San Francisco’s Jackson Square area has been operating on a recent Saturday afternoon. The local Latin band plays on stage under a canopy of redwood and string lights. Passersby wander outdoor installations of bronze sculptures. Friends mix together outside the French cafe and wine bar to host the annual kitchenware sidewalk sale.
Towering above everyone is the Transamerica Pyramid, the city’s second most attractive building (after Salesforce Tower, which opened in 2018), and perhaps the most recognizable.
The company with the same name, developer Michael Shvo, purchased the iconic building and surrounding property in 2020 for $650 million.
When Shvo visited San Francisco as a child on a family trip, he was fascinated by it. “I went home and drew a photo of myself next to the pyramid, this bold, futuristic form that completely captivated my imagination,” he recalls.
Decades later, a real-life version of that childhood sketch came to fruition. Shvo’s company completed the first phase of its ambitious renovation project for Transamerica Pyramid in September 2024.
The July visit was the first in downtown San Francisco since the Covid-19 pandemic. Jackson Square atmosphere? It’s lively. Sidewalk? busy. restaurant? full. On this historic three-block stretch and surrounding financial district and Chinatown Street, the story of the so-called loop of fate was not far from reality here.
In fact, real estate prices around Jackson Square are currently 10 years high. This is driven by some notable sales of sales beyond the market. In addition to the pyramid complex, the office and retail building, which cost up to $100 million, was purchased by former Apple executive and iPhone designer Jony Ive.
Luxury brands, including Ralph Lauren and Paul Smith, have unveiled flagship stores on the streets. Nearby, the Museum of Contemporary Art’s San Francisco Institute recently moved from the city’s Dogpatch district to Cube, a new development in the financial district. Even the Ferryville retail complex reported a record-high first quarter earlier this year.
But I’m back to Transamerica.
After purchasing it, SHVO invested an additional $400 million in renovations to the pyramid. It features Redwood Park (dozens of Redwood trees were transplanted from Mount Santa Cruz in 1974 and is now over 100 feet tall) and two adjacent buildings on Sansam Street, 505 and 545.
In total, more than $1 billion has been spent revitalizing the Transamerica Pyramid Center campus. The four-year restoration project debuted in the public last fall, and now the area is cohesive destination. Most of all, many of them are open to the community.
In May, the Pyramid unveiled an impressive first-floor exhibition space. The 14 x 16 inch metal cylinder time capsule, buried exactly 50 years ago, was excavated from under 6 feet of concrete in 2024, and features the contents of the capsule on display. They rarely get a glimpse into San Francisco life during the Bellbottoms and Disco era.
For fans of furniture and interior design, the second exhibition features a rotating collection of original works by Ray and Charles Eames, a collaboration over the last decade.
John Krizek, a spokesman for Transamerica, built in the early 1970s and creator of Time Capsule, says there was initially a significant backlash against the tower’s design. “One of the big concerns when the building was proposed was what it would do for Jackson Square, and whether we’ll ruin the neighborhood.”
In fact, the extraordinary structure forced San Franciscans to protest. Critics denounced the building as “inhuman creations” and “architectural butchers.” There have even been cases filed by nearby residents. All of that lore is part of the building’s permanent display.
Over time, what many viewed as an aesthetic eyelash is now recognized as symbolic. My perception has changed. “I think the community, the neighbors and the businesses have embraced it. So that’s a point of pride for the whole neighborhood,” adds Krizek.
Perhaps the pyramid is a microcosm of San Francisco itself. The Gulf cities are in a constant state of rebranding and reinventing. At the very least, the Grand Project sets a new premise for Downtown. If you build one of the city’s most famous buildings at the street level, the streets around it may also start working again.
“Our vision wasn’t just to modernize office towers. It was to reintroduce the urban centre to the public,” says Shvo. “(It’s) a place where you can experience the calmness of public art, live music, culinary innovation and the redwood gloves.”
Where to eat in Jackson Square?
Lots of new diet and absorption options are emerging in the blocks (or surrounding blocks). The pyramid lobby is filled with chic, low-haired sofas and quartz embedded in a cafe offering local sight-glass coffee. Next door, Cafe Sebastian, an American-style bistro, cooks seasonal dishes and artisan pastries. Opens this fall, the High Lounge is adjacent to Café Sebastian, a Japanese Italian restaurant and bar with a 1970s-style high-fi lounge.
It is not part of the acclaimed French-style wine bar, Transamerica Complex, but reopened on Washington Street in November after a four-year closure. It also features the French bakery and deli, Maison Nico, located on Montgomery Street (arguably the best croissant in the city), which was featured in the area in 2022.
A few blocks on the pine tree are family-run crustaceans. This is a San Francisco facility that has cooked Vietnamese cuisine for over 30 years. We debuted a new location in July. Monique An, the restaurant’s second generation general manager, said, “The city has always served us from the start, and we look forward to being able to help out with the Renaissance.”
Where to stay in Jackson Square?
The Jay Hotel, a luxury 360-key Marriott property located in front of the accommodation, opened in the heart of the neighborhood in late 2023. El Bacadero’s San Francisco Four Seasons, a few blocks away, also made their mid-way debut.
