On the Cover
The entryway’s floating staircase is crafted with hardwood, glass and steel.
Nyle Mameesh rested his forearms on a roof deck’s railing and couldn’t help but grin. Below, well-wishers, industry contacts and potential buyers bustled about the redeveloped contemporary in the Presidio Heights neighborhood of San Francisco, reveling in his latest project.
“I build houses that make me happy, and this home is the most ‘me’ of all the projects I’ve done,” Mameesh said. “It’s not in your face or over the top. It’s about keeping it clean, elegant and creating great energy.”
Towering above the corner of Maple and Jackson streets stands Mameesh’s magnum opus to date.
Four levels of luxury house five bedrooms, four bathrooms, multiple terraces and an enticing main level with voluminous public spac-
A custom-blown Bocci glass chandelier illuminates the dining room that opens to a deck with an outdoor fireplace at 101 Maple St. in Presidio Heights.
es bathed in sunlight. A striking facade gracefully blends stucco, timber and glass with symmetrical precision. Its master suite occupies an entire floor, featuring dual walk-in closets, a private terrace and a spa bathroom with dead-on views of the Presidio.
Most of the evening’s activity revolved around the entryway, where accordion-style doors off the open kitchen lead to a tile patio warmed by a gas fireplace. Glass bulbs protrude like flowers from the Bocci chandelier in the formal dining room, a space connected to the patio as well.
French-cut white oak flooring spans the interior, providing contrast to metallic, glass and wooden finishes. The kitchen has a marble island with waterfall edges and pendant lights and includes room for casual dining. Miele and Sub-Zero appliances are in the showstopping kitchen, which offers ergonomic amenities like a deep sink and pot filler above the stove top.
A twisting hardwood staircase with floating treads immediately comes into focus in the entry of 101 Maple St.
The stairway ascends to a retractable glass skylight leading to the roof deck, while the skylight creates a light well illuminating all four levels.
Handmade lights suspended from the ceiling are as artistic as they are functional.
Above: The lavish master suite opens to a private deck and includes an interior sitting area. Below: Custom made cylindrical pendant lights descend from the top level to the entryway.
Individual glass cylinders of various hues contain each light and descend from cables of various lengths.
Mameesh purchased the property a few years back, after a couple of workers from a digital storage company gave up their plan to turn the home into the king of all bachelor pads. Portions of the home were already gutted and exposed to the elements.
Mameesh rebuilt the foundation and installed a substantial retaining wall to shore up the landscape.
“This is the place to be when the big earthquake hits,” Mameesh said.
Infrastructure doesn’t typically get the oohs and aahs, so the interior blends Calcatta marble, wood paneling, custom chandeliers and Porcelanosa tiles for a modernist interior. Marvin windows frame views of Presidio Height’s classical homes and the surrounding landscape. The Marin Headlands, Pacific Ocean, Presidio and downtown San Francisco are visible at various points of the home.
Views are front and center inside the full-floor master suite. Beside the private terrace, the suite includes a spa bathroom with a Wetstyle soaking tub beneath an oversize picture window. Separate vanities and a water closet with opaque walls indicates privacy was a priority during the design phase.
Mameesh’s philosophy is a simple one: Create a
home he’s proud of.
That means meticulous detail and constant self-scrutiny throughout his projects.
“I’m doing this for me,” the onetime tech entrepreneur said. “It’s my name attached to the home.”
He left the tech industry more than a decade ago because he hadn’t had a vacation in five years and “had kids who barely knew me.”
Mameesh’s next chapter would be in property development, so he obtained a Realtor’s license to learn the mechanisms of the market. He’s sold a handful of homes over the years.
“I wanted to know what it takes to sell a home,” he said.
Mameesh also taps into his tech background for inspiration. The smart home employs a Control 4 automated system to operate the LED lights, security system, ambient temperature and entertainment features.
San Francisco’s luxury housing market demands the best, and Mameesh wouldn’t accept anything less from himself. Every project has the power to elevate or undermine his career, he said, so a home isn’t finished until he says it is.
“It takes years to build a reputation and only seconds to destroy it,” he said.
Listing agent: Gloria Smith, Sotheby’s International Realty Smith Taylor & Associates, (415) 296-2206, gloria@smithtaylorsf.com; Jon Taylor, Sotheby’s International Realty Smith Taylor & Associates, (415) 901-1713, jon@smithtaylorsf.com