Rene Cazenave Apartments

Rene Cazenave Apartments at Transbay Block 11A was the first block to be completed in the Transbay Streetscape and Open Space Concept Plan area, at Folsom and Essex Streets on the edge of the Rincon Hill Area Plan.

The 9 story building holds housing for the formerly homeless, with a one-story section of offices topped by a green roof.  The project’s ground floor retail and community spaces connect to a ground floor courtyard that helps reintegrate tenants through social interaction.  The courtyard is intensively designed to provide greenery, seating, and flexible outdoor space for events. Massive structures for stormwater detention are concealed under wood decks.  The roof has just 12” of soil, and has been planted with succulents varying in color and texture. The plantings occur in geometric patterns that draw from the patterns of windows and materials on the building elevation.