Economic Advancement Center

Located in a former bank in downtown South San Francisco, the Economic Advancement Center’s role in the community is to provide a diverse and under-served population job training and employment resources. The Center is run in partnership by the City of South San Francisco, Job Train, Renaissance Entrepreneurship Center and the County of San Mateo. Into this repurposed space, William Duff Architects injected energy and vitality. The EAC wanted to feel more akin to an enticing start-up environment versus a government facility. The lobby’s green wall creates a welcoming vibe and functions as both a visual focal point and as a divider, housing the Center’s public resource library and the innovation classroom area behind it. EAC’s positive out-comes are two-fold: it tapped the transformative power of architecture and design to create a welcoming space for local job seekers and entrepreneurs, and from a practical standpoint, activated a long-vacant city property, creating a model for revitalizing cities.