An oasis offers relief in San Francisco's Filipino district

Kapwa Gardens, beflore (above) and now (below).

With apologies to singer Joni Mitchell's hit "They Found Paradise and Turned It Into A Parking Lot," Filipino Americans found a parking lot and turned it into paradise.

The Filipino American community in San Francisco turned a parking lot in the middle of the Filipino Heritage District South of Market Street and turned it into a neighborhood park -- Kapwa Gardens -- for the children and elders who live nearby.

"We imagined creating a space that would be a cultural asset for SOMA Pilipinas that would connect all of the different residents, students, and workers in the areaway showcasing activities that heal the mind and body and expands our consciousness and raises the level of empathy in a downtrodden area of SF," cites the park website.

Unknown to the shoppers on Market Street and the office workers at the companies on the edge of the SOMA Pilipinas, in the alleyways' homes, apartment buildings and residence hotels, a community of Filipino American community is thriving, sending their kids to Bessie Carmichael School and attending mass at St. Patrick's Church or eating at Filipino food at the neighborhood restaurants, whose very presence is promoting Filipino cuisine into the mainstream foodie culture.

“There are many residents in the area who lack their own outdoor space, including a large number of nearby single-room occupancy hotel residents,” said Kultivate Labs' founder and executive director Desi Danganan.

967 Mission has been a parking lot for decades. With the commencement of the 5M real estate development around the corner, the City of San Francisco gained possession of the parking lot. An RFP was issued in the Fall of 2019 to use the space while the long drawn-out process of creating senior housing on the site develops.

Kultivate Labs won the city's approval because the nonprofit community-based organization proposed creating a space around "Kapwa"— Filipino spiritual belief of interconnectedness. "Kapwa" is a recognition of a shared identity, an inner self, shared with others. "Kapwa" is an extension of deep empathy, explains the park's website.

As planners hurdle the red tape involved in the planning process for housing, residents and neighboring workers will have a place to take mental health breaks, escape from the tensions of anti-Asian attacks and the uncertainty of catching COVID-19.

The park formally opened on April 14. The former parking lot has a brightly painted bus and mural and a mini-grove of calamnsi trees are ready for picking; bamboo and herbs are growing in the planters; food trucks sign up to park there; Filipino bands and dancers perform for whoever drops by; a weekly yoga class is offered; free COVID tests. are offered twice a week; and Filipino seniors sit in the shade and share gossip.

Built by volunteers, volunteers will help maintain the space. Kapwa Gardens will be open Wednesday through Sundays, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.