Pedestrians walk past 88 Spear Street in downtown San Francisco, on Thursday, Aug. 6, 2026.
Pedestrians walk past 88 Spear Street in downtown San Francisco, on Thursday, Aug. 6, 2026.
Just two blocks from San Francisco’s Ferry Building, an unremarkable off-white 13-story office building is undergoing a complete transformation. A few of its drab, conventional levels have been gutted to make way for health and wellness facilities like a cold plunge and sauna, rooms for IV therapy and a golf simulator. A celebrated bakery known for some of the best croissants in the city is slated to occupy the ground level. On the roof, a restaurant and event space is planned, overlooking sparkling views of the bay and the city skyline. Oh, and there will be new offices on several floors, too.
88 Spear, projected for completion at the end of 2026, claims to be the country’s first “office resort” — a new type of office building that caters to what employees ostensibly want out of the spaces they toil in for eight hours a day. Plenty of office buildings traded in cubicles for open floor plans with flexible meeting spaces years ago, but the teams creating developments like 88 Spear go one step further, proclaiming office buildings shouldn’t feel like office buildings at all.
They should feel like luxury hotels.
A construction crane hugs the side of 88 Spear Street in downtown San Francisco, on Thursday, Aug. 6, 2026.
A construction crane hugs the side of 88 Spear Street in downtown San Francisco, on Thursday, Aug. 6, 2026.
Up and down California, real estate developers are betting on this new iteration of work. Employers need to attract talent back to an office environment, project prestige and rebuild in-person company cultures that fizzled amid the proliferation of remote work. From poolside meeting cabanas and chef-driven restaurants to on-site spas, the state’s office resort era is here.
Introducing the office resort
After the pandemic upended traditional expectations of work, even tech companies that had long touted in-office perks like cold brew on-tap, ping-pong tables and fridges full of free beer suddenly found these weren’t enough to lure people off their couches. Cyrus Sanandaji, managing director of commercial real estate firm Presidio Bay Ventures, said those who did return to an office wanted something else.
Presidio Bay had already begun presenting a new way of working at its “resort-style” Springline campus in Menlo Park, a 6.4-acre development that debuted in 2023, combining residences, offices, retail, dining and public spaces. As the company conceptualized the project, Sanandaji said they didn’t want to just add a gym or a rooftop terrace for workers to enjoy; instead, they wanted to present a hospitality-driven experience that would make going to work evoke nearly the same feeling as going on vacation.
Presidio Bay’s Springline campus in Menlo Park, Calif.
Presidio Bay’s Springline campus in Menlo Park, Calif.
That’s when the Bay Area-based development group coined the term “office resort.”
“You can have a very pretty glass new construction building, but it could be soulless, and it’s actually not where people are going to want to go,” Sanandaji said.
Springline, the company’s existing live-work-play development, integrates two office buildings among its 183 apartments, outdoor areas and retail space. Instead of cafeterias, there are outposts of some of San Francisco’s hottest restaurants, like Burma Love, Causwells and Che Fico (they’re also open to the public). There are amenities like the aforementioned golf simulator, plus a dog park and a gym.
A rendering of 88 Spear, a building being renovated as an “office resort.”
A rendering of 88 Spear, a building being renovated as an “office resort.”
88 Spear, the first “office resort” under construction — for $100 million — is expected to open in early 2027, with SF croissant superstar Arsicault Bakery signed on to occupy the first floor and Please Management, the team behind Holbrook House, the downtown restaurant notorious for its “Champagne buttons,” operating the rooftop restaurant space. Co-working startup Canopy, which was founded by Silicon Valley design legend Yves Behar, will operate the co-working facilities within. Wellness amenities like the spa and that golf simulator will be available for all tenants.
“We’re curators of experience**,**” Sanandaji said of Presidio Bay’s approach.
Working poolside
Companies with their own campuses, especially large tech giants in Silicon Valley, embraced the idea of on-site amenities in the 2000s, featuring cafeterias with free or subsidized food, game rooms, gyms and laundry services at work, among other common amenities. But in what’s also been called the hotelification of offices, that might also mean the ability to have meetings poolside — especially in sunny, climate-friendly California. In a 2025 survey from architectural firm Gensler, only 14% of respondents said they still wanted a “corporate” workplace experience.
An image of the pool at the Spectrum Terrace in Irvine, Calif.
