50 California Lobby Renovation Concept
Client
Shorenstein Realty Services, Inc.
Location
San Francisco, California
Invited by ownership to provide recommendations and generate concepts for a ground floor public space renovation, Studio TMT identified several existing conditions to be addressed: the entry and lobby suffered from poor street exposure; the exterior plaza design cluttered the foreground to the building further reducing the impact of the entry; the entries were buried deep within a dark arcade; the proximity of the adjacent retail and bank entries were distracting to the building lobby entry experience; the interior lobby space was very narrow and oriented itself toward Davis Street; the interior finishes were dark, dated and lacked warmth. The Studio TMT solution addressed these issues and provides an elegant solution with simple clarity. Two large-scale gestures, a projecting overhead canopy and stone fin wall, clearly establish the entry of the building to the street. To better proportion the exterior entry space, the California Street glazing wall is moved out closer to the drip line of the building and consequently closer to the street. The retail bank entry is reoriented with a presence directed toward the California Street. A new mullionless glass wall is moved toward Davis to improve the interior lobby proportions by adding several feet of width. Finally, the new proposed interior lobby finishes add warmth and brightness, enhance the user experience while providing a timeless palette that is complimentary to the building aesthetic.