SF New Developments

by J.K. Dineen

A CalPERS-backed development startup with deep pockets has acquired a SoMa site that could be part of a larger new residential enclave west of the Moscone Center.

Avant Housing, a joint venture between TMG Partners and AGI Capital, bought 240-260 Fifth St., a two-story concrete structure between Howard and Folsom streets now home to music promotion firm LiveNation. The price for the 41,000-square-foot structure, which will be demolished, was $8.7 million.

While the Fifth Street property could support 115 to 150 units of housing, it sits across an alley from another development site controlled by AGI Capital. That parcel, 900 Folsom St., could be entitled for 280 units and may be developed in conjunction with the Fifth Street site. The two properties are between Fifth and Sixth streets and separated by Clementina Alley.

AGI Capital Executive Vice President Eric Tao said the two projects, developed in concert, could produce a uniquely SoMa vibe different than the luxury highrises under construction elsewhere in the city. (Both are a few blocks from the SoMa Grand, a highrise condo tower near Seventh and Mission streets that TMG and AGI Capital are also developing.)

“We want to create a stoop and doorway type feel, an interactive downtown neighborhood,” said Tao. “It’s rare you have two projects like this, separated by an alleyway. The architecture will have a distinct, common vocabulary.”

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