SAN FRANCISCO | Projects: Under Construction, Approved, and Proposed

[FourOneFive]

Socketsite has the redesign for 680/690 Folsom:

Currently:

http://www.socketsite.com/690%20Folsom%20Now.jpg

Proposed:

http://www.socketsite.com/690%20Folsom%20Future.jpg

As I noted in the Socketsite comments section, it's a shame the developers aren't removing that nasty 2 story parking garage next to the taller building. The site is zoned for a 320' structure SO theoretically they could build a tall, slender residential or office tower. What a missed opportunity.

[BTinSF]

I did indeed mean the Burton atrocity at Polk and Golden Gate. Too bad we can't stick a highrise in its massive footprint.

At about 26 stories (as I recall), I think it does meet the definition of highrise here. However, the problem is it's as wide as it is tall and ugly as sin. Plus they keep doing really bad, cheapo remodles that only make it worse (but do keep out terrorists and asbestos).

[BTinSF]

Socketsite has the redesign for 680/690 Folsom:



My vote: Forget it. I don't see anything wrong with the Edward Durrell Stone-ish facade on the large building now and the small building is fine too for a low-scale structure. In general, I don't like slapping new skins on buildings--it often ruins them unless it's actually a restoration of the original (like Ritz Residences which was an undoing of something like what they want to do here).

[Jobohimself]

I honestly see nothing wrong with what's currently there.

[nequidnimis]

You see nothing wrong with this, yet you don't like the Philp Burton Federal Building? This building looks even more like a fortress, with its blank walls and moat at the street level.

[nequidnimis]

http://www.socketsite.com/690%20Folsom%20Future.jpg

As I noted in the Socketsite comments section, it's a shame the developers aren't removing that nasty 2 story parking garage next to the taller building. The site is zoned for a 320' structure SO theoretically they could build a tall, slender residential or office tower. What a missed opportunity.


It looks to me like they are removing the 2 story parking garage and replacing it with some sort of public space.

[BTinSF]

You see nothing wrong with this, yet you don't like the Philp Burton Federal Building? This building looks even more like a fortress, with its blank walls and moat at the street level.

It is not out of scale with the surrounding neighborhood and covering it with glass won't change much anyway. I actually wouldn't hate the Burton Building so much if it had other highrises around it--and they would mitigate the wind effects. But it likely never will because the area in 3 directions from it has a 9-story height limit. This building is in a highrise neighborhood.

[nequidnimis]

My vote: Forget it. I don't see anything wrong with the Edward Durrell Stone-ish facade on the large building now and the small building is fine too for a low-scale structure. In general, I don't like slapping new skins on buildings--it often ruins them unless it's actually a restoration of the original (like Ritz Residences which was an undoing of something like what they want to do here).

My vote: Let this be an inspiration for the new owner of the AAA highrise on Van Ness, with its similar facade.

[Echo Park]

It'd be great if every developer and landowner can cover those ugly 60s modernist towers with a classy facade of glass. It would go a long way to making the urban fabric more elegant. I can think of too many buildings in SF and downtown LA that could use such a treatment.

[Jobohimself]

You see nothing wrong with this, yet you don't like the Philp Burton Federal Building? This building looks even more like a fortress, with its blank walls and moat at the street level.

This actually somewhat blends in with the surroundings, unlike the bulk of blinds and portly lines of Burton. I lived directly across Polk from this monstrosity, and as BTinSF so readily pointed out, the funnel effect through Polk and Turk was, well, a bitch.

[Reminiscence]

The glass façade would certainly give it a more modern look than today, but its a shame thats all they are doing with it. I was hoping more for a vertical expansion over at least part of the building.

[SFView]

The glass façade would certainly give it a more modern look than today, but its a shame thats all they are doing with it. I was hoping more for a vertical expansion over at least part of the building.

My guess is that there is probably much interior remodeling work involved, including what appears to be some addition at the southeast end of the building, along with ADA, fire egress and possible seismic upgrades. The new facade work may as well be included as part of the overall remodel if the budget allows, especially since there may be a new addition that affects the exterior.

[BTinSF]

It'd be great if every developer and landowner can cover those ugly 60s modernist towers with a classy facade of glass. It would go a long way to making the urban fabric more elegant. I can think of too many buildings in SF and downtown LA that could use such a treatment.

Prediction: In 30 or 40 years they'll be tearing if off like they just did to the Ritz residences. I say leave the original architect's vision intact as a general principle.

Facelifts rarely work very well--in people or buildings.

[JDRCRASH]

^
:haha:

[SFView]

I also wish that the Central Tower could be restored to its original domed top 1898 or post 1906 Earthquake Call Building splendor, so I agree that modernizing a building's exterior can often be a mistake.

[PBuchman]

Prediction: In 30 or 40 years they'll be tearing if off like they just did to the Ritz residences. I say leave the original architect's vision intact as a general principle.

I hope to god the day never comes when we're yearning to restore this building's brutalist, exposed concrete and brown glass facade. I think the rendering of the new glass exterior looks outstanding.

If, in 30 or 40 years the market, the planning commission, or general aesthetic concerns dictate that the building be restored back to its original form, then so be it. In the meantime, I don't see the harm in making it look more appealing for the current generation while we're here to enjoy it -- particularly since this building is not iconic, unique, or, as far as I can tell, architecturally or historically significant in its current form.

Facelifts rarely work very well--in people or buildings.

No argument with your point in regards to people.

[peanut gallery]

It's all fenced off and the posted permits say 3 months. Seems a bit quick to me, but we'll see. The rendering doesn't show it, but I have to assume they are redoing the smaller annex building along Hawthorne too. They've already ripped off the skin on the structure that connects it to the main building. Looking at it up close, this building needs help. The concrete is very stained and forelorn looking. Although the pigeons will be sad to see all those roosts go.

[SFView]

I hope to god the day never comes when we're yearning to restore this building's brutalist, exposed concrete and brown glass facade. I think the rendering of the new glass exterior looks outstanding...

I'm not sure if they would want to return to original, since it appears to be a complete replace, rather than just a reface over the existing facades. If I am not mistaken, the current windows look smaller than the proposed.

[BTinSF]

690 Stanyan (corner of Haight, I believe)
http://www.socketsite.com/690%20Stanyan%20Rendering.jpghttp://www.socketsite.com/690%20Stanyan%20Design.jpg

The proposed project: A "four-story," 115,400-sq.ft. retail/residential building with a 34,400-sq.ft. ground-floor specialty grocery store (Whole Foods), 62 residential units in 81,000 sq.ft., and an additional three-level, 176-space subterranean garage (90,000 sq.ft.) with 114 grocery store parking spaces and 62 residential parking spaces. 26 studio units, 20 one-bedroom units, 15 two-bedroom units, and one three-bedroom unit.

The proposed demolition: The vacant 24-foot-high, 23,600-square-foot (sq.ft.) retail building (Cala Foods) and removal of the existing 42-space parking lot at 690 Stanyan.

The Planning Commission hearing: Tomorrow (2/28/08), 1:30 p.m., City Hall (Room 400).

The point: Show up and show your support (or not).

UPDATE: And thanks to a plugged-in tipster we add a rendering and additional insight: "The final design was a real collaboration between architect and neighbors (The Haight Ashbury Improvement Assn) and resulted in the creation of a mezzanine level cafe overlooking Golden Gate Park, something the neighbors preferred over the street level cafe the Planning Dept was pushing for."
Source (including renderings): http://www.socketsite.com/

At last--the parking lot and suburban-style grocery on this corner is going away. Now if the McDonald's on the other corner could as well. I'll leave to others the issue of whether replacing a Cala with a Whole Paycheck is a good thing.

[peanut gallery]

Yep, that's right at the corner of Haight. Since the Cala is now vacant, I have to think a Whole Foods is undeniably an improvement (although for me personally, it would be an improvement either way -- I like Whole Foods). I'll ask my friend who lives up Stanyan what he thinks.

[peanut gallery]

It's all fenced off and the posted permits say 3 months. Seems a bit quick to me, but we'll see. The rendering doesn't show it, but I have to assume they are redoing the smaller annex building along Hawthorne too. They've already ripped off the skin on the structure that connects it to the main building.

Here's what I'm talking about:
http://img86.imageshack.us/img86/7623/dsc09402xd7.jpg

The smaller annex building is to the right. This photo reminds me of something else I noticed yesterday. The most redeeming quality of the exterior of this building is the marble work you see in the foreground. It's very nice and unfortunately covered in grafitti, as you see here. I hope they will salvage it.

[peanut gallery]

Eric at the Transbay Blog has some nice shots (http://transbayblog.com/2008/02/12/evolving-skyline-2-12-2008/#comment-4933) and brief commentary on the new towers. He's got some unique angles.

[SFView]

Eric at the Transbay Blog has some nice shots (http://transbayblog.com/2008/02/12/evolving-skyline-2-12-2008/#comment-4933) and brief commentary on the new towers. He's got some unique angles.

peanut gallery, your comment in this link you just gave...
Nice shots. I agree with you on these new buildings. I can’t quite decide which I like best: Infinity, Millennium or 555 Market. They all appeal to me in different ways. I say bring us more of those!...is almost the same as I feel. I might also add One Rincon Hill to that list, but I'm still waiting for the second tower to go up first. Thanks for sharing this with us.

