SAN FRANCISCO—Proof School, a secondary school for kids who love math, recently leased 973 Mission St. for its permanent campus. Proof School's board of directors signed a 10-year lease agreement at the new downtown location, where it will kick off the 2017-2018 school year.

The board has retained Ratcliff Architects to design its new home. The space was leased as an empty shell with seismic upgrades, revamped electrical and a new HVAC system. Starboard TCN Commercial Real Estate principal and founding partner, Hans Hansson, and Starboard sales and leasing representative, Craig Hansson, negotiated the deal.

“Finding a school site in San Francisco is not easy. There are some outstanding specialized education programs that are being developed in order to provide growth for our youth. Proof School provides such opportunities in their school and teaching methods. Craig and I are pleased we could be a part of the solution to provide a permanent home for their students,” said Hans Hansson.

The initial design of the space calls for glass-enclosed classrooms that maximize light, openness and collaboration, reflecting the way Proof operates classes on a daily basis. With more than 16,000 square feet, the new space includes three levels lined by brick walls. The main floor is more than 18 feet tall with skylights and light wells to maximize natural lighting.

The space will be custom designed for the activities that define Proof School such as literature seminars gathering around conference tables, small groups of students tackling math challenges in break-out spaces, indoor pickleball, and dedicated spaces for studios and labs.

“We see a tremendous need for locally-based firms in need of local representation who care about their success, instead of the many firms who often only look to represent large nationally recognized tenants,” Craig Hansson tells GlobeSt.com when asked about the firm's overall representation scope.

The new location will be convenient for children commuting by public transit from throughout the Bay Area, as it's just a five minute walk from Powell Street BART and MUNI, is within a mile of Caltrain at 4th and King, and is easily accessible to the Ferry Building via MUNI. The neighborhood continues to be developed, with plans for a 26,000-square-foot public park, several new restaurants and a half-acre public rooftop garden. The school's next door neighbor is Covo, a new co-working site.

“The new location is a very short walk to SFMOMA, Yerba Buena, the Contemporary Jewish Museum and TechShop. And the space is a blank slate, so we can customize it to fit the needs of our students over the next decade. I'm very excited to see Proof School continue to grow as a home for kids who love math,” says Paul Zeitz, chair of the board, Proof School.

This lease is emblematic of the type of work Starboard TCN Commercial Real Estate handles. The privately owned and locally based San Francisco commercial real estate firm celebrated its 25th anniversary this year.

“It's been a nice run thus far as the industry continues to move away from brokerage in favor of trying to be everything in real estate,” Hans Hansson tells GlobeSt.com. “We still have a niche play, representing local San Francisco Bay Area landlords and tenants looking for space.”

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