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

[BobbyMucho]

Parcel T / 188 Octavia

Slowly crossing the finish line:







From a different part of town (Union Square), 72 Ellis turning out even less exciting than imagined (or at least in its current state / maybe it'll come together with its finishes):



Designed by Gensler. Rendering for context:

[Pedestrian]

2,515-unit housing proposal in S.F.’s Fillmore is one of city’s largest ever
Roland Li
Oct. 29, 2020 Updated: Oct. 29, 2020 4:32 p.m.

A 1973 housing cooperative in San Francisco’s Fillmore district could become one of the city’s largest housing developments ever.

Freedom West, a 382-home complex on four blocks built in the wake of the city’s destructive urban renewal, is moving forward with a $2 billion proposal that would replace the existing housing and add 133 affordable units and up to 2,000 market-rate units.

Co-op shareholders voted to advance a plan from developer MacFarlane Partners and Avanath Capital Management, which will require city reviews and approvals.

The existing 382 homes, which are in need of repairs, would be replaced with eight-story modern buildings for current residents at no additional cost.

Unlike other megaprojects, such as Parkmerced, the San Francisco Shipyard and Treasure Island, which are on the outskirts of the city, Freedom West would be in its heart, just three blocks from City Hall. The project would dwarf any of the new projects in nearby Hayes Valley.

Freedom West co-op owners would also have a 15% profit share in the new market-rate units, which include new buildings rising 12 and 18 stories . . . .

https://www.sfchronicle.com/business/art...-proposal-in-S-F-s-Fillmore-15686795.php

I'm not sure how this is going to be received in Hayes Valley. But at 18 floors/180 ft (approx) it warrants a thread and I've given it one (with additional information): https://skyscraperpage.com/forum/showthread.php?p=9089880#post9089880

[bossabreezes]

WOW! This would be outstanding. This part of town is so bizarre right now and criminally under-utilized. I hope this goes through and gets moving ASAP, bridging the way for future redevelopments of underutilized lots in that part of the city.

[pseudolus]

Originally Posted by Pedestrian

https://www.sfchronicle.com/business/art...-proposal-in-S-F-s-Fillmore-15686795.php

I'm not sure how this is going to be received in Hayes Valley. But at 18 floors/180 ft (approx) it warrants a thread and I've given it one (with additional information): https://skyscraperpage.com/forum/showthread.php?p=9089880#post9089880

so blue is the affordable and the rest is the market rate?

[Bikemike]

I'm hoping for minimal to no parking, but not going to count on it.

After living in Germany and Japan, even SF or NY are too car-dependent for me. Built form is rough, unfriendly, and not human-scale. All these block-sized wood frame apartments with hundreds of parking spaces, single-modal streets, and curb-cuts are destroying the once ped-friendly urban fabric of these cities.

[BobbyMucho]

Originally Posted by pseudolus

so blue is the affordable and the rest is the market rate?

Yep. It seems a bit lopsided, but apparently, the plan is for the [displaced] residents to get profit share via the market rate sales. The project promises a net gain of ~133 new units of affordable housing on top of improved onsite amenities and services.

Overall, not a bad deal assuming they do it in phases and somehow plan it so people aren't having to leave the city entirely for the upgrade.

Definitely seems a bit aggressive in terms of height + density on a snapshot but not totally out of scope for this area IMO.

[BobbyMucho]

Originally Posted by Bikemike

I'm hoping for minimal to no parking, but not going to count on it.

After living in Germany and Japan, even SF or NY are too car-dependent for me. Built form is rough, unfriendly, and not human-scale. All these block-sized wood frame apartments with hundreds of parking spaces, single-modal streets, and curb-cuts are destroying the once ped-friendly urban fabric of these cities.

Agreed. The one thing we can expect regardless of the final parking spot count is that there's a far better land-use plan, replacing what looks like a 50/50 ratio of structure/parking as is.

[Pedestrian]

And then there was . . . another new project (thread @ https://skyscraperpage.com/forum/showthread.php?p=9094493#post9094493 ):

Even Bigger Plans for Assembled SoMa Site
October 29, 2020

. . . a seven-lot merger is now proposed. And as envisioned, a 503-unit, 16-story apartment building would rise up to 160 feet in height on the 555-585 Bryant Street site, along with roughly 9,000 square feet of replacement PDR space and a ground floor garage for 100 cars and 225 bikes, leveraging California’s Density Bonus Law for the additional height and to bypass the required residential open space, maximum lot coverage and mid-block pedestrian pathway requirements of San Francisco’s Planning Code, as roughly massed below . . . .

http://socketsite.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/585-Bryant-Street-Massing.jpg
http://socketsite.com/archives/2020/10/even-bigger-plans-for-assembled-central-soma-site.html

[38 Geary]

Good project. We need more housing built along the Central Subway extension.

