Burrito Justice and Bernalwood bring word of a proposed new look for the south tip of Valencia: less pavement, more plants.  The Mission & Valencia Green Gateway project is spearheaded by the city's water department with the goal of reducing the amount of rainwater going into the city's overworked combined sewer system.  Aside from plants the plan calls for replacing parking and walking surfaces with “permeable pavement,” or as people who aren't city planners would say, cobblestone.

Also on the bill are wider sidewalks and a road diet at the confusing intersection of Mission and Valencia.  The image above seems to indicate green bike lanes may go in as well (though that isn't mentioned in the official literature.)

There's an open house Tuesday evening where SFPUC will be presenting more details:

What: Mission and Valencia Green Gateway Community Open House #2 
When: Tuesday, July 9, 2013, 4:00pm to 8:00pm
Where: Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts
2868 Mission Street (between 24th and 25th), San Francisco, CA 94110

For more on the greenification of Valencia, visit the official project page.

What do you think, dear readers: Is this a positive change for the area?  Or might this be another example of the city remaking itself too cool for its own good?  Or should the city go a step further, and turn Valencia Street into a giant park?

UPDATE: Streetsblog has a recap of Tuesday's open house and more details on the project.