The neighborhood has avoided a plague of vacancies, but stability brings its own threats

By Shwanika Narayan and Roland Li | Sept. 27, 2019

On most days, West Portal Avenue teems with shoppers. Parents with little children scuttle from Ambassador Toys to the public library. When thousands of daily commuters exit the century-old Muni station, they’re steps away from bars and restaurants — some of which have been there for decades, like the Philosopher’s Club.

The stores here, and their owners, are resilient. Papenhausen Hardware survived a fire, filled a temporary space, and returned this month to its renovated, restored original space. Though the CinéArts at the Empire had to split its one screen into three, it’s the rare neighborhood cinema that still thrives in San Francisco.

For West Portal resident Tara Hardesty, who brought her kids to meet Clifford the Big Red Dog at a September book festival, the consistent roster of events foster a strong sense of community. It’s one of the reasons she purchased a home there.

“West Portal has always been a place for families,” she said, as her kids played lawn games and filled up coloring books. “There’s a real sense of community here and you still get the perks of the city while being in a quieter environment.”

West Portal merchants try to encourage neighborhood residents and visitors to patronize independent retailers. | Jessica Christian / The Chronicle

Stories like Hardesty’s tell you some, but not all, of the reasons West Portal seems largely immune to the plague of empty storefronts proliferating in many San Francisco neighborhoods. It doesn’t have the cachet of Union Square or the tourist magnetism of North Beach and Chinatown, but West Portal’s compact four-block size boosts foot traffic, merchants say. West Portal has the lowest retail vacancy rate among the city’s neighborhood shopping districts, suggesting it has weathered the tsunami of e-commerce better than other places.

Chronicle investigation in North Beach, the hardest-hit neighborhood in recent years, uncovered many reasons that stores fail and landlords struggle to find businesses to replace them. Understanding a success story like West Portal is harder — as is seeing the challenges that may lurk beneath a veneer of prosperity.

One factor that is hard to reproduce is wealth: According to 2010 census data, West Portal’s 8,052 residents have a median household income of $140,737, compared with the city median of about $96,000.

But how they spend that wealth has shifted dramatically. West Portal’s sales tax revenue — a measure of retail performance — rose steadily for years until it dipped 2% from 2017 to 2018, according to city data. That masks big shifts in the tax base: Tax collections from restaurants grew almost 50% from 2013 to 2018, matching a nationwide trend of increased spending on food away from home, while retail declined by 16% over the five-year period.

Business advocates say that while West Portal has historical economic advantages, it can’t be complacent. Small businesses grapple with all the challenges of retail, including the rising cost of business operations, the shift to online shopping, and changing consumer tastes.

Those challenges make events and other promotions crucial. “Foot traffic is down all across the city,” said Vas Kiniris, executive administrator of the San Francisco Council of District Merchants Associations. “People really do not need to get out of their homes to buy a product or to even get food. So we need to create these experiences for people to come to these corridors.” Kiniris said the rise in restaurant sales tax revenue reflects a preference for experiences, rather than material goods.

Merchants are doing what they can to provide those experiences, organizing street fairs, parades and guest talks. The nearby Stern Grove Festival draws 100,000 music fans during the summer. In some neighborhoods, Airbnb has a bad reputation for driving up rents or bringing noisy tourists to quiet residential streets, but here, business owners credit hosts for sending out-of-town customers their way. But events are costly, too, with street permits, bus rerouting fees and security costs to be paid, Kiniris said.

In West Portal, there are not only stores, but also services like dentists, doctors, real estate brokers and financial planners, making it a self-sustaining business area, he said.

“People are very loyal to this community. They grow up here, they raise their families, then the children come back,” he said.

The owner of Ambassador Toys says many shoppers come to the store, take pictures and then search for the items online. | Jessica Christian / The Chronicle

But do they open up their wallets? For Linda Kapnick of Ambassador Toys, that’s the challenge.

“We have a very nice following in the neighborhood, but I don’t see growth,” said, Kapnick, president of the 22-year-old store. “We’re seeing our sales drop.”

Customers come in with kids, pick out toys and then buy them for less from Amazon, she said. It’s impossible to compete on price with the e-commerce giant, she said.

“They literally take pictures and then say, ‘Oh, well, I can find it cheaper on Amazon.’” she said.

Maryo Mogannan, vice president of the West Portal Merchants Association, sees another negative effect from Amazon. He owns the Postal Chase, a shipping store, and says younger customers will walk in and be shocked that it costs money to mail things.