[botoxic]

From today's Bay Area Reporter:
City's top planner's partner arrested
Published 02/28/2008
by Seth Hemmelgarn

The partner of San Francisco's openly gay planning department director appeared in court Wednesday, February 26 after allegedly starting a fire and trashing the city's historic fire chief's house where the couple had been staying.

Lance Corey Farber, 47, dressed in orange jail garb, pled not guilty to charges of arson of an inhabited dwelling, arson of property, and vandalism of $400 or more, all felonies. He also pled not guilty to a charge of violation of a court order.

Both Connie Chan, a public information officer in District Attorney Kamala Harris's office, and Randall Knox, Farber's attorney, said they didn't know what the possible sentence for the charges could be.

Farber's felony bail was set at $1 million. Knox told reporters outside the courtroom the amount is "excessive" and said he will try to get it reduced at Farber's next court appearance, which is Friday, February 29.

Knox said Farber doesn't have a criminal history. He said Farber is suffering from severe headaches and he wants him to be physically examined.

The charges stem from an incident - first reported by the San Francisco Chronicle - that occurred the evening of Friday, February 22. Farber, the partner of Planning Department Director John Rahaim, 52, allegedly set fire to a mattress and made a mess of the house at 870 Bush Street, where the couple was staying until they found permanent housing, the newspaper reported.

The court order was an emergency protection order that Farber allegedly violated by contacting Rahaim from custody, Chan said. Knox said the alleged call wasn't a threat.

Rahaim started the job in January after moving from Seattle. He had told the Bay Area Reporter in September that he and Farber had been together about four years.

In response to a reporter's question outside court if the two men had quarreled, Knox said that would be an "accurate assessment."

In an e-mail response to questions, San Francisco Police Department Spokesman Sergeant Steve Mannina said police could not comment on what prompted Farber to allegedly trash the city-owned residence.

"I can't speculate on why Farber did this," wrote Mannina.

Rahaim did not respond to a phone message. He is expected to appear before the city's Planning Commission at its meeting today (Thursday, February 28).

Farber was arrested in San Mateo County shortly after the incident was reported for allegedly driving under the influence of alcohol, according to the San Mateo County Sheriff's Office.

Citing Mannina as the source, the Chronicle reported that Rahaim was not at the house when Farber called him and reportedly said, "I'm going to burn the house." Rahaim called 911, the paper reported.

Nathan Ballard, spokesman for Mayor Gavin Newsom, told the B.A.R. Tuesday, February 26 that Fire Chief Joanne Hayes-White has asked that the city no longer invite officials to stay in the house. Newsom will respect her wishes, Ballard said.

Ballard also said Supervisor Chris Daly is asking the city attorney to investigate the incident.

"It comes as no surprise that Chris Daly is trying to exploit this private matter in order to score a few cheap political points," Ballard said.

Daly could not be reached for comment by press time.

When asked where Rahaim is now residing, Ballard said he wanted to protect the planning director's privacy and declined to disclose where he is living.

"My understanding is he's taken just a couple days off," Ballard said. "The mayor supports him 100 percent."

Ballard added that "by all accounts [Rahaim] is doing a terrific job."

Ballard said the amount of damages or who would pay for them isn't yet clear. After the police department conducts a "full and fair investigation ... we'll be able to look at how the damages should be paid for," Ballard said.

[Updated: At the Planning Commission's regular meeting on Thursday, February 28, Rahaim thanked commission and staff members for their support over the last week regarding "some personal challenges."

"I'm very grateful for that," he said.

Arriving a few minutes late for the slow-starting meeting, Rahaim declined to comment to the B.A.R. on the case.

Inside the meeting, Rahaim appeared relaxed and fully engaged in business. At one point, as Rahaim mentioned plans to meet with someone on business, one commissioner joked, "No need to give him any Muni service." This was an apparent reference to the city allowing officials like Rahaim to stay in the fire chief's house. Rahaim smiled broadly and appeared to laugh.]

Press reports Wednesday quoted Fire Department spokeswoman Mindy Talmadge pegging the cost of repairing the house at $30,000. Farber's attorney told the San Francisco Examiner that his client would cover the charges.

"The taxpayers are not going to foot the bill for this incident," Knox told the paper, adding that, "the only item that burned was a mattress that John Rahaim and Lance Farber brought with them from Seattle."

Lieutenant Marc Alcantara, press information officer for the San Mateo County Sheriff's Office, said Farber was stopped on Millbrae Avenue near Highway 101 Friday at about 9:12 p.m. and arrested after he was determined to be driving under the influence of alcohol.

Farber was booked into the Maguire Correctional Facility in Redwood City at 11:25 p.m. and released at about 2:13 a.m. the next day with a promise to appear in court, Alcantara said. He said Farber is due to be arraigned in South San Francisco on March 24 in relation to the DUI arrest.

On a Web site that was copyrighted in 2003, Farber, who Rahaim had said was a holistic chiropractor and nutritionist, referred to himself as a doctor and listed numerous credentials.

He also stated, "I am committed to improving the quality of people's lives, healing the planet."

In a letter to fire commissioners dated Monday, February 25, that was copied to the fire chief and the Department of Real Estate, openly gay Supervisor Bevan Dufty wrote, "It appears that the use of the Fire Chief's Residence ... as temporary housing for City employees is not optimal."

Dufty, who left Tuesday on a sister-city trip to Sydney, Australia and turned 53 Wednesday, wrote that he hopes the commission and Hayes-White "might consider new policies and possible new public usage" when the building's not being used as the fire chief's residence that "could include discussions with the Real Estate Department to solicit interest from nonprofits that would like to partner with the City to restore this historic structure."

[peanut gallery]

My pleasure, SFView.

[BTinSF]

Hearst Corp. adds news to development plan

Will San Francisco Chronicle copy editors end up replacing the African penguins at 875 Howard St.?

Hearst Corp. is zeroing in on picking a developer for its 3.9-acre Mid-Market property, according to Chronicle spokesman Henry Ford, who said "we are hoping to have a decision soon." While Hearst is keeping a tight lid on the selection process, a key criteria has been a stipulation that the winning team create a new home for the Chronicle's editorial and corporate offices. Ford said that the winning team could choose to incorporate the existing Chronicle facility into a new design -- as Hearst did with its headquarters in New York -- or move them to another building. "Everything is on the table," he said.

That is where TMG may have an advantage. TMG and Flynn Properties own 875-899 Howard St., which is right around the corner from the Chronicle's current headquarters at 901 Mission St. While the 150,000-square-foot Howard Street building now houses the California Academy of Sciences, that will no longer be the case when the academy moves back into Golden Gate Park in September. The academy's lease expires in 2009.
Source: http://www.bizjournals.com/sanfrancisco/stories/2008/03/03/newscolumn1.html

I'm posting the above, but I don't understand it. Who is it saying owns 875 Howard? Hearst or TMG? And which "existing Chronicle facility" are they talking about? The one at 5th and Mission? And which property is Hearst redeveloping? I recall we've seen concepts for a tower at the present Chronicle site--is that what they are talking about?

[peanut gallery]

I don't know, BT. That's a very confusing article. Where's it from?

[peanut gallery]

The new skyline -- this evening, from east of Alcatraz:
http://img168.imageshack.us/img168/9672/img0916nu3.jpg

Zooming in on the new stuff:
http://img168.imageshack.us/img168/4330/img0915ob5.jpg

[BTinSF]

I don't know, BT. That's a very confusing article. Where's it from?

Oops. I forgot the citation. It's from the SF Business Times.

[peanut gallery]

555 Washington (next to the TransAmerica):

Not a render but a footprint (and a very interesting one) of a proposed 38-story residential tower with 250+ units:

http://www.socketsite.com/555%20Washington%20Landscape.jpg
Source: http://www.socketsite.com/

All the articles written about this mention it will go in the vacant lot next to the Pyramid. But looking at the diagram above, you can see that the lot is only about one third the footprint required for this proposal. They will need to demo the building at Sansome and Washington (I think it's 545 Sansome). This is no great loss, but I'm surprised no one has mentioned it. Heck, it's a nice benefit of the project.

I also found it interesting that they will number this 555 Washington rather than 545 Sansome. Do you suppose this is because Sansome sounds more FiDi and Washingon sounds more North Beach? It is residential afterall.

Anyway, this should really enhance the Redwood Garden by not only opening it up full time and adding more people to the area outside working hours, but by building a better building at that corner that doesn't turn its back like the current one does.

[hi123]

What are the two buildings u/c in the background of this pic from flickr:
one of them is covered by a black tarp and has a blue crane and the other has a yellow crane?

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2407/2303528024_6e576b24a3_b.jpg

[peanut gallery]

I'm going to guess that those are both along Van Ness and the one with the black-covered scaffolding is Symphony. But I haven't been over that way in a while, so I can't be sure.

[BTinSF]

What are the two buildings u/c in the background of this pic from flickr:
one of them is covered by a black tarp and has a blue crane and the other has a yellow crane?

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2407/2303528024_6e576b24a3_b.jpg

I'm fairly certain the "black tarp" is 818 Van Ness:

http://www.socketsite.com/818%20Van%20Ness.jpg
Source: http://www.socketsite.com/archives/2007/12/the_socketsite_scoop_on_the_52_condos_rising_at_818_van.html

The yellow crane may be the building going up on Eddy between Larkin and Polk (it's affordable housing by one of the non-profit developers).

