Mother's Building
1 Zoo Road · Lakeshore
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1922
The City bought 60 acres from the Spring Valley Water Company for the recreation complex out of which the Zoo grew.
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1924
A 1,000-by-100-foot outdoor swimming pool for 10,000 bathers, then counted the largest in the world, was built at the western edge of the Fleishhacker tract.
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1924
Fleishhacker Playfield and Zoological Gardens opened, named for Herbert Fleishhacker, then president of the Park Commission.
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1925
Herbert and Mortimer Fleishhacker paid for the building and a large wading pool beside it, about $50,000 in all, as a memorial to their late mother Delia and gave the building to the City as a lounge where mothers could change, nurse and rest with small children.
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1925
The Delia Fleishhacker Memorial Building — the Mother's Building — was built just inside the Zoo's main entry as a resting place for mothers and children.
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September 6, 1925
The building was dedicated on the Labor Day weekend that opened the Fleishhacker Pool and Playfield complex, with its playground, pool, bathhouse, baseball diamond and six tennis courts.
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1929
The Zoo was founded, its first animals coming from Golden Gate Park, where animals had been exhibited since 1889.
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1930
The second Zoo — expanded from 23 to 92 acres and laid out by Lewis P. Hobart — was built through the 1930s. The Lion House, the Pachyderm House, Monkey Island, the Bear Grottos and the Aviary survive from that plan.
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1933
Helen K. Forbes and Dorothy Puccinelli were commissioned through the Public Works of Art Project to paint the main lounge, at first only the lunettes over the doors; the scheme grew into a Noah's Ark cycle across the full upper walls.
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June 1934
Helen Bruton, helped by her sisters Margaret and Esther and mosaicist Antonio Falcier, finished the two loggia mosaics, St. Francis and Children and Their Animal Friends, in about three months of work paid for by the Public Works of Art Project.
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1935–1941
The Works Progress Administration built the zoo's paths, underpasses, lakes, paddocks and lagoons and its Aviary, Lion House, Pachyderm House, Monkey Island, Small Mammal House, Bear Pits, stone boundary wall, café and pump house — a zoo designed to replace fences with moats.
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1935
Sixty-eight more acres adjoining the Zoo were bought.
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1938
The four-wall Noah's Ark mural cycle in egg tempera on plaster by Helen K. Forbes and Dorothy Puccinelli, covering nearly 1,200 square feet, was completed under the WPA Federal Art Project.
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June 1938
The finished murals were dedicated with a pageant in which schoolchildren dressed as animals re-enacted the Flood and 2,000 pigeons were released.
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1945
The wading pool in front of the building and the Playfield were taken out and replaced by a children's zoo; the building stayed in use.
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1947
The north room, originally a lunch room with a long wood counter and a small pantry, was turned into men's and women's restrooms and a service closet.
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1962
Dorothy Puccinelli, one of the two original painters, restored the lounge murals.
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1968
The main lounge closed when the last of the matrons who had looked after mothers and young children retired; the restrooms stayed open through side doors.
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1972
The building reopened to the general public as the Zoo's visitor center, with exhibits and educational programs, ending the rule that had kept out boys over six.
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1972
The Fleishhacker Pool was closed and soon paved over for the zoo's parking lot.
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1975
Emmy Lou Packard worked on the Noah's Ark murals.
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1978
The building became the Zoo's gift shop.
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December 31, 1979
The Mother's Building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places — the only building at the Zoo so recognised.
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Feb 1982
New construction.
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1989
A wood-frame trellis with metal mesh was put up over the entrance stairs and into the loggia to shield visitors from spalling concrete and plaster.
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Jan 1994
Erect an animal holding structure.
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1995
Monkey Island, one of the surviving features of the Zoo's first period, was demolished and the island left undeveloped.
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September 1996
The Avian Conservation Center was completed, moved from beside the Fleishhacker site to the eastern part of the joint-use area over the Oceanside treatment plant.
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Jul 1999
To erect one story accessory building.
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Jun 2000
To erect education center.
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Jun 2000
Education center.
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Nov 2000
To erect entry service building gift shop restaurant.
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Feb 2001
One-stop: erect one story barn with mezzanine for hay storage at s f zoo.
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May 2001
One stop: erect one story warehouse and shop.
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Nov 2001
Erect tunnetls and site works and site work.
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Nov 2001
Erect new giraffe barn.
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Nov 2001
Erect one story hoofstock barn.
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2002
The building closed and has stood unused since.
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Jul 2006
New animal exhibit pavilion for public viewing of grizzly bears. work includes new fencing, landscaping, bear containment. project is privately funded. no fire protection. unconditioned space. no mechanical work. new structure.
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Jul 2006
To erect 1 story exhibit pavilion.
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Jan 2007
Renovate existing non-public barn structure for better animal mgmt &req ada upgrades-new layout exterior animal exhibits &off exhibits yards incl new animal barriers &gates, animal pool(hippo)&pasture. new animal mgmt chutes consist concrete pad, steel pole enclosure with hydralic gates.
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2012
The Fleishhacker Pool bathhouse was demolished.
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Aug 2012
Build out children's playground structures and develop playground area.
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Jan 2014
Demolition to existing floor slab. replace with new slab, new struct support for new exhibit components. new custom exhibit faux rock work & tree, mesh enclosure, waterfalls, displace enclosure, new work path, casework, painting & graphics. seismic strengthening.
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Apr 2016
Demolition to e footing and landscape features of outdoor exhibit area install new perimeter footing and piers for new outdoor mesh enclosure. new fauz trees and plants, new open sunroom, new open view shelter. replace e view railings with new picket fencing and view railings. maher not req.
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Jul 2017
Renovations to e building, work includes demolition to e conc wall for new openings, new concrete wall and suspended slab to e loft area, add new restrooms, new kitchen casework, new animal holding spaces, new mechanical an delec work, equip to support, new renovated areas. new elevated animal passage way.
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Jan 2019
Snow leopard habitat to be built. one open air animal habitat; one open air animal dayroom, one animal holding building, an animal management space, and 1 visito viewing sheltered area.
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Jan 2019
Lemur forest expansion of existing boardwalk animal holding building. plaza lvl redesign, landscaping & public viewing areas. primary function of the building is to provide facilities for animal holding & wellness, animal mgmt support spaces & public viewing areas.
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Dec 2019
Improvement to existing pdc building to include animal habitat enclosures, art baobab tree exhibit, plaza promenade exhibit & public view areas.
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May 2021
Construct one baobab tree exhibit and install mesh enclosure for animal habitat exhibits. demolition existing concrete low wall to accommodate new baobab tree exhibit. struct supt wrk for baobab tree. new outdoor lighting and lighting inside tree exhibit. new guard railing around animal habitat/exhibit.
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September 6, 2022
Designated San Francisco Landmark No. 304, Mother's Building.
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2023
Recommended for city landmark designation in 2023, on historical, aesthetic and artistic grounds.
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Jul 2025
Renovateexistinganimal holding spaces & add new interior rooms for animal indoor playrooms, animal handles preparation stations, storage & trash room.renovateexistingmech, lighting & electrical systems for new animal holding space.renovateexistingoutdoor exhibit spaces.
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Jul 2026
Replace existing gas furnaces with electric heat pump split systems. replace existing gas water heater with heat pump water heater.
DBI holds 142 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 142.