A metastable three-dimensional cadmium(II) coordination polymer with (2-carboxyethyl)(phenyl)phosphinate (L 2− ) and 4,4′-bipyridine (bipy) as ligands, namely, [Cd(L)-(bipy)(H 2 O) 2 ] (1), can be converted to two new two-dimensional/ three-dimensional varieties under hydrothermal treatments at different temperatures, that is, [Cd(L)(bipy)] (2) and [Cd(L)-(bipy) 0.5 ]•0.5H 2 O ( 3). Their syntheses, crystal structures, structural transformations, and luminescent properties are presented. In addition, 1 shows a second harmonic generation response that is ∼0.3 times that of KDP (KH 2 PO 4 ).