San Francisco Armory

Last updated
San Francisco Armory
1800 Mission Street, San Francisco, CA 94103
National Guard Armory & Arsenal (San Francisco).jpg
The San Francisco Armory at the corner of Mission and 14th Streets
Location map San Francisco County.png
Red pog.svg
San Francisco Armory
USA California location map.svg
Red pog.svg
San Francisco Armory
Usa edcp location map.svg
Red pog.svg
San Francisco Armory
Coordinates 37°46′04″N122°25′14″W / 37.7678°N 122.4206°W / 37.7678; -122.4206
Type Armory, Arsenal
Site information
OwnerSF Armory LLC
ConditionRefurbished (2007) [1] [2]
Site history
Built1912–1914
In use1914–1976
Materials Concrete, brick facade
Battles/wars Bloody Thursday
San Francisco Armory
Area2.2 acres (0.89 ha)
Built1913
ArchitectWoollett & Woollett; McLeran & Peterson
Architectural style Moorish Revival
NRHP reference No. 78000758 [3]
SFDL No.108
Significant dates
Added to NRHPNovember 14, 1978
Designated SFDL1980 [4]
Garrison information
Garrison United States National Guard

The San Francisco Armory, also known as the San Francisco National Guard Armory and Arsenal or simply The Armory, is a historic building in the Mission District of San Francisco, California. Since 2018, it has been owned by SF Armory LLC, an affiliate of AJ Capital Partners. [5]

Contents

National Guard Armory

The building was constructed as an armory and arsenal for the United States National Guard in 1912–1914 and designed with a castle-like appearance in a Moorish Revival style. The Armory was built on part of the site of Woodward's Gardens (1866–1891), a zoo, aquarium, art museum, and amusement park which covered two city blocks, bounded by Mission, Valencia, 13th, and 15th Streets. [6] [7] The structure was built as a replacement for the old San Francisco Armory in the Western Addition, which had been destroyed by the 1906 earthquake. [8] In addition to its role as an armory and arsenal, during the 1920s, it served as a venue for sporting events, such as prizefights. [9]

The Armory served as a stronghold and rallying point for the National Guard in their suppression of the 1934 San Francisco General Strike (an event known as "Bloody Thursday"). [10] [11] The building closed as an armory in 1976, when the National Guard moved its facilities to Fort Funston. [8]

Sports venue

Interior of the Drill Court showing boxing ring, ca. 1928. SF Armory Boxing Ring.jpg
Interior of the Drill Court showing boxing ring, ca. 1928.

From the 1920s through the 1940s, the Mission Armory served as San Francisco's primary sports venue, eventually earning the nickname "the Madison Square Garden of the West." [12] For almost three decades, at least two prizefights were held in the Drill Court each week.

One very notable fight included a light heavyweight title fight between Young Corbett III and Jackie Fields. Other notable fights that took place in the Armory included matches between Mike Teague and Jack Thompson (both were welterweight champions); and Corbett and Pete Myers in 1929. [13]

1976–2006

After 1976, the building was largely unused for the next 30 years, though in 1978 the building was registered as a Class 2 historical landmark in the National Register of Historic Places. Several spaceship-interior scenes in the Star Wars movie The Empire Strikes Back were filmed there, [14] and the San Francisco Opera used the large inner court of The Armory for set construction and rehearsals until the mid-1990s. [15]

By this time, The Armory was in a heavy state of disrepair. [16] [17] Various uses of the building were proposed from 1996 to 2006, including self storage units, [15] a rehabilitation clinic, a gym with a rock wall, a dot-com office park, [9] a telecommunications switching center, [18] luxury housing, [19] and low-income housing.

Many of these proposals were marked by acrimonious debates between various community interests. Concerns over gentrification, social and environmental impact or the unsuitability of the structure for various uses resulted in none of the various plans for the structure reaching fruition. [11] [18] [19] [20] The building eventually came to be described, variously, as "a herd of white elephants", [16] "cursed", [8] and "not a friendly building". [20] The stairs in the main entrance of the armory also became a well-known skateboarding location referred to as "3-Up 3-Down". [21]

Kink.com (2006–2018)

The leather pride flag waving on the Armory building in 2008. Leather pride flag SF.jpg
The leather pride flag waving on the Armory building in 2008.

