Salesforce Tower, formerly known as the Transbay Tower, is a 1,070-foot (326 m) office skyscraper in the South of Market district of downtown San Francisco. It is located at 415 Mission Street between First and Fremont Streets, next to the Transbay Transit Center site. Salesforce Tower is the centerpiece of the San Francisco Transbay redevelopment plan. The plan contains a mix of office, transportation, retail, and residential uses. The skyscraper is the tallest in the San Francisco skyline. With a top roof height of 970 feet (296 m) and an overall height of 1,070 feet (326 m), it is the second tallest building west of the Mississippi River.
The crown of the tower features a nine-story electronic sculpture, “Day for Night”, created by artist Jim Campbell that features low resolution, abstract videos of San Francisco that will be filmed each day. At its activation on 21 May 2018, it was considered the tallest public art piece in the world.
Developer Hines, with a proposal by architect César Pelli, was selected as the winner of a global competition in 2007 to entitle and purchase the site. A seven-member jury of development experts assembled by the Transbay Joint Powers Authority (TJPA) selected Hines over proposals from Forest City Enterprises and architect Richard Rogers; and from Rockefeller Development Group Corp. and Skidmore Owings & Merrill. In 2012, Boston Properties acquired a 50% stake in the project and in 2013 acquired most of Hines’ remaining interest to become 95% owners of the project.
The site of the tower was in a dilapidated area, formerly used as a ground-level entrance to the San Francisco Transbay Terminal, which was demolished in 2011. The TJPA sold the parcel to Boston Properties and Hines for US$192 million, and ceremonial groundbreaking for the new tower occurred on March 27, 2013. Actual below-grade construction work started in late 2013. The project is a joint venture between general contractors Clark Construction and Hathaway Dinwiddie Construction.
The footprint of Salesforce Tower rests on land fill near San Francisco’s original waterfront, an area prone to soil liquefaction during earthquakes. To account for this seismic risk, the tower uses an advanced design that is modeled to withstand the strongest earthquakes expected in the region. Its foundation includes 42 piles driven down nearly 300 feet (91 m) to bedrock and a 14-foot (4.3 m) thick foundation mat.
The development was originally contracted on “spec”, meaning the developer-owner did not have a major tenant lease secured beforehand (thus being a speculative development). On April 11, 2014, Salesforce.com announced that it signed a lease for 714,000 square feet (66,300 m²) on floors 1, 3–30, and 61 to become the building’s anchor tenant. Previously known as the Transbay Tower, the building was renamed Salesforce Tower. The lease was valued at US$560 million over 15 and a half years starting in 2017.
The tower opened in 2018 and has 61 floors, with a decorative crown reaching 1,070 ft (326 m). The original proposal called for a 1,200-foot (370 m) tower, but the height was later reduced. It is the tallest building in San Francisco, surpassing the Transamerica Pyramid by more than 200 feet (61 m). The tower is the second tallest building in the Western United States. The building’s first tenants began moving in on January 8, 2018. Upon opening, the building was 97% leased to tenants including Salesforce, Covington & Burling, WeWork, Bain & Company, Accenture, and Hellman & Friedman.
