Groundworks Office’s challenge was to reimagine a technology campus situated along San Francisco’s historic Embarcadero. The existing campus was outdated and reminiscent of days when water was plentiful and Kentucky Bluegrass was en vogue. Our approach was two-fold — make spaces for people and deepen the site’s potential ecology. For Phase 1 of the project we introduced an entirely new planting palette to the campus. By using drought tolerant and native plantings, we reduced water consumption and maintenance cost dramatically. In Phase 2 of the project we set about designing two peacemaking nodes for the campus. Each node received a custom designed bench, constructed of western red cedar and Cor-Ten Steel. The bench references the neighborhood’s historic past and the working waterfront of the Embarcadero, rough, bulky but beautiful in its pragmatism and straightforwardness.
