One of San Francisco’s toniest neighborhoods, Pacific Heights, has long attracted power players and cultural figures, including bestselling author Danielle Steel and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. It’s also home to a full-floor residence at 1940 Broadway—a stately tower known as The Heights and one of the city’s most distinguished buildings—designed specifically for displaying large-scale works of art.

Purchased in 2012 by Shaari Ergas, a real estate developer known for restoring historic buildings in both Miami and San Francisco, the over 3,000-square-foot aerie combines prewar elegance with the comforts of a modern entertainer’s home. A 60-foot great room offers gallery-like walls and epic skyline vantages, while original details such as toasted oak hardwood floors and plaster moldings lend a Park Avenue sensibility. An open dining area with seating for eight and a three-sink kitchen further reinforce its role as a sophisticated gathering space.

Having previously lived and worked in Fort Lauderdale and gifted her collection of modern Latin American art to the NSU Art Museum before turning her attention to contemporary art, Ergas embarked on a two-year renovation of the three-bedroom, four-bathroom home meant to reflect those changes. Its open layout is also mindful of her two grandsons. 

“I was looking for the scale and proportion and aesthetics of European design,” she told Galerie in an interview. But as a new West Coast transplant at the time, she also wanted a low-key California sensibility. She enlisted her friend, acclaimed interior designer Francis Sultana, who was once lauded as a “decorating mastermind” by The Times . “Shaari had a very clear idea of what she wanted: an apartment for collecting, not decorating. She needed an editor. For me, it was about the editing of a collection, almost like being a curator.”  

Walls were removed, doorways were raised to 10 feet, and a structural column was stripped back to its original concrete. Sultan then layered in striking works by Yayoi Kusama, Richard Serra, and Herb Ritts, as well as a three-part custom sofa and ottomans of his own design. Cube sculptures by Urs Fischer and a figurative painting by Chantal Joffe further punctuate the room.

While the artwork and furniture are not included in the sale, the residence retains plenty of custom touches and thoughtful design elements. The main kitchen features marble, Corian, and granite surfaces, while a separate stainless-steel catering kitchen offers additional functionality for entertaining. A coffee station, vintage wall telephone, and concealed wet bar add personality, while a library with multicolored gradient windows and an adjacent den provide more intimate spaces.

RELATED: America’s Luxury Housing Boom Is Expanding Outside the Usual Markets

Elsewhere, the primary suite includes a marble bathroom with a steam shower and an antique freestanding tub set into a bay window, while another bedroom opens to a marble, glass, and mirror-clad bath designed with a playful optical illusion effect.

The residence also comes with access to the building’s private gardens and lounge areas, along with a live-in manager and garage parking for at least two vehicles. Gregg Lynn of Sotheby’s International Realty—San Francisco Brokerage holds the $15 million listing.

Click here for more photos of the San Francisco apartment.