Stunning Views of SoMa

The South of Market (SoMa) district in San Francisco is a vibrant cultural hub consisting of numerous museums, upscale hotels, restaurants, the Moscone Convention Center, and many major technology companies. Originally an industrial zone of the city, SoMa is now a thriving area for new mixed-use building complexes that strive to offer the optimal balance of modern amenities and outdoor spaces. One new building at 345 4th Street offers over 50,000 square feet of office space, ample outdoor space, and a fantastic rooftop terrace designed to enhance the striking views of the San Francisco skyline.

Stanton Architecture collaborated with JETT Landscape Architecture + Design, who exalted the rooftop design by wrapping the amenity space with custom planters, some stand-alone, some integrated with custom benches and seating, and included a custom fire feature. As part of the design, they wanted to present a dry garden palette of plantings, with some medium-sized specimens needing a deeper soil profile.

JETT specified Tournesol for our product customization, engineering, and production capabilities. Jesse Markman, a Landscape Architect with JETT, worked closely with our Team on shop drawings for Kitsap Modular Metal Planter Walls. Stoer Construction installed our Kitsap planter walls which are comprised of modular steel metal that bolt together, allowing a vast range of planter options to sculpt space. They chose to finish the Kitsap walls in powder-coated steel in one of our popular colors Pitch. Custom benches made of Thermally Modified wood were designed to create ample seating and add functionality to the space.

Due to the construction of the roof and parapet not exactly matching the design plans, some adjustments to the design had to be made, so we worked with JETT on the layout drawings. Jesse stated, “This worked out to be the great solution…critical to it all coming together.” Jesse also shared detailed information about the dry garden plantings, “Specimen Dracaena draco (dragon trees) were sourced from Southern California to complete the dry garden aesthetic. These are famous for the red resin they produce known as Dragon’s Blood, used since ancient times as varnish (Stratovarius Violins), incense, medicine, and dyes.”

Photos by Jupiter Unmanned & JETT Landscape Architecture + Design