1707 Jones Street, San Francisco, CA

4 bedrooms · 3 bathrooms · 2,204 sq ft A single-family townhouse at the top of Russian Hill, renovated by Butler Armsden Architects around one idea: let the light in. The facade stayed as it was. Inside, the stair was opened up with glass railings and walnut slats, so light from the top floor falls through the whole house. The house follows the sun. In the morning it rises over downtown and comes straight into the primary bedroom and the kitchen. In the evening it goes down right behind the Golden Gate Bridge, in full view from the living room. The top floor is one open space, with the kitchen, dining room and living room in a single uninterrupted line toward the bridge and two decks opening off it. Above it all is a private roof deck of about 450 sq ft that gets the full show at any hour, with the wild Marin Headlands on one side and the lights of downtown, the Transamerica Pyramid and Salesforce Tower on the other. The second floor has three bedrooms, one used today as an office, and two bathrooms. Privacy glass around the stair turns from clear to frosted at the flick of a switch. The ground floor has a large bedroom or playroom with its own bathroom, and the garage. Below that, the finished basement holds storage, laundry and a gym. An elevator runs from the basement to the top floor. Light oak floors, walnut and white walls carry through the whole house, and it is fully electric. Polk Street is a few blocks down the hill, and North Beach and Chinatown are a walk away. The renovation was featured in Dwell in January 2025.