In late 2006, The Armory was purchased for $14.5 million by Kink.com, a San Francisco-based internet pornography producer specializing in BDSM pornography. [22] [23] The company used the building as a studio for production of content for their websites, and began filming in 2007. [24] Peter Acworth, the company's owner, stated that the structure suited the needs of the company very well without need for significant structural modifications to the building, and that the company would begin repairs to the decaying structure. [23] It was also announced that Kink.com planned at some point in the future to rent out studio space for film production of all kinds within The Armory. [11] [20] [22] [25]

The sale was not announced until January 2007 as a result of a non-disclosure agreement with the previous owner. [25] The sale drew a mixed response from the San Francisco community. Many people welcomed this use of The Armory as a way of revitalizing the structure and bringing back business to the area without altering the appearance of the historic building, as well as being in keeping with San Francisco's tradition of accommodating sexual minorities. [26] Others were disturbed that a pornography studio would be located in the middle of a residential neighborhood near schools, or were opposed to the abandonment of plans for low-income housing at the site, as well as the lack of community input into this use of The Armory. [26] [27] [28]

A group known as the Mission Armory Community Collective soon formed in opposition to Kink.com's use of The Armory; the group held a public protest in front of The Armory in early February 2007. [23] [24] [28] San Franciscan mayor Gavin Newsom also expressed concern over the Kink.com purchase, and scheduled a special meeting of the San Francisco Planning Commission in March 2007 to review the company's use of the building. [23] This public meeting was well-attended by both supporters and detractors of the Kink.com purchase. The Planning Commission for its part ruled that Kink.com was not in violation of any law or zoning requirement. [25] [27]

Although Kink.com stated that its activities would be invisible to the surrounding neighborhood, La Casa de las Madres, a neighboring women's shelter, announced in late March 2007 that they would be leaving the location. The shelter had planned on moving from that location in 2009 when their lease expired, but stated that they would be leaving the location because of the media scrutiny of Kink.com's presence. [29]

As summarized in retrospect by the San Francisco Chronicle in 2018, after the initial protests "Acworth eventually won praise for the restoration work he did on the brick Moorish castle, which had long been empty". [5]

In late 2007, Acworth approached the San Francisco Planning Commission with the idea of converting part of the Armory space into webcam-lined condominia. However, Acworth also described the plans as "extremely hypothetical" and stated that, "There is no firm plan for using the Armory for anything but a conventional film studio for now." [30] [31]

In May and December, 2008, the San Francisco Armory hosted Mission Bazaar, an all-ages arts fair featuring local artists and craftspeople selling their work, as well as performances. It was the first public event held in the Armory since the 1970s. [32] [33]

Since then, the building has housed public events and sports competitions. [34] It was open for public tours and BDSM-related workshops. [35]

In January 2017, Kink.com announced that it would cease the use of the Armory for film production. [36] In 2018 the building was purchased by a Nashville real estate firm. [37]

Armory Events

In 2011, Armory Events started work on the Drill Court, a multi-purpose event space. The venue is 40,000 square feet with an occupancy of 4,000 people, an 80 feet high dome ceiling, and 33,500 square feet of hardwood maple floating floor.[ citation needed ]

SF Armory LLC (2018–present)

In January 2018, the building was sold for $65 million to SF Armory LLC, an affiliate of the Chicago-based investment company AJ Capital Partners. [5] The new owner stated it was planning to convert the building's top two floors to office space and to lease the rest to manufacturing companies. [5]

As of 2018, through a partnership between owner AJ Capital Partners and Skylight, a placemaking and venue development & management firm, the San Francisco Armory is available as a venue for events on a short to intermediate-term basis. Recent events have included Levi's 501 Experience; [38] Netflix’s Stranger Things: The Experience; [39] and Hermès' San Francisco reopening event [40]

Groundwater controversy

Guides employed by Kink.com frequently repeated the mostly inaccurate but widely held belief [41] that a remnant portion of Mission Creek flows through the building's sub-basement.