[BTinSF]

Would one of you guys presently in "The City" please keep an eye on the southwest corner of Golden Gate & Polk for me. I believe demolition of the old state building there is supposed to begin this month to be followed by construction of the the new "ultra-green" offices for the PUC: http://www.bizjournals.com/sanfrancisco/stories/2007/04/16/story1.html

There's a rendering here somewhere but you can also see it here: http://www.kmdarchitects.com/KmdArchitects.html (look under "our work"-->civic-->P.U.C Building

[peanut gallery]

Oh yeah, I almost forgot about that one. I can swing by when I make the trek down to Trinity, which I do every few weeks. Perhaps it should have it's own thread in General Developments?

[BTinSF]

Perhaps it should have it's own thread in General Developments?

When there's some sign of work being done (which YOU can supply, I hope).

[BTinSF]

Friday, March 7, 2008
Jewish Museum arrives
Artful addition expected to draw 150,000 visitors
San Francisco Business Times - by Sarah Duxbury

Major construction on the $47.5 million Contemporary Jewish Museum is complete, and now come the finishing touches and installation to prepare for opening day on June 8.

With the museum's completion, the Redevelopment Agency is close to closing the books on the Yerba Buena Redevelopment Area.

The Contemporary Jewish Museum has been around for more than 20 years, but the organization will undergo a virtual recreation as it grows its staff, budget, programming and ambitions to fill a 63,000-square-foot new home designed by internationally-renowned architect Daniel Liebeskind.

Its first year, the museum hopes to welcome between 150,000 and 175,000 visitors, but Executive Director Connie Wolf said she expects attendance in future years to stabilize between 115,000 and 125,000 visitors.

Wolf has yet to finalize an operating budget, but she said it will be several million dollars more than the $2 million it took to run a much smaller museum on Steuart Street. The staff will grow from about a dozen full-time employees to 35, most of whom are already hired, Wolf said, and she expects to triple membership in the first year to 4,500 members.

To support that growth, the museum, led by board member Roselyne Swig, is in the final stages of an $80 million capital campaign that, in addition to funding construction, will also cover ramp-up costs, contingency and reserve funds, and includes $25 million for the endowment.

"The financial effort has been satisfying," Swig said, "The people who have supported the campaign are broad-based, young and old alike, so that makes us feel very good."

Wolf won't disclose how much the museum has raised to date for fear of discouraging new donations, but the museum had raised $60.5 million by July 2006. It has also logged 27 donations over $1 million, putting it on track to exceed its $80 million goal. Any extra funds will further secure the museum's future by growing its endowment.

Cartoonist exhibition on tap

The new museum has three different program spaces, all of which have been designed to be flexible because the museum doesn't have a permanent collection.

The first floor gallery has a cement floor and a wall of windows that open onto Yerba Buena Lane. Its inaugural exhibition, "From the New Yorker to Shrek: The Art of William Steig," will be the sole West Coast showing of an exhibition created by the Jewish Museum in New York. It will be followed an Andy Warhol exhibit.

A long, 7,000-square-foot, sky-lit gallery on the second floor will be the museum's main presentation space, and the museum has commissioned seven artists to create works for an exhibition entitled for "In the Beginning: Artists Respond to Genesis."

The 'Yud' is a dynamic space inside Liebeskind's iconic blue cube, whose stark, diagonal walls are punctuated by 36 windows that represent a double "L'Chaim," Hebrew for "To Life," and a lucky number in Jewish culture. A sound installation entitled "John Zorn Presents the Aleph-Bet Project" has been commissioned to inaugurate this space.

Some 20,000 square feet of the museum were donated by Millennium Partners and are built into the Four Seasons Hotel.

There are also display cases in the educational wing, and the education program will start in earnest in the fall. A ground-floor multipurpose room has retractable seating for 250.

In the late spring CJM will start a paid teen docent program, and it will stand out from other museums thanks to a one-year pilot program to offer free admission for anyone under 18. General admission is $8.

Target will sponsor a free community day on June 8. It is just one on an enviable roster of corporate sponsors, many of whom, including PG&E, BNY Mellon Wealth Management, Hermès and Boucheron are first-time supporters of the organization.

A café will occupy the front of the structure and on nice days will spill out onto the Plaza.

Growth of Yerba Buena area

These are heady times for the museum's management and closest supporters, but the museum opening is equally significant for San Francisco.

"With our opening, we'll also open Jessie Plaza -- a location in Yerba Buena that was not developed and was something of an eyesore for many years. We really finish that northern part of the Yerba Buena district," Wolf said.

The Redevelopment Agency will spend $6 million to complete Jessie Plaza, which will be like an extension of Yerba Buena Gardens.

"This whole area will come alive with Yerba Buena Lane and all the stores and restaurants," Wolf said. "There's going to be a vibrancy on this block that wasn't there."

Her neighbors agree.

"We can hardly wait," said Jennifer McCabe, director of the Museum of Craft and Folk Art which sits halfway down Yerba Buena Lane. "We've been here two years and patiently awaiting all the new spaces to open and people to become more familiar with what the lane is and where it is and the construction to be over."

While all but one space on the lane is leased, none of the restaurants is yet open, so the lane hasn't lived up to its promise to become a destination.

"The Contemporary Jewish Museum will bring the most traffic by far," McCabe said.

It also, presumably, will bring art lovers, which will be a boon to her museum.

Ongoing museum boom

San Francisco has seen something of a museum renaissance in recent years, particularly of new construction, and the Jewish Museum isn't the end of it.

"It's obviously a beautiful and meaningful project in itself, but it's also another piece in the major development of Yerba Buena as the cultural center of San Francisco," said Amy Neches, senior project manager at the Redevelopment Agency. "Physically, it also helps create that connection we want from Market through to Mission and into Yerba Buena Gardens and South of Market."

The Redevelopment Agency donated the Jessie Street Powerstation to the Jewish Museum, much as it has given millions of dollars in donated land, building costs and direct investments to the other cultural institutions it slated for the area.

Not all have succeeded. The Mexican Museum is practically disbanded. It has a collection, but must rebuild its leadership and regain the trust of donors if it is to move forward with its museum plans.

Museum of the African Diaspora opened to much fanfare in the St. Regis Hotel in late 2005, but has since faltered. It raised $6 million to open, but found it hard to cover operating costs. Last fall, the Redevelopment Agency committed $1 million more to help it find its footing, much as it reinvested in Zeum when that new arts organization stumbled in its infancy.

The Jewish Museum hopes it has dodged the fate of those museums by raising operating and endowment money at the same time it has its hand out for construction costs.

The Redevelopment Agency is scheduled to finish the Yerba Buena area by 2010.

The failure to start construction of the long-planned Mexican Museum is "the big unfinished piece at this point," Neches said, but she hopes that project, too, will be well under way by 2010.

sduxbury@bizjournals.com / (415) 288-4963
Source: http://www.bizjournals.com/sanfrancisco/stories/2008/03/10/story1.html

Mexican Museum underway by 2010. Hmmm. Since the latest version of that project involves rebuilding and enlarging--probably with additional height-- the building on the corner of 3rd & Mission and putting the museum in a ground floor space, I wonder if this means that project will be underway by 2010.

[peanut gallery]

Today at One Kearny:
http://img525.imageshack.us/img525/9817/dsc09423ki9.jpg

This looks like the base of the core (assuming there is a core on an addition like this):
http://img113.imageshack.us/img113/6596/dsc09424qo1.jpg

[peanut gallery]

Since the latest version of that project involves rebuilding and enlarging--probably with additional height-- the building on the corner of 3rd & Mission and putting the museum in a ground floor space

Was that the plan? I thought they were going to build a new building on the lot between the building on the corner and the church. Or is the idea to both use that lot and incorporate the building on the corner?

[San Frangelino]

I got these off a power point presentation via http://www.sfgov.org/site/planning_index.asp?id=42414

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2066/2327101360_281b583117_o.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2223/2327102178_6d1c007c81_o.png

Does anyone know what's going on with the Executive Park Area?

[BTinSF]

Was that the plan? I thought they were going to build a new building on the lot between the building on the corner and the church. Or is the idea to both use that lot and incorporate the building on the corner?

The idea for the new, separate building (design by Legoretta) more or less died with the Mexican Museum's inability to raise the money to build it. The plan to incorporate the museum into an expansion of the building next door was sort of a "rescue plan" but I'm pretty sure it's the latest and most likely approach:

after years of delays and stalled fundraising efforts, the Legorreta building has yet to rise, and probably never will.
"It's likely that it won't be built," said Tom Peterson, a longtime trustee of the Mexican Museum, which was founded in a District storefront by artist Peter Rodriguez in 1975.
Instead, the museum, whose Fort Mason galleries have been closed for two years, could be integrated into a tower that Millennium Partners and JMA Ventures want to build at Third and Mission streets, overlooking Jessie Square. The developers have been talking to the San Francisco Redevelopment Agency, which owns the land and had committed $20 million to build the shell of the Legorreta building, about making space for the Mexican Museum in the planned mixed-use tower.
That structure, which hasn't been officially presented, would presumably rise from the site originally envisioned for the Mexican Museum and merge with the landmark ochre-brick Mercantile Building to the east. A spokesman for Millennium - which built Metreon, the garage beneath the Contemporary Jewish Museum on Jessie Square and the Four Seasons hotel that towers behind it - confirmed that the company is "having conversations about developing a project with the Redevelopment Agency and the Mexican Museum," and that another prominent Mexican architect, Enrique Norton, has been hired to create designs for the "potential" project.
Source: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/01/27/MNEFUJQ4E.DTL&hw=SF+Mexican+Museum&sn=004&sc=369

[BTinSF]

San Frangelino: OMG! There's a bush on Bay View hill that's so pretty when it blooms in the spring and I won't be able to see it while fishing in the Bay if they build those towers. I'm going to organize the opposition to them. ;)

[nequidnimis]

Count me in!