An image of the pool at the Spectrum Terrace in Irvine, Calif.
Spectrum Terrace in Irvine is designed around “resort-style amenities,” which include an Olympic-length pool with “meeting-ready cabanas,” a restaurant and plenty of outdoor gathering areas. There’s also a 1.5-mile fitness trail on site and proximity to the Spectrum Center, an open-air mall with dining, shopping and entertainment. Coca-Cola and Boot Barn are among its corporate tenants. Amenities like these “create a daily experience that gives our customers an advantage to attract and retain talent,” Roger DeWames, president of Irvine Company Office Properties, told SFGATE via email.
Wellness amenities are almost compulsory, as are lush, bright common spaces. The Cove opened in 2025 at 525 Market St. in San Francisco with a “wellness studio” including a gym, group fitness classes, infrared saunas, massage/treatment rooms and recovery tools like massage guns and CryoLounge chairs for employee use. It also features a Wolfgang Puck-powered cafe and bar, a jazz-themed speakeasy and a game room for tenants.
The change in amenities offered is also changing the way employers are thinking about office space. In a 2025 survey conducted by commercial real estate firm CBRE, businesses said they would consider paying a premium for certain amenities, like outdoor spaces (44%) and fitness facilities (32%). Nearly 40% of the survey’s respondents said they would reject a building without food and beverage options.
An aerial view of Santana Row, in San Jose, Calif.
An aerial view of Santana Row, in San Jose, Calif.
Offices at San Jose’s Santana West include a cafe, a fitness studio and proximity to the upscale dining and shopping district Santana Row. There’s also a rooftop terrace with gardens and pickleball courts for tenant use — plus a golf simulator, of course.
At Los Angeles’ Habitat, described by its property manager/developer as a “live work thrive” campus, the design incorporates a six-story office building with private terraces and a 12-story apartment building, plus extensive green space and room for restaurants and patios. It opened in May.
‘Space to breathe’
Many of California’s office buildings were built between the 1960s and 1980s, a time when the rise of fluorescent lighting led to lower ceiling heights and the cubicle became king. A change as simple as ceiling heights can make a big difference when you’re trying to alter the feel of office space, said TJ Silvey, chief investment officer of development group IQHQ. IQHQ specializes in life sciences development, where much higher ceilings are already required to meet research lab standards. But these tall ceilings are coveted by all types of companies, as seen at the company’s Redwood City project Elco Yards. Major tenants like the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative and prominent law firm Orrick have signed leases for the office buildings, which should be open by the end of the year. The campus will also include a childcare facility, outdoor plazas, storefronts and restaurants.
An image of Elco Yards, IQHQ’s Redwood City development.
An image of Elco Yards, IQHQ’s Redwood City development.
In IQHQ’s new buildings, the company strives to “provide a hospitality feel,” especially in places like the lobby, Silvey said.
“It’s down to the wall finishes that you’re choosing, and the light fixtures, the furniture that activates the space, the plants,” he said. “You’re very much trying to curate something that feels good when people show up.”
“You just have space to breathe,” Silvey said, emphasizing the importance of natural light in the company’s projects.
Silvey said businesses that are searching for new space are primarily thinking about attracting talent, so what they want from a development company is an appealing experience — one that’s worth leaving your home for. “You want to build products that justifies commuting in to go to an office and be around your colleagues,” Silvey said.
IQHQ has three projects in development in the Bay Area, two in Redwood City and one in South San Francisco. Elsewhere in California, the company is transforming a former Navy office and warehouse building on the San Diego waterfront into a new “Research and Development District” that includes a 1.5-acre park open to the public. It will feature five office buildings with roof decks, as well as retail storefronts. Rivian and the Shade Store have signed on as tenants so far — and local favorite Board and Brew and an Equinox gym are already open.
“Real estate has become a talent recruitment tool,” Silvey said.
An image of Elco Yards, IQHQ’s Redwood City development.
An image of Elco Yards, IQHQ’s Redwood City development.
But even the evangelists say the office resort isn’t right for every company. Sanandaji, of Presidio Bay, said he doesn’t believe it works for the tech workers at companies that subscribe to the so-called 996 work culture, in which employees at artificial intelligence-focused organizations are supposed to work 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., six days a week. Presidio Bay is developing a different product for them altogether, he said.
“We’re just expecting more from the spaces we spend all our entire days,” Sanandaji said.