Solicitation & Transaction Management for the Salesforce Transit Center

HR&A guided the Transbay Joint Powers Authority through the procurement of a facility management and programming partner for the $2.26 billion Salesforce Transit Center in downtown San Francisco. Our strategic structuring of the public-private partnership and solicitation process led to an initial agreement for the first decade of lease-up and operation. 

The Transbay Joint Powers Authority needed a private sector partner to manage the transit center’s 90,000 square feet of commercial and retail space, rooftop park, public art program, and digital advertising assets while maintaining its compact team focused on transit operations. The Authority sought a structure that would retain ownership and oversight, generate economic return, minimize operational risk, and ensure a world-class experience for the 50,000 daily riders, workers, and visitors. Working closely with Authority leadership, HR&A defined principles for a public-private partnership that balanced these competing priorities and developed terms that would attract qualified partners. 

HR&A drafted and released a comprehensive solicitation, marketing the opportunity to local and national real estate development, facilities management, open space, and digital media firms. We guided the Authority’s evaluation committee through respondent review, interviews, and selection of the preferred asset management team. Throughout negotiations with the Authority’s legal counsel, HR&A ensured agreement terms incentivized strong performance and timely ramp-up to operational stability. The resulting asset management agreement successfully attracted multiple strong proposals and established a framework enabling the Authority to deliver exceptional service while achieving its financial and operational objectives.