SAN FRANCISCO, CA - Recognized for delivering three high-design, sustainable apartment communities in the Design District, Equity Residential just signed four new retail leases at the properties, bringing the total leased or opened to 10 within the last 10 months, totaling 20,855 square feet, announced Drew Sullins, Vice President of Development, Equity Residential.
The new leases at 855 Brannan include an artisanal taco bar, El Pipila, which will feature Guanajuato regional Mexican cuisine and is the latest entrepreneurial restaurant to come from the Mission’s La Cocina food incubator. A second highly-anticipated new food purveyor is Christina Siu’s lease to introduce SOMA Slice, a modern, wood-fired artisanal pizza outlet. Christina is the owner of the already popular Taqueria Dos Amigos and is the sister of Maxine Siu, the owner of Potrero’s famed restaurant, Plow. Rounding out the deals is Berkeley-based Peet’s Coffee & Tea, a Bay Area institution that is scheduled to open in Q2 2018 at the corner of 8th & Brannan.
The fourth transaction, at Potrero 1010, was a lease with Truly Mediterranean, home to the Mission’s favorite falafel and shawarma. Their new larger space at Potrero 1010 allows for diners to relax and enjoy the award-winning middle eastern cuisine when it opens in Q1 2018. Truly Mediterranean will be joining local favorite Boba Guys, who introduced their ‘Next Level Quality’ milk teas to the community earlier this year. Potrero 1010 also welcomed California College of the Art’s new flex space for gallery exhibitions, screenings and events.
One Henry Adams’ retail space is completely leased with four concepts that were announced or opened earlier this year. The Grove, who has cafés in Pacific Heights, Hayes Valley, and SOMA, opened its latest with indoor and outdoor dining with a fireplace with seating for 100, private event space, and the first Grove-To-Go takeout window. Local restaurateur, Kash Feng, is opening three concepts at One Henry Adams that are slated to open in 2018: A fast casual, fresh-made Udon restaurant; a Yakiniku steakhouse and whiskey bar; and a Japanese butcher shop and home of Tokyo’s first certified Wagyu sandwich in the U.S.
According to retail specialist Mike Semmelmeyer of Main Street Property Services, “Equity Residential has truly done a spectacular job curating and bringing City favorites and new local concepts to the Design District. It’s exciting to see the neighborhood emerging into a community where people now live and enjoy their daily lives – and by all accounts, many work locally too. Equity Residential really worked hard to curate acclaimed local retailers and restaurateurs in this neighborhood, which is harder to accomplish from a broker perspective. Signing a lot of chain retailers would have been easier, but that’s not the neighborhood vibe that Equity Residential has been thoughtfully cultivating. It’s locals for locals. And visitors of course!”
Sullins concluded, “While we always strive to create apartment communities that are complementary to the distinct sensibilities of each neighborhood, having three properties in the Design District provided a rare opportunity to do so much more. We wanted to ensure that the area would become one of those up and coming neighborhoods where we all would love to live.”
With a majority of the new retailers scheduled for a 2018 opening, timing appears to be optimal for the new employees of Dropbox and Airbnb, both of which signed two of the largest office lease deals in 2017. Thousands of workers will be moving into the neighborhood beginning in early 2018. The future of leasing for the last remaining parcels at 855 Brannan and Potrero 1010 look very bright indeed.