“These under-30s go, ‘What do you mean I have to pay $10 to mail this? Amazon gets me this two days for free,’” he said. He sees a broader problem with online convenience. Young customers expect everything to be brought to them. And that hurts local retailers, he said.

And while the neighborhood has abundant transit, parking is limited. Many shoppers want to drive to the street and park, particularly if they have kids in tow, said Kapnick.

Perpetual construction on the century-old West Portal Muni Metro Station has led to rerouted traffic and street closures.

Parking tickets cost $90 or more, which can also turn off shoppers from returning.

“At some point, you just lose interest in going to an area,” said Papenhausen Hardware co-owner Karl Aguilar.

Some West Portal businesses have ended long runs. In August, 82-year-old Portals Tavern closed because its new landlord didn’t extend the bar’s lease. Others like Manor Coffee Shop, a diner that opened in 1967, was shuttered in 2016 when the owners retired.

Papenhausen Hardware, which has been open in West Portal for more than 80 years, survived a 2018 fire, thanks to a generous insurance policy that covered workers’ salaries and to $7,500 in aid from the city. After a year, it relocated to a temporary space. This month, Papenhausen returned to its building, which has a gleaming new interior.

Beyond selling hammers and doorknobs and locks, the nine-person business offers expertise that’s hard to reproduce online. Employees are able to answer specific questions like how to hang a flat-screen television on old lath and plaster walls, or repair sinking steps.

“So as long as those problems exist … we’re going to be fine,” said Matt Rogers, the longtime co-owner of the store.

Events are another draw that e-commerce lacks. One of the businesses filling up the neighborhood calendar is Bookshop West Portal, which opened in 2006, a time when big chains were going out of business because of Amazon. (A Waldenbooks in the neighborhood closed the same year Bookshop opened.)

Bookshop averages six events a month, said co-owner Anna Bullard. In early September, the inaugural West Portal Book Festival drew hundreds. The week included author talks, a neighborhood book swap, and a day for children. The bookstore teamed with the local movie theater and Rain Tree Cafe for some events.

Clifford the Big Red Dog greets kids attending the West Portal Book Festival. Events are crucial for drawing foot traffic, merchants say. | Jessica Christian / The Chronicle

“We’ve been competing with Amazon for a really long time,” Bullard said. “I think local governments need to be more aware of all the tax breaks they give to these big businesses.”

Some tech companies are trying to pitch themselves as helpful to local stores. Airbnb, as part of an effort to build bridges with neighborhoods where its hosts rent out beds, held its first merchant walk in West Portal in June 2016.

“We’ve heard that the walks are helpful in driving daytime foot traffic,” said Adam Thongsavat, deputy director for public policy at Airbnb. “That’s what really helps commercial corridors thrive.”

Phil Li, an Airbnb host who works from home for a Seattle tech company, said guests invariably ask for recommendations when they stay at his place.

Getting customers in the door is one thing. Keeping the doors open is another, as rising rents throughout the city pose a challenge.

“All neighborhoods want more retail, and retail is going through a sea change — even reasonable rents are really high,” said Deidre Von Rock, former president of the West Portal Merchant Association.

She said a number of reasons were behind the handful of vacancies in West Portal, including landlords who don’t need to rent or are picky about tenants.

The vacant spaces in the neighborhood tend to be larger, commanding higher rents than a local, independent business might want to pay. RadioShack vacated 123 West Portal in 2014 after almost 50 years. Verizon was negotiating a lease in 2017 and went as far as submitting paperwork to the city, but pulled out at the last minute, said Ken Brownell of real estate firm TRI Commercial, who represents the space.

The owner of 123 West Portal, Rodney Malouf, 82, said he wants a business in the site that’s “immune from the internet.” Malouf, who inherited the property from his mother in the late 1960s, said he doesn’t want to sign up businesses that are “trendy right now, but may not exist in the future.” In an ideal world, he said, RadioShack — which went bankrupt twice in the past four years, a case study in failing to adapt to the times — would still be a tenant.

Brownell said there’s interest in the location from workout studios, which Malouf is averse to, he said, and restaurants, which would require conditional use permits, a lengthy and costly process.

The city has placed restrictions on the property’s use, he said, “and the owner has added more restrictions.” Rent for the location is $8,000 a month, $500 less than what RadioShack used to pay, Brownell said.

Malouf’s property is still the exception. Most of West Portal’s shops are filled, but that stability comes with risks.

