San Francisco Ferry Building

Architecture
Written By Whitney Imura

Project

Originally opened in 1898, the San Francisco Ferry Building with its arched arcades survived both the 1906 and the 1989 earthquakes with little damage. The Ferry Building served the bay area as the primary transportation hub up until the 1950s, when bridges and automobiles replaced most of the ferry industry. A major renovation beginning in 2002 revealed that 11 of the 44 brick and terracotta arches, hidden by a variety of additions over the years, had been destroyed. After exhaustive efforts to find a suitable replica material, the architects and general contractor turned to Kreysler & Associates for a solution. FRP samples of the original were submitted and approved by the State Historic Preservation Office as well as the design and ownership teams. Not only did the faux-finished FRP arches come closer to matching than any alternative considered, but they also did so in a way that reduced weight and simplified installation. Today, 20 years later, the arches remain indistinguishable from their adjacent originals.

Details

  • Location: San Francisco, California

  • Client Name: Port of San Francisco

  • Expertise: Design fabrication method, engineer, and manufacture second-story interior historic brick arches to match remaining original arches, clearstory window frames, lower watercourse at second-floor level; do the same for exterior window surrounds on North wing of West elevation to match South wing window surrounds. Faux finish matches existing brick.

  • Partners: 

Awards

Whitney Imura
Previous

Balzac Petanque
Next

Minority Report