SAN FRANCISCO | 1500-1540 Market Street (One Oak) | 437 FT | 41 FLOORS

[easy as pie]

i just can't stand the street treatment here, and hope that the design is reworked to improve it. if the street were normal and prosperous, maybe you could get away with this, but as it is, we can't afford to allow any more dead space.

[peanut gallery]

JK Dineen provided a few tidbits on this in today's Chronicle:

Finally, the furthest along of the four projects, the Richard Meier-designed proposed white glass tower at 1540 Market St., is headed toward approvals this year.

……..

Meanwhile, neighbors of the coming 1540 Market tower are already bracing for change. Pei Xia Fung, owner of Variety Convenience Store on the same block, said she has been told that the block will probably be demolished toward the end of this year.

…….

Dave Stanton, the managing member of 1540 Market LLC, said the 268-unit condo project is "on the 5-yard line" in terms of its environmental approvals and that his group is talking to potential builders to partner with. "We think it will be the first of the four corners to go up, and we think it is going to be a marquee building," he said.

And he said the squat, two-story doughnut shop next to the proposed tower will remain - unless a deal can be struck with the owner.

"We made them offers and basically got no response for about five years. They came back last year willing to talk, but by that point the ship had pretty much sailed," Stanton said.

"At this point we can't change the building design to include the doughnut shop. We could possibly demolish it and put a park there. And we will offer to pay to reclad the outside and make it fit in. But there is no deal on the table with the doughnut shop - I guarantee you that," he said.

The article is about the big changes afoot at Market and Van Ness and well worth reading for info on other developments in the area.

[mt_climber13]

A fountain, park, statue, or monument would be the ideal solution for the donut shop... One of the most prominent and major intersections on the west coast and in the country.

[WonderlandPark]

I was wondering what was happening with this site. Almost thought it was dead. Glad to hear its moving ahead and that fugly 3 story bldg will bite the dust.

[fimiak]

Does anybody else think that donut shop remaining is a catastrophe? I am happy they are continuing without it, but that thing is so pointless...they don't even have an upstairs tenant currently.

[hruski]

Originally Posted by fimiak

Does anybody else think that donut shop remaining is a catastrophe? I am happy they are continuing without it, but that thing is so pointless...they don't even have an upstairs tenant currently.

I think that if they re-clad it to fit with the main building (as the developer has offered to do), then it won't look too bad.

Of course, I prefer they demolish it and turn it into a plaza or park. IMHO, I think that's what will ultimately happen and the developer is just trying to make the shop owner sweat about his "missed opportunity."

[peanut gallery]

Not sure I'd call it a catastrophe, but I do hope they reclad it or tear it down. Preferably, it will be the later so this tower's full profile will be visible when looking up Market. I rather like wakamesalad's idea of a sculpture, fountain or monument of some type.

[WildCowboy]

Big update...Meier out, Snøhetta in. The new developers also have the doughnut shop under contract. Hoping for final approvals a year from now.

http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/articl...ct-5851284.php

[peanut gallery]

Turning Oak into a plaza...moving the subway entrance...big changes indeed. I think we'll all be happy with the donut shop news.

[fimiak]

:


So from 180ish units to ~300? Big improvement.

[minesweeper]

...but it's still subject to change. Build Inc. is hoping for approvals by the end of 2015.

New design for tower at Market + Van Ness: Dramatic but down to earth

The updated design and development details were filed this week with the city’s Planning Department. Build Inc. hopes to begin meeting with neighborhood groups within the next month, with an aim of receiving approvals by the end of 2015.

The scalloped arc of the new tower is intended to diffuse the downdraft including a slight twist at the 27th floor, set atop a relatively broad 11-story base. Wind tests show an improvement on the Meier design but still too much wind at certain spots on the ground, which is where the concept of wind-deflecting canopies came in.

“The idea is that they’ll have a strong functional responsibility but also be beautiful — a sculptural and an artistic element,” said Sade Borghei, the project manager for Snøhetta. The canopy designs are still evolving, as is the plaza itself; the hope is to include space for a new entrance to the Muni subway station at the corner, as well as sheltered spaces that could be used for small performances by students at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music.

The plaza and its canopies aren’t the only elements likely to change as the proposal moves through the public review process.

Instead of the all-glass look that Meier favored, and that has been the default of too many towers in the past decade, architects at both firms say the idea is to build on the masonry tradition of the Civic Center. But the materiality will be affected by budget decisions — Snøhetta is using glass-fiber reinforced concrete rather than granite or terra cotta at SFMOMA, for instance — and the facade’s relationship of glass and masonry is still in flux.

While current renderings show a clean rectangular grid, “We’re looking at different options for the skin” in terms of masonry patterns, Forgan said. The goal is visual warmth and depth, he emphasized: “It’s such a visible and unique location. Less glass feels appropriate.”

Source: sfchronicle.com (Snøhetta/SCB)

[simms3_redux]

Wow. That's all I have to say. I like.

The base is a bit boring and not sure this is an appropriate "Market St tower", however, beggars can't be choosers and nothing else is proposed. It beats what's there. I just wish we could line buildings on Market all the way up like they did in the first 30 years of the 20th century. Those buildings have contributed so much to the street life. An upscale resi use is boring, though I like the design.

[a very long weekend]

that's incredible. i'd feel irrational civic pride every time i walked past that. yowza!

[pseudolus]

(Well, that's what it made me think of, anyway.)

[fflint]

That's interesting. I like the use of color in the cut-outs.

[SFView]

Wow, it's even better than before! The overall building looks like it was designed and shaped in a wind tunnel. There are even wind deflectors at the base.

[OhioGuy]

I guess some people don't like the design of the tower:

http://www.citylab.com/design/2015/0...-tower/384168/

Any tower design for San Francisco is bound to touch a sore spot, even a mid-rise. One Van Ness features glass and masonry cladding as well as signature wedge-shaped cutouts: stylistic technical features designed to reduce wind downdrafts, says the San Francisco Chronicle's John King.

Critics have seized on that wedge.

[fimiak]

Originally Posted by OhioGuy

I guess some people don't like the design of the tower:

http://www.citylab.com/design/2015/0...-tower/384168/

This cartoon is more comedic than insulting. I love the redesign, it has character, and it will be a landmark for the city. I really hope it can get all approvals by the end of 2015.

[tech12]

Originally Posted by OhioGuy

I guess some people don't like the design of the tower:

http://www.citylab.com/design/2015/0...-tower/384168/

It's just the same people who complain about literally all new construction that's over three or four stories and doesn't include an appropriately quaint coffee shop/artist commune.

"Why yes, a crappy donut shop and an empty lot/homeless camp-out spot at a transit-rich downtown intersection, are a much better use of land than hundreds of much needed housing units! Won't you think of the children chain link fence!"

And a face? It's like the people who see giant dicks in every skyscraper.

Though I do see the value of having a business on the corner there, even a grungy donut shop, because it brings a bit of life. And sometimes you need cheap donuts and coffee. But a bunch of apartments there are a much better use, and it's not like there aren't other cheap donut shops nearby. Anyways, I like the redesign! Wanna see some more angles though.

[fflint]

I've availed myself of that donut shop over the decades more than I'd like to admit--it's at a major transfer point, and it's always open and, well, donuts. But that lot really is ridiculously under-developed.