F I R S TP R E V943NEXTLAST

450 Sutter, Downtown
450 Sutter, a 26-story historical landmark near Union Square, was the tallest building in San Francisco when it was erected in 1929. The neo-Mayan, art deco skyscraper was created by San Francisco's famous architect Timothy L. Pflueger, the designer of the Pacific Stock Exchange, Union Square Plaza, the Castro Theater, and the original California Academy of Sciences. 450 Sutter was the first West Coast skyscraper designed to withstand an earthquake and the first building where all of the suites were finished to the specification of the tenants, a revolutionary idea at that time.

The ornate lobby is popular with walking tours and featured in many architectural books because its rare Napoleon Grande Melange marble walls, elaborate bronze-finished Mayan ceiling, and exotic bas-relief carvings. The city recently renamed a small street behind the building to 'Timothy Pflueger Place' to honor its architect. Today the building is San Francisco's premier location for dentists and doctors, earning it the well-known nickname, '450 Suffer.'
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