concept for the memorial is based on a mood that exudes celebration and joy. Why? Because Harvey’s mission was not done self-servingly, but was done for everyone, all of us. Atop his soapbox, with bullhorn in hand, our statue of Harvey will occupy the most visible corner in the Castro and be a fitting entry to the neighborhood. We find it appropriate to erect a statue of Harvey at the corner of Castro and Market, capturing his wiry, jaunty frame, his broad shoulders and enigmatic spirit, but missing will be any likeness to Harvey. Rather, we propose a statue that is reflective, mirroring the faces of those he fought for and fought with, all of us. Our reflections in Harvey, brown, black, gay, straight, trans, lesbian, are who Harvey fought for and should be reflected in Harvey. A memorial that reflects all walks of life, not a lifelike statue of Harvey, but a statue that reflects the dynamism of our culture, all creeds, all races, all walks of life.  

We believe this simple memorial is a fitting tribute to a man who intensely fought for equality and profoundly changed the national conversation of community activism and human rights for all. Technology has changed the way we gather information and interact with the world. Therefore, we don’t need to scatter and clog the plaza with photos and text of Harvey’s speeches; those who wish to know more will simply pull out their phone and search for his biography and find more than we could ever present through the plaza. A simple plaque will note Harvey’s time spent here on earth and include some of his own moving words, but it will remain secondary to his statue. This approach will undoubtedly be controversial, but we believe it’s more important to shape the space poetically, rather than clog it with signage and adornment. 

Lastly, our memorial concept proposes a super-graphic, marking the plaza with giant letters built from a simple two-tone paver plan. The super-graphic will spell out “MILK” making it perfectly clear that this is Harvey Milk Plaza and forever be known as such.