Organized Labor

by Paul Burton
Contributing Writer

Construction of the new One Rincon Hill high-rise condominiums at First and Harrison in San Francisco is moving forward on schedule. The 55-floor South Tower is scheduled to be completed in 2008, and the 45-floor North Tower by 2009. Bovis Lend Lease, Inc. is the General Contractor.

by Paul Burton
Contributing Writer

Construction of the new One Rincon Hill high-rise condominiums at First and Harrison in San Francisco is moving forward on schedule. The 55-floor South Tower is scheduled to be completed in 2008, and the 45-floor North Tower by 2009. Bovis Lend Lease, Inc. is the General Contractor.

The foundation work for the tower is continuing and the first few floors of rebar for the south tower has appeared, rising higher than the upper deck of the Bay Bridge approach. There is a tower crane poking up from the site as well. The podium for the townhouses has not reached street level yet. About 100 construction workers are currently busy installing the rebar and pouring concrete for the core columns and floors up to the third floor and above. Webcor is doing the concrete. RPS is doing the rebar.

The complex was designed by the Chicago architectural firm Solomon, Cordwell, Buenz and Associates, and includes townhouses and two high-rise condo towers. The 541 feet tall north tower and the 641 ft. south tower will be among the city’s tallest structures. Atop the 100 ft. tall Rincon Hill, near the western end of the Bay Bridge, the south tower will stand 741 feet above sea level and be the tallest all-residential tower in California. The Transamerica Pyramid stands 853 feet tall.

The construction uses a “core-outrigger” structural system, which was approved in January 2006 after review by City officials. The system hadn’t been used in San Francisco but structural engineers said that it was safe and could withstand an earthquake. Solomon, Cordwell, Buenz and Associates say that One Rincon Hill will be built for strength and stability, with a ductile concrete core two times stronger than required by building code, outrigger columns to provide added strength, and buckling restrained braces for added seismic safety. The foundation is also designed to be two times stronger than required by the building code. The “core-outrigger” system is touted as an alternative to the traditional steel-frame construction, and allows for more open space within the building and less obstructed views.

Another unique feature of the construction will be placement of water tanks atop the building to help prevent sway. The architects say that One Rincon will become the only building in the United States to have a “tuned liquid mass damper.” As the wind moves the building one way, the motion of the water in two large tanks atop the building will roll in the other direction, causing the building to move less and the inhabitants to feel less sway. Baffles located in the 5 feet tall, 54,000 gallons tanks help tune or modulate the flow of the water to approximately counteract the buildings’ sway.

The 1.3 acre site originally featured a clock tower, owned by UNION 76 and later, Bank Of America. In 2002 Urban West Associates bought the land and later proposed development of a 28 story and a 33 story building with 506 condos. The city later raised height limits in the surrounding area and Urban West Associates revised their plans to build to the maximum zoning of 45 stories and 55 stories. The Clock Tower was demolished in 2005 to make way for the construction of the towers.

The first phase of construction will be construction of the south tower with 368 condo units. The north tower will house 327 condo units. The total cost of the project is $290 million.

The entire project will provide 695 condos and 14 townhomes varying in price from $500,000 for a 613 square feet one bedroom apartment up to $2 million, depending on the size of the unit, and the view. A sales office opened in June, but even before the opening, 130 of the 368 units were already pre-sold.

The real estate marketing company, Pacific Marketing Associates, reported in June that 303 of the 390 condos and townhouses to be developed in the first phase were sold in the first week of sales. “We were delighted to see that our vision for One Rincon Hill has appealed to San Franciscans looking for great views and unbeatable value,” said Pacific Marketing Associates president Paul Zeger. He touted the project’s location in what he says “is certain to become one of San Francisco’s hottest new neighborhoods,” with spectacular ‘hilltop views’ and easy access to downtown and freeways. While some buyers were locals looking to move up to larger space, other buyers came from the Peninsula and East Bay looking for a second home in the City. Like the nearby Infinity Towers at 300 Spear Street, the One Rincon Hill towers are, “meant to be seen at a distance,” developer Michael Kriozere of Urban West Associates told the San Francisco Chronicle. The newspaper also noted that, “One Rincon also intensifies two trends -- the gradual movement of the city’s center south of Market Street into what was traditionally an industrial district, and a social shift in San Francisco.” That social shift is accelerating as more expensive, luxury condo projects come on line in the newly thriving section of the city. As part of the development deal, Urban West Associates of San Diego was required to pay for construction of affordable housing, but at a different location, for a fee of $20 million.