Plans for the new Mission Bay campus housing project received positive reviews from the nearly 150 people who recently viewed architectural designs and samples of building materials at the Millberry Union Conference Center. Representatives from UCSF and the architectural firm of Skidmore Owings & Merrill, LLP, which is working with Fisher-Friedman & Associates on the project, were available to answer questions during the Feb. 28 Mission Bay housing preview.

"The main question has been when it will be completed," said Decker Flynn, architectural designer for Skidmore Owings & Merrill, LLP.

Construction of the Mission Bay housing project — to feature public and private landscaped yards — is slated to begin in May 2003 and completed by June 2005. About 753 students and postdoctoral scholars, both singles and families, are expected to begin moving into the 431 apartments in summer 2005. Applications for the apartments may be available by late fall 2004, according to Jim Jacobs, associate director of campus housing. Questions about the project may be directed to Jacobs by email at jjacobs@casmail.ucsf.edu or by calling 476-0311.

The complex, to border the campus plaza and Third Street, includes four distinct buildings, each with its own carpeted lobby and an assortment of studios and one-, two-, three- and four-bedroom apartments. A project summary chart shows the number of units, apartment size and proposed monthly rents. The $112.8 million project will be financed with loans and donations.

Security precautions include security cameras and panic alarms throughout the complex. Tenants will have to carry proximity cards to gain entry to all exterior entrances and access cards or keys to enter apartments and bedrooms. Amenities in the contemporary apartments include:

Granite kitchen countertops and bathroom vanity tops.
Dishwashers and garbage disposals in all kitchens
Quality maple kitchen cabinetry
Carpeted living rooms and bedrooms
Multiple phone lines in all apartments
Ethernet computer ports connected to the campus computer system
Wiring for cable or satellite TV
Window coverings and energy-efficient windows
Storage lockers
Locked bicycle storage
Loading dock for tenant move-ins and retail deliveries
Trash and recycling chutes on each floor
Smaller recycling containers throughout the complex
An on-site building manager

Common space

The housing complex features a ground floor 1,000-square-foot community room, which can seat about 150 people and will be available to tenants for social events, meetings and as a study space. The area has a full-service kitchen, public restrooms, computer ports and leads out to an outside patio area.

Tenants also will be able to enjoy more than 42,000 square feet of landscaped courtyard space — both open to the public and private space. The public courtyard will feature permanent art work. The private courtyard — reserved for tenants only — will feature Redwood trees, shrubbery, lawns and stone sitting walls and will be an area for relaxation, gatherings, activities and study.

Each building will have ground-floor laundry rooms that provide access to the private courtyard. Laundry rooms, which comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act, will be equipped with washers, dryers, folding tables, wash sinks, vending machines and change machines.

The entire Mission Bay campus community will likely benefit from the more than 10,000 square feet of retail space to be located in both the south building facing the campus plaza and in the east building on Third Street. Possible vendors include a convenience store, pub, café, coffee shop, copy/postal center, video rental, flower shop and dry cleaner. ATM machines will be located off the plaza in the east building.

The Campus Housing office will be located in a full-service administrative office off the public courtyard in the east building.

Transportation and Parking

Parking for cars and motorcycles will be available for tenants in the new parking structure located just across the campus plaza at Block 23B. This parking structure will be completed just prior to the opening of the housing complex. Tenants will pay a monthly parking fee; rates have not yet been determined.

Weekday campus shuttle service to the housing complex will be provided every 20 to 30 minutes, from 7 a.m. to 9:30 p.m., from the Parnassus campus. Weekend service is also anticipated to be provided from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Additional shuttle service schedules and logistics are currently being determined.

San Francisco MUNI plans to provide service to the Mission Bay campus upon completion of the Third Street Light Rail in 2005. A MUNI stop is planned for the main plaza entrance on Third Street adjacent to the housing project.

Source: Lisa Cisneros

Last updated January 28, 2005

Mission Bay housing

Decker Flynn, architectural designer for Skidmore Owings & Merrill, LLP, explains the plans for the Mission Bay housing structure during a model and materials review session on the Parnassus Heights campus. Photo by Majed.

Mission Bay housing

UCSF students and staff review plans and building materials for the Mission Bay housing project being designed by Skidmore Owings & Merrill, LLP, in association with Fisher-Friedman & Associates. The housing project is scheduled for completion in June 2005. Photo by Majed.