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

[BTinSF]

June 5 cellphone gallery (taken by me)

PUC Building to be @ Golden Gate & Polk:

I walked by today and they had removed the doors from the old state office building and in the gutted interior was a new Port-a-Potty and a generator (plus fuel tank) that was running. This leads me to believe they are starting to prepare the building for demolition (unless someone has any other ideas of what might be up):



Then I walked down to the Argenta which is looking a bit better (and glassier) than I feared when the first coverings came off:



Next I walked passed the Mercy Housing project (here from the back side):



Part of the lot the Mercy project occupies is still vacant and about 2 weeks ago there was some kind of ceremonial "groundbreaking" there. Does anybody know what that is going to be? Here's that part of the lot:



Next I walked past the Trinity Plaza site and noted that the second floor is what in the 1960s would have been called "split level":



Finally, after a little ride on the 19 Polk, I took a shot of the gradually-being-revealed project @ Polk & Geary:

[peanut gallery]

Great updates, BT. It's good to have you back in town!

[hi123]

Great pics BT! Argenta isn't looking too bad.Have they started removing the black tarp surrounding 77 van ness yet? Does anyone know what materials they are using on the exterior?

[Reminiscence]

Nice updates BT. Trinity still amazes me on how fast it is moving. I'll see if I can head to the city tommorow and snag a few shots.

[BTinSF]

Originally Posted by hi123

Great pics BT! Argenta isn't looking too bad.Have they started removing the black tarp surrounding 77 van ness yet? Does anyone know what materials they are using on the exterior?

The "black tarp" generally means only one thing: stucco. I think that's why they put them up--to contain the stucco material from going everywhere as it's applied.

I've been planning to say this for a while: If I were Planning Czar, I'd ban stucco on anything over 4 stories. Personally I think it looks cheap and I can't recall seeing it in large buildings back east--seems like a purely CA thing and not the best feature of the architecture here IMHO.

[hi123]

^ I agree , I'm no big fan of stucco either. However, arterra was covered in tarp but the exterior is not stucco. Arterra is looking fantastic!! BTW Curbed just reported that the westin union square is/will be undergoing an extensive renovation of the historic building , the project includes all 600+ guest rooms, the lobby(which they will be restoring to the way it was when the hotel opening but with a modern touch),a new security system , free wifi, and a new restaurant will open in the hotel too. There is more information about the project here:
http://www.hotel-online.com/News/PR2008_2nd/Jun08_WestinStFrancis.html

and here are images from thewestin st francis website of what the new guestrooms will look like:





I'm very happy that this reno. is happening, the westin was getting kind of warn out. This along with the departure of the disney store is great for union square!

[viewguysf]

Originally Posted by BTinSF

The "black tarp" generally means only one thing: stucco. I think that's why they put them up--to contain the stucco material from going everywhere as it's applied.

I've been planning to say this for a while: If I were Planning Czar, I'd ban stucco on anything over 4 stories. Personally I think it looks cheap and I can't recall seeing it in large buildings back east--seems like a purely CA thing and not the best feature of the architecture here IMHO.

I very much agree and have long thought this--it doesn't age well either and requires regular maintenance in this climate.

[caramatt]

The square in front of the Contemporary Jewish Museum really looks great. I was worried from the renderings, but it looks much better than I could have hoped. This is a wonderful addition to the area and SF in general.

The galleries also look to add some beautiful new spaces for showing art. Hopefully they'll bring in some good exhibitions (the Warhol show is a great start).

[POLA]

Thanks BT!

[BTinSF]

Originally Posted by hi123

Curbed just reported that the westin union square is/will be undergoing an extensive renovation of the historic building , the project includes all 600+ guest rooms, the lobby(which they will be restoring to the way it was when the hotel opening but with a modern touch),a new security system , free wifi, and a new restaurant will open in the hotel too.
I'm very happy that this reno. is happening, the westin was getting kind of warn out. This along with the departure of the disney store is great for union square!

I hope you read "comment 1" on Curbed--from moi. They are wrong that this is the first substantial renovation of the St. Francis. I used to be an owner of a small part (maybe one bathroom ) of the St. Francis when, in the 1980s and 1990s it was owned by an entity called the Westin Hotels L.P. We put quite a few millions into it, redid the rooms and, more importantly IMHO, completely restored the exterior facade of the old part. People around in the 1990s may recall the scaffolding.

Anyway, in 2006 it was sold again to Strategic Hotels and Resorts ( http://www.strategichotels.com/ ), an owner of upscale hotels in which I also currently have a small stake, but I thought I had read they were thinking of rebranding it since Westin now has another SF property (the former ANA Hotel, nee The Meridien)--and, as things stand, it's their only Westin (they have a number of Marriotts, 4 Seasons, Fairmonts and Ritz Carltons but those brands also seem taken here). I'm wondering if, with the new renovation project, they are thinking higher in the "stars" scale (Peninsula, Raffles??).

