San Francisco Transbay development - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The San Francisco Transbay development plan consists of three supertall skyscraper

Skyscraper

A skyscraper is a tall, continuously habitable building of many stories, often designed for office and commercial use. There is no official definition or height above which a building may be classified as a skyscraper...

s and ten other skyscrapers and highrises proposed in San Francisco

San Francisco, California

San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...

. The towers are proposed to fund the replacement of the San Francisco Transbay Terminal

San Francisco Transbay Terminal

San Francisco Transbay Transit Terminal, or simply Transbay Terminal, was a transportation complex in San Francisco, California, USA, located roughly in the center of the rectangle bounded north–south by Mission Street and Howard Street, and east–west by Beale Street and 2nd Street...

in the South of Market neighborhood near the Financial District. The supertalls comprise only three of the 13 towers of the Transbay Project. Five of the 13 towers are part of Renzo Piano

Renzo Piano

Renzo Piano is an Italian architect. He is the recipient of the Pritzker Architecture Prize, AIA Gold Medal, Kyoto Prize and the Sonning Prize...

's complex and the other eight are Transbay Towers. Two other proposals named 181 Fremont Street

181 Fremont Street

181 Fremont Street is a proposed skyscraper for the South of Market District of San Francisco, California. The building, designed by Heller Manus Architects, will be located adjacent to the Transbay Terminal and 199 Fremont Street projects....

and 350 Mission Street

350 Mission Street

350 Mission Street is a proposed skyscraper located in San Francisco's South of Market district. The current design is above street level, with 27 stories...

are proposed projects part of the Transbay Project.

The skyscrapers will take advantage of Transbay Terminal air rights

Air rights

Air rights are a type of development right in real estate, referring to the empty space above a property. Generally speaking, owning or renting land or a building gives one the right to use and develop the air rights....

, and land formerly owned by the state which will no longer be needed for bus ramps.

Transbay project details

Two of the supertall skyscrapers named Renzo Piano Tower I and Renzo Piano Tower II are set to rise 366 m or 1,200 ft. and contain 101 floors. The twin supertall terra-cotta towers of the five-tower complex will be located at First and Mission Street

Mission Street

Mission Street is a north-south arterial thoroughfare in San Francisco, California that runs from the city's southern border to its northeast corner. The street and the Mission District through which it runs were named for the Spanish Mission Dolores, several blocks away from the modern route. Only...

s. The entire five-tower complex will be designed by Italian architect Renzo Piano

Renzo Piano

Renzo Piano is an Italian architect. He is the recipient of the Pritzker Architecture Prize, AIA Gold Medal, Kyoto Prize and the Sonning Prize...

. These buildings will tower 347 feet (106 m) over the Transamerica Pyramid

Transamerica Pyramid

The Transamerica Pyramid is the tallest skyscraper in the San Francisco skyline and one of its most iconic. Although the building no longer houses the headquarters of the Transamerica Corporation, it is still strongly associated with the company and is depicted in the company's logo...

, which is the tallest in San Francisco. Adjoining the twin supertalls are two 900 feet (274 m) towers and one 600 feet (183 m) tower in a dense tower complex said to resemble bamboo

Bamboo

Bamboo is a group of perennial evergreens in the true grass family Poaceae, subfamily Bambusoideae, tribe Bambuseae. Giant bamboos are the largest members of the grass family....

shoots. Another supertall named Transbay Transit Center & Tower will be attached directly to the replacement Transbay Terminal and this tower will rise on Mission & Fremont Streets. Cesar Pelli

César Pelli

César Pelli is an Argentine architect known for designing some of the world's tallest buildings and other major urban landmarks. In 1991, the American Institute of Architects listed Pelli among the ten most influential living American architects...

's design was chosen by the city of San Francisco on September 20, 2007. Pelli's tower includes a 1400 feet (427 m) long park on top of the terminal with a 1200 feet (366 m), 80-story obelisk office tower. This design includes wind turbines on the roof and the building will contain 1600000 sq ft (148,644.9 m²) of office space. There are seven other towers of the Transbay Project located on nearby blocks ranging from 850+ feet (259+ m) to a modest 300 feet (91 m).

