The Buchanan Mall Gate is one of the most visible cultural landmarks in Japantown and sits at the Sutter Street entrance of the Buchanan Mall. The gate was designed to symbolize a Japanese mountain temple gate and to create a "natural garden" atmosphere for the Mall.

During the mid-1960s, the San Francisco Redevelopment Agency created a plan for the Buchanan Plaza that included a sculpture at the entrance of the Buchanan Mall. The sculpture design was changed to a gate-like structure. The gate and the rest of the Buchanan Plaza were completed in 1976. Also in 1976, Artist Ruth Asawa was commissioned to design the origami sculpture/fountains that join the cobblestone "river" which flows toward the Peace Plaza. The flat concrete pathway on both sides of the "rock river" was created to provide a corridor along the "river" edge. The cobblestones "river" is a reference and a reminder of the early San Francisco streets.

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