The water in the sub-basement is groundwater which would have percolated through the soils into nearby Mission Creek during the time it existed as an open waterway. Any basement or excavation dug just as deep in the neighborhood would fill with water to a typical depth of many feet, the exact depth depending on season and rainfall factors. Pumps constantly running within the building prevent the groundwater from pooling in the sub-basement. According to Kink.com guides, groundwater completely filled the sub-basement at the time their company purchased the building. [42]

See also

Related Research Articles

The Mission District, commonly known as the Mission, is a neighborhood in San Francisco, California. One of the oldest neighborhoods in San Francisco, the Mission District's name is derived from Mission San Francisco de Asís, built in 1776 by the Spanish. The Mission is historically one of the most notable centers of the city's Chicano/Mexican-American community.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leather pride flag</span> Symbol used by leather and fetish subcultures

The leather pride flag is a symbol of leather subculture as well as kink and fetish subcultures more broadly, including BDSM. The flag was designed by Tony DeBlase in 1989.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mission Bay, San Francisco</span> Neighborhood in San Francisco, California, United States

Mission Bay is a 303-acre (123 ha) neighborhood on the east side of San Francisco, California. It is bordered by China Basin to the north, Dogpatch to the south, and San Francisco Bay to the east. Originally an industrial district, it underwent development fueled by the construction of the UCSF Mission Bay campus, and is currently in the final stages of development and construction. It is the site of the Chase Center and Uber's headquarters.

Fucking Machines is a pornographic website founded in 2000 that features video and photographs of women engaged in autoerotic sexual stimulation with penetrative sex-machines and sex toys. Based in San Francisco, California, the site is operated by Kink.com. Web entrepreneur Peter Acworth launched Fucking Machines on September 25, 2000, as his company's second website after Kink.com. Devices shown on the site were created with the intent to bring women authentic orgasms. Performers were instructed to allow themselves to be recorded experiencing pleasure.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Millennium Tower (San Francisco)</span> Tallest residential building in San Francisco

301 Mission Street is a high-rise residential building in the South of Market district of downtown San Francisco. A mixed-use, primarily residential high rise, it is the tallest residential building and the 6th-tallest overall in San Francisco. In May 2016, residents were informed the main tower was both sinking and tilting, resulting in several lawsuits concerning repair costs and whether the existence of the tilt had been withheld from buyers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Minneapolis Armory</span> United States historic place

The Minneapolis Armory is a historic event center and former National Guard armory located in downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States. Built by the Public Works Administration in 1936, the building was occupied by several Army and Naval Militia units of the Minnesota National Guard from its opening until 1985. The building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Peter Thomas Acworth is a British web entrepreneur based in San Francisco. He founded Kink.com, an internet pornography producer that focuses on BDSM and fetish themes. According to the San Francisco Bay Guardian, Acworth's work has been guided by "Kink's principles of intimate, conversational, playful, and mutually enjoyable interactions", and he has expressed the belief that "a product line should come from an individual's actual fantasies."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kink.com</span> Internet BDSM and fetish pornography company

Kink.com is an independent San Francisco–based bondage internet pornography company that runs a group of websites devoted to BDSM and related fetishes. Kink.com, along with Kink Studios, LLC, Hogtied.com and Behindkink.com are DBAs for Cybernet Entertainment LLC, the parent company that operates the studio.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Madison Young</span> American pornographic actress and director (born 1980)

Madison Young is an American filmmaker, author, performance artist, feminist activist, and former adult film performer and award-winning erotic filmmaker. Young is a prominent figure in the feminist porn movement and is known for their work as a queer and kink-focused educator and an advocate of sex workers' rights.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">535 Mission Street</span> Commercial offices in San Francisco, California

535 Mission Street is an office skyscraper in the South of Market district of San Francisco, California, opened in November 2014, with 27 stories rising 378 ft (115 m) above street level. It is adjacent to the Transbay Transit Center site and located on the same block as 100 First Plaza, 555 Mission Street, and 101 Second Street.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Salesforce Tower</span> Tallest building in San Francisco

Salesforce Tower, formerly known as Transbay Tower, is a 61-story supertall skyscraper at 415 Mission Street, between First and Fremont Street, in the South of Market district of downtown San Francisco. Its main tenant is Salesforce, a cloud-based software company. The building is 1,070 feet (326 m) tall, with a top roof height of 970 feet (296 m). Designed by César Pelli and developed by Hines Interests Limited Partnership and Boston Properties, it was the last building designed by Pelli to be completed in his lifetime. As of 2024, Salesforce Tower is the tallest building in San Francisco and the second-tallest building both in California and west of the Mississippi River after the 1,100-foot (335 m) Wilshire Grand Center in Los Angeles.

