Lycée Français de San Francisco
San Francisco, CA
44,000 sq ft

A historic landmark building was transfigured into a total immersion French school. The project had an extremely tight completion deadline of three months. Renovating this 1928 building provided challenges due to its landmark status as well as designing to meet LEED certification:

• Hazardous materials removal, including asbestos
• Full seismic upgrade of the building
• New staircases and other accessibility solutions

Imaginative yet practical design

Hilliard Architects chose a fresh palette to brighten the interiors: pops of primary colors against white walls and flooring or jewel-toned carpeting. A vibrant red color updated the traditional look of window mullions and doorways.

The library design included removing the ceiling to dramatically open up the space. Innovative details included colored fabric forced air ductwork and special paint on exposed trusses to meet passive fire protection code.

2009 CICA (Commercial Interiors Contractors Assoc) Award, Academics