A man checks the progress of Papenhausen Hardware’s preparations as it returns to its original location after a fire had forced it to relocate temporarily. | Jessica Christian / The Chronicle

“If you have a lot of businesses that have been around forever and haven’t adapted or changed, then the street’s going to slowly die,” said Aguilar, the Papenhausen co-owner. “The market changes. People change.”

View the original article on San Francisco Chronicle here.

Over 100 agents, property managers, and admin personnel turned out last week for our companywide meeting at the Falls Event Center in Roseville.

Exciting developments were highlighted during President Thomas Martindale’s opening remarks, including the addition of the new East Bay Regional Team, headed by Edward Del Beccaro, and the introduction of new Brand Standards for use going forward.  Mr. Martindale also applauded managerial recruitment efforts as headcounts are up 20% from last year.  Samples of our spiffy marketing pieces were displayed for all to admire and Dina Gouveia gave an impressive presentation on TRI’s recently-acquired data-analytic capabilities, which will significantly enhance agents’ ability to attract and retain business relationships.

Additionally, keynote speaker Jeremiah Miller shared a touching, motivational story about the importance of reaching out to “allies” who can help achieve seemingly insurmountable goals in life – as opposed to the much-hyped “lone wolf” mentality that runs rampant in our individualistic, ambitious society. 

Finally, brokerage specialty workshops were held to foster better collaboration and relationship building across TRI’s three regions in a concentrated effort to identify in-house cross-referral opportunities.

We have received tremendous feedback thus far on hosting a fun, collaborative TRI.be event, and here’s to hoping our companywide meeting served to foster not only additional revenue but lasting relationships as well.

Click here to download the full report.

By Meghan Hall , The Registry

March 12, 2019

As a whole, the Bay Area has strong office leasing fundamentals, powered by years of consecutive job growth and high, consistent levels of institutional investment. However, the cream of the crop when it comes to office space is San Francisco; its reputation as a world-class city and major financial and tech hub continues to spur competition among office tenants. With only seven square miles to spare — an even smaller portion of which is dedicated to commercial and office uses — real estate comes at a premium, and lease rates are high. A number of comparison reports compiled by brokerage firms active in the region shows the levels of leasing across a broad spectrum of office spaces. The comparisons were compiled by CBRE, Newmark Knight Frank, Cushman & Wakefield, Avison Young, and TRI Commercial, and they provide the companies’ best estimates into the leasing activity within the City. Dated from between November 2018 to February 2019, the reporting details what many of San Francisco’s companies are paying for space throughout the city.

The reports cover leases ranging from just a few thousand square feet to more than 100,000 square feet. Many of the leases were concentrated in San Francisco’s most popular neighborhoods. Tenants’ leases are for a variety of Class A, B and C office spaces; however, the reports indicate that location was more of a determining factor in rental rates than quality of space.

5,000 Square Foot to 15,000 Square Foot Leases

Twitter, which has considerable space along Market Street in San Francisco, inked one of the smallest leases reported, renewing its lease for 4,646 square feet of Class A space at 1390 Market St. in San Francisco’s Mid-Market neighborhood; the renewed lease will begin in November 2019 and will last 60 months, expiring in October 2024. Twitter is paying $60.24 per square foot to San Francisco-based Swift Real Estate Partners. The renewal occurred alongside its decision to keep its space on three of the five floors at 1355 Market St. According to sources who track leasing activity in San Francisco, Twitter has renewed its lease on floors seven, eight and nine in Market Square, totaling around 215,000 square feet.

Getaround, a social car-sharing company, will lease 8,000 square feet of Class B office space from Brick & Timber Collective at 55 Green St. beginning in April 2019. San Francisco-based Getaround has secured the new lease for $43 per square foot, along with three months of free rent. The 123-month term is set to expire in June 2029. Brick & Timber acquired the building for $29 million, or just under $533 per square foot in April of 2018.

Knotel, a flexible workspace provider, took up two smaller office spaces in the city as part of its widespread growth around the greater Bay Area; the first and the smaller of the two is 6,258 square feet of space at 126-128 Post St. Knotel is renting the Class C space for $72 per square foot. The new lease commenced in March 2019 and will expire after 86 months in April 2026. The lessor of the property is Victor Wu. The second lease was signed for 9,586 square feet of Class B office space from PGIM Real Estate at 150 Post St. Knotel began occupying the space in January 2019, and the lease expires in January 2026. Knotel is leasing the space for $66.48 per square foot, full service growth. In addition to these two leases, Knotel announced its plans to take up 62,979 square feet of space at 625 Second St. — owned by Hudson Pacific Properties — bringing the company’s footprint in the city to more than 260,000 square feet.

