The Brutalist Embarcadero Fountain Some Love, Many Hate

Bay Curious

KQED

Places & Travel, Society & Culture, History

4.8 • 1.1K Ratings

🗓️ 14 May 2026

⏱️ 20 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Since it was first unveiled in 1971, the 710-ton brutalist-style Vaillancourt Fountain has been a divisive piece of public art. The tangle of concrete square tubes once fit in seamlessly with the Embarcadero Freeway, a double-decker road which once ran right next to it. But nowadays it stands out against the charming waterfront. On today's episode, we explore the life of this piece of public art, which is currently being taken down by the city. Additional Resources: Read the transcript for this episode Sign up for our newsletter Got a question you want answered? Ask! Your support makes KQED podcasts possible. You can show your love by going to https://kqed.org/donate/podcasts This story was reported by Katie DeBenedetti. Bay Curious is made by Katrina Schwartz, Christopher Beale and Olivia Allen-Price. Additional support from Jen Chien, Katie Sprenger, Maha Sanad, Ethan Toven-Lindsey and everyone on Team KQED. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	On April 4th, 2023, around 2 in the morning, a man was found stabbed multiple times on a sidewalk in downtown San Francisco.
0:12.4	Hey, who did this to you?
0:13.7	What happened next turned the story into a political firestorm.
0:18.0	Reports have identified the victim as Bob Lee, the founder of Cash App.
0:22.4	From Bloomberg Podcasts, this is Foundering, The Killing of Bob Lee.
0:27.3	Listen now, wherever you get your podcasts.
0:30.1	You know, every day on Up First, NPR's Golden Globe nominated morning news podcast,
0:34.3	we bring you three essential stories.
0:36.9	At the heart of each story are questions.
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0:45.7	to be curious and to follow the facts. Follow up first wherever you get your podcasts and start
0:51.3	your day knowing what matters and why.
0:56.5	From KQED.
0:59.7	Hi.
1:02.3	You found me.
1:07.5	I met up with this week's question asker, a short walk from her house in San Francisco.
1:08.5	Hi, everyone.
1:15.2	I'm Nisha, and we are sitting across the street from the fairy building in front of this fountain statue.
1:16.8	We're here to take a closer look at a piece of public art that has been causing quite a stir
1:21.5	over the past few years, the 710-ton-valancourt fountain.
1:28.3	Music the 710-ton Valancourt Fountain.
1:35.3	It has been compared to some pretty interesting things over the years. Robot dog droppings.
	...

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