NNN Brokers USA – San Francisco Commercial Real Estate Brokers: "The Scoop"

[via FoundSF]

The Wall Street Journal today reports that in the Bay Area, sales of homes priced over $2,000,000 were up 20% in 2010 over 2009. In fact, they mention that sales might be even higher because some high priced home are sold in private sales, where the data does not become publicly available for much longer.
One such house is 2600 Pacific, shown in the video from WSJ, designed by William Wurster and built in 1936 for Mortimer Fleishhacker Jr. Our pal Mort was a timberman who’s a past President of the San Francisco Planning Commission, so you can blame him both for creating massive house envy and many, many planning commission blog posts.

2600 Pacific sold for a whopping $15,500,000 last month, for a mind-boggling $2,096 per square foot, almost double the neighborhood average. And this is Pac Heights we’re talking about. Sheesh.
As far as big spenders come in the present day, the WSJ goes on to say that, “The strength of high-end Bay Area home sales last year underlines the region’s recovery …, many technology companies have come roaring back, start-ups have started popping up all over Silicon Valley and San Francisco, and hiring wars have broken out.” If you’re in the middle of a hiring war, kudos to you, and let us know where to meet you for champagne wishes and caviar dreams. We can sure think of a few fancy addresses for you to blow your first paycheck on.
· Big Spenders Buoy Housing [WSJ]
· Mortimer Fleishhacker Jr. Lived Here [FoundSF]
· 2600 Pacific Ave [Redfin]

Lyon-Martin Health Services clinic, the 30-year old clinic that’s served thousands of homeless, queer and underprivileged patients has announced that because of financial problems, it will close. The clinic will close its doors today and try to raise $250,000 within the next month. That’ll at least keep it open. “Unfortunately, the cuts were not enough to reduce the clinic’s sizable financial difficulties and we simply cannot afford to keep the clinic open. We are devastated to make this decision,” said Peter Balon, the clinic’s board treasurer. [SF Gate]

Click the image above to view the full photogallery.

It’s really too bad that this condo on Gardenside Drive doesn’t have an actual garden. But we guess the current owner makes up for the lack of greenery with their colorful modular storage wall unit that’s around the flatscreen. One would assume that the furnishings and decor aren’t included in the sale, so we sincerely hope wherever the seller goes, there’s a place for it. Otherwise, this 1-bed, 1-bath, 971 square foot condo in Twin Peaks is pretty standard. You walk into the main living area, which is comprised of the open kitchen, dining and living rooms. Highlights include panoramic views and the ability to say you paid under $500,000 for a decent piece of property in San Francisco. Lowlights include a windowless bathroom and monthly HOA dues of $425.43. Asking price? $489,000.

· 145 Gardenside #14 [Redfin]

Yesterday, the Budget & Finance committee approved Ortega Family Enterprises’ bid to to take over operations and perform repairs at the Stow Lake Boathouse. The deal means $160,000 annually in rent for the city and at least $233,000 in improvements for the property including fresh boats, fresh food and free Wi-Fi. The rent is lower than some numbers Mr. Ortega threw out a few months ago, which some folks aren’t happy about – including supervisor Ross Mirkarimi who was the sole “nay” vote on the issue. [SFGate]

Photo Credit: Sail World

Coffee-break reading: from SF Appeal we have a look at the revised term sheet for the America’s Cup agreement. Hammered out between the Mayor’s office and Team Ellison during the Christmas holiday, up to now details have been vague. Turns out there are no details- the agreement was said to be within the parameters of the agreement put out last fall but the result reads more like an agenda of items that remain to be negotiated. And in a very short time, folks, because this race is like tomorrow in yacht-years. Supervisor Mirkarimi- a friend of the race, not a foe- has called for hearings into what it all means. Stay tuned. Looks like we have many months of land use (pier use?) follies ahead.
· Revised Term Sheet [.pdf via SF Appeal]
· Before the Sailing, the Questioning [SF Appeal]
· America’s Cup Race Coverage [Curbed SF Archives]

