On the site of a former military base in the Hunters Point neighborhood of San Francisco, a new three-story substation will house critical electrical infrastructure to replace an existing substation across the street. The new substation will improve the reliability and resilience of the electrical grid “and foster a tighter-knit community,” according to a press statement.
But the Hunters Point Substation will do more than meet the utility’s practical needs. Designed by San Francisco’s TEF Design and Mexico City’s Tatiana Bilbao Estudio, the project also will provide public amenities designed through community engagement—part of an urban architecture trend of designing public utility structures with community amenities.
The project is part of a larger development that includes several planned parks and trails. The 30,000-square-foot building is positioned to support efficient utility configuration as well as to create an outdoor plaza that will serve the surrounding neighborhood. The building team used computational fluid dynamics to develop the building’s stacked-bars form, achieving maximum thermal efficiency.
The building’s form is also intended to create a distinctive landmark. Its concrete façade, which will involve a precast concrete process, is meant to suggest rammed earth. A pattern of geometric shapes continues throughout the project, including the plaza pavers and façade perforations.
The Hunters Point Substation aims to be net-zero, achieving Zero Energy Certification by the International Living Future Institute. Its energy strategies include photovoltaics, natural ventilation, and efficient building systems. The project is expected to be completed by fall 2023.
On the Building Team:
Owner: PG&E
Architect of record: TEF Design
Design architect: Tatiana Bilbao Estudio
Landscape: Creo Landscape Architecture
Mechanical/electrical: MHC Engineers, Inc. and ACG Engineer Inc.
Civil engineer: BKF Engineers
Structural engineer: Forell Elsesser Engineers, Inc.
![Hunters Point Substation collage ext 2](/sites/default/files/inline-images/Hunters%20Point%20Substation%20collage%20ext%202.jpg)
![Hunters Point Substation model 1](/sites/default/files/inline-images/Hunters%20Point%20Substation%20model%201.jpg)
![Hunters Point Substation model 2](/sites/default/files/inline-images/Hunters%20Point%20Substation%20model%202.jpg)
![Hunters Point Substation model 3](/sites/default/files/inline-images/Hunters%20Point%20Substation%20model%203.jpg)
Related Stories
Urban Planning | Jan 24, 2018
Vision Zero comes to Austin: An outside perspective
Aside from the roads being wider and the lack of infrastructure for bikes and pedestrians, there seemed to be some deeper unpredictability in the movement of people, vehicles, bikes, and buses.
Urban Planning | Jan 10, 2018
Keys to the city: Urban planning and our climate future
Corporate interests large and small are already focused on what the impact of climate change means to their business.
Urban Planning | Jan 2, 2018
The ethics of urbanization
While we focus on designing organized and supportive architecture, much of urbanization is created through informal settlements.
Urban Planning | Dec 5, 2017
A call for urban intensification
Rather than focus on urban “densification" perhaps we should consider urban “intensification.”
Urban Planning | Dec 4, 2017
Sports ‘districts’ are popping up all over America
In downtown Minneapolis, the city’s decision about where to build the new U.S. Bank Stadium coincided with an adjacent five-block redevelopment project.
Urban Planning | Dec 4, 2017
Can you spark an urban renaissance?
Thoughtful design, architecture, and planning can accelerate and even create an urban renaissance.
Urban Planning | Nov 20, 2017
Creating safer streets: Solutions for high-crash locations
While there has been an emphasis on improving safety along corridors, it is equally important to focus on identifying potential safety issues at intersections.
Urban Planning | Nov 16, 2017
Business groups present a new vision of Downtown Houston as that city’s unavoidable hub
The plan, which took 18 months to complete, emphasizes the centrality of downtown to the metro’s eight counties.
Architects | Oct 30, 2017
City 2050: What will your city look like in 2050?
What do we think the future will look like 30 years or so from now? And what will City: 2050 be like?
Great Solutions | Oct 17, 2017
Loop NYC would reclaim 24 miles of park space from Manhattan’s street grid
A new proposal leverages driverless cars to free up almost all of Manhattan’s Park Avenue and Broadway for pedestrian paths.