730 Montgomery Street

1. 1852

   Said to have been built in 1852 on the foundations of an 1849 building lost in the fires of 1851; cast-iron pilasters at the back are dated 1857 and those on the Montgomery Street front 1892.

   SF Planning, landmark designation
2. 1852–1856

   Home of the Golden Era, the city's first literary paper, where Bret Harte worked as a typesetter and wrote his first published poem, printed early in 1857.

   SF Planning, landmark designation
3. 1860s–1880s

   In the 1860s it held a stove and pipe store, a crockery shop and a billiard-table maker, later a Chinese broom factory; by the 1880s the upper floor was Lafayette Hall, armory of the Lafayette Guard militia, and the British Benevolent Society had rooms here from as early as 1869.

   SF Planning, landmark designation
4. 1900

   Built.

5. October 3, 1968

   The City Planning Commission approved designating the Golden Era Building a city landmark by a 5 to 2 vote, over the owners' objection.

   San Francisco City Planning Commission minutes, San Francisco Public Library (Internet Archive)
6. 1969

   Designated San Francisco Landmark No. 19, Golden Era Building.

   SF Planning, landmark designation
7. Apr 1984

   Permit 8404448 $$$ $1,000

   Remove skylight & install new skylight.

8. May 1995

   Permit 9507740 $$$ $15,000

   Cti-1 floor 2nd el me.

9. Sep 1995

   Permit 9515042 $$$ $3,500

   Cti-1 2/f el.

10. Feb 1997

    Permit 9703296 $$$ $40,000

    Cti-1 (el) ground floor.

11. Jul 1999

    Permit 9913646 $$$ $60,000

    Reconstruct int stairs from 1st to 2nd floor, new toilet.

12. Aug 2016

    Permit 201608185451 $$$ $18,375

    No change to existing lighting & hvac, install power assist door operator.no change of use. n/a for maher ordinance.

13. Sep 2016

    Permit 201609198114 $$$ $12,140

    Change in use from former b use to future m use. no construction under this permit.

14. Nov 2016

    Permit 201611213178 $$$ $109,000

    Interior tenant improvement. new walls, flooring, conference rooms, breakroom. correction to existing layout plan in prior permit application 201609198114. maher 1/f: ord 155-13 na.

15. Mar 2017

    Issued Permit 201703292711 $$$ $28,000

    Reroofing.

16. Jun 2018

    Issued Permit 201806192254 $$$ $140,000

    Interior remodel of 1082sq ft of retail space on ground fl.

17. Jul 2018

    Issued Permit 201807053769 $$$ $50,000

    1/f: electrical and lighting for retail ti ref 201806192254.

18. Feb 2025

    Permit 202502210771 $$$ $600,000

    On the first floor full tenant improvement on the second floor. new partial interior improvement mezzanine at the 2nd floor. new finishes, fixtuires, partitions, doors glazing, ceiling. mep deferred.

19. Mar 2025

    Permit 202503242853 $$$ $45,000

    Mechanical and electrical work for tenant improvement at level 1, 2 & mezzaine ref 202502210771.

20. Apr 2025

    Permit 202504083904 $$$ $60,000

    Minor modification to existing historic facade. replace existing non-historic store front door. add new surface applied muntins to existing non historic glazing infill to match opposite side.

21. May 2025

    Permit 202505096177 $$$ $15,000

    Alterations to existing entry door and addition of an ada ramp for accessible entry to the retail floor. an acoa approval record 2025-002600coa.

22. Aug 2025

    Permit 202508294252 $$$ $5,900

    Replace skylight in existing opening. u<=0.30.

23. Sep 2025

    Permit 202509125241 $$$ $15,000

    Revise p/a 2025-0509-6177 to address field/construction conditions as requested by field inspector and associated with the structrual footing and detail at underside of door for support conect of beamstop at front of building.

24. Sep 2025

    Permit 202509296301 $$$ $31,600

    Install of additional electrical outlets and lighting fixtures. new lvt flooring, mounting of mirrors and decorative acoustical material.

DBI holds 47 permits for this parcel, most of them tenant improvements on individual floors. The timeline shows the 24 largest by stated cost, plus the earliest on file; the DBI query in the sources below returns all 47. 1 of them are nominal $1 street-space or sidewalk permits. 7 expired or cancelled permits are not shown. The building is dated 1852 in its landmark designation; the assessor's roll gives 1900.