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1234 Howard Street / Stanley Saitowitz | Natoma Architects
Architects: Stanley Saitowitz | Natoma Architects
Location: San Francisco, CA, USA
Project year: 2007
Photographs: Natoma Architects
The 50-by-165-foot site stretches from Howard Street on one side to Natoma Street on the other. A one-way drive, with parking on one side and lobby and circulation on the other, links the streets. Above the drive a court is carved through the block, dividing the width of the building into three equal bars. The central bar remains empty; those on either side are again divided, into two halves.
The east bar contains two-bedroom units; the west bar, which also accommodates the elevator and stairs, one-bedroom units. Floating service walls create a sense of spaciousness and indeterminacy. Bridges cross the central court, giving access from the east bar to the west bar. In a loft-saturated housing environment, this complex offers an alternative, providing more privacy to accommodate family living. Unlike typical urban housing, these units have abundant light from windows along the length of the court.
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17 comments »
I like this building, it seems quite appropriate for new city dwellers or people with busy lives. The use of concrete and steel is just fantastic here, and the light in the interiors is epic. Great project.
Another stunning work by Stanley Saitowitz | Natoma Architects! Appropriate scale, nice plans, materials and details.
competent project…it’s amazing that people respond so favourably to something that just makes sense…i guess things are bad out there…have we lost our bearings within blobitecture/starchitecture…?…what is more important-innovation or truth?…being true and correct to a project or extending an avant-garde agenda?
+1 for Your words mate! I totally agree with You.
did I miss something or can you look straight into the appartment next to your own… nice details and finish, but doesn’t work IMO.
I’m afraid your right ! it’s funny that scottmft think it’s a competent project… it will sure change the look once the blinds are installed !
A bit dead and mean on the street level, I’d say. Its a nice idea, but I wonder how many clients would be open to leaving 1/3 their urban property empty of units to sell (or rent). Nevertheless, a nice solution to a common housing problem. They must have had a great client, which just reinforces the axiom that it takes a great client to make great (in this case good) architecture.
It would have been nice to open the lower level to a degree so that it formed an inverted “T” with the court space above, and engaged itself to the street.
+5
really nice project, nice details and finishing but.. it seems more like an office building. introspection problems, too much light, waste of energy just because of all that glass
anyone know anything about the shutters used on the street front elevation? product, etc..?
The project is totally cold and unapologetically self-indulgent. I visited this project with a studio class and toured it with Staitowitz himself. It may be nicely massed but it is unpleasant to be in and turns its back to the street. As a sidenote, from the units, the steel cladding prevents you from seeing anything but straight ahead. And lastly, Staitowtz is entirely uncaring and somewhat oblivious to the sweeping gentrification this project and other some of his other self-developed projects in the area is causing.
“cladding prevents you from seeing anything but straight ahead”
can’t see the crack heads and hipsters…BONUS!
Staying here, in the unit of friends who are away, for four days. Privacy is not an issue; the light is glorious. Over-the-top luxury in minimalist vessel for living. Location is fantastic, the perfect pied-a-terre, but not main residence unless you’re totally on your own. The building is effectively translucent, and fades out of sight from the street unless you’re seeking it out. Pristine. No frills.
What I mean by being ‘totally on your own’ is that it’s great for one person.
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