San Francisco Beautiful Inaugural Masquerade Gala

San Francisco Beautiful, Red Carpet Bay Area
Michael Babineaux, Margaret Mitchell, CeCe McGraw, Renee Rodman, Anthony Aquaviva

Some 300 guests donned masks and celebrated the beauty of San Francisco at San Francisco Beautiful’s inaugural masquerade party at the Palace Hotel on October 14, 2011. Guests dined, danced, donated and participated in a costume contest emceed by local media personality Charleston Pierce.

San Francisco Beautiful recognized four projects that creatively repurposed, restored, and reactivated San Francisco public spaces in 2011:

  1. EcoCenter at Heron’s Head Park: the nonprofit Literacy for Environmental Justice built an off-the-grid, sustainable classroom to teach environmental justice and urban sustainability to youth in what was once a landfill at Hunter’s point.
  2. Pavement to Parks/Parklets Programs: the San Francisco Planning Department, the Department of Public Works and the Municipal Transportation Agency reclaimed underutilized spaces in the public realm and turned them into vibrant, beautiful gathering spaces.
  3. Off-the-Grid: in partnership with the Recreation and Parks Department, Off-the-Grid brought high-quality food to people in parks and open spaces across the city. They not only enhanced park experiences, but also created new revenue for the city.
  4. Sunnyside Conservatory: A 100-year old treasure once slated for demolition in the Sunnyside neighborhood, the Sunnyside Conservatory was saved by a dedicated group of community members who preserved and repurposed the cherished neighborhood landmark.

Scenes from the San Francisco Beautiful Inaugural Masquerade Gala:

Photos by Drew Altizer Photography

— Related: More San Francisco Beautiful event coverage