A joint venture between The John Buck Co., Golub & Co. and MetLife has completed construction of Park Tower at Transbay, a 45-story, 803,700-square-foot office tower in San Francisco’s Transbay district.
The project marks GP’s first completed building in the city.
The 605-foot-tall building includes a covered, 3,600-square-foot outdoor plaza with a 35-foot ceiling at the base of the tower. The asset is across the street from the new Transbay Transit Center and three blocks away from the bay.
The tower is designed with a massing that integrates three different floor plates. Within these distinct floor plates, a series of large outdoor terraces are carved out to provide substantial outdoor tenant amenity spaces — mini “parks in the sky.”
“The terraces are a defining element of the project, both in terms of what they contribute to the interior functions and also to distinguish the building in the downtown context,” says James Goettsch, FAIA, chairman and co-CEO at GP, as well as the design leader for the project. “They are specifically site-oriented throughout the tower to provide exceptional views of the bay and Salesforce Park, offering clear connections to the city.”
The tower’s façade is composed of floor-to-ceiling glass and is articulated with vertical glass fins that relate to the location of the tower terraces, which occur at a three-story module. The podium façade also utilizes a series of single-floor fins to break down the scale at the pedestrian level. The fritted pattern is repeated through to the base of the building to help continue the tower articulation and materiality throughout the overall massing.
“The materiality and scale of the façade changes with each of the distinct floor plate areas, yet they work in concert with each other,” notes Scott Seyer, AIA, LEED AP, principal and senior project designer at GP. “The design intent is to create a timeless aesthetic that serves as a positive addition to both the Transbay area as well as the city skyline.”
At the base of the tower is a covered 3,600-square-foot outdoor plaza with a 35-foot-high ceiling. The area is designated as privately owned public outdoor space that abuts both the tower’s main lobby and adjoining retail space. Along with a series of outdoor seating areas, a major focal point of this outdoor space is a large, site-specific art installation, titled “Night Writing,” by Teresita Fernandez, which is integrated into the main wall of the tower’s core.
The tower has set a record landmark in the real estate industry, with news released in 2018 that it will be fully occupied by Facebook. At 755,900 square feet, it is the largest single lease deal in San Francisco’s history.
