Closing events for the 100th anniversary of the Panama-Pacific Expo

Throughout 2015, the PPIE100, a citywide consortium of cultural, civic, and historical organizations, has conducted centennial programs to commemorate the PPIE’s historical significance and to reflect on its legacy. Yet, even as the city celebrates the triumphs of 1915, "The Palace of Fine Arts", the sole surviving building from the PPIE and Bernard Maybeck’s masterpiece, is slated to be turned over to private development companies who have proposed a host of money making ventures including a hotel, a restaurant, a gym and a spa. The rotunda, the columns, the temple in the lagoon and a performing art space are to be preserved. But the three final plans all incorporate commercial venues like hotels and restaurants, which will bring hundreds more cars into the already congested location.

A local group, calling itself “Save the Palace of Fine Arts” has already collected 20,000+ signatures calling on the San Francisco Department of Parks and Recreation to use the space exclusively as a cultural and educational center. They face powerful opposition but, as in 1915, it’s not wise to underestimate the love that San Franciscan’s have for their city and their willingness to fight to preserve the legacy of the past.

On Friday, December 4, 2015. celebrate the final night of the Ferry Building's bright '1915" neon sign in honor of the centennial. The lights will go out on December 4, 2015, the same day the fair closed a century ago, and the Ferry Building will be restored to its 21st Century appearance

 More on the closing events here: http://www.examiner.com/article/closing-events-for-the-100th-anniversary-of-the-panama-pacific-expo?CID=examiner_alerts_article