[botoxic]

:previous: Save BT's bush!!! :previous:

[JAC6]

It's not a skyscraper, but it's hard to talk about the revitalization of SF without discussing the Ferry Building and John King does just that in today's Chronicle. (It is amazing that it has been five years already.)

Ferry Building looking better than ever
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/03/11/DDDFVE7F5.DTL

Here's the intro:

Five years later, the Ferry Building looks better than ever.

It's hard to remember the decades when this 1898 landmark with its campanile-like clock tower was an artifact of a bygone age. In April 2003, the first shops opened behind the sturdy sandstone facade, and history started anew.

Now it's a reborn symbol of San Francisco - not the blue-collar city on a bridge-free bay, but an international metropolis where food is a religion for residents and visitors with money to spend.

And while it's easy to scoff at the frills - no longer need I search in vain for a $32 bottle of truffle-infused olive oil - the architectural and urban design basics still shine. This is as good as a $100 million development project gets: Nothing else here in the past decade better shows how to breathe life into the city without diluting its essence.

So the next time you find yourself at the foot of Market Street, ignore the artisan chocolate and Slanted Door's cellophane noodles. Instead, check out the surroundings; they're a lesson in what urban renewal should be.

[Downtown Dave]

Most of our favorite new construction together...

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v106/NelsonAndBronte/SanFrancisco/MissionBay/SkylineMissionBay-9872.jpg

[c1tyguy]

I found some incredible simulation clips depicting the future Rincon Hill skyline. My mouth kind of dropped when I saw the before and after! Quite stunning.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2004/10/22/MNCITY6_CONCEPTS.DTL

Note: These simulations were created in 2004. The grey outlined buildings are said to have been ''approved''. If this is the case, where are they?!

Do we have any insights on the accuracy of these simulations as things presently stand?

[BTinSF]

^^^They're getting built. Here is the map from your link:

http://imgs.sfgate.com/c/pictures/2004/10/22/mn_skyline-rinconlocator_grfk.gif
Source: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/object.cgi?object=/chronicle/pictures/2004/10/22/mn_skyline-rinconlocator_grfk.gif&paper=chronicle&file=MNCITY6_CONCEPTS.DTL&directory=/c/a/2004/10/22&type=news

It shows, on Rincon Hill, the two ORH towers (one built, the other, we hope, to start within a couple of months), 45 Lansing and The Californian. Only The Californian is unlikely to get built soon.

On lower Folsom St, it shows The Infinity--built--and 201 Folsom which we have been discussing some in The Infinity thread. The latest we know is construction is planned for 2010.

Then it shows an assortment of highrises in the TransBay Project area. Serious proposals for these are awaiting revision of the zoning for that area, expected this summer. Interestingly, it shows a much shorter TransBay signature tower than is now anticipated and I don't think it shows 301 Mission (there is an existing structure which could be that but the scheme appears to be to show future buildings in a lighter color and 301 was a future building in 2004) or 555 Mission.

All things considered, I think we are making good progress so far.

[peanut gallery]

Isn't The Californian on the wrong side of Fremont? It should be diagonal from the second ORH building, not directly across Harrison from it.

[SFView]

:previous: That could be 340-350 Fremont Street instead. The Californian tower seems to be missing from this early graphic.

[BTinSF]

I'd like to solicit all you photographers to provide current photos of:

- The Argenta

- 77 Van Ness

- 818 Van Ness

- The project @ Geary & Polk

- The project @ 10th & Mission

- The project (if anything's happening) on Market next to the LGBT Community Center

[hi123]

I second that request for 77 van ness , that project is a total mystery!

[northbay]

i dont know where else to put this, but im afraid i have to rant:

not against sf, but for it

i just came back from a week trip to ft lauderdale/miami (my first time to the south), and i have to say that i was sorely disappointed (in the land use patterns that is), the ladies were ok. ;)

but back on topic, i seriously drove for tens of miles and all i saw was strip mall after strip mall. no large parks, just parking lot after parking lot. even the medical centers where in the strip malls

'new urbanism', in ANY form, simply doesnt exist. when i went to downtown miami, i couldnt believe it. i felt like being in hunters point - with skyscrapers with huge parking garage podiums and NO CONSIDERATION to the street presence. shops were boarded up, and the shops that did exist were like pawn shops and the like - not what i expected from a 'world-class' city.

not to mention the lack of cafes, or decent food.

were lucky to live in northern california - this is seriously paradise compared to that shit :yuck:

plus we can get good sourdough bread :D





ok - back to topic: END OF RANT

yes, i third the request 4 photos

[BTinSF]

i was sorely disappointed (in the land use patterns that is), the ladies were ok. ;)

but back on topic, i seriously drove for tens of miles and all i saw was strip mall after strip mall. no large parks, just parking lot after parking lot. even the medical centers where in the strip malls



Had you gone north to Orlando or Tampa or Jax you would have seen a lot of the same thing. Those three and Miami do have downtowns, but they are surrounded by many square miles of suburbs that are as you described.

By the way, so are Phoenix and Tucson and Southern CA.

[peanut gallery]

Most of those are a pretty long hike for me. I'm usually shooting during my lunch and only have so much time. I might be able to get to 10th & Mission (as well as the new green government building on Golden Gate you asked about before) when I'm over at Trinity as it's only a couple more blocks. But that's about the limit to what I can get to most days.

However, we're thinking of going to the Easter parade and egg hunt on Union St. this Sunday. If we go, I'll try to convince my wife to go on a little building-shooting excursion (her favorite thing! lol).

[viewguysf]

I'd like to solicit all you photographers to provide current photos of:

- The Argenta <<< Still covered in black, looking exactly the same.

- 77 Van Ness

- 818 Van Ness

- The project @ Geary & Polk

- The project @ 10th & Mission <<< Still a parking lot on the south end and a hole in the ground on Market street, looking exactly the same.

- The project (if anything's happening) on Market next to the LGBT Community Center <<< Much graffiti has been added to all sides of the lot. A large backhoe has been sitting there for weeks; nothing is happening.

I thought I'd give you a little verbal update on three of these until one of our great photographers covers these sites!

[viewguysf]

Had you gone north to Orlando or Tampa or Jax you would have seen a lot of the same thing. Those three and Miami do have downtowns, but they are surrounded by many square miles of suburbs that are as you described.

Being quite familiar with Florida, I have to say that Orlando has a really cool downtown, small scale but much nice modern and older architecture; it's also very lively at night and a lot of fun. Jacksonville is rather dead downtown, but it has some great older architecture that has been preserved, including a beautiful movie palace. It's also very clean and pretty in a number of spots, especially along the Saint Johns River. Tampa has come a long way. It too has interesting architecture, a restored movie palace, Ybor City with it's night life, the University of Tampa and both the Hillsborough River and Tampa Bay. None of these compare to a San Francisco, Chicago, etc., but they beat the hell out of downtown Miami.

Northbay420, I'm sure that you went over to Miami Beach and South Beach though...right?

[viewguysf]

Most of those are a pretty long hike for me. I'm usually shooting during my lunch and only have so much time. I might be able to get to 10th & Mission (as well as the new green government building on Golden Gate you asked about before) when I'm over at Trinity as it's only a couple more blocks. But that's about the limit to what I can get to most days.

However, we're thinking of going to the Easter parade and egg hunt on Union St. this Sunday. If we go, I'll try to convince my wife to go on a little building-shooting excursion (her favorite thing! lol).

Don't bother going over to the PUC building site on Golden Gate either because it's exactly the same. There is no sign of pending demolition and one of my contacts at the PUC thought that the project had been somewhat delayed.

I have a feeling that your wife will not be happy if you do this on Easter Sunday, especially since there's nothing much to shoot. :whip:

[BTinSF]

Friday, March 21, 2008
Sullivan casts new mold for Foundry Square building
San Francisco Business Times - by J.K. Dineen

Wilson Meany Sullivan is thinking bigger in Foundry Square.

The blue-chip development firm has filed an application to expand its Foundry Square III building by 75,000 square feet. If approved by the Planning Commission, the larger building at 525 Howard St. would grow the size of the proposed building from 178,000 square feet to 252,500 square feet, according to WMS principal Tom Sullivan.

The new design would add 50 feet of width to the proposed structure, in addition to another story. Sullivan said the expansion will make the building the same size as the other three Foundry Square structures, which house headquarters for Barclays Global Investors, Gymboree and the law firm Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe.

The expanded footprint is made possible by the fact that Wilson Meany Sullivan last year bought 525 Howard St., a single-story, 10,000-square-foot structure that functions as a Goat Hill Pizza by day and Club NV, a dance club, by night.

The site is adjacent to Wilson Meany Sullivan's proposed LEED Gold building development, Foundry Square III. Studios Architecture is designing the building.
Source: http://www.bizjournals.com/sanfrancisco/stories/2008/03/24/newscolumn1.html?t=printable

[BTinSF]

WMS to cut hotel out of New Montgomery project

Wilson Meany Sullivan has decided to drop the hotel component of its redevelopment of the historic Pacific Telephone and Telegraph Co. building at 140 New Montgomery St. Originally WMS had proposed a combination of posh hotel and condos -- similar to what was done at the St. Regis and the Four Seasons. But after further scrutiny, the firm changed its proposal to 135 extra-large residential units on floors 2 to 26 of the art deco structure, for a total of 368,000 square feet. The ground floor will house an 8,500-square-foot restaurant and an existing parking garage, accessible from Natoma Street, would accommodate 70 valet-parked cars.

