Austin KlarVanguard Properties · Lawyer Turned Real Estate Agent

Is This the Future of San Francisco’s Skyline?

Name: Is This the Future of San Francisco’s Skyline?
Uploaded: 2025-08-21T00:00:28+00:00
Duration: 1 min 8 s
Channel: Austin Klar
Description: In this video, Austin Klar discusses Hines’ recent application to replace the old PG&E headquarters on Beale Street with a 1,225‑foot…

21 Aug 2025 · 1 min

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1:08

In this video, Austin Klar discusses Hines’ recent application to replace the old PG&E headquarters on Beale Street with a 1,225‑foot, 1.6‑million‑square‑foot mixed‑use tower that would become the tallest building on the West Coast. The project includes office space, new retail and restaurants, a public garden, restoration of two historic Market Street buildings, and conversion of a small office into 120 housing units. Klar addresses the apparent paradox of building new office space amid a citywide vacancy rate of about 35%, explaining that newer “trophy” buildings enjoy significantly lower vacancy and command higher rents. He cites similar strategies by developers such as Transamerica, Related, and Strata, noting that these projects will take years to navigate planning and construction. Klar invites viewer feedback and encourages following his channel for more Bay Area real‑estate insights.

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San Francisco skyline might be changing forever. Hines, who is one of the developers behind the current largest building in San Francisco, Salesforce Tower, just submitted an application to replace the old PG&E headquarters on Beale Street with a 1,225-foot-tall building that would become not just the tallest building in San Francisco, but on the entire West Coast. The project is massive, 1.6 million square feet of office space, new retail, new restaurants, a public garden, restoration of two historic buildings along Market Street, and conversion of a small office building into 120 housing units. You might be wondering why it makes sense to build new offices when the current office vacancy rate in San Francisco is about 35%, but it actually makes sense when you consider that the vacancy rate for newer trophy buildings with big views and great amenities is actually substantially lower than city average and command rents way higher than city average. Just look what's happening at Transamerica, and there are a ton of other big developers like Related and Strata that are pursuing similar paths with other buildings in the city. This will take years to get through planning and construction, so no firm timeline yet, but it's great to see another a big developer make such a big bet on the city? Let me know what you think in the comments and follow me for more Bay Area real estate.