SS&C Technology, an investment management software and services company based in Windsor, Conn., took up 11,472 square feet of space on the second floor of 580 California St., leasing the Class A space for $73 per square foot from landlord J.P. Morgan Asset Management. SS&C has been granted $10 per square foot in TI allowances, and the lease, which began in February 2019, is slated to last seven years, until March 2026. SS&C also received a healthy four months of free rent at the start of their term.

The Athletic Media Company will sublease Cloudera’s space at 525 Market St. in the heart of downtown San Francisco from Knickerbocker Properties, Inc. According to the comps, the firm moved into its 11,724 square foot space in December 2018, although the lease was formally signed January 1, 2019. The Athletic Media Company is paying $85 per square foot for its Class A space, one of the most expensive of the leases reported. The lease is expected to last 31 months and end in June of 2021.

15,000 Square Foot to 50,000 Square Foot Leases

Limebike, the popular on-demand scooter and bicycle company which has taken cities by storm, is subleasing its space at 1 Sansome St., from shopping platform Wish. Limebike took 17,459 square feet of space at the property beginning in August of 2018 and is paying $77 per square foot for the Class A space. Its lease term is shorter than most of the years, at just two years, and its expiration date is July 2020. No free rent is included with the lease agreement, and Limebike’s rent will increase by three percent annually.

Juul Labs, a vaping company, is paying $69 per square foot for its Class B office space at 99 Rhode Island St. It began renting the 20,000 square foot space in December of 2018 from Jawbone and, according to the comps, will lease the space until November of 2021. While it is headquartered in San Francisco, the company has also leased around 30,000 square feet of space in Mountain View Research Park; the leases come at a time when its headquarters, located at Pier 70, have come under scrutiny by local residents and San Francisco City Officials.

NASDAQ is subleasing 20,392 square feet on the fourth floor of 505 Howard St. and moved into the space in January 2019. Its lease agreement with American Realty Advisors, the property owner, will last five years, expiring in March 2024. NASDAQ is paying $84.50 per square foot for the Class A space, the comps show.

Omniscience Corporation is also leasing a healthy amount of space downtown; the Palo Alto, Calif.-based capital management company secured its 20,432 square feet at 100 Montgomery St. in the North Financial District in January of 2019, although the lease is not slated to begin until May 2019. Omniscience Corporation will pay $80 per square foot for its Class A space, on par with many other companies moving into offices around San Francisco’s CBD, and the lease is expected to last 86 months, ending in June 2026.

Samsara Networks has leased 23,288 square feet of space at 251 Rhode Island from Giurlani Trust. Samsara is paying $69 per square foot for its Class B office space just south of San Francisco’s Mid-Market neighborhood, which it moved into in January 2019. The lease is one of the longest reported at 90 months and will expire in July 2026.

Tibco Software renewed its lease for 24,128 square feet of space at 575 Market in February 2019. It secured the 14th and 15th floors of the building for a starting rent of $74 per square foot; $20 per square foot of TI is also included in the terms of the lease, which is set to expire in April of 2024. 575 Market, known more commonly as The Skyscraper Center, is currently owned by Boston, Mass.-based Manulife Real Estate Company.

Swiss multinational investment bank and financial services firm UBS renewed its 24,952 square foot lease at 555 California St. in October 2018. UBS has rented the entire 46th floor of the building for $105 per square foot — one of the most expensive rates reported — with a three percent annual increase and two months of free rent. $70 per square foot of TI work is included in the 120 month-long lease, which will expire in October 2029.

Zenefits’ 28,286 square foot lease at the Bechtel Building — located at 50 Beale St. — began back in October 2018, according to the comps. Zenefits is leasing the Class A space from Paramount Group, Inc., for a starting rental rate of $79 per square foot. While no free rent is included, $85 per square foot of tenant improvements was a part of the agreement. The lease term is 84 months and will expire in November 2025.

Iterable, a growth marketing platform, also signed a new lease for Class A space at 71 Stevenson St. Its second-floor office, totaling 35,162 square feet is slated to be Iterable’s home and headquarters until May 2022. Iterable is leasing the space from Los Angeles-based FIT Investment Corporation for $64 per square foot, far lower than many of the other companies leasing Class A space in San Francisco’s Financial District. Iterable has received two months of free rent, and its rent will increase by 3 percent annually.