"The level of the quality and luxury is the same as it would have been with a hotel," said Sullivan.

The architect on the project is Hornberger + Worstell.
Source: http://www.bizjournals.com/sanfrancisco/stories/2008/03/24/newscolumn1.html?t=printable

[BTinSF]

The project @ 10th & Mission <<< Still a parking lot on the south end and a hole in the ground on Market street, looking exactly the same.

Thanks for the effort but I think you're describing the 10th & MARKET project, which I figured was dormant. What I was wondering about was 10th & Mission--across 10th on a lot that doesn't go through to Market.

Being quite familiar with Florida, I have to say that Orlando has a really cool downtown, small scale but much nice modern and older architecture; it's also very lively at night and a lot of fun. Jacksonville is rather dead downtown, but it has some great older architecture that has been preserved, including a beautiful movie palace. It's also very clean and pretty in a number of spots, especially along the Saint Johns River. Tampa has come a long way. It too has interesting architecture, a restored movie palace, Ybor City with it's night life, the University of Tampa and both the Hillsborough River and Tampa Bay. None of these compare to a San Francisco, Chicago, etc., but they beat the hell out of downtown Miami.

I lived in FL for 10 years (Winter Park) and partied in "downtown" Orlando and occasionally in Ybor City. I also worked at Duval County Hospital briefly in downtown JAX. I'm sure downtown Orlando, in particular, is better than it was (although I'm told Lake Eola is now homeless heaven)--it has highrises now at least--but all those places for many square miles are surrounded by sprawl and strip malls. You can drive from where my Mom lives in Ormond Beach to Tampa on I-4 and hardly be out of site of sprawl these days. I keep having random obsessive thoughts of taking advantage of the real estate slump to buy something near the family but if I did I'd try to find something out of the way of the I-95/I-4 axis--maybe around Palatka or Bunnel or somewhere north of Daytona, east of Gainesville. That area still seems most like the Florida I enjoy.

[SFView]

77 Van Ness is also still shrouded in black. There isn't much to see or photograph except it appears to be topped out at 9 levels. Exterior walls and framing is in place, but still waiting to receive exterior finishes. I believe 818 is also shrouded in black with white on the top like the Argenta is now. I concure with viewguysf on the status of the other projects BTinSF is asking for. Someone may want to photograph and post The Hayes on 55 Page Street though. The wraps have been recently taken down on that project.

[peanut gallery]

Thanks for the update on FSIII, BT. The Club NV building is no great loss (I have no opinion on the club itself). I assume they're still waiting for a tennant to begin construction.

Oh and thanks, viewguysf, for saving me the walk to the PUC site. I was going to head down there today.

[BTinSF]

Thanks for the update on FSIII, BT.

You're welcome. I'm just glad the building is still a go. We've been waiting a long time to see Foundry Square completed.

[roadwarrior]

The Club NV building is no great loss (I have no opinion on the club itself).

Club NV always struck me as a place that fits in better further west in SOMA. I do like Goat Hill Pizza and wish they could keep that in another building, but at least there still is the location on 3rd & Harrison.

[peanut gallery]

Maybe I should check it out. I see their "all you can eat" banner practically everyday, but I've never tried it. Not sure why...

[peanut gallery]

One Kearny update. They've poured the foundation, so it should start rising shortly. I imagine the rest of the tower crane will be delivered soon.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3121/2351194962_b71a3e1781_b.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2010/2351194974_202bb1447f_b.jpg

[northbay]

None of these compare to a San Francisco, Chicago, etc., but they beat the hell out of downtown Miami.

yea, i was seriously dissapointed in miami.

Northbay420, I'm sure that you went over to Miami Beach and South Beach though...right?

of course!!!! it wasnt so bad there ;)

[sofresh808]

Just out of curiosity, does anyone know if the Renzo-Piano highrise proposal was ever released, or if it is even still on the table? With Millenium, 555 Mish and InfinityII topping out soon, I wanna see something something big going up soon, haha.

[WonderlandPark]

Refresh my memory, what is One Kearney again? I don't see it on the first page.

[BTinSF]

Renzo Piano: His design wasn't released because it isn't done and can't be till he (and we) know the height limit on that lot which we won't until the Planning Department tells us what they want it to be this summer and the NIMBY's do what they can to lower it. All he has said is he wants it to be like stalks of bamboo or some such--the rest is guesswork.

One Kearny: This is not a new building, it's an addition to the savings and loan building on the northwest corner of that intersection, across from the Ritz Residences, intended to fill in the "gap-toothed" look one formerly saw looking north on 3rd St because the building next to One Kearny was shorter than the rest of the streetwall.

Here is the best rendering we have:

http://www.archengine.com/resources//gen/w404-1207-11.26-1Kearny-Primary-a.jpg
Source: http://www.archengine.com/resources//gen/w404-1207-11.26-1Kearny-Primary-a.jpg

The architect also called the addition now under construction and the older addition on the corner "seismic bookends" for the historic part of the structure between them.

[viewguysf]

One Kearny: This is not a new building, it's an addition to the savings and loan building on the northwest corner of that intersection, across from the Ritz Residences, intended to fill in the "gap-toothed" look one formerly saw looking north on 3rd St because the building next to One Kearny was shorter than the rest of the streetwall.

Here is the best rendering we have:

http://www.archengine.com/resources//gen/w404-1207-11.26-1Kearny-Primary-a.jpg
Source: http://www.archengine.com/resources//gen/w404-1207-11.26-1Kearny-Primary-a.jpg

The architect also called the addition now under construction and the older addition on the corner "seismic bookends" for the historic part of the structure between them.

I've felt from the beginning that this is another piece of mediocre architecture for San Francisco, plus it will forever hide the one remaining beautiful dormer window on the old building. More schlock IMO, even if it does fill in the gap. It should have not risen above the main part of the old structure.

[BTinSF]

^^^I'm not sure what you mean by "not rise above the main part of the old structure". It doesn't look to me like it does that--it stops at the cornice where the mansard begins and, unless my eyes deceive me, there's still a dormer window facing Market St. Still, I can't say I'm thrilled by the architecture of the new bit either, though. It looks very 1960's in the rendering.

[BTinSF]

More on the Daniel Libeskind-designed Contemporary Jewish Museum of SF:

Daniel Libeskind's buildings never fail to stir conversation—and even controversy—as his concept-heavy designs don't always translate smoothly into "civilian" life (the architect's perpetual challenge, no doubt). Libeskind was commissioned to design the new Contemporary Jewish Museum, an adaptive reuse of the Jessie Street PG&E Power Substation, after realizing the Denver Art Museum, his first project to be built in the United States. In traversing the new space— especially the main gallery on the second floor— we felt like Libeskind took more than a few notes from his experience with the DAM; the building was heavily criticized as being physically unconducive to hanging art work (not difficult to imagine given his propensity for angles of the anything-but-90-degree variety). Major problem, no? Here in San Francisco, however, we found a different story.

Conceptually speaking, Libeskind was inspired by the Hebrew phrase "L'Chiam," (To Life), and based his design on the two symbolic Hebrew letters of "chai"— the "chet" and "yud." The "yud" gallery (see the photogallery) is most reflective of this concept.

A variety of spaces, some skewed wildly and some less so were by and large conducive to their intended purposes (though we're a little fearful for the special events/ "yud" gallery, beautifully lit as it is); we saw a few superfluous nooks and an angle or two (or twelve) too many in spots, but at the risk of repeating ourselves— because we are, in fact, repeating ourselves) the second floor gallery is one of the better (or at least, more pleasant— large-scale spaces we've seen in San Francisco. (However, we're withholding our final judgment until we see how the space actually works once objects are installed— Libeskind's Berlin effort is a near disaster on that front, we think.)

Hope, people. Libeskind's building, Piano's CA Academy of Sciences— San Francisco just may be on an architectural upswing after all (if Gluckman Mayner behave themselves in the Presidio, of course).

The Facts:

· FACT: The building was designed by Daniel Libeskind; WRNS Studio Architectural Resources Group manned the preservation front.

· FACT: The museum contains 63,000 gross square feet of space; Exhibitions and Special Events galleries: 11,700 sq. ft. total; Education Center and gallery: 3,500k sq. ft. total; Grand Lobby: 2,500 sq. ft.; Multipurpose room: 3,300 sq. ft.; Museum Store: 2,000 sq. ft; Cafe: 2,100 sq. ft.

· FACT: The opening of the CJM marks the first time the PG&E substation will be accessible to the public in over one hundred years.

