This project revitalizes one of San Francisco’s historic 1920s garages, reimagining it as a modern mixed-use development that seamlessly combines heritage preservation, artisan industry, and much-needed housing. While the elegant, ornamented façade of the existing building is carefully preserved as a cultural marker of the city’s past, the interior is transformed into a light-filled and contemporary chocolate factory for a small artisan chocolatier. More than a production space, the factory is conceived as an experiential destination, offering chocolate-making courses, guided factory tours, and a curated retail experience. Supporting functions include an espresso bar, café, and chocolate salon, alongside production, office, and storage spaces that demand large, open spans for flexibility and efficiency.

To address San Francisco’s acute housing shortage, the design also introduces several additional residential floors above the historic base. These upper levels are constructed with prefabricated, standardized timber modules, making the project both sustainable and adaptable. The use of lightweight mass timber construction allows for innovative, barrier-free floor plans that can evolve to meet the changing needs of residents. Interiors are designed to maximize daylight, spatial efficiency, and accessibility, fostering inclusive and comfortable living environments.

By layering preservation with new construction, the project bridges past and future: retaining the historic character of the garage while embedding new forms of urban life and production. The adaptive reuse strategy not only safeguards the architectural identity of the original structure but also demonstrates how sustainable materials and contemporary design approaches can generate social, cultural, and economic value. Ultimately, the project positions itself as both a neighborhood anchor and a model for how cities can repurpose aging infrastructure to address 21st-century challenges.