A 1,225 foot-high new tower that would be the tallest building on the West Coast has been proposed for San Francisco.
An application to build the tower, which would feature 1.6 million square feet of office space, was submitted to the city by Hines, a Houston-based real estate investment and development firm.
Set at the site of the former PG&E headquarters at 77 Beale Street, the proposed skyscraper would be the tallest building in the United States outside of New York and Chicago, outranking Philadelphia and Los Angeles, reported the San Francisco Chronicle.
In post on X, San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie said: “San Francisco just got a proposal for the tallest tower on the West Coast.”
He explained: “And this is not just about one building. This plan would transform a vacant city block into a dynamic mix of housing, office space, retail, and public space by developing the former PG&E and Matson.”
A spokesperson for Hines told SFGATE that the tower would replace 1.3 million square feet of “obsolete office space” and transform the “gated, inaccessible” block into “a vibrant, activated open space, creating pedestrian pathways and gathering areas, like other successful downtown plazas.”
The new building would surpass the Salesforce Tower, the city’s current tallest building, by about 155 feet, as well as the Wilshire Grand Center in Los Angeles by about 125 feet, which is currently the tallest building west of the Mississippi River, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.
The new tower would be the country’s 11th tallest skyscraper, sitting just under the 1,250 foot-high Empire State Building and just above the Bank of America Tower’s 1,200 feet, both located in New York City, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
The project would also see the restoration of two historic buildings—215 and 245 Market Street, both of which are on the National Register of Historic Places—while the adjacent 25 Beale Street office building would be converted into a residential tower with 120 housing units, according to SFGATE.
The spokesperson for Hines described the PG&E/Matson Block project as “a significant investment towards the revitalization of downtown San Francisco and a catalytic project that demonstrates momentum and confidence in the city.”
The proposed San Francisco tower follows the construction of another major structure in North America—Toronto’s One Bloor West building, which is Canada’s first-ever supertall skyscraper.
Supertall skyscrapers are buildings that stand 300 meters (around 984 feet) or higher, according to the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat.
The construction of the One Bloor West building hit the 300-meter mark, officially becoming the country’s first supertall building. Once it’s fully built, the skyscraper will be Canada’s tallest residential building and its second-tallest human-made structure after the CN Tower.
Further afield in Dubai, the Ciel, which will be the world’s tallest hotel once complete, was said to be nearing completion. Reaching over 1,197 feet high, the Ciel hotel will also feature the world’s highest infinity swimming pool set around 1,004 feet in the sky, as well as a 1,158 feet-high “sky restaurant” and an “atrium sky garden” spanning 12 levels.
Newsweek has contacted Hines via email for comment.
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