Following years of disputes, construction has begun on the $73 million renovation of the historic Portsmouth Square park in SF’s Chinatown, which is expected to take two years.

San Francisco leaders held a groundbreaking ceremony Tuesday for the long-delayed $73 million revamp of Portsmouth Square, as the Chronicle reports. The renovation, which is expected to keep the park closed for roughly two years, will be funded through a mix of city bond money and state and local grants.

Plans reportedly include a new 8,300-square-foot clubhouse with meeting rooms and a commercial kitchen, a larger playground, an adult fitness area, a performance plaza and stage, and upgraded landscaping, lighting, and shade. City officials say the redesign is intended to better serve residents in one of the city’s densest neighborhoods, where many seniors and families rely on the square as an everyday meeting place.

According to the Chronicle, the project also includes removing the elevated pedestrian bridge connecting the park to the nearby Hilton, a longstanding point of contention, as SFist reported back in 2022. While surveys found strong community support for tearing it down, preservation advocates have objected, and a legal dispute remains over who will pay for its removal.

Demolition of the bridge is expected later this summer, though the parking garage beneath the square will remain open for most of the construction period, as the Chronicle reports.

Several historic monuments and markers tied to the city’s early history will reportedly be placed in storage during the renovation.

KPIX notes that Portsmouth Square is one of San Francisco’s oldest public gathering spaces and has long been known as the “living room” of Chinatown. The square played a central role in the city’s early history, serving as San Francisco’s civic center in the 1800s, and the site of the first American flag-raising in the city.

The square was also reportedly home to California’s first public school and is connected to the legacy of early Black entrepreneur and civic leader William Leidesdorff.

Speakers at Tuesday’s groundbreaking highlighted the park’s importance as both a neighborhood gathering place and a landmark of San Francisco history.

Related: Rec and Parks Gets Ripped Off for $4.5 Million In Cost Overruns on Portsmouth Square Parking Garage