This upcoming Election Day will be something of a déjà vu for San Francisco voters, who for the second time will be asked to decide the future of the Great Highway and Sunset Dunes Park, through Proposition G.
The ballot measure was crafted by opponents of the voter-approved Proposition K in 2024 that permanently closed a section of the Great Highway and allowed the new Sunset Dunes Park to operate full time. Prop G would reopen the Great Highway to cars during the week and allow it to be used as a park on weekends and holidays. It would be similar to how the roadway and park functioned before the passage of Prop K.
“We’re simply saying, ‘Well, let’s share it,’” said Richard Correia, a retired San Francisco police commander who lives in the neighborhood and is part of the Prop G campaign. “Let’s share it during the week when people need to get around, and on the weekends and holidays, lets recreate here.”
The park, which runs two miles along Ocean Beach, officially opened full time in April 2025. The Parks and Recreation Department said it attracts about 1.7 million people a year — although opponents believe that number is overinflated.
The passage of Prop K was so controversial in San Francisco’s western neighborhoods that residents voted to recall Supervisor Joel Engardio for supporting it.
But supporters of the park said it has been a huge success since its opening — drawing thousands of people to skate, bike, walk, jog and play on the roadway that fronts the beach and ocean. Since the park went full time, artists have added new installations and the park recently celebrated the opening of Shipwreck Cove, a play area for kids that resembles a shipwreck.
Joe Rosato Jr./NBC Bay AreaJoe Rosato Jr./NBC Bay Area
The new Shipwreck Cove children’s playground sits on Sunset Dunes Park. It would have to be removed if Proposition G reopens the roadway to cars during the week.
“It has been amazing just to see the community and the city make this space their own,” said Heidi Moseson, a member of Friends of Sunset Dunes who campaigned for Prop K. “If Prop G passes, park amenities like this amazing new playground behind me would have to get ripped out.”
Critics of the park said the partial closure of the Great Highway between Lincoln Way and Sloat Boulevard has forced 18,000 cars a day onto residential streets. According to Corriea, it has slowed response times for emergency vehicles, led to more car crashes and has impacted the neighborhood’s quality of life.
“You can’t squeeze 15,000 to 20,000 cars a day and squeeze them into a neighborhood without impacts,” Correia said.
But Moseson disputed that assessment, saying nearby Sunset Boulevard has been able to pick up the slack for the re-routed traffic.
“We had a lot of traffic engineers and examples from other places telling us, ‘Actually, we think the nearby Sunset Boulevard six-lane road can handle it,’” Moseson said. “And we’ve seen it can handle it.”
Parks and Rec has estimated it will cost $10 million to return the park to a roadway, which includes reinstalling traffic lights. Some park features such as the playground would have to be removed as any amenities would have to be cleared from the roadway during the week to make way for cars.
Joe Rosato Jr./NBC Bay AreaJoe Rosato Jr./NBC Bay Area
Visitors recreate at San Francisco’s Sunset Dunes Park during a recent weekday. The park’s future will be decided with Proposition G, which seeks to reopen the road to cars during the week.
On a day last week, Sunset resident Megan Oxford wheeled her two children down the roadway of Sunset Dunes, a daily routine they’ve undertaken since the park opened.
“I get it probably hurts some people,” Oxford said. “But we love that it’s closed to the cars and we can use it to play on and commute on our walk.”
Park critic Albert Chow, owner of Great Wall Hardware and president of People of Parkside Sunset, said the park is underutilized during the week and doesn’t justify replacing a busy roadway. He said the closure has routed thousands of cars onto streets that never experienced much traffic.
“It’s not that crowded on the weekdays, and when it’s foggy, cold and windy, there’s not that many people out there,” Chow said. “But 17,000 cars use that road every day, rain or shine.”
Moseson said park visits are on the rise, and weekday visits now account for 60% of its usage.
“I know change is hard,” Moseson said. “I think given that this road has lost its utility as a road, it’s now a great park, so let’s move forward and keep making it a great park.”
Correia said the park, which is surrounded by the beach and Golden Gate Park, is too heavy a burden on the neighborhood’s commuters.
“Why would you need to close a highway adjacent to the largest open space in San Francisco?” Correia said. “It doesn’t make any sense.”
Joe Rosato Jr./NBC Bay AreaJoe Rosato Jr./NBC Bay Area
The new Shipwreck Cove children’s playground sits on Sunset Dunes Park.
The return of the issue to the ballot in San Francisco is reminiscent of the fight over the Central Freeway, which was badly damaged in the 1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake. City voters elected to retain the freeway, which instructed Caltrans to begin its restoration. But critics went back to the ballot and a second vote resulted in voters approving its demolition.
A glance around the Sunset neighborhood tells the story of the mixed feelings — with homes bearing “No On Prop G” signs sitting next to homes displaying signs reading “Open the Great Highway.”
Whatever happens on Election Day, the park will remain — at least in some form, while some bitter feelings in a divided neighborhood are also likely to stick around.