12 SAN FrANcIScO BuSiNeSS TiMeS OctOber 3, 2014 13 STRUCTURES STRUCTURES

rESIdENTIal laNdScaPE The sunset-colored sales office is playroom, music practice room, movie about as impressive as the project itself. room and 24-hour business center. A miniature model of Lumina’s two “People aren’t just buying the four Inside Lumina, S.F. hottest condo project towers (42 stories and 37 stories) and walls and an apartment. They’re buying two shorter eight-story “plaza” build- an entire lifestyle. They want the conve- When I drove into San Francisco last things. First, it’s a big piece of down- condos, the city’s elite is lunging at ings sit in the center. If you want to see niences and amenities to go with that,” week to start my move to the Bay Area, town’s vibrant – and taller – future, the four luxury buildings that make up what the view will look like from a cer- Shannon said. the cranes that hung in the skyline made where projects like the Transbay Ter- Lumina like a pack of hungry wolves. tain room, a drone-shot photograph can Shannon pitched the amenities as a a quick impression. Once I spent time minal and the Salesforce Tower will Construction will finish by 2016 but ten- show you whether you’ll get a clear Bay bargain, too. Because of the complex’s walking around South of Market, the eventually pop up. But Lumina is also ants can start moving in next summer. Bridge view. 656 total condos, homeowner’s associ- cranes that stood out most were furi- a magnet for the wealthy residents Potential buyers snapped up the initial There’s also plenty of high-defini- ation dues will cost residents less than ously piling floors on the luxury condo whose appetite for luxury housing has 270 appointments at the sales office in tion renderings of Lumina’s amenities $1,000 a month, he said. Of course, project Lumina – which draws attention sparked a backlash as developers cater less than an hour to check out a model so that you can picture yourself scaling that’s probably the only time the word not only with its size (nearly a full city to the upper end of the market. (Lumina two-bedroom, meet with a sales agent the rock climbing wall and then peeking “bargain” will be used in a story about block) but with its bright netting and developer Tishman Speyer is also build- and even view a simulation of the build- over into the 70-foot lap pool and large Lumina. Tishman Speyer won’t release signage. ing 190 affordable homes in the Mis- ings’ Bay Bridge views, Carl Shannon, fitness center. Don’t forget the 20-per- prices this week, but realtors said that SPeNcer brOWN Depending on which way you lean, sion, I should say.) senior managing director of developer son dining room, spa, rooftop, billiards they’re telling clients to expect to pay SPeNcer brOWN Buyers can start moving in next year. Lumina could symbolize a couple If San Francisco is starved for new Tishman Speyer, told me. room, pet grooming station, children’s $1,700 to $2,300 per square foot. A model in the sales office shows Lumina’s two towers and two plaza buildings.

