San Francisco Design Center's Historic Preservation on Pause

San Francisco Design Center

About a month ago I had discovered that the San Francisco Design Center was in a land development pickle. Now I am pleased to see that district supervisor Malia Cohen has stood her ground! 

She also agrees that the design district buildings deserve landmark designation but not at the cost of its current tenants. 

While I love Pintrest, this issue has nothing to do with them except that they were the big name tech company in the running for this space. These couple of blocks of street was named after Henry Adams for a reason, and that history for the design center is key for all in the remodeling industry and homeowners too. 

This follow-up story by SF Gate is clearly stating everything. Check it out. Oh and if you are in her voting district, I hear she is up for re-election, please consider supporting her in the polls for doing there right thing for her community and yours!

San Francisco Design Center's and Historic Preservation

I have only recently become aware of the San Francisco Design Center being considered for historic preservation. My first thought? Excellent! These buildings need to be preserved, lets not lose them! But upon being more informed I am deeply saddened at the loop-holes that will tear apart this great institution. This article by the San Francisco Chronicle gives a balanced report, but ultimately it does mean the demise of something only large cities provide.

San Francisco Design Center

I'm not the most political person, I agree with the historic preservation of these buildings on Henry Adam's at the Division Circle and I love Pintrest. I don't agree with misuse of the historic preservation trailing policies that are allowing the building owners to force the San Francisco Design District into chaos. There needs to be balance. While I value Pintrest as a tool for homeowners and designers a like, to displace those who are in the building industry will only make things more difficult for homeowners in the along-run. The beauty of having a design district is to simplify and reduce the time it takes to visit showrooms, thus increasing the likelihood of higher costs to homeowners. Digital images are not something to be trusted when making the ultimate purchase for your kitchen or bathroom projects. You need to see, feel and operate if possible the items that you will be investing in and installing into your home.

What we need is to incorporate the building industries' technology partners and mesh showrooms and offices together, not push out. We need showrooms and office spaces integrated so that designers, architects and contractors as well as technology tenants can cohabitate and collaborate to being the best built homes to the public. 

We are San Francisco, would the New York Design district put up with this? Neither should we.