Tag: Historic Restoration
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South Hall
South Hall University of California, Berkeley South Hall is the oldest extant building on the University of California campus. The entryway, originally in wood, was completely restored in GFRC (Glass Fiber Reinforced Concrete) in 1996. The architect on the project was Irving Gonzales and the General Contractor was BBI. Michael H. Casey Designs was hired to completely…
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1940 Packard Building Comes Back to Life
865 The Alameda San Jose, California This photo shows the Packard Buidling in 1940. Notice the wonderful sculptural detailing over the windows and the doors. As often happened during the 1960’s and 1970’s many buildings were stripped of their ornamentation to reflect the modernism trend that was sweeping the country. In 2009 the engineering firm…
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EL Granada Apartment Building Goes Back to Its Roots
EL Granada At Sather Gate 2510 Bancroft Berkeley, California The Granada was built by Patrick O’Brien in 1904, and had been passed down in the family ever since. He built it so that everybody in the family would always have a roof over their heads, and so the building would always support the family. Like so…
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The Home Telephone Building
333 Grant Avenue Chinatown Union Square Ernest Albert Coxhead of Coxhead and Coxhead has given the city of San Francisco many of its finest buildings — one sits at 333 Grant Avenue, San Francisco landmark #141. The Home Telephone Company was San Francisco’s first telephone exchange site. The building, built in 1908 in the Mannerist…
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The Adam Grant Building
114 Sansome Street Financial District The garland façade, as well as the coffered entryway, were removed in the 1960s. Over the course of its 145-year history, the Adam Grant Building at 114 Sansome Street has gone through several iterations. Constructed in 1867, the first building housed the dry goods business of Daniel Murphy and Adam…
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San Francisco Conservatory of Flowers
100 JFK Boulevard Golden Gate Park The oldest extant structure in Golden Gate Park is also its most beloved: the Conservatory of Flowers. This beautiful, white-washed structure is the oldest wood-and-glass conservatory in America. It is believed that James Lick, a prominent and wealthy San Franciscan, purchased the conservatory as a kit from Ireland for $2050…