· FACT: Over 3,000 blue plates were installed on the outside. No, they will not fade or chalk given that no dyes or pigments were used to create the color. Instead, a procedure called "interface coating" was used to achieve their blue hue. Frank Gehry, take note: the cross-hatching of the panels is said to reduce glare on the building.

http://sf.curbed.com/uploads/2008_03_CJMplan1.jpghttp://sf.curbed.com/uploads/2008_03_CJMplan2.jpg

what the plans don't really communicate is the fact that there is only one single vertically straight wall in the entire building. Located in the first floor (lower image), this wall was DL's concession to the CJM staff. Almost everywhere else in the building, he's up to his usual spatially disorienting, curator-reviled trickery, albeit tempered in certain areas by the existing brick building. On the second floor, the larger main gallery highlights the intersection with the new building and the repurposed power station, and yes, while the walls are slightly askew, they're nothing like those in Libeskind's Berlin or Denver museums — buildings that make many less concessions.

http://curbednetwork.com/cache/gallery/3187/2350708222_e1d5c1c63e_o.jpg

http://curbednetwork.com/cache/gallery/2287/2349745223_db86fe818c_o.jpg

http://curbednetwork.com/cache/gallery/3163/2349732493_481e9c33c9_o.jpg

http://curbednetwork.com/cache/gallery/3092/2350547042_5b998df6b7_o.jpg

http://curbednetwork.com/cache/gallery/2334/2349739889_4182077056_o.jpg

http://curbednetwork.com/cache/gallery/2080/2349715941_b206c00976_o.jpg

http://curbednetwork.com/cache/gallery/3116/2350576312_f92ea60faf_o.jpg

http://curbednetwork.com/cache/gallery/2259/2349719191_94976cbb57_o.jpg

http://curbednetwork.com/cache/gallery/2127/2349702507_16db687d82_o.jpg

http://curbednetwork.com/cache/gallery/2147/2350539382_84a59c16ac_o.jpg

Source of photos and text: http://sf.curbed.com/

[peanut gallery]

One Kearny update. They've poured the foundation, so it should start rising shortly. I imagine the rest of the tower crane will be delivered soon.

Went by last night and the crane is now fully assembled.

[northbay]

the jewish museum looks real good

[SFView]

the jewish museum looks real good

Yes, I think so too. It must have been fun for the contractors to build. I wonder how they are going to keep people from putting their dirty shoes, etc. up on some of those leaning walls.

[BTinSF]

Tidbit from Curbed SF: 766 Harrison St.

http://sf.curbed.com/uploads/2008_01_766Harrison.jpghttp://sf.curbed.com/uploads/2008_01_766Harrison7.jpg

http://sf.curbed.com/uploads/2008_01_766Harrison2.jpghttp://sf.curbed.com/uploads/2008_01_766Harrison3.jpghttp://sf.curbed.com/uploads/2008_01_766Harrison4.jpghttp://sf.curbed.com/uploads/2008_01_766Harrison6.jpg

Just checking in with 766 Harrison Street, SoMa's future high-end SRO. To recap: 98 incredibly tiny "studio" units, pricing not revealed yet, some of you love the idea and some of you hate it. The curtain hasn't risen yet, but some scaffolding has been removed and we can get an idea of what the finished facades will look like. After the jump: an early rendering / reality comparison.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Scheduled to open in June 2008, 766 Harrison Street is yet another contemporary residential building in SoMa. But there's something different about this one...what is it again? Oh right — The 98 studio units will be rentals. Rentals! In San Francisco! And with a convenient location right between a Whole Foods and a Mental Health Service Center, no less— it doesn't get any more "SoMa" than that. Each unit will come stacked with stainless fixture in concrete countertops, 8 data ports, in-floor radiant heating, and natural stone finishes in the bathroom. Not bad, 766. Not bad at all. Other perks include a planned ground floor cafe, 5 parking spaces for residents to fight over, and a public roof deck. Definitely worth keeping an eye on.
Source: http://sf.curbed.com/archives/2008/01/30/rentals_en_route_to_soma_no_really.php

Personally, I love it. Much better than a cardboard box on Market St. Watcha all think?

[Gordo]

Personally, I love it. Much better than a cardboard box on Market St. Watcha all think?

I love it as well. I really wish that we could get about 20-30 of this exact same type of building sprinkled in neighborhoods throughout the city.

[northbay]

I love it as well. I really wish that we could get about 20-30 of this exact same type of building sprinkled in neighborhoods throughout the city.

i love how one wall (plus a little of the adjoining wall) is window. what a view that would be! the units do look pretty small tho, VERY SMALL - how much r these gonna cost? (do i even what to know? :crazy:)

i think the city needs more than just even 30 to relieve the housing pressures. but progress is being made. this building is another good step in that process.
well..., maybe 30 is enough, i dont know, but we need A LOT of housing

[BTinSF]

Please go to http://www.socketsite.com/archives/2008/03/supervisor_peskin_engineers_an_endrun_and_ending_for_55.html#more and read about what Aaron Peskin is trying to do to block the 55 Laguna project and what you can do about it. If you, like me, want to stop him from ending this project, it's important that you email (or call) one or more of the supervisors listed BEFORE MONDAY MORNING.

The 55 Laguna Project
http://www.socketsite.com/55%20Laguna%20Map.jpghttp://www.socketsite.com/55%20Laguna%20Sketch.jpghttp://www.socketsite.com/55%20Laguna%20Park.jpg
Source: http://www.socketsite.com/archives/2008/03/55_laguna_approved_on_appeal_and_in_front_of_san_franci.html

[LWR]

:previous:
...So it shall be done, so sayeth Ramses I. (Ramesses, Paramessu)

All I could do was leave a message (considering the time of the call). Once I enter the "doors of medicine", my time is not my own.

GET BACK HERE SOON AND DON'T FORGET YOUR CAMERA ! :)

[BTinSF]

Thanx. Be back at the end of April--with cameras. Really craving Thai red curry.

[BTinSF]

More about 55 Laguna:

Bay Area gay senior housing closer to reality
Judy Richter, Special to The Chronicle
Sunday, March 30, 2008

With Baby Boomers moving closer to retirement, entrepreneurs and community groups are looking to serve niches within that huge demographic group.

One such niche is retirement communities for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people.

Nationwide, dozens of groups have tried to build retirement communities for gays, but only three have opened thus far, according to Gerard Koskovich, who tracks the subject for the Lesbian and Gay Aging Issues Network.

Aging experts, entrepreneurs and nonprofits say the need is there, but the challenge is more complex than build it and fill it. They have to raise money; find an affordable, attractive, gay-friendly locale; and motivate people who, like all seniors, might want or need anything from Pilates classes to nursing care.

In the past decade, at least 40 ideas for gay senior housing have come up, but many stalled in the planning. So far, an upscale project in Santa Fe, N.M., that opened in 2006 has had difficulty filling. An affordable complex that opened in 2007 in Hollywood has had more success.

Despite that national track record for gay senior housing, three Bay Area projects are moving closer to reality after years of planning.

Each of the three - Barbary Lane in Oakland, Openhouse in San Francisco and Fountaingrove Lodge in Santa Rosa - has a different business model. Nevertheless, each is premised on the concept that many gays want to spend their retirement years in places where they're comfortable being themselves.

Accustomed to being out of the closet, they don't want to go back into it for fear of rejection or discrimination at a retirement center. They go along with Barbary Lane's motto, "Closets are for clothes, not seniors."

Because of anti-discrimination laws, none of the projects is exclusively gay. Straight people may move in, too, but the projects bill themselves as gay-friendly.

San Francisco's Openhouse

Openhouse expects to take a big step forward Tuesday afternoon when the San Francisco Board of Supervisors is tentatively scheduled to approve its land-use plan. (BT Note--Unless Peskin pulls his fast one).

"This represents three years of getting the project through the city process," said Moli Steinert, executive director of the nonprofit organization.

Openhouse will be part of a larger rental project being developed by AF Evans on the site of the former UC Berkeley Extension campus at 55 Laguna St. Evans is preserving three buildings there and converting them to housing.

http://imgs.sfgate.com/c/pictures/2008/03/30/re_ucext022.jpg

New construction will include Openhouse's eight-story building with up to 88 independent living studio and one-bedroom apartments for gays and lesbians 55 and older, Steinert said.

Although earlier plans had called for only some of the apartments to be affordable, now all of them will be affordable because the Mayor's Office of Housing is financing the long-term ground lease. "The city made an extraordinary move," Steinert said. Other financing is expected to come from low-interest bonds.

Exact income figures for affordability are undecided, but Steinert said they will be no more than 50 percent of the area's median income.

Evans also will build 328 apartments for people of all ages, whether straight or gay. Most of the units will be market rate, but 20 percent will be set aside as affordable. A community center, small park and public garden are planned, too.

Work is tentatively scheduled to start this fall. Openhouse's building, foreseen in the second phase of work, might start in late 2009 with the hoped-for opening in 2011.

Besides the apartments, Openhouse wants to provide services like meal and day health programs for its residents and neighboring seniors.

To serve residents who need in-home health help, Openhouse is working with the Institute on Aging, which has case-management services.

For the benefit of other gay seniors who need the in-home services, Openhouse is cooperating with the city's Department of Aging and Adult Services to teach service workers "LGBT best practices," Steinert said.

Finally, Openhouse has started a community outreach program for isolated seniors. It began in Bernal Heights, where gay people of all ages were invited to a meeting and asked to be aware of gay senior neighbors who might need help, such as referral to the Bernal Heights Senior Center.

The outreach program will move to the Castro district and Noe Valley, which have many gay residents. "People are fired up," Steinert said.

In the process, Openhouse can see where gay seniors are clustered into "naturally occurring retirement communities," she said.

Oakland's Barbary Lane

The Bay Area gay retirement community that's closest to welcoming its first residents is Barbary Lane, an independent living center in the historic Lake Merritt Hotel at 1800 Madison St., Oakland.

http://imgs.sfgate.com/c/pictures/2008/03/30/re_gayassisted22_008.jpg

Barbary Lane Senior Communities at Lake Merritt, a for-profit company, is transforming the 81-year-old Art Deco gem into 46 studio and one-bedroom apartments for people ages 55 and older.

After introducing Barbary Lane to the public in June, the developer had hoped to welcome the first residents in November.

That projection proved overly optimistic. The developer had planned to keep the original kitchens, but it convened a focus group that said people want updated kitchens.

Going along with that recommendation added four months to the construction schedule and $1 million to the budget, said Dave Latina, president of Barbary Management Group, the developer and operator. Renegotiating the construction loan took four months, delaying work on the kitchens until last fall.

The developer had already planned to replace the six-story building's elevator to meet accessibility standards, but that work took three months longer than projected because the state required extensive upgrading for the elevator shaft, he said.

Latina expects the state to approve the elevator work in early April, allowing the nine people who have reserved apartments to move in to them in May and June. He expects two or three move-ins each month after that. He added that the number of people who have reserved apartments meets industry standards.

Because of the delays, the developer isn't actively marketing the project, "but we're still getting calls," Latina said. "We see people coming to us."

Barbary Lane is named after 28 Barbary Lane, home of the fictional central character Mrs. Madrigal in author Armistead Maupin's "Tales of the City," a popular Chronicle series that started in 1976. The series was followed by six "Tales of the City" books and updated in Maupin's newest book, "Michael Tolliver Lives."

Barbary Lane residents will have two meals a day in the hotel's restaurant, which overlooks the lake. Among other basic services will be weekly housekeeping, utilities, social activities and transportation.

Santa Rosa's Fountaingrove

Fountaingrove Lodge is not as far along as the other two projects. This continuing care retirement community is planned by Aegis Senior Communities, a for-profit company that develops and operates dozens of retirement facilities in the West. Fountaingrove Lodge will be its first for gays.

Aegis has submitted its development plans to the city of Santa Rosa, but no date has been set for them to go to the Planning Commission. Aegis hopes to start construction within the next year or so. The project will have 148 cottages, apartments and flats for independent living.

As residents' needs change, they can have health services in their homes or in an on-site assisted living center. Fountaingrove also will provide Alzheimer's and dementia care. Therefore, residents won't have to leave friends and familiar surroundings if they require more care.

New residents pay entrance fees that could range from $350,000 to $1 million, depending on the type of residence, The Chronicle reported in October 2006. Up to 100 percent of the fee is returned to the resident or his estate when he dies or moves out.

Residents also pay a monthly fee, which, in conjunction with the entrance fee, covers rent, most meals, housekeeping, utilities, upkeep and maintenance of buildings and grounds, transportation, and use of services and amenities. It's expected to range from $2,700 to $4,900, plus $700 for a second person, The Chronicle reported.

Barbary Lane's Latina said that even though relatively few gay retirement projects have opened thus far, he believes the demand is there. Despite the delays at his project, "we have not seen people's interest decline."

One of the problems nationally is that unlike Openhouse, which is deemed affordable, most of the projects are geared to middle- and upper-income gays, but there's a demand for more-affordable models. "You can never build enough" of them, Latina said. He added that his company hopes to build five more Barbary Lane communities in California and to make some of the units affordable to lower-income gays.

or more information

Barbary Lane: www.barbarylanesenior.com, (510) 903-3600

Fountaingrove Lodge:

www.fountaingrovelodge.com, (707) 576-1101

Openhouse: www.openhouse-sf.org, (415) 296-8995

Chronicle news services contributed to this report. E-mail Judy Richter at jarichter@earthlink.net.
Source: http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/03/30/REM9VR0FE.DTL

[BTinSF]

http://imgs.sfgate.com/c/pictures/2008/04/01/dd_spururbancenter.jpg

Place: Glass space meant to spur imagination
John King
Tuesday, April 1, 2008

Ignore those new glass skyscrapers: San Francisco's most intriguing construction project is a four-story building tucked into a sliver of Mission Street.

It's called the Urban Center and it will house the San Francisco Planning and Urban Research Association. The think tank known as SPUR has lived upstairs at 312 Sutter St. since 1972, but next spring the 16 employees will move into an $8.5 million structure at 654 Mission St. with a two-story-high glassed-in exhibition space and a multipurpose room that can hold 125 people.

These spaces should be ideal for a group that hosts dozens of policy events each month. "We felt the need for a ground-floor presence that is accessible and welcoming," says SPUR's Dianne Filippi, who heads the project.

The design by Pfau Long Architecture will add a contemporary accent to a block defined by heavy masonry. Simple and light, it's a flat and mostly glass facade screened by aluminum louvers - except for the two-story-high glass wall that showcases the exhibition area along Mission Street.

The east edge of the facade anchors everything else: a 12-foot-wide bar of translucent glass starts next to the main entrance and rises 53 feet to the roof. Tucked behind it, but illuminated at night, will be the building's seismic bracing and main stairway.

"The idea is that you can't walk down the street without being engaged by what's going on," says Peter Pfau. The other goal: flexibility, with rooms that can handle talks, exhibitions, what have you. Or as Pfau describes the 14,500-square-foot structure: "It wants to do all these mighty things, but once you put in the bathrooms and fire stairs and structural elements, there's not much space left."

As for that translucent vertical stroke, it started out as crisp tile - until rising costs dictated change. Pfau got creative and devised a taut curtain wall that would cost no more than layers of stucco-covered gypsum board.

"We had one of those moments where we found architecture by chance," Pfau recalls. "It made me happy for days."

Though small in size, SPUR always thinks big. Consider the panel last month that drew 50 die-hard policy wonks to an 8:30 a.m. session contemplating whether we need coordinated planning for a 21-county region extending from the Bay Area east to Lake Tahoe and south as far as the San Louis Obispo County line.

The theory: So many economic and cultural lines extend across this terrain that it should be considered as a whole.

To illustrate the point, SPUR Executive Director Gabe Metcalf talked about the proliferation of housing tracts in cities like Tracy and Manteca. Many residents there drive west through the Altamont Pass to their jobs.

"The de facto affordable housing strategy for the Bay Area is 'build it in the Central Valley,' " Metcalf said. "We can't be in denial that this is happening."

But wait! Metcalf said many proponents wonder if we should even stop there. After all, Southern California's meganess is just an hour away by air. Why not put it in the mix as well?

Considering the parochialism of many Bay Area cities, I'm dubious as to whether there's an audience ready to take the (needed) broad view. And indeed, Metcalf said the idea of thinking really big was squelched by an expert: Robert Yaro, head of New York's Regional Plan Association.

"Bob pointed out 'so far you haven't been able to plan nine counties, much less Northern California,' " Metcalf confessed. " 'Get that worked out first.' "
Source: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2008/04/01/DDG5VS99Q.DTL&type=printable

[BTinSF]

S.F. General Hospital renovation plan unveiled
Erin Allday, Chronicle Staff Writer
Wednesday, April 2, 2008

The city revealed Tuesday the first detailed look at the renovation of San Francisco General Hospital - an $887.4 million project that is set to go before voters in November.

The construction plans, presented in a 51-page report during a Health Commission meeting, include a nine-story building with 284 patient beds on the edge of the hospital campus.

The old hospital, with 252 beds, is considered seismically unsafe and under state law must be renovated or replaced by 2013. Under the plan presented to the commission it would remain standing, and would hold psychiatric beds, clinical laboratories and outpatient facilities, along with the cafeteria.

The project will go before the Planning Commission on April 10 for public comment. If a bond to pay for the renovations is approved by voters on Nov. 4, construction would start on the new building next summer. The hospital would be complete by 2015.

"This hospital is the anchor to our entire system of health care delivery," Mayor Gavin Newsom said during Tuesday's Health Commission meeting. "We have a historic chance to do something that will secure our future."

Newsom and health commissioners said they were pleased to see such an extensively detailed plan of the proposed hospital months before it will go before voters. The city spent $25 million studying renovation concepts and preparing the proposal.

The goal, Newsom said, was to avoid a situation similar to a bond measure for Laguna Honda Hospital nine years ago. Voters at the time approved a $299 million bond to rebuild the hospital, but the cost has more than doubled. The hospital is expected to be complete next year. Newsom said that the detailed San Francisco General plan makes the cost of the project clear, right from the start.

"We have a lot of angry people that don't trust us" after Laguna Honda, Newsom said. "Now we're asking them for close to a billion dollars.

"We're on the verge of resolving one of the city's greatest challenges. We must do what is right and principled."

Health Commission members said they are relieved to have the opportunity to plan the San Francisco General project so early. "We weren't allowed to plan Laguna Honda," said Commissioner David Sanchez Jr.

Under state law, all acute care hospitals must be seismically safe by 2013; if they have no plans to do that, they must close by the end of this year. Hospitals can ask for extensions on the 2013 deadline if they are in the process of renovating.

The new building, which would be located on Potrero Avenue between two current buildings, would be oval-shaped, with two large underground floors and a rooftop garden.

"San Francisco General is really the core of our health system," said Richard Hodgson, vice president of the San Francisco Community Clinic Consortium, which is endorsing the plan to rebuild the hospital. "Our clinics would not be able to survive without it."

E-mail Erin Allday at eallday@sfchronicle.com.
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/04/02/BABJVU5UG.DTL

[Jobohimself]

Has II Rincon Hill started construction yet?

