The Avery Mixed Use Building | OMA

The Avery Mixed Use Building designed by OMA, Related California, the West Coast affiliate of the nation’s largest privately-owned real estate firm, Related Companies, announces the completion of the penthouse and amenities of its highly anticipated residential high-rise, The Avery. Located in the heart of San Francisco’s newly emerged Transbay District, the tower is designed by OMA in collaboration with New York firm Clodagh Design (tower interior), Fougeron Architecture (podium architects), HKS (architect of record) and Jay Jeffers (penthouse interior).
Located four blocks from the San Francisco Bay, The Avery will be an important anchor along the eastern end of Folsom Street. Comprised of a 576-foot tower and two podium buildings, OMA’s masterplan for The Avery defines a residential development with an urban gesture.

Courtesy of Fougeron Architecture. Image © Jason ORear

“Transbay is changing into a place where San Francisco’s future is developing. Our building is located at the neighborhood’s center, so we wanted the site to be both a connector and a destination” said Jason Long, Partner at OMA. “We are thrilled to be completing our first tower on the West Coast. The building is shaped to weave together multiple scales and optimize views out to the city and Bay,” continued Shohei Shigematsu, Partner at OMA
While residential towers are typically closed off from the life of the city around them, The Avery opens the site to the public by introducing a new lane connecting Folsom Street―the neighborhood’s main boulevard—with Clementina―an intimate pedestrian corridor. Splitting the podium in two, the lane activates the building’s base with an urban living room lined with retail amenities, lush green walls, and landscaping to provide a respite for the neighborhood.

Courtesy of Fougeron Architecture. Image © Jason ORear

At the west side of the site, a 56-story residential tower combines condominiums, market-rate apartments and affordable housing with various shared amenity spaces. The same urban gesture that creates the lane translates vertically up the lower half of the tower. At the 33rd Floor, above the datum established by adjacent buildings, the south face of the building is sculpted to mirror the sloping façade on the north below. As on the north face, the tapering façade on the north is expressed as a series of stepped projections or crenellations.

Courtesy of Fougeron Architecture. Image © Jason ORear

The tower interiors were designed by Clodagh Design, who was inspired by the Bay Area’s connection to nature and wellness. Informed by the architecture as well, the design establishes warmth and intimacy within the building. “The Avery design experience has been both deep joy and an honor for me and for the entire team at Clodagh Design, from start to finish,” said Irish-born, New York City-based Clodagh. Related Companies understands and encourages Clodagh Design’s wellness tenets of biophilia, Feng Shui, biogeometry and chakra healing that create total harmony and wellbeing for all of The Avery’s residents and the staff alike.

Courtesy of Fougeron Architecture. Image © Jason ORear

Project Info:
Architects: OMA
Location: 488 Folsom St, San Francisco, CA 94105, United States
Lead/Tower Architect: OMA Podium
Building Architect: Fougeron Architecture
Area: 906470.0 ft2
Photographs: Bruce Damonte
Project Name: The Avery Mixed Use Building