A community-based initiative founded by the Dogpatch Neighborhood Association (DNA), Neighborhood Parks Council (NPC), the Mayor’s Office of City Greening, and Martin Building Company (MBC), the GreenTrust is a creative response to the need for a comprehensive greening plan and financing mechanism for the DCWP area.

The GreenTrust will finance the creation of a strategic greening plan for the DCWP area and then leverage additional private and public money to establish a permanent fund that will be used to support open space improvements. Such improvements may take the form of enhanced maintenance of existing green space and/or funding small-scale interventions, including sidewalk gardens, bio-remediation swales and median greenings.

Start-up funding will be donated by the 2235 Third Street project and other developers who are building projects in the Plan Area. Initially, these funds will finance a consultant team to work with neighborhood and City stakeholders to develop a vision, list of priorities, and a financial plan for implementation. Once this “Green Blueprint” is adopted, the GreenTrust may hire a grant writer to seek matching funds to further leverage the goals set forth in its strategic plan. In this way, the GreenTrust will provide Plan Area-developers with a clear framework for making green investments that benefit the entire neighborhood, rather than making ad hoc, site-specific improvements that may or may not contribute to a larger vision.

Managed by a board of directors comprised of neighborhood residents and business owners, non-profit organizations with an interest in urban greening, and a handful of local developers who have contributed to the fund, the GreenTrust will operate with financial transparency and an emphasis on cost-effective solutions. As an independent, neighborhood-based non-profit, it seeks to foster a strong sense of neighborhood ownership of and responsibility for the Central Waterfront’s green infrastructure.

www.greentrustsf.org