This island has its growing pains... but if you are patient - I have a feeling this will be a pleasant place to live one day soon. This island is the underdog of San Francisco. As far as I know it was polluted from government military stuff similarly to Hunters Point - really bad stuff - even radio active.... I'm no stranger to the island and I sniff around and enjoy the views from here often - but probably not a place I would want to live anytime soon. There are efforts to clean things up and tear stuff down and I do believe this will be a great place to be soon. I suppose if you want to buy in before it explodes - this might be a good time. There is one little convenience store upon entering, Gold Bar (in a shipping container), Mersea (restaurant in shipping container) and then a beautiful place called Gold Bar distillery. I'm sure there is more coming and possible I missed something small. In front of Gold Bar distillery - ive seen many times tent pop ups and events. Really, I know this island for wedding events - I'm sure its a good value and the views are unbeatable. read more

Yerba Buena Island - Local Flavor Near Me - San Francisco, California

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The constructions in the area is finally done! My family and I finally got to visit the newly opened US Navy Reservoir 162, panoramic park with a stunning view of San Francisco Bay area on Christmas day! I liked it that it wasn't crowded as this place is fairly new. I can stay here all day and enjoy the scenery! It is also basically next to Treasure Island. I can't wait to come back during the summer when the weather is warmer! Parking is limited and there is no bathroom. But a quick stop to snap some stunning pictures if you are in the area. I was thankful there were no fogs or rain here during our visit that I can see a clear view of the beautiful city of San Francisco Bay! I left my heart in San Francisco! read more

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Beautiful island to drive around. It's a great place to take photos and look at the plants and birds. Definitely get off the bay bridge and drive around and explore. read more

You're Buena Island is still a hot mess of road construction and route diversions. But it's definitely looking better everyday. Some of the roads have been recently repaved. I still do not recommend riding a bicycle on Yerba Buena Island. There isn't enough room on any of the roads, and they are way too steep for a novice rider. I've witnessed relatively proficient bike riders lose speed and balance and fall attempting to ascend Macalla Road. read more

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Another old military site that's been reclaimed by the city of San Francisco and transferred back into a natural place for all the people to enjoy - take a break from the city all whilst being the middle of the bay. A natural island, this former coast guard station and naval installation has been repurposed over the past few years into another cool place to stop and enjoy the views of the city and bay only seen from there - unless you're in a boat. Parking is plentiful and there's never really a bad time to visit. Sunsets draws the most crowds and congestion, otherwise it's well worth the effort to exit and check it out. If you drive the 80 bridge between San Francisco and Oakland, take that little detour... you've driven past it thousand times. 4 Stars 00583 read more

