SAN FRANCISCO | 921 O'Farrell St. | 140 FT | 14 FL

[Pedestrian]

Renderings Revealed For 921 O’Farrell Street, San Francisco
BY: ANDREW NELSON 5:30 AM ON JANUARY 6, 2022

David Baker Architects have revealed new renderings for the 14-story residential infill at 921 O’Farrell Street in San Francisco. The proposal will replace a vacant single-story structure with 50 new homes above new ground-floor retail. A third of all units will be permanently affordable units in San Francisco’s Home SF program.

The 140-foot tall structure will yield 63,480 square feet with 32,160 square feet of rentable space, 8,000 square feet for services, 4,750 square feet of common amenity area, and 800 square feet for ground-level retail. The crowning amenity space is on the top floor, where an amenity room opens up to the rooftop deck, with views across the city.

Of the 50 units, there will be 24 studios, 25 two-bedrooms, and one three-bedroom. Studios will span a minimum of 276 square feet, exceeding the city limit. The two-bedroom units will be a minimum of 731 square feet, and the three-bedroom will span about 1,200 square feet.

David Baker Architects is the project architect. The following is an excerpt by the architecture firm on the design of 921 O’Farrell:

The tower has dynamic north and south facades dotted by bays, terraces, and private balconies. The building does not offer any car parking, preserving the ground level for active commercial and common space. All homes look out across the cityscape, and every bedroom has exterior operable windows. The building is topped by a shared sky terrace for residents to enjoy the expansive city views.

Facade materials will include textured concrete at ground level, tile cladding and perforated metal covering the podium, fiber cement and metal panels on the tower, and floor-to-ceiling windows for each residence. Several units facing O’Farrell will also have access to private terraces set atop protruding bay windows, a nod to San Francisco’s architectural vernacular.

The property will extend from O’Farrell Street to Olive Street, between Polk Street and Van Ness Avenue . . . .

The project is currently being prepared for a San Francisco Planning Commission Hearing, scheduled for February 24th of this year. The building makes use of San Francisco’s Home SF program, the city-wide density bonus, which increases the residential capacity for projects that have a certain amount of mixed-income housing.

Mike and Roger Abuyaghi purchased the property in March of 2017 for $3.6 million, as per city records. According to the project application, construction for 921 O’Farrell Street is expected to cost $19 million, not including full development costs. The architects tell SFYIMBY that construction is expected to start this Fall, with the property opening before the end of 2024 . . . .

https://sfyimby.com/2022/01/sfyimby-...francisco.html

I appreciate that these new projects, using various density bonus laws and "affordable housing" bonuses, are finally not underbuilding downtown San Francisco sites, but the unfortunate part is that for a while at least we will be faced with these huge blank mid-block walls around town. I guess they are unavoidable since the architect must anticipate next-door lots eventually being developed to similar heights but boy will they be ugly for a while.

[homebucket]

A single story derelict building making way for 50 units with ground floor retail, less than a block away from a BRT stop? Count me in!

[pseudolus]

Originally Posted by homebucket

A single story derelict building making way for 50 units with ground floor retail, less than a block away from a BRT stop? Count me in!

and less than a block from Mitchell Brothers'!

[memester]

Originally Posted by pseudolus

and less than a block from Mitchell Brothers'!

I think you need to get out more. Mitchell Bros. is closed and the property is being shopped...

[Pedestrian]

Originally Posted by pseudolus

and less than a block from Mitchell Brothers'!

What it IS less than a block from is the similarly sized 841 Polk (aka Howard Johnson's redux)--same block, around the corner:


https://sfyimby.com/2021/12/googie-r...francisco.html

[Jerry of San Fran]

Thanks for the update Pedestrian. I saw this one this morning on YIMBY

Mixed feelings about this one. I tend to not like portions of buildings that have portions that overhand the sides.

I know the area quite well. I see from Google Earth's street view that half of Olive St. has a chain link fence on the south side blocking the sidewalk for half of the block to keep the bums away from the buildings. The last time I passed here there was tons of trash from the street people camping on the sidewalk.

[Pedestrian]

Originally Posted by Jerry of San Fran

I see from Google Earth's street view that half of Olive St. has a chain link fence on the south side blocking the sidewalk for half of the block to keep the bums away from the buildings. The last time I passed here there was tons of trash from the street people camping on the sidewalk.

The lot the chain link fence surrounds is where 841 Polk is to be built.

[homebucket]

Plans for 14-Story Variegated Tower Slated for Approval
February 15, 2022

The refined plans for a 14-story tower to rise up to 140 feet in height with a variegated upper facade upon the Polk Gulch parcel at 925 O’Farrell Street could be entitled next week.

Having added an additional 10 feet in height since formally proposed, the 140-foot-tall tower on the through block lot would yield 50 condos, a mix of 24 studios, 25 two-bedrooms and one three, with 800 square feet of ground floor retail space; a 690-square-foot roof deck for the building’s residents; 27 individual decks or terraces; and a secured storage room for 50 bikes, but no garage, as designed by David Baker Architects.

Technically only zoned for the development of up to 24 units, based on the size of the parcel, and 130 feet in height, the project team is seeking a “HOME-SF” based exemption for the density and height as proposed. And yes, the building was designed with the redevelopment of the adjacent parcels, which are zoned for development up to 130 feet in height, prior to any bonuses, in mind.

https://socketsite.com/archives/2022...roval-but.html

[Pedestrian]

Additional renderings:

[homebucket]

Approved.

Plans Approved For 921 O’Farrell Street, San Francisco

BY: ANDREW NELSON 5:30 AM ON APRIL 7, 2022

Plans have been approved for the residential infill at 921 O’Farrell Street in San Francisco, clearing the path for construction to start by next summer or early fall. The 14-story building will soon rise from a 0.1-acre site to build fifty new homes. David Baker Architects is responsible for the design.

https://sfyimby.com/2022/04/plans-ap...francisco.html

[Pedestrian]

Now if only they could do something more attractive with that big, almost blank wall (but I understand why they probably can't).

[homebucket]

Originally Posted by Pedestrian

Now if only they could do something more attractive with that big, almost blank wall (but I understand why they probably can't).

As you alluded to earlier in the thread, 841 Polk will occupy one side to partially cover up the blank wall, and I'm guessing this corner here is also going to be developed at some point as well, which will also cover it up.

https://goo.gl/maps/jHz6HinwCpzh1DGG8

Blank walls, as I'm sure you're aware, are ubiquitous in downtown areas where buildings commonly share walls with each other, or where future developments are planned.

https://goo.gl/maps/q4aw9vgKnEXDLccS8
https://goo.gl/maps/tW9kcYdsVSW4UDFo8
https://goo.gl/maps/Pk6oHNPeKR6uHwQG8