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S.F.’s Transamerica Pyramid is getting a $250 million redesign, the biggest in its 50-year history
Roland Li
March 22, 2022

The Transamerica Pyramid is getting the biggest makeover in its 50-year history.

Owner Michael Shvo and his partners have hired world-renowned architect Norman Foster to redesign the iconic tower’s interiors and plan to invest $250 million to renovate the 1972 building and expand its Redwood Park. The owners also plan to roughly double the size of neighboring 545 Sansome St. and add a new facade to create a modern office building at the cost of around $150 million.

The plans amount to not only the largest investment in downtown San Francisco since the pandemic began, but one of the largest building redesigns in the city’s history — and to one of the city’s most recognizable landmarks.

“We want to make this place a focal center of downtown . . . . “When you come to the site, there’s not much to do there,” Shvo said. “We want to change that.”

The renovations are expected to take a year to complete. The city has approved a temporary construction barricade, and work is scheduled to begin this week. The expansion of 545 Sansome St. — which is being rebranded 3 Transamerica — to 100,000 square feet of office space would follow and require additional city approvals . . . .

A vacant 48th floor penthouse space would be turned into a bar and lounge exclusively for office tenants at the cost of $201,836, according to a building permit filed this month that is awaiting city approval. Upper floors would include conference rooms, a spa and gym. Office tenants would be able to order food and beverages to their desks.

Separately, New York’s high-end Core club has leased three bottom floors in the Pyramid to build a luxury, members-only facility with three restaurants and three bars.

Shvo said he ran a design competition with world-renowned architects before selecting Foster, who designed Apple Park, the Bay Area’s most valuable property, and London’s Gherkin Building.

Foster has a history of reimagining prominent historic buildings, including designing a new glass dome atop the Reichstag, Germany’s lower house of parliament. He also designed the Manhattan headquarters of Hearst, owner of The Chronicle, a glassy diagonal grid constructed in 2003 atop a six-story structure built in 1927 . . . .

https://www.sfchronicle.com/sf/artic...t-17021701.php