SF New Developments

San Francisco Business Times - October 27, 2006 by Lizette Wilson

Miami developers are bringing their money to San Francisco, but leaving their Florida style behind.

High-profile builders from the sunshine state — like Peebles Development Corp., Turnberry Associates and Crescent Heights — have flocked to the city’s condo market in recent months with plans to build a combined 1,300 units downtown.

The designs will be modern and sleek. Miami and San Francisco both have South Beach districts, but the new designs coming to San Francisco will have nary a touch of the pastel art deco or the neon flamboyance that marks Miami’s version.

Main reason: San Francisco homebuyers are more low key, and they set the market.

“San Francisco style is more of an understated elegance. San Franciscans appreciate creativity, but that doesn’t have to be ostentatious,” said Don Peebles, who is developing two ultra-luxe projects, with the cheapest units going for north of $1 million. Peebles said although he’s always been interested in developing in San Francisco, the softening condo market in Southern Florida accelerated this past year and spurred his entry.

He will begin construction shortly at 250 Brannan St., converting the former Gallo building into 54 high-end lofts. The building’s historic brick exterior will be left intact, with S.F. architect Charles Bloszies leading the cleanup effort. Native sons Orlando Diaz-Azcuy and Plant Construction will design and build the interior — a space Peebles envisions as “clean and elegant.”

The lofts will feature high ceilings — up to 32 feet in some units — floating staircases, private terraces, built-in cappuccino machines, wine cellars, gyms and screening rooms, Peebles said. High quality woods, which will include everything from mahogany and zebra wood to redwood, will be offered as will quartz and marble bathrooms. Doors will be oversized and stretch from floor to ceiling.

Peebles expects to start selling the lofts in early 2008, with units ranging from $1 million to $5 million.

Three blocks away, he will be working on a 40-story tower at 340-350 Fremont St.

Peebles expects to close on that effort in December. The $250 million project, which architect and developer Ezra Mersey sold with entitlements, was designed by one of the most San Franciscan of architects: Heller Manus.

Although the architectural firm has done projects in San Antonio, Texas and Detroit, the vast majority of its work is here in San Francisco. Along with the half dozen or so curtain-walled office towers the firm has built, Heller Manus has also designed three of the more high-profile condo projects now under way: 535 Mission St., 201 Folsom St. and 300 Spear St.

Like other Heller Manus designs, the Fremont street tower will be slim and tall. The floor plates will be just 9,500 square feet and the design will be concrete and glass. Although Peebles will work with Heller and the Planning Commission over the next few months to refine the building treatments, no major tweaks are expected.

The 280 or so units will take roughly two years to build, with delivery slated for late 2009, according to Peebles.

Coming to market around the same time just a block away is a 40-story tower at 45 Lansing St.

Turnberry Associates — a South Florida-based developer synonymous with the glitz of Las Vegas and Miami’s South Beach — is building a $240 million project at the site.

Mersey co-designed the project with Chuck Davis of EHDD and then sold it to Turnberry last month.

Turnberry President Bruce Weiner said he’s enlisting the help of Miami architect Robert Swedroe to tweak the interior layout and make the units larger.

The exterior design will not change.

“It’s going to be sleek, tall and modern looking,” said Weiner, noting the exterior will be glass and concrete. “When you say ‘Miami style,’ people start to conjure up ‘Miami Vice’ and art deco. This (project) will not be like that.”

He added: “We’re seeing what we can do to improve it without taking it back through” the approval process. The site is entitled for 305 units.

Then there’s Crescent Heights.

That Miami development company is planning a large condo development at 10th and Market streets. The project could reach as high as 352 feet and include 650 units, according to papers filed with the city.

Representatives from Crescent Heights did not respond to requests for comment on what architectural flourishes the project might include.

“I have not seen any influence of the Miami style on San Francisco,” said Larry Badiner of the Planning Department. “We just haven’t seen it yet.”

Or, perhaps more accurately, haven’t noticed it because Arquitectonica, the Miami architect du jour, is worldly in its scope and design.

Tishman Speyer, which is developing the 35 and 40-story towers at 300 Spear St., called on Arquitectonica to tweak Heller Manus’ designs.

Arquitectonica transformed the glass facade from angled to curved to create a sleeker more sinewy look, while reducing the number of units by 160.

“All our designs are very modern and abstract with clean lines, but they are all very different too,” said Arquitectonica co-founder Bernardo Fort-Brescia during an interview last year. That diversity has resonated with Bay Area developers, with the 400-employee firm now working on the region’s three largest housing projects, including Tishman’s.

Arquitectonica is designing Angelo Sangiacomo’s 1,400-unit complex at Trinity Towers on Market Street and Signature Properties’ Oak Street to Ninth Avenue development in Oakland.

Trinity Towers will have a village feel and be characterized by pedestrian friendly access while Oak to Ninth will be more futuristic and include an elliptical glass structure.

Said Fort-Brescia of the variety: “I want the all to look distinct from one another. I don’t want people to see one design all over the place. I start my career over with every new project.”

Lizette Wilson covers small business for the San Francisco Business Times.

Original Article