How do you make an icon more iconic?

What’s next for S.F.’s Transamerica Pyramid after 50 years

EVEN BEFORE IT OPENED in November of 1972, the Transamerica Pyramid offered a perspective on San Francisco unlike any other — not just for the outward view, but also to gauge how the city is seen by itself and others.

As the 853-foot-tall tower at the corner of Montgomery Street and Columbus Avenue turns 50, that perspective is as revealing as ever.

Though no longer the tallest building on the skyline, the tapered concrete shaft rivals the Golden Gate Bridge and cable cars as built icons of San Francisco. The futuristic architecture that angered critics when the proposal was unveiled in 1969 now stands as a reassuring marker for Bay Area residents trying to make sense of the changes around them.

Read the full, interactive article at the SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE →