SAN FRANCISCO | Oceanwide Center | 910 + 636 FT | 61 + 54 FLOORS

[Pedestrian]

Lengthy article in the BizTimes about the tribulations of this project which I can't quote in its entirety but there is some interesting news about what's happening now and in the near future:

THE NEVERENDING STORY

. . . Delays are not uncommon for large construction projects, but the pace of the work at First and Mission has been unusually slow. Piles were driven deep into the bedrock to avoid the titling problems that beset the nearby Millennium Tower, and cranes were not erected until last year. There were rampant rumors last year that construction at both towers had ceased altogether.

Below the ground and behind the scenes, the work churned on, with the larger tower’s foundation being completed this spring even as the Covid-19 pandemic placed most local construction jobs on ice over the past month.

Oceanwide Center’s general contractor — a joint venture of Swinerton and Webcor — never stopped working, as the city exempted the project from the order due to the excavation work, Swinerton CEO Eric Foster said.

Currently, floor slabs and basement walls are being poured for the taller tower, known as “T1.” Starting May 12, workers will begin pouring concrete for the suspended decks.

Foster estimates his crew will reach street level on T1 by September.

Further delays and cost increases are possible. The pandemic has thrust the industry into uncertainty, with social distancing efforts expected to persist long after the shelter-in-place order is lifted. Construction sites are likely be staffed with fewer workers to comply with distancing protocols.

Project delays often result in escalated costs, but the pandemic could work in the developers’ favor.

“You have an extraordinary situation going on right now where prices for a lot of commodities like oil and metals have dropped precipitously and the cost escalation may not be as serious of a problem in this situation as normally would be the case,” said C. William Ibbs, professor of engineering and project management at UC Berkeley and owner of Ibbs Consulting Group Inc.

The newness of the project could also be a boon to leasing.

Oceanwide Center is an “incredibly well-designed project” that could serve an emerging need for increased health and safety standards once the Bay Area emerges from sheltering-in-place, said JD Lumpkin, executive managing director and investor services lead at Cushman & Wakefield . . . .

It is unclear how soon construction on the smaller tower could resume or whether the project will change course with a new owner.

“If the property changes hands, we haven’t been told what the repurpose would be, if any,” said Swinerton’s Foster. “You come to work every day and do the best job you can. There have been a number of people who looked at purchasing it and it hasn’t worked out — so we just continue on with the construction.”

https://www.bizjournals.com/sanfrancisco...ZzVlOW90T3gzQWMwUnFLYldWRkZhN1IifQ%3D%3D