Possible height reduction

On May 1, 2008, the city of San Francisco presented its Transbay zoning plan which includes seven towers exceeding the current 550 ft (168 m) height limit, with six towers ranging from 600 feet (183 m) to 800 ft (244 m) and the centerpiece 1000 ft (305 m) Transbay Tower. Under the city plan, the height of the Renzo Piano towers would be reduced by one-third and the Transbay tower by one-sixth. 181 Fremont Street and Transbay Project II saw their heights cut to only 700 ft (213 m), while 350 Mission Street, currently at 550 ft (168 m), could rise as high as 700 feet (213 m). The plan also permits buildings to rise as high as 600 ft (183 m) on a block of land bounded by Main (northeast), Howard (southeast), and Beale Streets (southwest). One of the reasons for this reduction was that the Transbay Tower, at 1200 ft (366 m), would cast a shadow over Justin Herman Plaza near the Embarcadero, a violation of a 1984 law that prohibits structures from casting shadows over plazas and parks. A 1000 ft (305 m) Transbay Tower would not shadow over a significant portion of Justin Herman Plaza. There is also concern that several existing and proposed buildings might turn the intersection of Mission & Fremont Streets into a glass canyon, as 50 Fremont Center

50 Fremont Center

50 Fremont Center is a office skyscraper rising 600 ft. up from Fremont and Mission Street on the boundary of the San Francisco's Financial District and South of Market Area...

, the Millennium Tower, 350 Mission Street and the Transbay Tower are built or planned to be next to the intersection.

History

The Transbay Project Towers were proposed along with the replacement of the current, aging Terminal. Early versions of the project had only seven towers with six towers over 300 feet (91 m) tall, and one 550 feet (168 m) tower directly attached to the new terminal. In December, 2005, the tower attached to the new terminal was proposed at 925 feet (282 m). About five months later in May, 2006, the single Transbay Project I tower was proposed at 1000 feet (305 m), with two additional 850 feet (259 m) Transbay Project towers located near the 1000 feet (305 m) tower. Seven months later, Renzo Piano replaced one of the 850 feet (259 m) towers with a dense five-tower complex with two additional supertalls and several other tall skyscrapers, leading to a total number of thirteen Transbay Project towers. Proposed designs for Transbay Project I, ranging from 1200 feet (366 m) to 1375 feet (419 m) were presented to the city on August 6, 2007 by the three competing architectural firms or architects. In addition to the winning design by Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects, plans were submitted by Skidmore Owings & Merrill (SOM) and Richard Rogers

Richard Rogers

Richard George Rogers, Baron Rogers of Riverside CH Kt FRIBA FCSD is a British architect noted for his modernist and functionalist designs....

. The SOM plan consisted of a 1200 feet (366 m), 93-story twisting tower with a 175 feet (53 m) glass crown for a total height of 1375 feet (419 m). On the ground, there would be a 70 feet (21 m) wide by 103 feet (31 m) tall open-air passage that would lead commuters into the new Transbay Terminal. Rogers' plan consisted of a 1118.5 feet (341 m) mixed-use tower with exposed elevators. A 168 feet (51 m) steel-framed structure on the roof of this 82-story building would push the total height to 1286.5 feet (392 m). All three designs included wind turbines on the roof.

List (by height)

Name	Height	Notes
Transbay Transit Center & Tower	1070 ft (326 m)	Attached directly to new terminal
Renzo Piano Tower I	1070 ft (326.1 m)	Renzo's Complex
Renzo Piano Tower II	1070 ft (326.1 m)	Renzo's Complex
Renzo Piano Tower III	900 ft (274.3 m)	Renzo's Complex
Renzo Piano Tower IV	900 ft (274.3 m)	Renzo's Complex
181 Fremont Street	900 ft (274.3 m)	Near corner of Fremont & Howard Streets
Transbay Project II	853 ft (260 m)	On Howard Street between 1st. & 2nd Streets
Renzo Piano Tower V	900 ft (274.3 m)	Renzo's Complex
Transbay Project III	550 ft (167.6 m)	On Main & Howard Streets
Transbay Project IV	550 ft (167.6 m)	On 1st & Folsom Streets
350 Mission Street	550 ft (167.6 m)	On Mission & Fremont Streets
Transbay Project V	450 ft (137.2 m)	On Main & Howard Streets
Transbay Project VI	400 ft (121.9 m)	On Essex & Folsom Streets
Transbay Project VII	300 ft (91.4 m)	On Spear & Folsom Streets
Transbay Project VIII	300 ft (91.4 m)	On Fremont & Folsom Streets

External links

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