Oh, just realized that people buying on YBI may be reading these. Let me clue you in on why you shouldn't buy. 1. We are walking into a deep recession that will make 2008 look like a walk in the park. I have a sizeable "fortune" stashed to buy real estate in '24. We're already seeing the cracks in commercial real estate. Residential is next. I'm looking forward to the 30-40% decrease in prices. :) 2. SF Gov is using this development (and YBI specifically) to drive a huge amount of revenue with extra fees/charges that you'll only discover later. Make sure to read the fine print and don't trust your realtor to do ANY of the leg work on this. This development was supported by a lot of Chinese national funds (for Visas:https://www.wsj.com/articles/investor-visas-soaked-up-by-chinese-1409095982) and the expectation was that most of the YBI homes would stay empty. (RE in the Bay Area is a good investment where, if you pay cash, you can make a sizable, safe return over the course of 10 years.) Why is this important? Traffic and lifestyle. The calculations for on/off bridge traffic where based on these assumption of mostly empty units on YBI and that the majority of TI would be using ferries. And, do you really want to live in an empty community that feels like it survived an apocalypse? And, as far as SF planning goes, there were a LOT of miscalculations regarding this development. One of the major ones was climate change and how the sea level will rise. Here is some information on that: https://default.sfplanning.org/plans-and-programs/planning-for-the-city/sea-level-rise/SLRVCA_Report_Executive_Summary.pdf#page=2 The reason this is such an issue for YBI is that the supporting community on TI (Grocery stores, etc.) will be wiped out by 2100 due to the forecast of a +1 ft rise in sea levels. The sea wall on TI is not strong enough to stop the whole island from being flooded, which will negatively effect your property values. (More info on the EIR BS here: https://law.justia.com/cases/california/court-of-appeal/2014/a137828.html) Just look at what is currently happening to the Florida Keys property values for a window of YBI in about 20 years when more of the global warming issues become apparent. 3. Traffic. When I lived there, there were 40-50 households on YBI (and 300 on TI). This is why it was so great. It was safe because no one but us and the raccoons lived there. Traffic and crime wasn't an issue on YBI because we knew everyone and like any small village everyone was in your business. Now they've planned for 8000 households! The traffic is going to be an absolute nightmare. Entering YBI from the East bound exit is going to kill so many people due to being rear-ended by bridge drivers not realizing there is an exit on the left side. That exit was already scary! I can just imagine how it is going to be with more traffic and a bunch of tourists who've never driven across the bridge. 4. Living on an island isn't for everyone. Now that I've left, I see more of the dangers. SF Gov / FEMA won't make YBI a priority in a crisis, so make sure you have enough food, water, and supplies in your place to last a month. Hopefully the new places have a huge pantry and water storage system. These are some of the things those of us on YBI discovered: 1.) None of your friends will visit. This is because everyone in SF thinks crossing a bridge is laborious. Our stunning views were meaningless to people who don't have cars and want to live in a 10 minute travel radius. 2.) You'll need to plan leaving/shopping/life in general. FWY traffic is a bear and accidents on the bridge are frequent... so frequent there is often an SFPD stationed in his car on YBI waiting for an issue on the bridge. 3.) Shopping. Although Wilson Meany has proposed grocery stores and amenities, with the downturn in the economy and dropping unit prices, many of those amenities will likely disappear from the plans. I'm guessing Grocery Outlet might be there, but don't count on a Trader Joes or Safeway. You'll need to plan shopping excursions (and have a big pantry). 4. Commuting to work will be easier, but coming home is more difficult due to SF City traffic which ties up 80, North from the peninsula and in the City itself. 5. Bridge pollution is real. Yes you'll be living next to one of the most trafficked bridges in the world and, despite all the EVs, you will still need to clean the black soot from your home at least weekly. Being higher than sea level also means a greater amount of the "bad" air quality, which a SF City official mentioned when I was asking about the radiation issues on TI. She said their environmental engineers were more concerned about residents' lungs due to cars and how smaller particles rise. 6. Oh, and I hope you've done your research regarding the radiation and toxicity on TI and in the surrounding water. https://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/treasure-island-radiation-more-widespread-than-reported/1925470/ read more

Delivery is great here unless you're the delivery guy on a bicycle. Postmates thought I still had a car I didn't know how to change that until after I picked up the delivery Pete yerba buena Island. Now that I've changed it I'm still stuck on Treasure Island. read more

Yerba Buena Island - Way off Island - Local Flavor Near Me - San Francisco, California

Natural islands rule, especially when they're connected to unnatural islands and people think--and with good reason, I think--that they're all one big man-made island. Oh, in case it isn't clear, Yerba Buena Island is a natural island. It is connected to Treasure Island, which is a man-made island. Treasure Island is flat. Yerba Buena Island isn't. Of course it's not. Nothing that juts out of the middle of the bay would be flat. It would have to be mountainy or mountainish, and Yerba Buena Island is both of these. I was going to write about the different ways to get to Yerba Buena Island, but it's probably better for you to figure those ways out yourself. Sure, you'll waste a lot of fuel and time doing so, but so what? OK, I understand so what, but it's not as if you're going to go out and rent a Hummer just for this excursion. No, chances are that if you're the adventurous type, you're way ahead of me here. So why am I writing this review? I like the trees. And the fact that the Bay Bridge is where it is--did you know the Bay Bridge is actually three bridges (not including the as-yet-unfinished new eastern span)?--because of Yerba Buena Island. Yup, they needed to connect the suspension bridges to something. And the tunnel through YBI is pretty spectacular as well. If I were a better person, I would learn semaphore. And I would perfect and hone my art atop Yerba Buena Island. But I'm not a better person, so you'll have to settle for reading mediocre reviews. Or mediocreish. It's all about the hyphens, baby! read more

Everyone (including me) who has crossed the Bay Bridge has been to Yerba Buena Island. The Yerba Buena Tunnel runs through its center and connects the western and eastern spans. You also briefly cross it on the way over to Treasure Island, although I've never quite figured out where the exact boundary is located. Over the years this place has also been known as Sea Bird Island, Wood Island, and Goat Island. The island is named after the town of Yerba Buena, which was named for the plant of the same name that was abundant in the area. Today the land southeast of the Yerba Buena Tunnel belongs to the United States Coast Guard (USCG) and you can see many of the associated landmarks. And yes I'm jealous of the folks who are lucky enough to live here. read more

Great views of the Bay Bridge and SF!! Best time is anytime ! Plenty of parking and always people enjoying the view. read more