[AndrewK]

does anyone know whats going on in the smaller area to the east of the front courtyard for the museum thats still blocked off? its right next to the entrance to the jessie st garage. it would be nice if they put a little cafe there or something.

[BTinSF]

Andrew, that is the site of what was to be the Mexican Museum. There is a beautiful building (I just love it!) designed by Ricardo Legoretta that was intended for that spot:


Source: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2008/01/27/MNEFUJQ4E.DTL

When Jessie Square (the area in front of the museum) and the garage below were built, they also built the foundations for the MM. But the MM board has been unable to raise the money. More recently, the building on the corner of 3rd & Mission (where Rochester Big & Tall is located) was sold to Millenium Partners who would like to enlarge it and build a tower, much like was done with the St. Regis across the street. With regard to the MM:

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 . . . .

They've (the MM board) met with architect Norton and seen preliminary designs of the Third and Mission tower. If the plans could be worked out, they say, the Mexican Museum would occupy about 45,000 square feet - 20,000 less than originally planned - on three or four floors, and open onto the plaza. Norton had sought the original Mexican Museum commission that went to his more-famous Mexican colleague.

"We're very happy that Enrique is the designer, because he has a sensitivity to what the Mexican Museum's goals and objectives are," Peterson said.
Some donors withdrew their pledges when they saw no progress in the construction of the Legorreta building. But board members say they're confident those donors will come back if a new deal is struck and a construction date is set. One of them is Modesto housing developer Scott Salazar Myers, who withdrew a $1.5 million matching gift he'd pledged for the new building.

Source: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2008/01/27/MNEFUJQ4E.DTL

[BTinSF]

Friday, June 6, 2008
Notorious Folsom Street warehouse may go condo
San Francisco Business Times - by J.K. Dineen

The two-story warehouse at 935 Folsom St. last made news five years ago when the U.S. Department of Justice raided the property as part of a multi-agency investigation into illegal sweatshop operations.

Now Eugene, Ore.-based condo developer Spring Capital Group, which bought the 14,000-square-foot property in 2005 for $4.1 million, has filed an application to replace the building with an eight-story, 75-unit condominium development.

The proposed building, designed by Portland-based Ankrom Moisan Associated Architects, is glassy and modern with a green roof. It reaches 85 feet along Folsom Street, but steps down to lower townhouses opening onto the Shipley and Falmouth alleys. It will feature retail along Folsom Street, keeping with the city's efforts to transform Folsom into a pedestrian-friendly shopping boulevard connecting Rincon Hill with west SoMa. The project includes 57 parking spaces, plus, at the request of the neighborhood, motorcycle parking on the street.

Planning consultant Bob Myers said the developer is hoping to have a environmental impact report approved by the end of the year.

The building at one point was home to the Hotel Owners Laundry Co. Warehouse and in the early 1980s it became a squat for about 30 punk rock anarchists, according to the online historical web site Shaping San Francisco.

Spring Capital has been busy in San Jose in recent years, partnering with Cupertino's KT Properties on the downtown Axis high-rise condominium tower. KT and Spring Capital recently snapped up another a prime downtown San Jose corner several blocks away at Santa Clara and Market streets.

Source: http://www.bizjournals.com/sanfrancisco/stories/2008/06/09/newscolumn1.html

And just for you, I dug up a rendering. It's some format I can't post but it's at http://www.amaa.com/portfolio/project/?c...L3BvcnRmb2xpby8/Y2F0ZWdvcnk9aG91c2luZyM2 with several views.

[BTinSF]

Ah, I see that, as usual, Socketsite also reads the BizTimes and published some of the renderings in a format I can post:




Source: http://www.socketsite.com/

[c1tyguy]

^ BT, you're me hero.

[livin' in the city]

Great update BT as usual. That kind of work keeps us coming back.

[Reminiscence]

I did my rounds of pictures today. Argenta was probably the toughest to take, it was insanely windy at this corner. Its usually windy here, but it was ridiculous today, it made me lose some focus and nearly blew me over a few times while aiming:

Argenta:







Mercy (1160 Mission, I believe):

[BTinSF]

Nice.

I have found the Mercy Housing project especially difficult to photograph in a way that gives a good perspective on it.

As for Argenta, I tried holding my camera against a light pole to keep it and me from "blowin' in the wind" (d*mn that Fox Plaza anyway--can I still say that??).

[Reminiscence]

Thanks BT. Perhaps for Mercy, I'll try the opposite diagonal corner from the project. I tried getting the building with its crane, but the lens was not up for it.

Thats a good trick to use with Argenta, and one that I will try next time I'm in the area. For a while there, my Giants hat literally was blowing in the wind. Also, according to the new profanity rules, it seems that word has been outlawed by the powers that be, heh.

[nequidnimis]

Originally Posted by BTinSF

*mn that Fox Plaza anyway--can I still say that??

As long as you are not turning into a NIMBY...