In Pacific Heights even the sledgehammers are golden.

At least that was the case one recent afternoon, when the development team behind a new luxury condo tower brought together the leading players in the city's real estate world for a ceremonial groundbreaking.

The Pacific, as it's called, is a repurposing of the building which formerly housed the Dugoni School of Dentistry at Webster and Sacramento, and in 2016 will consist of 76 luxury residences, ranging from one to four-bedrooms. The entire 1965 building has been gutted, revealing a structure with super-high ceilings (12 to 14 feet!) and large window expanses. The views are among the best in all of San Francisco.

"To take something from the 1960s, a medical center, and turn it into luxury housing is, for an architect, a unique process," said Handel Architects' Glenn Rescalvo, who designed the new building.

"Our firm has worked on so many different projects in San Francisco, and I can tell you that this product is something unique in our office," he said, adding that they used five-star and boutique hotels from around the world for inspiration, to appeal to an upscale buyer. He said the finishes are going to be "off the charts great," due to the range of luxury materials being sourced by interior designer Richard Felix-Ashman.

The Pacific at 2121 Webster To Open in 2016

Guests at the groundbreaking heard from one of the project's lead investors, Ross Perot, Jr., Trumark Urban's Arden Hearing, and San Francisco Supervisor Mark Farrell, who praised Trumark, the developers, for working closely with local neighborhood groups, such as the Pacific Heights Residents Association, to design a project that would enhance the district.

Among those at the event looking forward to the project were luxury real estate agents such as Nina Hatvany, Rebecca Schumacher, Joel Goodrich, Rohullah Habibi, Gregg Lynn, Barbara Callan, Robert Callan, Cia Townsend, and Caroline Werboff. Some of them already have buyers lined up! 

Trumark Urban's Arden Hearing

But no doubt the most excited man of the evening was the guy who brought the project together, Trumark's Arden Hearing. "I can't help but think about how much time and energy it takes to get to this very point, and it's very exciting," he said.

"Our goal is to go into great places and to make them even greater," he added, "and there's no place greater than this across the globe."

Perched atop Pacific Heights with views reaching from the Golden Gate Bridge on one side to the ballpark on the other, who could disagree?

Photos: Drew Altizer; Trumark Urban