Greeting card company Minted secured one of the more sizeable leases listed in in the reports, leasing 38,000 square feet from Turkey-based Polidev Investments, Inc. Minted is set to move into the space, located at 747 Front St., on May 1st, and the lease is expected to last 84 months. Minted will receive two months of free rent before it begins paying a base rate of $77 per square foot. It will occupy roughly half of the 86,171 square foot building, which was originally built in 1909. Polidev had placed the 85,423 square foot, Class A creative office building located in the San Francisco Jackson Square neighborhood on the market for sale earlier this year. The planned sales price is projected to be at least $75 million, or roughly $877 per square foot if it reaches that pricing, as stated by sources familiar with the sale of the property.

Redfin, the popular real estate listings site headquartered in Seattle, moved into its 48,841 square foot office at 333 Bush St. in January 2019 after signing its lease with Tishman Speyer in November of last year. The real estate firm is leasing the 22nd floor for $79 per square foot; $100 per square foot of TI work is included in the agreement, one of the highest amounts allotted for tenant improvement reported. Redfin’s rent will increase by three percent annually, and the lease is set to expire in June 2030.

100,000 Square Foot-Plus Leases

WeWork continued securing space in the city, taking 102,000 square feet spread across 8 floors at 1 Post St. in the North Financial District. WeWork has secured four months of free rent with a base rate of $80 per square foot. The effective, full service rent for the space is $99.08 per square foot. $120 per square foot of TI work is also included in the lease, which was executed on December 1, 2018. WeWork, however, is moving into the space in phases, moving into floors one, two and three of the building in January of 2019 and floors four and five April of 2020. The lease will expire in November 2034.

Cooley, a major Bay Area law firm, has also secured Class A office space in the City’s North Financial District. The law firm signed a new, 127,672 square foot lease at Three Embarcadero Center that will commence in January of 2020 and last until December 2029. Cooley has also secured a $100 per square foot in tenant improvement costs from owner Boston Properties. Cooley will be paying $85 per square foot, full service gross for its space with three percent increases over its 10 year term, the documents state.

View original article here.

Shwanika Narayan – Jan. 23, 2019

Exactly a year after Papenhausen went up in flames, the longtime San Francisco hardware store is back in business in a pop-up location a few doors from its original West Portal location.

The temporary space on 2 West Portal Ave., which used to house the Peek-a-boo Factory children’s play space and before that a Walgreens, is open for customers to shop. But a big reason why the makeshift store exists is to retain Papenhausen’s loyal staff, whose paychecks to date have been funded by a generous insurance policy.

“The pop-up is really to keep our staff,” said Karl Aguilar, the store manager. “Our insurance covered our equipment and products, employee wages, continuing expenses, and loss of business, but parts of that coverage had timelines.” The wage coverage lasted a year to the day after the fire.

The Jan. 23, 2018, blaze burned out three businesses: Papenhausen, the West Portal Daily newsstand and Sloane Square Beauty, a salon. The newsstand is back in business but the salon won’t reopen. Papenhausen is expected to move into its former location by May or June. The Fire Department did not provide an update on the status of the investigation.

For Papenhausen, a retail staple in the West Portal neighborhood since 1936, relief also came in the form of a $7,500 grant awarded by the Office of Economic and Workforce Development. The business used the funds for “various expenses associated with reestablishing the store,” Aguilar said.


Paperhausen manager Karl Aguilar (left) and owner Matt Rogers view the progress of reconstruction after the fire inside the original hardware store.
Photos by Paul Chinn / The Chronicle

Matt Rogers, the owner, credits community support plus the right type of business insurance coverage for the company’s reopening.

“If we had the basic coverage of 60 days business interruption offered by most companies, we would not be reopening. It is that simple,” Rogers said.

But “insurance bureaucracy,” as Rogers put it, meant it has taken the business, which also dealt with a fire in 1998, much longer than expected to reopen.

“I thought this time around we’d be back up and running in six months, but a year later, here we are,” Rogers said. He said there were no delays from his insurer but working with different parties including contractors, insurance adjusters and lawyers added months to the reconstruction process.

Aguilar and Rogers realized in October that the hardware store wouldn’t reopen by January. They started to shop for retail spaces but low vacancy in the area, where they wanted to remain, made it tough.


The original location is being rebuilt after a fire gutted the store one year ago.
Photo: Paul Chinn / The Chronicle

This led Rogers to post about his troubles on Facebook. Tara Hardesty, a West Portal resident and frequent customer of Papenhausen, saw his plea. She connected Rogers to a friend and colleague, Ross Portugeis, the leasing agent of the current pop-up location.

