Inclusive Capital Partners Office, San Francisco

Inclusive Capital Partners, an environmentally focused investment firm, wished to have an office that reflected their ethos. Located in a historic, former warehouse buildings that was built in 1919 at the North end of the Presidio, the intervention is consciously minimal, amplifying the contrast between the old and the new. The open interiors feature an exposed bow-truss timber structure and columns, eight large skylights, and ample natural light.

Private offices ring the perimeter of the 100-foot-long central spine with floor-to-ceiling glass fronts and wood detailing, carefully sized to express the existing columns of the space. Utilizing these existing tree-like structures and the skylights scattered in the central space, the design creates an open office area that feels like a clearing in a forest. The focal point as you enter is a 15-foot-tall, faceted and weathered steel sculpture, evocative of a split redwood. The sculpture, which reaches up to a skylight, provides visual privacy for the open office beyond while serving as a unifying element of the space and a nod to the company’s identity.

The design celebrates the history of the existing building—structure and finishes were touched as little as possible. No carpeting was used, only a few area rugs top the existing oak floors. Rather than filling the space, new volumes for private offices and conference spaces are held short of the ceiling/roof, having their own self-supported enclosures. Aesthetically, the goal of the design was to compliment the history, but not mimic. As such, there is a clear delineation between the rough existing wood, and the highly tailored new surfaces and interventions. Programmatically, the 12,167-square-foot houses two conference rooms, twelve offices, an open office area with workstations, board room, meditation/wellness room, kitchen/break room, and an office support room.