Kink is a 2013 American documentary film produced by James Franco about the BDSM website Kink.com. The film was originally released in January 2013 and had a staggered release worldwide in 2013 and 2015.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chase Center</span> Indoor arena in San Francisco, California, U.S.

Chase Center is an indoor arena in the Mission Bay neighborhood of San Francisco, California. It is the home of the Golden State Warriors of the National Basketball Association (NBA), Golden State Valkyries of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA), and occasionally for the University of San Francisco men's and women's basketball teams in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Chase Center opened on September 6, 2019, and seats 18,064 for Warriors games.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Regency Center</span>

The Scottish Rites Bodies Regency Center is a multi-use events venue located in San Francisco. at the intersection of Van Ness Avenue and Sutter Street. It opened in 1909 as a masonic lodge. In later years, it has served as a dance studio and movie theatre.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Four Seasons Private Residences at 706 Mission Street</span> Skyscraper in San Francisco, California, U.S.

Four Seasons Private Residences at 706 Mission Street, San Francisco is a 43-story, 510 ft (160 m) residential skyscraper under construction in the South of Market district of San Francisco, California. Located across the street from Yerba Buena Gardens and Moscone Center, the tower site is bounded by Mission Street on the south and 3rd Street on the east, and will incorporate the historic Aronson Building in its design. The tower will contain up to 190 condominiums on the upper floors and a permanent home for the Mexican Museum on the bottom four floors.

Elizabeth Moran is an American artist. Her work explores unseen and possibly unexplained pasts, as well as photographing what could be considered unphotographable. She has created photo series examining such subject matter as porn film sets depicted without any people present, and the exploration of supernatural activity, particularly around her mother's childhood home. Kink.com founder Peter Acworth, who welcomed Moran into the company's studios in The Armory, spoke positively of Moran's depictions, saying that her approach "shows that behind all the fantasy of the Kink is a world that is, in many ways, very normal." Her work exploring supernatural activity, which includes references to nineteenth-century “spirit photography,” caught the attention of ghost hunters who would consult with her on the possible validity of suspected photographs of ghosts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">MIRA (building)</span> Residential condominiums in San Francisco, California

MIRA is a 39-story, 422-foot (129 m) residential skyscraper at 280 Spear Street in San Francisco, California.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hotel Utah (San Francisco, California)</span> Historic building in San Francisco

The Hotel Utah is a historic mixed-use building known as a saloon bar, live music venue, and residential hotel, built in 1908 and located in the South of Market neighborhood of San Francisco, California. It is known for its diverse open mic nights, which have historically attracted some people who have later become famous. It is also known as The Utah Inn, The Hotel Utah Saloon, and simply The Utah.

