SF MOMA TO EXPAND

Carol Vogel reports in the New York Times_ that despite the economy, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art is going ahead with plans to double its gallery space and consolidate its offices, 60 percent of which are now housed off-site. Plans for the museum’s expansion call for a new wing on a site to the southwest of its existing 1995 building, which was designed by the Swiss architect Mario Botta. The location is on a dead-end street that incorporates a small building the museum bought two years ago. Although Arthur Gensler, founder of the architectural firm that bears his name and vice chairman of the museum’s board, has created an initial plan, museum officials refuse to say how much they estimate the project will cost to build and operate. “It’s essential we take things one step at a time,” said Neal Benezra, the museum’s director. “We want to define our plans to the city and get our ducks in a row.”