** Please note new location**
City Club of San Francisco, 155 Sansome St., San Francisco
Public Spaces: Embarcadero, East Cut, Night Markets, and the Reinvigoration of the Commercial Corridors
What do Happy Hours, Tai Chi, Trivia Nights, the fencing of the Vaillancourt Fountain, First Thursdays, and Downtown Hoedowns have in common?
They’re all part of a bold reimagining of San Francisco’s public spaces and commercial corridors.
Join us for a dynamic panel discussion exploring how creative placemaking, community activation, and strategic partnerships are reshaping the Embarcadero, the East Cut, and beyond.
Representatives from The East Cut, Into the Streets, and other civic innovators will share what’s working, what’s not, and what’s next in revitalizing downtown life—from spontaneous street events to long-term urban strategies.
We’ll explore how public policy can better support this movement, and what it will take to turn these new ideas into lasting change.
Let’s talk about the future of gathering, celebrating, exercising—and living—downtown.
Guests are welcome. Can't make it to the luncheon? Please consider sponsoring a speaker at the "Purchase tickets" link below:
Tickets
Members & Guests: $90 each
Public Sector Members: $80 each*
Save on fees! Pay by check or Zelle. Please contact Lori Horan (info@laisf.org) to RSVP. Please mail your check written to "LAI Golden Gate" to Lori Horan at PO Box 1471, Galt, CA 95632.
*Public Sector discount available only when paying by check or Zelle
Members must be current with their dues to attend the program. To pay your dues, please visit lai.org, and select the "Renewal" option under "My Membership."
Andrew Robinson, Executive Director, The East Cut
Andrew Robinson serves as the Executive Director of The East Cut Community Benefit District (CBD), leading initiatives to elevate public spaces and enrich the quality of life in San Francisco's rapidly evolving neighborhood. Since assuming this role in February 2016, Andrew has overseen the district's transformation into a model of urban revitalization, ensuring that parks, open spaces, retail areas, and street services align with the community's dynamic growth.
The East Cut, named after the historic Second Street Cut through Rincon Hill, stands as San Francisco's premier mixed-use, high-rise neighborhood, home to 12,000 residents and encompassing 20 million square feet of office space. Under Andrew's guidance, the district has adeptly balanced rapid development with community-centric planning, fostering a distinct sense of place. Beyond essential services addressing homelessness, street cleanliness, and security, Andrew has played a central role in cultivating community culture and vitality. His work includes collaborating on the launch of San Francisco’s Downtown First Thursdays, the creation of the award-winning Crossing at East Cut pop-up park, and interagency collaboration to maintain and program Salesforce Park, where The East Cut is the primary funder.
Prior to his current position, Andrew contributed to urban development as the Director of Neighborhood Partnerships at the Yerba Buena CBD and as a Senior Consultant at Learning for Action. His academic background includes a degree in English and American Literature from Brandeis University. Andrew's diverse experiences and leadership have been instrumental in the effective transformation of The East Cut into a vibrant and cohesive community.
Katy Birnbaum, CEO/Founder, Into The Streets
Where you see a desolate street, Katy Birnbaum sees a celebration and the regeneration of community waiting to happen. With this unique vision and talent for bringing people together, Katy founded Into The Streets in 2023 to help lead San Francisco’s economic recovery efforts with a focus on culture and community.
Combining over a decade of experience in community organizing, event production/public space activation, workforce development, and public/private/social sector partnerships, Katy knows how to invite diverse stakeholders to the table to successfully collaborate, share a vision, and make immediate and lasting change across San Francisco.
Before founding Into The Streets, Katy Birnbaum led the open streets department at the nonprofit Livable City, revamping the Sunday Streets SF program and stewarding it for seven years and starting a workforce development and local hire program for event producers and staff.
During the pandemic, Katy spearheaded Livable City’s pandemic response, pivoting operations to convert streets into temporary open space in neighborhoods hardest hit by the pandemic. This included launching the first commercial corridor Shared Spaces project in SF that opened 3 blocks of Grant Ave in Chinatown for outdoor dining and retail, operating the Valencia Street opening in 2020-2021 when restaurants and bars couldn’t operate at full capacity indoors, and supporting dozens of Black-led community events in Bayview, Sunnydale and Western Addition that provided economic opportunities for micro entrepreneurs alongside essential health and social services.
Aaron Fenton, Senior Vice President, Development, BXP
Aaron Fenton is an experienced Senior Vice President of Development who has been with BXP for over 13 years and has a demonstrated history of successfully working in the real estate industry.
Aaron oversees all development, acquisition and disposition activities for BXP in the Bay Area as well as Los Angeles and Seattle, with a current developmental pipeline of 6.6 million square feet.
He has executed on $1 billion of development, including projects such as 680 Folsom, 690 Folsom, Hawthorne, 535 Mission, and The Skylyne at Temescal. He has executed entitlements on 3.5 million square feet across five large projects (commercial office and multi-family). Aaron is very familiar with the entitlement process in the Bay Area, including extensive CEQA and political knowledge.
Prior to joining BXP, he spent seven years with Cahill Contractors, building a variety of product types, including residential, commercial, and schools.
Aaron holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA) focused on Business Administration and Management from Saint Mary's College of California and a BS from Duke University in Durham, NC.