[peanut gallery]

No. And there are no signs yet that they are preparing to start. Bovis' trailers are still sitting there. Last I heard they were starting a new bidding process for the construction contract, so it might be longer than originally planned.

[BTinSF]

New SFGH renderings:

http://sf.curbed.com/uploads/2008_04_SFGH.jpg
Source: http://sf.curbed.com

[Gordo]

Ooh, I like ^^^

[Reminiscence]

Very nice design. It also fits in with the surrounding older brick buildings. I like the idea of a skygarden on top of the hospital, but I hope they implement a helipad landing also. Its rather expensive, so I hope it doesnt end up being more than a billion (especially how trust is hard to find for Newsom after Laguna Honda).

[WildCowboy]

The helipad will not go on the new building. If it does get approved, it's planned for the existing main hospital building that will be connected to the new one on the basement and second levels.

[peanut gallery]

A couple of photos of the Hayes. More at SF New Developments (http://www.sfnewdevelopments.com/3554/the-hayes-an-inside-look/), including some interior shots.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3062/2363448030_a3e00ef438_b.jpg

View from the rooftop patio:
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2101/2363454082_714fc8eac0_b.jpg

[CityKid]

Taken by me on 3/30/2008 from the View Lounge at the SF Marriott:

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3286/2394109359_1d6a6e1293_b.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2102/2394943378_ba6307f0c8_b.jpg

[CityKid]

Taken by me on 3/29/2008 from Buena Vista Park:

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3245/2394977692_0f068b7692_b.jpg

[peanut gallery]

Buena Vista, indeed. Is there are more aptly-named park? Great shots, CityKid.

[BTinSF]

Port of S.F. has new cruise ship terminal plan
Robert Selna, Chronicle Staff Writer
Monday, April 7, 2008

A long-standing and controversial plan to restore rusted piers and create a recreation and office center at the foot of Telegraph Hill could be abandoned for a new proposal that developers and port officials have been quietly discussing in recent weeks.

The new plan still would feature a state-of-the-art cruise ship terminal at Pier 27. But the office development used to pay for the terminal would instead shift south to Piers 30-32. A public recreation center - which at one time included a YMCA and a marine sports basin - would disappear altogether.

The latest scheme follows a long list of discarded proposals over the past seven years that have failed due to the soaring costs of pier repairs, restrictive state laws and neighborhood opposition.

The most recent plan for Pier 27 and adjacent Piers 29-31, was pushed by San Francisco's Shorenstein Properties LLC. It featured 400,000 square feet of office space, which would generate revenue to pay for the cruise ship terminal, pier repair and recreational areas. But it was not popular with neighbors and local environmental groups, and in the end, didn't seem to work logistically.

"What dissuaded us and the port was that as we went along we got a clearer idea about what a modern cruise ship terminal would be like and how it would interface with offices and it just didn't work that well," said Todd Sklar, development group head at Shorenstein.

Piers 30-32, which are damaged by corrosion, have also been beset with problems. Once identified as the port's preferred location for a $270 million cruise ship terminal and shopping arcade, the site was dropped more than a year ago by a developer scared off by the $155 million projected cost to fix the piers.

In an effort to create a competitive cruise ship terminal sooner rather than later, and to make something useful of Piers 30-32, the port recently asked Shorenstein to consider the change.

The port has been financially beset for years. The agency oversees 7 1/2 miles of bayfront but doesn't make enough money to cover its infrastructure repair costs, estimated at about $1.9 billion.

"This just means that Piers 29 and 31 are no longer the first in line," said Jonathan Stern, the port's assistant deputy director of waterfront development. "The city needs a good cruise ship terminal and so that is taking precedence over other interests right now."

Unlike some piers on the San Francisco waterfront, Piers 29-31 are used by tenants for storage and other warehouse needs and generate a decent amount of revenue to the port.

Board of Supervisors President Aaron Peskin, who represents the district where Piers 27-31 are, said the new idea for the piers may work.

He and a vocal group of residents were instrumental in halting a five-year, $30 million effort by shopping mall builder Mills Corp. of Virginia to win support for the project. Mills eventually gave up and sold its development rights to Shorenstein.

"I've never wanted a big retail shopping center on the Embarcadero and I've believed that the city's cruise ship terminal should be near the tourist destination at Fisherman's Wharf," Peskin said. "There's still potential for open space, but how you pay for this is anyone's guess."

It's likely that a new development at Piers 30-32 that features offices also would draw opposition from state and local environmental groups.

Allowable uses of the bayfront under laws enforced by the State Lands Commission generally include maritime, historic and environmental restoration, recreation and commercial activities, if they are used by the general public.

Office development is not allowed on the waterfront, but Stern said the port can seek state legislation to suspend those restrictions.

E-mail Robert Selna at rselna@sfchronicle.com.
Source: http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/04/07/MN2L100C0N.DTL

[BTinSF]

Some renderings I hadn't seen before of the new PUC building at Golden Gate & Polk:

http://www.sfgov.org/site/uploadedimages/sfdpw/projects/525GoldenGate001.jpg

http://www.sfgov.org/site/uploadedimages/sfdpw/projects/525GoldenGate003.jpg

http://www.sfgov.org/site/uploadedimages/sfdpw/projects/525GoldenGate002.jpg
Source: http://www.sfgov.org/site/sfdpw_page.asp?id=75959

Alas, at 12 stories it can't be called a "highrise" but it still looks like it'll have an impact on Civic Center. And I hope to see construction start (with demoilition of the existing decrepit building) any day now.

DPW says "Construction will begin in 2008, SFPUC staff will begin moving to their new building in 2010."

[peanut gallery]

I'm a fan of this too, BT. Same with the new green building proposed for The Embarcadero and the new SPUR headquarters. They are all quite small, but all quite good.

[BTinSF]

Exciting news!

S.F. OKs plan for 6,000 housing units
Robert Selna, Chronicle Staff Writer
Wednesday, April 9, 2008

The San Francisco Board of Supervisors approved two plans Tuesday that would add high-rises and thousands of residents to the upper Market Street area.

The first plan is a sweeping rezoning of the so-called Market-Octavia area, which stretches up both sides of Market Street from Ninth Street to Noe Street. The effort is nearly eight years in the making and was inspired by the demolition of the Central Freeway and its ramps extending north and west from Market Street following the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake.

http://imgs.sfgate.com/c/pictures/2008/04/09/ba_map.jpg

The city Planning Department sought to remake the area with an emphasis on walking and public transportation by concentrating new housing close to major transit stops. The zoning allows developers to construct buildings that pack more residential units into a project, including boosting tower heights from 20 stories to 40 stories on some parcels near the intersection of Van Ness Avenue and Market Street.

Officials estimate the plan could mean an additional 6,000 housing units in the Market-Octavia area.

After years of hearings, the city Planning Commission approved the plan in July, but it bogged down at the Board of Supervisors. Many supervisors wanted more fees on developers to pay for housing priced within the reach of moderate- and lower-income residents. Some supervisors also wanted requirements for family-size units and less parking to promote public transit. But others, including representatives from Mayor Gavin Newsom's office, were concerned that more demands would drive developers away.
Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi, who made the demand for more developer fees and negotiated with the mayor's office, said the long wait was worth it because the plan will set a precedent for future building in San Francisco, where land is becoming increasingly tight as the cost of housing continues to rise.

"This is a new era in planning that Market-Octavia is birthing," Mirkarimi said. "It is a harbinger of San Francisco's effort at smart growth and affordable housing. ... We wanted to make sure this set a precedent for what comes next."

The board approved the plan unanimously Tuesday, and is expected to give it final confirmation next week. As it now stands, the plan requires developers to sell or rent 25 percent of the units they build at below-market rates and imposes fees on developers that could amount to $50 million for an affordable-housing fund.

Forty percent of the new housing in some parts of the rezoning area must be two-bedroom units and parking for all new projects in the neighborhoods has been reduced from one space per housing unit to one space per two units.

The change residents will likely notice most, however, is the plan's allowance for four new, 40-story high-rises near the intersection of Market Street and Van Ness Avenue. The tallest building within walking distance currently is 30 stories, and many are shorter. In the new towers, everything built above the fourth floor must be residential.

"The goal was to bring more residents into the area where they can walk between transit corridors, and Van Ness and Market is a major transit corridor," said the lead city planner on the project, Kearsten Dischinger.

The UC Extension development, also in the upper Market area, has been in the works for several years. After concerns over historical preservation and affordable housing were ironed out, the 5.8-acre project was finalized in January.

Developer A.F. Evans' plan features 10 buildings with approximately 400 rental units, including about 90 affordable units geared toward gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender seniors. Thirty-seven percent of all new homes in the project would be rented to be affordable for residents earning just half of the San Francisco-area median income of $77,850 for a household of three.

The plan also includes 5,000 square feet for retail outlets.

Planning for the project has been ongoing since UC Extension moved out in late 2003, citing budgetary concerns. UC still owns the site, which was originally the only orphanage on the West Coast. It later became San Francisco State University, which moved near Lake Merced in the 1950s.
In other action

The supervisors imposed a 45-day, citywide moratorium on shops that sell smoking paraphernalia, such as bongs and pipes, while the Planning Department conducts a study on whether controls should be placed on the opening of new smoke shops.

The board also approved on first reading a bill that would ban new off-site liquor stores in the Excelsior district and restrict the amount of shelf space in stores that can be devoted to fortified wines and liquors.
Both measures were introduced by Supervisor Gerardo Sandoval.
Source: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/04/09/BAE81024TC.DTL