Transamerica Pyramid Center in San Francisco celebrates grand reopening after $1 billion renovation

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) — Renovated and re-imagined.

A celebration was underway for the completion of the massive re-vamping project at San Francisco’s Transamerica Pyramid on Thursday.

Mayor London Breed and former Mayor Willie Brown were among those attending the celebration for the re-opening of Transamerica Pyramid Center in San Francisco Thursday morning.

This is after a $1 billion investment by luxury real estate development firm SHVO, which includes the purchase price and renovation. The rework encompasses an entire city block in the city’s Financial District.

Transamerica Pyramid and two adjacent buildings on Sansome Street were reimagined. Transamerica Redwood Park was also expanded.

Architecture firm Foster + Partners worked on the design. Senior Partner Ben Dobbin told ABC7 about some of the new features of the center, which include the pyramid and the redwood park.

“The major move was really bringing life to the ground floor of this entire city block, from Sansome to Montgomery and Clay to Washington,” Dobbin said. “We’ve added 10,000 square feet of new retail space around the base of all the different corners. We’ve got a new kiosk and seating area accessible in this newly enlarged redwood park, and then there’s also accessible seating all the way around the plaza.”

The Transamerica Pyramid, an 853-foot skyscraper, was completed in 1972 and has a very distinct shape.

The building has been an icon for the city for more than 50 years.

There is a planned private EDM concert Thursday evening and public light show at 8:30 p.m. to show off the pyramid’s new multi-colored LED lights.

The center will be open to the public starting Sunday from dawn to dusk. The public can visit the park or lobby.

John Krizek can’t believe the transformation. He says the Transamerica Pyramid is even better than before.

“This is a totally mind-blowing experience. It’s so awesomely wonderful,” Krizek said.

Krizek was the PR manager for the iconic building from 1968 to 1977.

“This is a very special place. The history of this site is so special to the city, to the west. We just had to honor that history,” Krizek said.

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“Back in the late 60s, early 70s it was really was a center point of protest in the city,” said former Mayor Willie Brown. “Such a radical design–a really radical design. But the people doing it, Transamerica World, they really wanted to distinguish themselves from everything and everybody. And of course, the building thought it was the queen of San Francisco.”

The newly renovated Transamerica Pyramid features a new sky lounge on the 27th floor.

“The vibe, the new modern vibe bringing to this historic building. Just look at how beautiful everything is, every detail was thought out for this space,” said Russel Eisenman.

Michael Shvo is the co-owner of the Transamerica Pyramid.

“We bought the building just before COVID,” Shvo said. “We actually ended up closing on the building in 2020 for $650 million dollars. We invested another $350 million dollars in remastering this building. As I always said, $650 million for this building was a bargain.”

Shvo wants the public to enjoy the modern vibe but also continue to celebrate the history.

“We managed to remaster the building while restoring and respecting the past,” Shvo said.

Shvo also said the newly renovated Transamerica Pyramid is an opportunity to bring the community together.

“Today is the day we open this building for the people to come to enjoy the art shows, the restaurants, the activities or just come and have lunch at the Redwood Park,” Shvo said.

He went on to say, “People will see that the downtown today is not just about work. It’s about work, it’s about play, and coming and relaxing and enjoying. We want people to come here. This is the heart of Downtown San Francisco.”