Pacific Heights is a neighborhood in San Francisco, California. It has panoramic views of the Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco Bay, the Palace of Fine Arts, Alcatraz, and the Presidio.

Pacific Heights
Neighborhood
Northern view from Alta Plaza Park. The Marina District and San Francisco Bay can be seen below.
Nickname:  The Devil's Backbone
Pacific Heights Location within Central San Francisco
Coordinates: 37.7917°N 122.4356°W / 37.7917; -122.4356
Country	United States
State	California
City-county	San Francisco
Government
• Supervisor	Catherine Stefani
• State Assembly	Phil Ting (D)[1]
• State Senator	Scott Wiener (D)[1]
• U. S. Rep.	Nancy Pelosi (D)[2]
Area
• Total	0.967 sq mi (2.50 km2)
• Land	0.967 sq mi (2.50 km2)
Population
• Total	21,925
• Density	22,677/sq mi (8,756/km2)
Time zone	UTC−8 (Pacific)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−7 (PDT)
ZIP codes	94109, 94115, 94123
Area codes	415/628
[3]

The Pacific Heights Residents Association defines the neighborhood as stretching from Union Street to Bush Street in the north–south direction and from Van Ness Avenue to Presidio Avenue in the east–west direction.[4] The San Francisco Mayor's Office of Neighborhood Services defines its north–south extent more narrowly, with Green Street and California & Pine Streets serving as its boundaries.[5]

In 2013, Pacific Heights was named the most expensive neighborhood in the United States. The article stated that if San Francisco's Pacific Heights had its own zip code, it would be the most expensive place to live in the United States.[6] The 94115 zip code includes both Pacific Heights' "Gold Coast", an area famous for its billionaire residents and record-breaking prices, and "The Western Addition", an area about 20 blocks away where real estate prices are significantly lower. In 2017, Curbed SF again announced the "occasionally chic, hardly affordable, always elite Pacific Heights" as San Francisco's most expensive neighborhood.[7] A $40 million Pacific Heights mansion was listed as San Francisco's most expensive home.[8] Later in the year, Business Insider gave a preview inside San Francisco's most exclusive neighborhood, where old money rubs elbows with tech billionaires.[9] In 2018, Pacific Heights continued to garner accolades and was voted as one of the 15 most prestigious residential neighborhoods in the San Francisco Bay Area.[10] Pacific Heights has also been listed among the top 10 richest neighborhoods in San Francisco.[11]

Pacific Heights is situated on a primarily east–west oriented ridge that rises sharply from the Marina District and Cow Hollow neighborhoods to the north to a maximum height of 370 feet (110 m) above sea level.[12] Pacific Heights features two parks, Lafayette and Alta Plaza. Visible to the north are the Golden Gate Bridge, the Marin Headlands, and Alcatraz Island. Visible to the south are Twin Peaks and the Sutro Tower.

Lower Pacific Heights refers to the area located south of California Street down to Post Street. While this area was previously considered part of the Western Addition,[13] the new neighborhood designation became popularized by real estate agents in the early 1990s.^{[citation needed]}

History

The neighborhood was first developed in the 1870s,[14] with small Victorian-inspired homes built. Starting around the beginning of the 20th century, and especially after the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, many were replaced with period homes. Still residential, the area is characterized by painted Victorian style architecture.

Attractions and characteristics

The oldest building in Pacific Heights, located at 2475 Pacific Avenue, was built in 1853, though the majority of the neighborhood was built after the 1906 earthquake. The architecture of the neighborhood is varied; Victorian, Mission Revival, Edwardian, and Château styles are common.

Several countries have consulates in Pacific Heights. They include Italy,[15] Greece,[16] Vietnam,[17] South Korea,[18] China,[19] and Germany.[20]

Most of the neighborhood's boutiques and restaurants can be found along Fillmore Street, south of Pacific Avenue. They include stores like Athleta, Prada, Marc by Marc Jacobs, and Ralph Lauren. Other businesses in Pacific Heights are located on California and Divisadero Streets, as well as on Van Ness Avenue.

Pacific Heights is home to several schools, including the San Francisco University High School; Drew School (formerly Drew College Preparatory School); the Hamlin School; Convent of the Sacred Heart High School; Stuart Hall High School, San Francisco Waldorf School,[21] Academy of Thought and Industry,[22] and Town School for Boys, among others. The celebrated Grant Elementary School was open on Pacific Ave from 1922 to 1972. Its students included children of diplomats, the well to do, and the adjacent Presidio military base.[23] Current elementary schools include Hillwood Academic Day School, which opened in 1949.[24]

Government and infrastructure

The San Francisco Police Department Northern Station serves Pacific Heights.[25]

Notable residents

• Larry Ellison: co-founder and chairman of Oracle Corporation[26]
• Gordon Getty: billionaire businessman and composer
• Ann Getty: philanthropist, publisher, anthropologist, socialite
• Jonathan Ive: former chief designer at Apple Inc.[26]
• Jay Paul: billionaire real estate developer[27]
• Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, and her husband Paul Pelosi[28]
• Danielle Steel: author
• Peter Thiel: co-founder of PayPal[26]

Gallery

• 
  The C. A. Belden House on Gough Street is a late Revival Style home with Queen Anne and Beaux Arts features. The house is on the National Register of Historic Places in San Francisco.
• 
  Consulate-General of Russia in San Francisco
• 
  Typical house entrance in Pacific Heights
• 
  The house used for exterior shots of Mrs. Doubtfire, taken shortly after Robin Williams' death, with a fan-made tribute at its front steps

See also

• List of hills in San Francisco

References

Notes

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to
Pacific Heights, San Francisco.

• phra-sf.org: Pacific Heights Residents Association
• The San Francisco Chronicle: Pacific Heights (reference article)
• The San Francisco Chronicle: "The Perfect Pacific Heights Commute, the scenes from Pacific Heights to Lucas Film in the Presidio"
• Flickr group—Pacific Heights Neighborhood (photographs pool)
• San Francisco/Golden Gate travel guide from Wikivoyage