Beth Sholom New Sanctuary and Social Hall

Project Details

Construction of a 24,308 SF sanctuary and social hall comprised of two architecturally distinct buildings juxtaposed to form a courtyard gathering space. The first building is a cast-in-place concrete sanctuary bathed in light from the nearly 1,000 SF of skylights. Carefully formed to exacting dimensions, the two foot thick walls are made of poured in place, colored concrete. The structure uses an elaborate post-tensioning system on a radius to achieve it’s bowl-like shape. The second building is a cube, sheathed in metal, and contains the social hall that opens to the courtyard. This building contains a chapel, meditation space, library, offices and meeting rooms. The chapel is constructed of fine walnut millwork and is surrounded by stained glass windows salvaged from the old sanctuary. This sanctuary stands as one of the most complex and challenging concrete installation projects in the Bay Area.

Owner
Temple Beth Sholom
Location
San Francisco, CA
Awards
Unbuilt Design Honor Award
Square Footage
24,300
Architect
Stanley Saitowitz, Natoma Architects, Inc.
Structural Engineer
Forrell Elesessor