Cottage Row

Periodically, when we have a really busy day and won’t be home much, Lucy the dog goes to spend the day with my friend Tim. He’s the only one (besides my mom) I trust to hang with her, he lives in our neighborhood, and loves having a dog for a day–ideal for everyone!

When Lucy visits, they spend time in the park outside of Tim’s front door–Japantown’s Cottage Row Mini Park. Less than a block from Fillmore Street, you’ve probably walked right by it and missed seeing this gem sandwiched between historical homes.

The park, located between Fillmore and Webster and accessed off of Bush or Sutter Streets, borders the historic Cottage Row homes, six homes built in the late 1800s by a real estate development company called The Real Estate Associates. Originally built as rental units, the homes began to sell as single-family homes in the 1950s and 1960s. When Japanese-Americans lived in the district in the 1930s before their internment during WWII, the path was commonly called Japan Street. Residents there hosted one of the first farmer’s markets and sold vegetables grown in their gardens along Cottage Row.

Today, the park is an oasis in the middle of busy San Francisco–a beautiful spot to enjoy the sun and a quiet moment.