Anyone know if there are plans for this lot? This lot along with others within 2-3 blocks of the 4th St corridor should be turned into mid to high rise residential towers.

https://goo.gl/maps/VdRQ14ZrWJ1ZxpfR6

[L.ARCH]

There's a project currently making its way though the planning department there. Commercial I believe.

[a very long weekend]

72 Ellis is interesting. That hotel group from the Netherlands is likely to implode in not too long, unless things turn around quickly. Their explicit plan was to get super leveraged on the ultra low cost of debt, and to massively expand into the centers of every major tourist city in the world, and to sell a specific product of relatively low cost/low maintenance hotel rooms (ie. "affordable luxury"), with a steady flow of income from amenities. Was a great idea a year ago, not so hot now, but could come back.

The luck for them was that they couldn't get a lot of their projects off the ground quickly, likely saving themselves from insolvency. Bummer that we didn't get the Hollywood one, which was cool, and would have improved the area. The DTLA one is almost done, and this one, of course, is just 100x better than that shabby lot.

[Iceman12]

Originally Posted by homebucket

Good project. We need more housing built along the Central Subway extension.

Anyone know if there are plans for this lot? This lot along with others within 2-3 blocks of the 4th St corridor should be turned into mid to high rise residential towers.

https://goo.gl/maps/VdRQ14ZrWJ1ZxpfR6

490 Brannan Street

https://socketsite.com/archives/2019/06/...sed-popos-for-key-central-soma-site.html

https://socketsite.com/archives/2019/04/...al-soma-site-and-non-tower-approach.html

[38 Geary]

Updated skyline shot:



https://www.reddit.com/r/sanfrancisco/comments/jxqvfd/skyline_at_dusk_midnovember/

[gillynova]

Mira fits in perfectly. Great addition!

[38 Geary]

Originally Posted by gillynova

Mira fits in perfectly. Great addition!

Hopefully we can get some towers built on the south side of the Bay Bridge/80 too so it'll feel more Tokyo-esque, driving through a skyscraper canyon!

[Jerry of San Fran]

homebucket - a beautiful panorama. You must have wings to get this view.

[38 Geary]

Originally Posted by Jerry of San Fran

homebucket - a beautiful panorama. You must have wings to get this view.

IIRC, there's a certain energy drink that claims drinking it will give you wings.

[BeachHouse]

Play Natalie Portman and you will win !!

all kidding aside, I would like to thank you for that pic !!

[BobbyMucho]

Some snaps via a quick bike ride through SOMA yesterday. I tried to get some shots from lesser documented projects as well—some of which have wrapped or are pretty close since I've last seen any pics.


235 Valencia





Around the corner; 1441 Stevenson — Newly rebuilt (historic) warehouse, post-fire.



Solid materials palette. Looking forward to the alley being livened up a bit once these few (along with this potential project at the 14th st end of the alley) are completed.


1700 Market (now finished?)




1550 Market (creeping along ever soooo slowly)




Small project at 349 8th (tastefully designed by RG)




Larger, mid-block project at 1140 Harrison



Not super inspiring, but also not as monolithic as I presumed it would be. Looking forward to some more brick in SOMA.



Not super exciting at this point, but I noticed the adjacent Galvanized project is currently full swing; undergoing demo/retrofit for the soon to be office space.




345 6th / 363 6th next door



Again, not super inspiring, but it's density and much-needed housing:



Adjacent 363 6th




345 4th — Office project and infill designed by Stanton




Bonus shot of Folsom Street progress in the East Cut. New trees, bike lanes, paint, benches, lights, and a well-defined canyon of high-rises.



Therein, the PG&E pocket park is finished/open and looks and feels excellent






5M — Cladding install is looking super nice IMO





Around the corner, the backside of 941 Mission



30 Otis gets more glass



Finally, a quick snap from within the mews at 49 Van Ness and the newly added public art by Sanaz Mazinani

[38 Geary]

Excellent update, thanks Bob!