These architects envision new life for S.F.’s dead downtown mall. Here’s what they’d like to see
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Architect Owen Kennerly, principal of Kennerly Architecture, says the fact that the school district owns the land could create an opportunity for the site to become a new downtown arts campus, which he said is sorely needed with the recent announcement that CCA is closing.
Kennerly envisions a scenario where the Ruth Asawa School of the Arts, known as SOTA, moves to Fifth and Market streets, along with City College of San Francisco’s downtown campus, creating a bustling arts center with theaters, rehearsal rooms, galleries and music venues. SOTA had intended to build a new campus in Civic Center, but that plan stalled because of cost escalation.
The arts campus could be complemented by high-rise housing or biotech or tech research. He imagined a “lightweight steel and glass shed structure, like the Centre Pompidou in Paris, laced with … wood and terra cotta and traditional masonry craft.” “It would be an amazing thing to bring that arts energy back downtown,” he said.
While a new arts center for SOTA and City College would not be a big moneymaker, revenue could be generated by redeveloping SOTA’s 22-acre campus at 555 Portola in Diamond Heights and City College’s downtown property at 88 Fourth St.
The current SOTA site could be developed with 2,000 units, he said. “The SOTA parcel is the size of nine city blocks,” he said. “It’s an incredible site with great views.”
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View the full article: These architects envision new life for S.F.’s dead downtown mall. Here’s what they’d like to see, which appeared in The San Francisco Chronicle on January 26, 2026.
is The San Francisco Chronicle’s staff writer. Email: jdineen@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @SFjkdineen