[start a fire via Curbed Flickr Pool/Bhautik Joshi]

· Mayor Lee, others meet with Gov Brown to fight For redevelopment [SF Appeal]
· Bicycle thief or bicycle enthusiast? [Mission Mission]
· Don’t sweat the dry spell [SF Gate]
· Muni employees can stay employed despite accidents [SF Examiner]
· Potrero Hill Rec Center to renovate field [SF Examiner]

In 1910 Cleveland Elementary School was built and as part of the celebration, a time capsule was buried at the building’s cornerstone. On Wednesday it was opened to reveal a letter, official city and trade union documents and pictures, offering a peek into the past. The letter, written by members of the Excelsior Homestead Progressive Association, which was an “improvement club,” had lines like “the city of San Francisco has just about recovered from the effects of the great earthquake and fire of 1906 and is now on a fair way to greater prosperity than ever.” [SF Gate]

[Untitled via Curbed Flickr Pool/everydaydude]

· Tenant Troubles: adding a roommate, losing a garage [SF Appeal]
· Fundraiser for Lyon-Martin Health Services, Sunday, Jan. 30 [SFist]
· SF art thief (who used his scores to decorate his room) gets probation [SF Appeal]
· On the table: the future of West Berkeley [Berkeleyside]
· Mayor Ed Lee drives a 2010 Ford Fusion hybrid [SF Gate]

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This morning word hit the Mission that Gus Murad, owner of the love-it-or-hate-it Medjool (you know, with the problematic rooftop bar) was packing up and leaving the neighborhood by selling off his three very high-profile properties on Mission Street: Medjool, the New Mission Theater and the Value Giant Value. Quoting comments from local broker Colleen Meharry, neighborhood blog Mission Local implied Murad was fed up with the city stunting development and was wiping his hands of the business entirely in order to spend time with his family.

The problem is, that story is only partially true.

Murad has, in fact, put Medjool and the attached Elements Hostel on the Market, but by all accounts he remains fully committed to the restoration project of the New Mission Theater as well as the Giant Value. (More on that in a second.)

In speaking with Meharry, we learned that neither she, nor her current company Urban Group Real Estate, are responsible for the Medjool’s listing at 2522 Mission Street. (That’d be these guys at Vanguard Properties.)

Meharry did mention her group has a listing directly next door to Medjool, and that she received a call from a potential buyer “last week or early this week” asking about the pricetag on the nightclub. She told the buyer she estimated the listing would be around $7.1 million (the price quoted on MissionLocal) before pointing them to Vanguard properties. Vanguard currently has the property listed at $7.25 million – admittedly, not a huge difference, but enough to point out the [ahem] buyer wasn’t serious enough to follow through.

That leaves the issue of the New Mission Theater and the Giant Value next door. In speaking with Murad’s PR guy, PJ Johnston, we learned that neither are actually up for sale. And we’re inclined to believe him, because as far as we can tell there are no listings for either property. As Johnston mentioned on the phone, after spending hundreds of thousands of his own cash to keep the project afloat, Murad is working to enlist other financial investors to join in the restoration efforts at the Theater. Any development projects at the Giant Value are intended to help finance the restoration of the New Mission.

Oh and the bowling alley? As far as anybody can tell, Brooklyn Bowl hasn’t been looking in the Bay Area for a couple months at least, but it wouldn’t have gone in to the New Mission Theater anyway. As a historic site, it could only get the restoration treatment, not a renovation.
Update: It looks like things have changed a day later. This morning P.J. Johnston, a spokesman for Gus Murad, told the Chronicle that Murad has put the building’s up for sale, but only to “test the market.” We’ll report any further developments.
· Medjool Roof-Douches Are Plotting a Return [Curbed SF]
· Owner of Medjool and Roof Top Bar Puts Mission Real Estate Up for Sale [Mission Local]
· 2522 Mission [Vanguard]
· Bowled Over [Curbed SF]