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Building History

Los Angeles-based architect Charles F. Whittlesey obtained a great deal of work in San Francisco following the Earthquake and Fire of 04/18/1906. Whittlesey had become an authority on the use of reinforced concrete construction, a structural method capable of resisting strong seismic jolts. At about the same time as he was designing this flatiron-shaped building at the corner of Market and Ellis Streets, he also was at work on 801 Market Street, the Pacific Building across the street.

The California Savings Bank sold the 8-story property to 800 Market Associates LLC, a subsidiary of Los Angeles-based retail property developer, Blatteis and Schnur, on 09/01/2006. On 06/27/2007, 800 Market Associates LLC sold the property to DB 800 Market LLC, one partner of which was the New York-based Fortress Investment Group. DB 800 Market LLC sold the tower to Invesco Advisers, Incorporated, (its holding company was known as "800 Market Street LLC") on 08/26/2011.

Building Notes

In 2016, the building occupied a 5,937-square-foot lot, the land and improvement having a taxable value of $51 million; its land was worth $38,197,465. The building had 82 rooms and 14 bathrooms.

The West Bank Building was part of the Kearny-Market-Mason-Sutter Conservation District, a California Register Historic District.

The Foundation For San Francisco Architectural Heritage rated the building on 01/01/1978 to have "Major Importance."

Alteration

By the late 1970s, while it served the California Savings Bank, the first floor facade facing Market Street had been altered on the exterior to include New Formalist projecting arched shelters.

Between 1985 and 2007, about $558,300 was spent on building maintenance and repair, as per city/county permit records. A $70,000 evaporative cooler was installed in 1985. Fire sprinklers were added in the basement in 1988. During the 1990s, the City/County of San Francisco granted 8 building permits to cover generally small maintenance expenditures at 800 Market. The largest was on 12/31/1999, when a permit for a new wheelchair-accessible front entrance was issued, a project costing $150,000. In order to be in compliance with city fire ordinances, building owners paid for the installation of a new fire pump and riser in 2003. (A subsequent owner paid for a full replacement of the fire system in 2008 at a cost of $310,000.)

Between 2007 and 2015, new owners paid approximately $17,033,388 on repairs to 800 Market, according to city/county building permit records. Some of the higher priced items included: on the 101st anniversary of the 04/18/1906 earthquake, new owners Blatteis and Schnur spent $9,726,614 on extensive repairs to the core and shell on all 8 floors and the installation of new elevators, elevator lobbies and wheel-chair accessible restrooms. In 05/2010, subsurface utilities had to be relocated for $650,000 due to BART subway construction on Market Street. At about the same time, the third. fourth and fifth floors underwent replacement of HVAC, electrical, plumbing and life safety systems for $890,000. Two months later, in 07/2010, $637,600 was spent to redo the sixth and seventh floor's HVAC, plumbing and sprinkler systems, and $8,400 to change the sprinklers on floors 3-5. On 10/05/2011, a permit was granted to cover $830,000 worth of work to the eighth floor's electrical, plumbing, lighting and mechanical systems. Another $225,000 was spent in 2012 to do remodeling, electrical and plumbing repairs. ADA related barrier removal in 2012 cost an additional $293,000.