180 Howard Street

According to a plugged-in tipster, the State Bar of California is planning put their 13-story building at 180 Howard Street on the market.  While the building will be offered without a price, apparently the State Bar has been counseled to expect bids well north of $100 million for the 200,000 square foot building.

Any sale would have to be approved by the State Bar Board of Trustees.  No word on the State Bar’s plans should an offer be accepted and approved.

19 thoughts on “State Bar Seeking To Cash Out In San Francisco”
    1. Hear, hear. As far as I can tell, the bar exists for a single purpose – to enrich those who work at the bar. I’m all for this sale as a sensible financial move – cash in and rent space and come way out ahead. But it better come with a commensurate drop in bar dues or increase in service to the bar’s members. I’m not counting on either.

  1. @curmudgeon. Is that a fact? I hope so. Then, that makes the whole escalation of SF prices more palatable. If businesses choose to move to Oakland, then there will be jobs for some of the people who are being priced out of the city. The end result may be a rejuvenation of Oakland. It will no longer be simply a place for people forced to move, but the creation of another business center.

    1. @Jlasf

      Last I checked, Oakland is already full of people who want to live there for reasons other than “forced to move”. And last I checked, Oakland is already “another business center”, and has been for decades.

    2. That was pretty insulting to pretty much everyone who lives or ever lived in Oakland. Please try to broaden your life experience before making an ass of yourself on the internet, again.

      1. Lordy what a lot of PC self righteousness. You two probably don’t even live in Oakland. We’ll let me tell you it’s a mess economically if you step out of a few rich white enclaves. It needs all the SF overflow it can get, and there’s nothing insulting in saying that. A thousand bar association salaries and their ancillary daytime spending will be appreciated.

        1. It’s not “PC self righteousness”, smart guy. It’s fact. And you’re the one who sounds unfamiliar with Oakland, seeing as you believe that it’s a “mess economically” outside of “a few rich white enclaves”.

        2. Jack, let me tell you -to call someone’s city a consolation city is very rude. You’re also wrong about Oakland. Most US cities are a fiscal mess. Even so Oakland has an excellent credit rating. As for race/economics – while some areas of Oakland tend toward a racial simple majority (like 90% of the US), neighborhoods in Oakland mostly do not. Adams Point is the single most diverse neighborhood in the Bay Area while also being desirable with below average rates of foreclosure and substandard property. Oakland is a city that doesn’t fit the mold. We have one of the highest rates of interracial households, and LGBT ones, too. Combine all that with our weather and central location to job centers and it’s a no-brainer why people choose to move here.

  2. So, people jumped all over me. I have three questions: Do you think that areas of Oakland
    could use some rejuvenation and more businesses located there? Do you think that the
    escalating prices in San Francisco, which are driving some people out, will help
    business development and create new jobs? Do you think these two things help each other?

    1. You wrote something that was rude and inaccurate, so take the heat. Perhaps you can do the research instead of making assumptions?

  3. What great news. Fewer lawyers in SF. Maybe now the City can find the funds to highlight the Harvy Milk quotation on the Harvy Milk Building in Duboce Park, so the sunlight doesn’t make the quote unreadable.

    1. Well, except the bar is not staffed by lawyers – just a bunch of admins. So I guess we’ll have fewer admin personnel in SF. Not sure if that is a good thing or not. And the bar has nothing to do with city of SF funds. The bar is a state entity. Guess we’ll all have to continue squinting to read that quote, which I run by almost every single day, by the way, and can read quite well. I’m guessing the city just does not consider this particular issue to be a high priority.

  4. Looks about 13 stories (130′-150′?) If it is zoned for 200′, the extra floors and a new skin would make this a very attractive buy (IMHO). Although I really have concern about the exodus of white collar workers in SF. Chevron, ATT, Bank of America (just about everyone in Bishop Ranch)…then CALTRANS, AAA, State Compensation Fund….guess SF needs to share the work and prestige of being a headquarter city with Oakland.
    On another matter, just spent a week working around Palo Alto, Menlo Park, Los Gatos….lots of great restaurants, shops (many very high end as in Union Square) and guess what? Free and plentiful parking!!!

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