Doelger Building, Art Deco office building in Inner Sunset, San Francisco, United States.
The Doelger Building is a 1932 Art Deco office building at 3512 Judah Street in the Inner Sunset. Architect Charles Clausen gave it a stepped vestibule and geometric facade details. A projecting vertical blade sign with neon lettering reading "Henry Doelger Homes" was added when the roof was raised in 1936.
Built in 1932 for $4,000 as a one-story building with a mezzanine, it housed Henry Doelger's headquarters. A matching garage was added to the east later that year, and in 1936 the roof was raised to add a second mezzanine. In 1940 the building expanded onto the western lot, adding Streamline Moderne detailing to the Art Deco exterior.
The building carries the name of Henry Doelger, whose firm built large low-cost housing tracts in San Francisco and Daly City. Its neon blade sign read "Henry Doelger Homes", tying the headquarters visibly to the house-building business. The garage added in 1932 copied the stepped vestibule of the main building.
The Doelger Building stands at 3512 Irving Street in the Inner Sunset, a short walk from Golden Gate Park. The landmark designation covers the main building only; the former garage to the east is part of the neighbouring building and is not included. Look for the stepped vestibule and the 1940 western wing from the sidewalk.
The building was designed by architect Charles Clausen and cost remarkably little to construct in its original form. This economy of construction stands in sharp contrast to its carefully crafted Art Deco design elements.
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