R by the numbers Special Advertorial R in the works

Project: Mission apartments from Lennar 7.6 million Location: 1515 South Van Ness Ave., San Square feet leased in San Francisco BUILDING YOUR TEAM: Francisco through the third quarter. that’s more than Description: 181,400-square-foot building the 7.4 million rented in all of 1999. that would house ground-floor commercial Using Benefits to Attract and Keep the Best space and 160 apartments. You’ve launched your business, lined up some custom- meaningful to the employee—may be tax deductible and Developer: Lennar Multifamily ers and are now ready to start building your staff. Before less expensive than an increase in pay. Communities 2.4 million you start interviewing, however, you may want to think At the executive level, special benefits packages can Inside the deal: The Mission has gotten Net absorption in square feet — how plenty of buzz lately for packing hipness about employee benefits. The benefits package you offer be an important way to attract key employees and keep much more space is taken than is given and high-priced rents into a once up — is also up this year through the end can make a big difference in both who you attract and them on board. Aimed at the highly-compensated em- thoroughly working-class neighborhood. of the third quarter, compared to 526,548 whether you’ll be able to hold on to them in the future. ployee, these plans often involve some kind of executive Developer Lennar Multifamily through Q3 last year. “It’s no secret that a compa- bonus or non-qualified deferred Communities now wants to dive into the ny’s greatest asset is its people. compensation funded with per- booming neighborhood, which is ground However, the company also has to When it comes to manent life insurance. zero for fights over gentrification, with its be its peoples’ greatest asset,” “Off the shelf benefits typically first San Francisco apartment project. $62.33 If Lennar’s pitch goes as planned, Average rent per square foot for class A says J. Dylan Malot, a financial discriminate against top level benefits planning, popping up in the southern part of space today, which is 11.4 percent more professional with the San Fran- employees without them even the Mission the project would replace than during the third quarter of last year. cisco Bay Area Agency, a general one size does not fit all. knowing it and fail to address the the McMillan electric building. the agency of Massachusetts Mass- unique needs of the more highly San Francisco Planning Department Mutual Life Insurance Company compensated,” says Malot. That’s released details in a preliminary project (MassMutual).” why many top-tier plans are designed with a vesting assessment. $75.24 the six-story building would include a the highest average rent per square foot The first perk typically offered is health insurance*, -fol schedule to keep the employee tied to the company. A mix of studios, one-bedroom and two- in San Francisco in 1999. lowed shortly by some kind of retirement plan. As busi- non-qualified deferred compensation plan, for example, bedroom apartments at an average size nesses grow, however, a sweetened benefits package can might offer key personnel an additional $40,000 a year of 890 square feet, according to the be a particularly effective way of keeping people happy for 10 years, requiring those executives to stay on the job assessment. the project would also need to tuck away 19 apartment units deemed with their jobs and loyal to the company. for a decade in order to collect the full amount. “affordable” by the city. 7.9 percent At University Medical Imaging—a 20-year-old But these plans can offer more than golden handcuffs. “the Mission is one of the most the vacancy rate last quarter in the SoMa company that provides MRIs, CAT scans, x-rays and A supplemental employee retirement plan or SERP, for powerful places to live in the city for all submarket. ultrasound procedures—benefits planning gets a lot example, can be designed to not only provide the execu- types – not just for people coming in and working at tech companies, but people SOUrce: cUSHMAN & WAKeFIeLD of attention these days. “We look at it constantly,” says tive with additional retirement income, but also to pay who are born and raised here,” said Alex Michael Lechner, practice administrator, noting that the the company a death benefit if that employee should die. Waterbury, president of the company’s company needs the right staff in order to provide quality In some cases, the plan may even allow the company to Northern california operation. “It’s a patient care. recoup the cost of premium payments in the event of a unique part of the city. there’s not a lot of WHAT DRIVES YOU supply currently in the southern end of the Finding good workers, however, is never easy, even death. Mission.” with today’s high unemployment. And once the staff is “Retaining and recruiting top talent is a great concern Waterbury added that the he did not trained and in place, Lechner says, it’s important to keep for any successful business, especially in the Bay Area,” yet know how much it would cost to IS WHAT DRIVES US. develop and build, stressing it is in the competitors from poaching the talent. “So we need to Malot says. “In particular for higher-end talent, cus- very early stages. make sure that the grass always looks greener on our tomization, flexibility, engagement, and education Your passion fuels your success. And we’re as dedicated to you as you are to your business. side,” he says. are critical for employees to understand “We don’t see anyone waiting in the MassMutual will listen to your needs, seek solutions to your financial challenges and help shadows to torpedo it, but there’s always The good news: Many of the most and utilize benefits to their best concerns about design and responding valued perks are relatively inex- advantage.” you plan for what’s ahead. well to the existing fabric to the pensive for employers. More- And staying on the benefits neighborhood,” Waterbury said. over, companies are allowed sideline can be a dangerous Still, opposition to market-rate housing J. Dylan Malot, CFBS projects in the Mission is not hard to find. to create small classes of oversight. Companies that Agency Managing Associate A massive fight is already brewing over MassMutual San Francisco employees that qualify for don’t participate “end up CA Insurance License #0G08468 a much larger project, 351 units, at the enhanced benefits. That being in the dark about 101 Montgomery Street, Suite 600 16th Street bArt stop being proposed by means a group of highly some significant advan- San Francisco, CA 94104 Maximus real estate Partners. Another 415-743-1024 project by J.c.N. Developers also near the valued executives might, tages,” he says, and that [email protected] www.massmutual.com 16th Street bArt station has spent nearly for example, get addition- can ultimately make a big five years seeking entitlements amid fights al life insurance coverage difference in their success. with neighborhood groups. or an upgraded disability this would be the first project in San income insurance policy. *Not offered through Massachusetts BUSINESS SUCCESSION PLANNING + KEY EMPLOYEE RETENTION AND EXECUTIVE BENEFITS PRODUCTS + RETIREMENT/401(K) PLAN SERVICES Francisco for Lennar Multifamily, a division Mutual Life Insurance Company of the huge homebuilder Lennar corp. Such offerings—while extremely CRN201609-186347 MassMutual Financial Group refers to Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Co. (MassMutual), its affiliated companies and sales representatives. CRN201410-165836 Rendering of 222 Second St., fully leased to LinkedIn.