Salesforce Tower tops out

Next time you spot Salesforce Tower—an easy feat, given the variety of places in the city from which the 1.4 million-square-foot, 61-story, tower is visible—take a good, long look at it. From now on that profile is going to be a permanent part of San Francisco’s horizons.

Developer Boston Properties announced that, almost precisely four years and two weeks after the project broke ground, the soon-to-be-tallest building in San Francisco will reach its full height and top off.

The obelisk-shaped landmark isn’t quite done yet, however.

According to the San Francisco Chronicle the final beam won’t go up until Friday, April 6. A congratulatory ceremony with Mayor Ed Lee is set for the day before.

The $1 billion-plus spire won’t be properly finished until next year, at which point it will be the 12th tallest building in the United States and the 62nd tallest building in the world, tying with the Index building in Dubai according to the Council On Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat rankings (which don’t yet include uncompleted projects).

Unfortunately, LA’s Wilshire Grand Center topped off at 1,100 feet last year, beating our tower by over six months despite starting sooner and having a little further to go.

Construction Cam

A press release on the Registry still deems Salesforce the “second-tallest west of Chicago,” as some people contend that since not all of the Wilshire Grand’s height is actually usable space it shouldn’t count. But for the most part the consensus is that we’re coming in second here.

Still, Boston Properties, Salesforce, and architect Cesar Pelli broke the longstanding 853-foot height ceiling set by the Transamerica Pyramid in 1972, a feat in itself given the city’s longstanding suspicion toward the ramifications of a rising skyline.

• How Salesforce Tower Looks From Everywhere [Curbed SF]
• Almost Time For Salesforce Tower [Chronicle]
• Tallest Buildings In US [USA Today]
• Tallest Buildings Worldwide [CTBUH]
• Tower Tops Off, Tallest West of Chicago [Registry]
• City Gives Wilshire Grand Tax Breaks [Curbed LA]