Although SF State's previous campus is long gone there is still controversy over what it left behind.

Hayes Valley historical activists and preservationists say they don’t want to lose the old buildings which contains public murals, mosaics and other architectural features sponsored by the Works Progress Administration. SF State’s former main campus was located for over half a century near Haight and Laguna Streets.

"San Francisco State is dear to so many of our alums and emeriti faculty, staff, and administrators," said Helene Whitson, an archivist and historian who has worked with SF State for 38 years. "We spent most of our formative years in that place."

For the past two years, residents and officials have voiced their concerns over UC Berkeley officials announcing their decision to offer an 85-year lease to A.F. Evans. The private developer hired by UC wants city permission to rezone the campus property in order to build residential housing.

Their plan includes building 335 residential apartments, 83 subsidized apartments for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender senior citizens and a retail complex. They also plan to renovate the auditorium and construct a 20,000-square-foot park.

"We like our plan -- we think there is support for it," said Jack Robertson, who is the president of A.F. Evans. "We hope we can work on something we will all be proud of."

The plot of land continuously served San Francisco for public use as an orphan asylum and a chapel when the two facilities were built 150 years ago. Records indicate the college first opened the campus location to students a few months after the 1906 earthquake destroyed the college's original location on Powell Street.

The Spanish colonial-style buildings eventually served as auditoriums and lecture halls mostly for women who studied teaching and education before SF State expanded their academic programs and offered class lessons for female and male students alike.

SF State relocated its main campus in the mid 1950s from the six-acre block on Laguna Street over to its larger 90-acre residence near Lake Merced due to increased enrollment size and expanded program offerings. Remnants of SF State's existence remained on the grounds of the campus after the move, including murals, statues, hand-made framework and benches around a large palm tree.

“We need to save that wonderful campus that really has deep meaning for us and for San Francisco. We’ve always been a community that is willing to fight for a good and righteous cause," Whitson said.

Vincent Marsh, who is a preservation planner concerned with saving the campus, said he will nominate the cluster of buildings as a historical landmark in the next few months because the protection of the campus buildings are important.

"Demolition of historically significant buildings is considered to be an adverse effect and the goal is avoid such an outcome," Marsh said. "The owner has the right to object to the nomination. However, the site meets the criteria for listing on the national register under the criteria of history and architecture."

Hayes Valley residents recently voted 22 to 2 against supporting the proposed plan from the developer at a community meeting held on January 26th. Their vote will reflect the association’s decision to not support the proposed plan.

"Our number one priority is that we want to see the substantial amount of property maintained for public use," said Patricia Walkup, founder of the community watchdog group, Hayes Valley Neighborhood Association. "I hope that everyone can come to a plan we can agree to."

UC bought the Hayes Valley campus as an extension to their university in the late 1950s and moved into the vacant buildings, which eventually became lecture classrooms, a computer lab and four public art galleries. The closure of the extension was announced in 2003 due to budget cuts. Representatives believe redevelopment is essential because the current conditions of the aging campus buildings will cost more to repair and retrofit than to replace them.

"UC has determined it has no further use for the site," Jeffrey T. Bond, UC's lead planner on the project, said in a statement to the Hayes Valley community group. "Financial considerations would continue to be crucial to the UC approach to disposition of the property."

Representatives of New College of California, a liberal arts college in San Francisco, recommended to UC an alternative proposal against dense residential housing -- to let them use the campus as a school. But UC officials declined, citing money concerns.

"This is a rare, unique and quite an exquisite site," said Cynthia Servetnick, a campus planner for New College, who wants to preserve the campus and keep the zoning public. "It is designed to be an educational facility. I don't think UC properly looked at the site."

For more information on the project, visit www.hayesvalleysf.org and www.afevans.com.