“As native San Franciscans, we want the city to help maintain its character,” said Portugeis, a senior vice president at TRI Commercial, a real estate brokerage. “A city’s character is expressed no more clearly than the presence of its local merchants.”

Papenhausen signed a five-month lease on Dec. 1 and moved into the new location which officially opens Wednesday. It’s renting 3,000 square feet.

Michaela Byrne, a part-time employee, said she’s excited to be working again at Papenhausen. She was paid a full year’s worth of work at $16.50 an hour, she said. This allowed the 26-year-old to pursue an existing sideline working as a stage manager in the theater world, she said.

Keeping familiar faces at the counter may help more than Papenhausen.

Anchor businesses like a hardware store add to the liveliness of a neighborhood, said Vas Kiniris, executive director of the West Portal Merchants Association.

“When the fire happened and Papenhausen left the commercial corridor, it was like the place had lost a limb,” he said. “We’re glad that a legacy business like the local hardware store is back.”

Editor’s note: An earlier version of this article mischaracterized the distance from the store’s original location at 32 West Portal Ave. to its temporary home at 2 West Portal Ave. It is a few doors away.

Shwanika Narayan is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: shwanika.narayan@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @shwanika
View original article here.


2018 Q3 TRENDS – San Francisco – Office

2018 Q3 TRENDS – Sacramento – Office

2018 Q3 TRENDS – Sacramento – Retail

2018 Q3 TRENDS – Sacramento – Industrial

As we mentioned in our previous post, SFMade is a great local organization, dedicated to rebuilding the Bay Area’s vibrant manufacturing sector. One of the big success stories of SFMade is Seven Stills, a thriving Bayview craft brewery and distillery, where talented brew masters explore the nearly miraculous transformation of beer into whiskey.  Due in large part to their extremely cool product concept, TRI retail advisor Ross Portugeis recently negotiated deals for Seven Stills at 100 Hooper and 150 Hooper, where they will soon open a production/manufacturing facility and restaurant.

The SFMade Spotlight on Seven Stills can be read here!
To book a tour or an event with Seven Stills click here!
Become a part of the Seven Stills Founders Club here!


Photo: 100 Hooper – Plans for the new site for Seven Stills production/manufacturing facility and restaurant.

HoonDog’s Legend Lives! June 1 marked the 50th anniversary celebration of the hit movie Bullitt, as well as the 11th annual Friends of Steve McQueen Car Show in Los Angeles, so a group of 27 hardcore Bullittheads from around the country (some who’d driven as much as 3,000 miles just to get to the event) tacked a 400-mile side trip onto their once-in-a-lifetime journey, cruising from L.A. to San Francisco together to relive a few of the movie’s epic chase scenes.

TRI President, Tom Martindale, was included in that Bullitt-bunch of 27.  What’s better–with his extensive knowledge of San Francisco’s streets (due to 30 years of service in #SF #CRE) he was asked to be one of two drivers to lead the caravan roaring down 101, weaving through Lombard Street, and wrapping up beneath San Francisco’s iconic Golden Gates.

Sounds like fun, doesn’t it?  Watch the video below to be taken along the journey…

Be a #CRE Advocate, Not Just an Agent

For TRI retail advisor Ross Portugeis, commercial real estate is about more than brick-and-mortar transactions. Ross is a passionate advocate for local entrepreneurs, and for sustainable growth of small business throughout the community. But these are challenging times in San Francisco’s overheated #CRE market and it takes more than one person chipping away at the problem to make a difference. Enter SFMade, a dynamic local nonprofit dedicated to reviving and expanding manufacturing in San Francisco. Ross is a staunch supporter of their work and now sits on the board of their subsidiary, 150 Hooper Inc.

 The 150 Hooper project is a joint venture with Kilroy Real Estate, creating a dedicated hub for manufacturing businesses. Through the agreement, SFMade, through their subsidiary Placemade, will take ownership of a brand new 50,000-sf production, distribution, and manufacturing facility. Lease income will support the work of SFMade and help the organization expand, while local manufacturing businesses will have the perfect space to put down roots and grow.

 In a city where big business has a clear and nearly unchallenged advantage in commercial real estate, 

SFMade and Ross Portugeis are helping to deliver a satisfying win.

*Photographs taken at The Bay Area Urban Manufacturing Summit in November, 2017