525 Olive

525 Olive is located on Balboa Park’s west side with jaw dropping views of the park, Downtown, Point Loma and beyond to the Pacific Ocean. Drawing inspiration from the coastal experience and luxury travel, the design intent was to create a boutique sense of hospitality. The interiors are indented to relax and comfort, and guides attention outward to the expansive views. The project aimed to add modernized expanded spaces serving both 525 Olive and St. Paul’s Cathedral, while preserving the historic architecture of St. Paul’s Cathedral, as well as supporting economic growth in the community.

On the fifth floor, a state-of-the-art fitness deck overlooks the treetops of Balboa Park.  At the street level, a large commercial space will offer restaurants or retail to the residents and community. The rooftop features a glamorous Sky Lounge with dramatic 270-degree top-of-class views of San Diego from Mission Bay to the north to Mexico to the south.  From their perch in the Sky Lounge co-working spaces or custom designed cabanas, residents will be eye level with approaching planes as they land at San Diego Airport.  18-foot stone arches on the feature wall are a nod to the gothic architecture of St. Paul’s Cathedral’s cloister and are visible for miles approaching the building.

The development also added 5 levels of underground parking which is accessible for visitors of St. Paul’s Cathedral, including 25 electric vehicle charging stations. St. Paul’s has over 18,000 square feet of space on the first and second levels. This created office and meeting spaces for the church group and staff, as well as community meeting space.

Of the 204 apartments at 525 Olive, 18 are designated as affordable for low-income individuals and families. These challenges became opportunities to come together as a team and added value and cohesiveness to the community by addressing housing needs, supporting economic growth, and creating local jobs in the community.