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Despite having a freeway through it and a man-made island attached to it - Yerba Buena Island is pretty cool, definitely part of "local flavor." Being a small island without much in the way of roads or sidewalks, it is definitely best appreciated from the Bay. Find someone who has a boat and circumnavigate all the islands in the bay - it's great to do a tour that way on a windy, sunny day. Pop into the cove at Angel Island for a break from the wind and mimosas with your crew but remember - you're not allowed to skinny dip in the Bay. read more

BADASS. There is so much potential here too. I am not sure what that really cool building is that you can see from across the Bar while at the Embarcadero, but I think it adds a lot to the coastline and culture of the city. The fact that they are doing shows here... and that there is the possibility of well organized, successful two-day weekend concerts is more than exciting. SF is a diverse and deep city with cultural and musical awareness... we deserve a venue that can offer the big music experience that Coachella or other festivals provide. It is an awesome way to introduce yourself to other styles of music you otherwise wouldn't have the pleasure of hearing. Anyhoo... it is brilliant that we now have proper development going on there.. offering it as a revitalized and exciting new community for San Francisco. And the view is sick. I would love to find an apartment there, so I could ferry to work in Sausalito. read more

This is my first time to have finally stopped by here and walked around. We came here for the purpose of taking a video of the bay bridge. I had the chance to check the place around while my man took some videos and also because I got lost or lost him? From across you could see the Golden Gate Bridge, the beautiful city of San Francisco, the Bay Bridge not mention the sailboats on the water! How much does anyone pay for these "priceless" views? read more

I'm always surprised when I tell people I live on Yerba Buena Island and they give me a mystified look. Everyone knows the name Treasure Island, while Yerba Buena Island goes unnoticed. This has gone on for too long, and since this defenseless island can't speak for itself, I'll stand up for it. When you drive on the Bay Bridge towards Oakland and pass through a tunnel, you are driving through Yerba Buena Island. Yes, all mid-bridge exits drop you off on Yerba Buena, and that's the one you see rising out of the water with lots of trees. That's my home, and I'm proud of it. Treasure Island gains most of its credit because of its whimsical name and the fact that quite a few people live there now. It used to be a Naval base, but now houses a few thousand people. Yerba Buena is less developed, but we have a nice place here. If you ever want to visit, it's only a five minute drive from downtown, and a bus runs 24 hours a day from the Mission and 1st terminal. It may be a short trip, but it's worth the idealized look at San Francisco that you can take from this vantage point. Every morning when I'm making coffee and look out over the bay at the Golden Gate Bridge, I remember why I moved away from Ohio. read more

Meh, there are better islands. It's beautiful and it's got a cool location (in the middle of the bay), but that's about it. It's not big enough for a hike. There's no special animal or plant life. It's just... Yerba Buena. It's not the island's fault that it sucks. And if there weren't a main highway going through it, I would totally camp here. read more

In desperate need of work, specifically infrastructure improvements. Although several local businesses have brought a lot of energy to this former military installation, much of the area itself is in need of a little TLC. The views are among beautiful and especially at sunset. 3 stars because this wonderful place lacks the full attention and resources needed to make this place a top notch destination surrounded by the beautiful Bay Are waters. read more

it's beautiful here! I came yesterday night with my boyfriend and he drove under the bridge I was shitting in my pants! cause I was like what happens if the bridge falls or something AHH! but beside that my mom said that she had a bbq down there before. That'd be SO awesome omg. I wanna check it out in the daytime. My idiot boyfriend was like it's the best place to drift.. yeah if I wanna die. :[ well it was a wonderful view. LOL read more

This is such a beautiful island and it's such a shame that it's not being developed into something that could benefit both San Francisco and the East Bay. I cannot for the life of me understand why nobody explored the possibility of building a football stadium there which could have been shared by the Oakland Raiders and the San Francisco 49ers. They could have built a shopping mall with movie theaters and restaurants, even a casino. Ferry connections and buses linking both the East Bay and the City could have alleviated traffic congestion. What a waste of an opportunity to keep the Niners close to the city. read more

After living in the Bay Area my entire life (sans college), I can truly say that "YBI" is one of my favorite places on earth. If you're lucky enough to live there (or know someone whom lives there), you know what I'm talking about. The community is every bit as amazing as the views. The housing on the island is slated for demolition in late 2010. Multimillion dollar condos in 2012. Brings a tear to this big-softy's eye. read more

Holy Moly Batman, what the heck happened?! I visited a few months back and the place is turning into a ghost town. I guess they are getting ready to bulldoze and build those McMansions because many of the homes are boarded up. It's really sad, but I guess that's the way it goes. They'll probably make it private and inaccessible. :( read more

I didn't know you could live here! What a gorgeous view. It's super windy and cold though. Bring a jacket, hat, scarf, close toed shoes, you name it! read more