Creating a Resilient New Waterfront Neighborhood in San Francisco, Mission Rock Phase 1 Development-Video

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Video Summary

Peter Brady describes the geotechnical challenges and resilience measures for Mission Rock, a new waterfront neighborhood in San Francisco. Built on reclaimed bay land, the site contains variable fill, highly compressible Bay Mud, and potentially liquefiable sands, with bedrock 200–260 feet below ground. Phase one’s four buildings are supported by deep-driven steel piles. To limit earthquake-related liquefaction settlement, stone columns and wick drains were installed, with testing demonstrating that installation would not remold the Bay Mud. To address projected sea-level rise, street and building grades were raised 5.5 feet. Because conventional fill would cause excessive settlement, lightweight cellular concrete (LCC) was selected to compensate for the added weight while supporting utilities and traffic. A full-scale mock-up, including flooding and heavy fire-truck loading, secured city approval. Construction required careful placement, density and strength testing, coordination with pile driving, and long-term monitoring. The project offers a model for resilient waterfront development on soft, vulnerable soils.

Keywords

Mission Rock

geotechnical resilience

Bay Mud

liquefaction mitigation

lightweight cellular concrete