300 SPEAR STREET

''For the Infinity II tower in Miami, see Infinity II (Miami)''

'300 Spear Street' or the 'The Infinity' towers is a mixed-use residential complex that is under construction in San Francisco, California. It was proposed in San Francisco by Tishman Speyer Properties. The complex is the first phase of a massive residential complex that will have a total of 8 condo buildings spread over two city blocks (for detailed information see the second phase: 201 Folsom Street). 300 Spear Street will contain four buildings, two highrises of 36 (Infinity II, 370 ft. (113 m)) and 41 stories (Infinity I, 400^[1] or 450 ft.^[2] (122 or 137 m)), and two midrises of 8 and 9 floors bounded on three sides by streets; Main St. to the southwest (also separating this complex from 201 Folsom St.), Folsom St. to the northwest and Spear St. to the northeast (one block inland from the Bay). The highrise towers will poke far above the current highrises in between the Embarcadero waterfront and Spear St., making the complex prominent from places like Treasure Island, and offering spectacular views of the Bay, the Bay Bridge, and the Financial District for those who can afford the units. Along with the Millennium Tower and One Rincon Hill to the west and south, respectively, they will create a new highrise neighborhood in the South of Market district.

Contents

Design

Construction history

2005

2006

Current Progress (2007)

Phase One

The Infinity II

Main Street midrise

Spear Street midrise

Phase Two - The Infinity I

Gallery

References

See also

External links

Design

The original design for 300 Spear was this (towers to the left), designed by San Francisco's Heller Manus Architects. It featured a garden on top of the midrise towers and all four buildings were connected together. The later, a Miami architectural firm, Arquitectonica, came in and resigned the complex to this version. The four buildings of the complex were split apart and the sky gardens were gone. The complex had its color changed to a blue-green color and adapted a simplified concrete structure with a glass curtainwall system. This current design was approved and it is under construction currently.

Construction history

2005

Construction started sometime in April, 2005 when a surface parking lot was demolished by the main contractor Webcor Builders to make way for the complex. For the massive 5-story underground parking lot and foundation, it took seven months to excavate all the soil needed to constructed the parking lot and foundation. Midway through the long excavation process, since the complex is located over land that was once a harbor, a buried 1818 whaling ship was found just to the south of Spear St.^[3] This discovery delayed the project for a bit as maritime archaeologists flocked to the construction site to dig up the reminants.

2006

After the excavating was complete, the foundation was constructed for the 36 story highrise (Main St. Highrise or Infinity II) and midrise (Main St. Midrise) bordering Main St. and a tower crane was erected for the highrise. The elevator core for the highrise was built first and rose above street level sometime in April, 2006. Construction of the underground parking lot under the highrise and midrise started as the elevator core continued to rise. A second, smaller tower crane was erected in June for the midrise tower. A lifting rig was seen on the tower crane on July 16, but it wasn't until the weekend of July 22-July 23, 2006 that the crane was raised a few stories so construction can continue on the elevator core.^[4] On August 4, the concrete foundation mat for the Spear St. midrise and highrise was complete. There were wooden forms poking out from the mat, ready to be filled with concrete. Also, in August, the first pieces of dark-green glass curtainwall were delivered and laid on both Folsom St. and the first few floors of the Main St. highrise. One of those glass curtainwall pieces was installed on the Main St. highrise on August 4 and more pieces were installed on August 8. On Saturday, August 5, 2006, the taller crane was raised again, but this time, it was raised much more than the first lift, so on August 6, the crane towered over the construction site and the concrete core of Infinity I. It was taller than the nearby GAP building. Another shipment of curtainwall pieces arrived on the site on August 8 and a day later, more pieces were placed. A tall mobile crane was erected sometime around August 11 and on August 17, it began construction on the third tower crane. The third tower crane was set up in early September. Though the crane is still shorter the larger first crane, eventually when the Spear St. highrise is complete, it will be the tallest crane of the site. A massive concrete mat pour has allowed the Spear St. buildings to rise. The large Main St. crane was significantly raised on the weekend of October 7-October 8 and in late fall.

Current Progress (2007)

Phase One

The Infinity II

Currently, the 36 story highrise (Infinity II) is topped out. Curtainwall glass covers most of the surface of the Infinity II, and interior framing and work (like walls, sprinklers, plumbing, etc.) has taken place on the lower floors. The larger tower crane was removed from April 9 to April 21, since roof work had been completed. The circular decoration on the top of the building is also complete. Balcony railings have been installed. The red temporary elevator on the side of the building has been removed. Residence of the first tower and two mid-rises are scheduled to begin moving in during February of 2008.

Main Street midrise

Curtainwall glass panels have been installed on all nine levels of the topped out Main Street midrise.

Spear Street midrise

In addition, the Spear St. midrise is topped out at 8 stories. Glass has been installed on all eight floors.

Phase Two - The Infinity I

The concrete structure for the Infinity I above street level in February, but construction stopped after the second floor. Months later, the lone remaining tower crane was taken down temporarily to replace the rungs that support the crane. This is because the ones installed last September were not suitable to raise a crane. The new crane has been erected and is operating to construct the final tower. Construction on the 41 story tower began again in July after being on hold for approximately 3 months while the work focused on the first tower and the two mid-rises. The core for the Infinity I (Phase II) pokes about 12 stories above street level. The self-erection system for the core is complete for the Infinity I. Formwork for the 9th level is in place.

Gallery

''For a detailed construction gallery, see ''

References

1. skyscraperpage.com
2. emporis.com
3. sfgate.com
4. Webcor Builders


★ Diagram of the Infinity I

★ Diagram of the Infinity II

See also

★ List of tallest buildings in San Francisco and the greater Bay Area

External links

★ Arquitectonica Firm

★ Heller Manus Architects

★ Tishman Speyer Properties

★ sfnewdevelopments.com

★ Complex Website