The 110-year-old Verde Building in North Beach has burned twice and sat empty for over a decade. A plan to build 23 apartments with a rooftop restaurant fell through due to costs. Now a taller hotel-apartment hybrid is proposed, but it would shadow Washington Square Park and lose the historic façade.
The eyesore of North Beach that was ravaged by fires in 2013 and 2018 might finally be getting its long overdue makeover. The owner of the 110-year-old Verde Building initially had plans to build a 5-story, 23-unit apartment complex with a rooftop restaurant that preserved the historical facade of the building, but high construction costs proved those plans unworkable, and the fire-damaged relic has remained vacant since 2018. Now a new project is being pushed forward through planning for a taller building that would feature a hotel as well as apartments, and the owner's moving these plans forward quickly because there's concern about an impending decision to designate North Beach as an historic place on the National Register of Historic Places, a designation which would make it nearly impossible to continue further development in the area for historic buildings. Opponents of a taller development are concerned about the shadow it would cast on the next door Washington Square Park, as well as the fact that the proposed building doesn't preserve the historic facade. Supporters of the building just want anything built. Something is better than nothing, and it's been nothing for several years. I hope plans move forward. I used to live 2 blocks from here, and I remember when the fire happened. Definitely need something new in that area. Let me know what you think in the comments and follow me for more Bay Area real estate.
