A more than 100-year-old building in San Francisco's Presidio that for decades housed U.S. soldiers is poised to become the national park and former military base's second hotel.
Constructed in 1895, the yet-to-be-named lodge currently known as Building 105 of the Montgomery Street Barracks will offer up to 40 rooms, which is nearly twice as many as the Inn at the Presidio, said Dana Polk, a spokeswoman for the Presidio Trust.
Designs for the new inn have not been created, but views of the Golden Gate Bridge will certainly be included – at least from some rooms.
“It's an amazing location,” Polk said. “It's right on the main parade ground where we have our Presidio picnic; it's near the transit center; it's walking distance to the Presidio's restaurants and trailheads.”
On May 31, the seven-member board of directors that oversees the Presidio Trust approved a $20 million renovation of the three-story, 42,000-square-foot building as part of the Five Year Construction Plan.
The site at the Montgomery Street Barracks – colloquially known as “infantry row” – was earmarked as a potential inn years ago, and success at the first inn and the anticipated reopening of the Presidio Officers' Club in October prompted the Presidio Trust to build a second hotel.
The Inn at the Presidio, located at 42 Moraga Ave. in Pershing Hall, has seen near-full capacity since opening in April 2012, said Polk. July occupancy was 93.3 percent and August reached 97.4 percent, while the year-to-date figure as of Aug. 7 was 88 percent.
The $20 million will be used to seismically retrofit the building – which currently operates a temporary visitor center on its first floor – and fund other renovations.
Costs to rent rooms have not been determined, but it will likely offer less expensive options than the Inn at the Presidio, where rooms start at $250 a night.
The Presidio Trust will seek requests for proposals from construction and architecture firms, and it expects to open the new inn by mid-2016.
Correction: This story was updated Sept. 16 to correct a quote from Presidio Trust spokeswoman Dana Polk in which she discusses the location of the new hotel at the main parade ground.
Bay Area NewsMontgomery Street BarracksPresidio of San FranciscoU.S. Military
