Speaking of big hotel projects, the development team behind the proposed redevelopment of the All Stars Donuts shop site at 5th and Harrison has shifted gears and drafted new plans for a 197-room hotel to rise across the 399 5th Street parcel.
As designed by Stanton Architecture, the eight-story building would include seven levels of guest rooms over a ground-floor lobby/bar/breakfast room on the northern half of the site and a 4,000 square foot retail space at the corner of 5th and Harrison.
A basement garage would provide parking for 14 cars with its entrance by way of Hulbert Alley.
And once again, while the site is currently only zoned for building up to 55-feet in height, the height limit for the corner is slated to be increased to 85-feet in conjunction with San Francisco’s pending Central SoMa Plan.
Two of the busiest street in the city…excuse me, The City, and as a bonus, on the diagonal, the 4-lane exit from the Bay Bridge: who WOULDN’T want to lodge there?? And what a shame they’ve reserved the corner space for outside retail rather than the lobby/bar/breakfast room: no supping on a malted waffle while gazing at red-light runners…hopefully the error will be rectified.
It’s near Moscone and South of Market tech, and I’m sure it will be well-soundproofed. Good place for a Marriott Residence Inn or similar place.
It would be nice if the city placed a condition of restoring complete crosswalks at that intersection before building this project. As it is crossing the intersection is awkward and inconvenient for pedestrians.
@MoD, according to the Central SoMa Plan, there will be two new crosswalks mid-block on Harrison, between 4th and 5th and between 5th and 6th, and a currently closed crosswalk on 5th, immediately south of Harrison, that’s planned to be reopened. The city is also proposing a crosswalk across the westbound onramp at the corner of Harrison and 4th.
Thanks for the good news. It would be better if the midblock crosswalk spanning Harrison between 5th and 6th were right at the intersection with 5th. That way people walking on the south side of 5th don’t need to detour to midblock and back to continue heading down 5th. But beggars can’t be choosers and when pedestrians’ interests are up against freeways they’re still beggars even in this more enlightened age.
I don’t understand why they are building a hotel…why bring more people to San Francisco? The hotel’s patrons may get nefarious ideas such as moving here for a Tech job.
This site would do much better as 1-story PDR space or perhaps a surface level parking lot.
Exactly, a parking lot. Pave paradise and put up a parking lot.
Yes thank you for agreeing. There are some sane people left in this city.
Also, 85-feet is too tall in this area. This is where local natives come to enjoy the sun and cool bay breeze. Anything taller than the current donut shop (which I think is already too tall) would certainly ruin the character of the freeway underpass.
Agree 100%.. I am sure the Counting Crows would agree also.
Save the Donut Shops!
They are the only things keeping my arteries lubricated!
And surround that parking lot with a chain link fence.
SF could always use more gas stations or car washes…or maybe some tennis courts
Tennis courts would be too noisy and perhaps attract tech workers looking for exercise after work.
Gas stations and car washes sound like a good idea indeed (better than housing or office space). However, some folks on the i-80 may stop off for gas, look around the area, and decide that they want to move to San Francisco. I would not in good conscience allow anything that would bring non-locals to the area.
Veto! Where’m I supposed to get donuts and coffee sunday mornings after leaving the Endup?
(assuming I find a time machine and go back 20 years. OK, 25.)
JR. Thank you for your astute comment. We need more folks like you fighting the good fight. Though I am a bit worried that the existing donut shop may attract people to the area when they could just go to Oakland or Daly city for coffee and donuts. Perhaps they should consider removing it and adding in some much needed warehouse space or perhaps storage for parking enforcement vehicles.
Where is anyone supposed to get gas when the last station becomes a condo? Drive to the suburbs, pollute the air on the way and let them have the sales tax revenue of course.
PS: This is NOT satire. I’m fine with a hotel and not a donut shop (though they could put a donut shop on the ground floor. But the sarcasm with which others derided gas stations overcame me. We need to find SOME place for them. With Muni and other options in their present state San Franciscans aren’t completely giving up car ownership and some of us are too old or disabled to schlep groceries on a bus anyway.
If gas station ownership becomes suddenly as lucrative as other businesses, they will start incorporating them into new structures. As currently stands, the value of housing / office / retail is a better bet than fossil fuel services.
Yes. The only reason we need massive gas stations currently is because the real profit model is the suburban convenience market, which provides more profit potential from overpriced soft drinks and junk food than any mere liquefied dinosaurs.
Not that Brazil is an exemplar for getting things done, but they incorporate a couple of pumps into their arterials. No need for prime corners or massive quarter acre lots.
The internal combustion engine is clearly on its way out.
I can think of at least 5 ways to get groceries besides owning and operating a car. Get your brain out of the 1950’s.
If you want a suburban way of life, moves to the suburbs (America has no shortage of them). Stop imposing your anti-urbanism onto cities.
And….I hear some of the housing units have THREE CAR GARAGES. Which, once you fill up with never-used stuff (like exercise equipment and hobbies) are complemented by paved driveways. The joys of Fremont await!
Why not put the doughnut shop into the ground floor retail? There are probably many doughnut addicts who are already pre-programmed to go to that corner. Btw, is it “donut” or “doughnut”? Has the original “doughnut” been rendered archaic by “donut”?
Someone should open a donut shop on Gough St called “Gough Doughnut” and pronounce it “Goff Doff-nut”
Everyone would think they were just trying to sound tough.
Take the N Judah out to 7th and Kirkham?
Awesome!!
1) There is no shortage of gas stations in SF…how often do you ever have to wait in a long line to buy gas? (as is frequent in some suburbs)
2) Gas stations can easily be in the ground floor parking areas of tall buildings…these parking areas are already concrete frame construction isolating them from the spaces above, per building code.
3) Gas stations internal to other buildings are typical in Manhattan, and in large European cities.
Agreed! Clearly the stations aren’t making as much money as alternative proposals, or they’d be added into new buildings.
Jim, your #3….I lived in Manhattan for 5 years, and I’ve NEVER seen a gas station on the ground floor of a multi-story building. Do you have a specific example?
96th near Broadway
But almost never happens that one is a relic
No one would rent bug or lease above it in a new structure
too much snark for a serious situation
the bland design fits in perfectly with the bland city sf has become, can’t these tech kids move their treat fueled asses into something that doesn’t look like overpriced lego bs?
It’s a hotel. The United States has totally lost the art of designing attractive hotels. You think this is bad, check out some of the horrors across the Bay Bridge or in the outer suburbs.
Re the Gough St Doughnut store. A great idea, and so many choices. Among them: Goo (as in through) Doonut, Guff (as in rough) Duffnut, Gow (as in plough) Downut, Go (as in dough) Donut, and Gawff (as in cough) Dawffnut.
UPDATE: Proposed 5th Street Hotel, and Fewer Donuts, Closer to Reality