References

  1. ↑ "SF Armory Window Restoration Project In Full Swing", BehindKink (website), November 16, 2007. Archived May 5, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  2. ↑ "As of Monday, Kink Can Officially Call its Castle 'Home'", BehindKink (website), December 18, 2007. Archived April 18, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  3. ↑ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  4. ↑ "San Francisco Preservation Bulletin No. 9: San Francisco Landmarks" (PDF). City of San Francisco. April–June 2014. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2020-09-22. Retrieved 2012-10-21.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Dineen, J.K. (2017-02-07). "SF Armory sells for $65 million — to be used for manufacturing and offices". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2018-02-09.
  6. ↑ "Kink.com buys SF Armory", Bay City News, January 9, 2007. Archived January 27, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  7. ↑ "Then: Old Armory; Now: Porn Studio by Jonathan Farrell, Mission Dispatch, February 15, 2007. Archived July 5, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  8. 1 2 3 Carol Lloyd (October 3, 2000), "Cursed Armory Has Hexed Developers for Over Twenty Years", SFGate.
  9. 1 2 Emily Gurnon (February 24, 2000), "S.F. Armory to be reborn as high-tech office space", San Francisco Examiner.
  10. ↑ "3 Killed, 31 Shot in Widespread Rioting", San Francisco Daily News, July 5, 1934. (Archived at the Virtual Museum of San Francisco)
  11. 1 2 3 "SFArmory.com - Welcome to S.F. Armory.com". 2007-06-13. Archived from the original on 2007-06-13. Retrieved 2018-08-07.
  12. ↑ "SF Armory – History" Archived 2018-03-31 at the Wayback Machine , San Francisco Armory
  13. ↑ Fresno Boxer too Much for Potrero Pete", and "Corbett Battles Myers at Armory", San Francisco Chronicle (April 29, 1929)
  14. ↑ "History". Armory Studios. Archived from the original on 2018-03-31. Retrieved 2018-03-30.
  15. 1 2 Gerald D. Adams (July 24, 1996), http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/e/a/1996/07/24/NEWS5223.dtl "Armory sold for $1.25 million", San Francisco Examiner .
  16. 1 2 Gerald D. Adams (September 13, 1995), "Redevelopment ponders fate of historic armory", San Francisco Examiner.
  17. ↑ Maitland Zane (January 28, 1996), "Waiting for a Miracle in the Mission", San Francisco Chronicle .
  18. 1 2 Dan Levy (September 15, 2000), "Switch in Proposal For S.F. Armory", San Francisco Chronicle.
  19. 1 2 Dan Levy (April 10, 2004) "Mission Armory plan sees condo complex" San Francisco Chronicle.
  20. 1 2 3 Jesse Mckinley (February 12, 2007), "A Neighbor Moves in With Ropes and Shackles, and Some Are Not So Pleased" The New York Times , p. A14.
  21. ↑ "Armory". Skatespotter. 2014. Archived from the original on 2011-01-24.
  22. 1 2 Steve Rubenstein (January 13, 2007), "Ex-armory turns into porn site" San Francisco Chronicle
  23. 1 2 3 4 Jon Mooallem (April 29, 2007), "A Disciplined Business", The New York Times.
  24. 1 2 Steve Rubenstein (February 9, 2007), "Porn studio says armory filming has begun", San Francisco Chronicle.
  25. 1 2 3 Liz Highleyman (March 15, 2007), "Planning Commission hears Kink.com case" Bay Area Reporter .
  26. 1 2 "San Francisco Planning Commission - Special Public Hearing", SFGovTV, March 8, 2007. (link to streaming Windows Media Video and downloadable MP3 audio)
  27. 1 2 Marisa Lagos (January 26, 2007), No welcome mat for adult film studio" San Francisco Chronicle.
  28. 1 2 "Kink hearing: The pornographer's purchase of the Armory faces more roadblocks"by Deborah Giattina, San Francisco Bay Guardian , March 7, 2007. Archived September 30, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  29. ↑ "Service organization flees from kinky Mission neighbor" [ permanent dead link ] by Sarah Duxbury, San Francisco Business Times, March 23, 2007.[ dead link ]
  30. ↑ Phillip Matier and Andrew Ross (December 16, 2007) "Porn prince wants to build kinky condos in Armory" San Francisco Chronicle.
  31. ↑ "SF Armory Could Become 'Kinky Condos'", KNTV, December 17, 2007. Archived June 27, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  32. ↑ Scott Beale (May 16, 2008), "Mission Bazaar, a Unique Craft & Performance Expo at The Armory" Laughing Squid.
  33. ↑ Aaron Muszalski (December 1, 2008), "Mission Bazaar Returns To San Francisco's Historic Armory" Laughing Squid.
  34. ↑ "Events". Armory Studios. Archived from the original on 2016-03-21.
  35. ↑ Levin, Sam (January 25, 2017). "'End of an era': porn actors lament the loss of legendary San Francisco Armory". The Guardian .
  36. ↑ "Kink.com To Stop Filming In Its Controversial Porn Dungeon". Vocativ. 2017-01-17. Archived from the original on 2017-01-20. Retrieved 2017-01-21.
  37. ↑ Bote, Joshua (2021-06-01). "The San Francisco Armory's kinky legacy lives on". SFGATE. Retrieved 2021-08-20.
  38. ↑ "Levi's is Creating a 501 Experience in San Francisco". 18 May 2023.
  39. ↑ "Review: 'Stranger Things: The Experience' at S.F. Armory suggests Netflix should stick to TV".
  40. ↑ "Hermès Just Unveiled Its San Francisco Boutique with a Lavish Soiree for 500". 18 November 2019.
  41. ↑ Lydia Chávez (February 16, 2011) "Mission Creek Runs Through the Armory, Now Kink.com", Mission Local.
  42. ↑ Joel Pomerantz (January 29, 2013), "The SF Armory's (Kink.com's) 'Mission Creek' Claim", Thinkwalks.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.