San Francisco Land Use Committee Meeting - February 12, 2024
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San Francisco Land Use and Transportation Committee Regular Meeting – February 12, 2024
The Land Use and Transportation Committee of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors met on February 12, 2024, at 9:45 AM. Chair Mirna Melgar presided, joined by President Aaron Peskin and Vice Chair Dean Preston. The committee considered six agenda items, including landmark designations, housing special use districts, accessory dwelling unit (ADU) regulations, and density controls. One item was passed to the full board, three were continued to future meetings, and one was amended and continued to the call of the chair.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Barry Threw (Executive Director, Gray Area Foundation for the Arts) spoke in support of landmarking the Grand Theater, noting the building generates 137 jobs, $7 million in local income, and $240,000 in local tax revenue, and that the organization distributes $1.8 million directly to artists annually.
- Eileen Bogan urged the committee to table or oppose the Family and Senior Housing Opportunity SUD (Item 3), calling it premature and noting the Gus's Market project is not widely supported in District 4.
- Chris Ward Klein deferred to the committee's judgment on Item 3.
- Stan Hayes (President, Telegraph Hill Dwellers) strongly supported Item 6, citing developer proposals for 267-foot towers at 955 Sansome and 206-foot towers at 1088 Sansome in a district zoned for 65–84 feet.
- Jake Price (Housing Action Coalition) opposed Item 6, calling it a downzoning that would undermine housing affordability.
- Jane Natoli (SF YIMBY) also opposed Item 6, arguing it would set a bad precedent for housing production.
Discussion Items
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Item 1 – Grand Theater Landmark Designation (231257): Anna Herrera (Supervisor Ronan's office) and Pilar Lavalle (Planning Department) presented. The Historic Preservation Commission unanimously recommended designation on November 15, 2023. The theater, built in 1940, is the last pre–World War II movie theater in San Francisco. Public comment was uniformly supportive. The committee voted 3-0 to send the ordinance to the full board with a positive recommendation.
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Item 2 – Sacred Heart Parish Complex Landmark Designation (231045): President Peskin requested a continuance to allow further stakeholder negotiations over draft language. The property owner and preservationists agreed. The committee voted 3-0 to continue to the February 26, 2024 meeting.
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Item 3 – Family and Senior Housing Opportunity Special Use District (230808): Supervisor Engardio presented the amendments, which would allow larger buildings on corner lots in western neighborhoods. Debate centered on the ownership look-back period (five-year vs. one-year) and tenant protections. President Peskin argued for retaining the original five-year/one-year split to discourage speculation. Deputy City Attorney Pearson advised that amendments could not be finalized without further review. The committee voted 3-0 to continue to February 26, 2024.
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Item 4 – State-Mandated ADU Controls (240110): President Peskin introduced amendments to limit the hybrid ADU program to two units (instead of three), add California Register eligibility, and create a 60-day approval timeline for the local program to incentivize rent-controlled ADUs. The committee voted 3-0 to adopt the amendments and then 3-0 to continue the item to the call of the chair while the Building Inspection Commission reviews the 60-day provision.
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Item 5 – Density Calculation in RC, RTO, NC, and Certain NCDs (230734): President Peskin noted that form-based density decontrols could produce towers far exceeding height limits, citing a hypothetical 267-foot tower in a 65-foot zone. He proposed amendments to tie density to existing height limits and require affordability for density above base. Chair Melgar moved to continue to March 4, 2024, to allow time for amendment drafting. The committee voted 3-0 to continue.
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Item 6 – Density Controls in Community Business Districts (231079): President Peskin presented amendments to reinstate numerical density limits in the Northeast Waterfront Historic District and Jackson Square Historic District, reversing unintended consequences of the downtown adaptive reuse legislation. The planning commission had recommended this approach on January 18, 2024. Chair Melgar expressed philosophical opposition, arguing it set a dangerous precedent for exempting non-equity areas from density bonuses. The committee voted 3-0 to adopt the amendments, then voted 2-1 (Chair Melgar dissenting) to send the amended ordinance to the full board with a positive recommendation.
Key Outcomes
- Item 1 passed 3-0 to the full board (February 27, 2024 agenda).
- Item 2 continued 3-0 to February 26, 2024.
- Item 3 continued 3-0 to February 26, 2024.
- Item 4 amended and continued 3-0 to the call of the chair.
- Item 5 continued 3-0 to March 4, 2024.
- Item 6 amended and passed 2-1 (Melgar dissenting) to the full board.
Meeting Transcript
Good afternoon, everyone. This meeting will come to order. Welcome to the February 12th, 2024 regular meeting of the Land Use and Transportation Committee of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. I'm Supervisor Mirna Melgar, Chair of the Committee joined by the Board of Supervisors President Aaron Peskin and Vice Chair Dean Preston. The committee clerk today is John Carroll and uh James Kawana is supporting us with SFGov TV. Thank you, James. Uh Mr. Clerk, do you have any announcements? Yes, thank you, Madam Chair. Please ensure that you've silenced your cell phones and other electronic devices you may have brought with you into the chamber today. If you have any documents to include as part of any of the files on today's agenda, please bring them to the front rail. I'll meet you up front and I'll add those to the file. Public comment will be taken on each item on today's agenda when your item of interest comes up and public comment is called. Please line up to speak along your right-hand side of the room. Alternatively, you may submit public comment in writing in either of the following ways. First, you may email your written comment to me. My email address is J-O-H-N, period C-A-R-R-O-L-L at SFGO V dot or G. Or you may send your written comments via U.S. Postal Service to our office in City Hall. That's the clerk's office, room 244, and City Hall's address is one Dr. Carlton B. Goodlit Place, San Francisco, California 94102. If you submit public comment in writing, I will forward your comments to the supervisors on this panel and also include your comments as part of the file upon which you are commenting. And finally, Madam Chair, items acted upon today are expected to appear on the Board of Supervisors' agenda of February 27th, 2024, unless otherwise stated. Thank you so much, Mr. Clerk. Please call item number one. Agenda item number one is an ordinance amending the planning code to designate the grand theater located at 2665 mission as a landmark consistent with the standards set forth in Article 10 of the Planning Code, affirming the planning department's CEQ determination and making public convenience necessity and welfare findings under planning code section 302 and findings of consistency with the general plan and the priority policies in section 101.1. Thank you, Mr. Clerk. Uh we are now joined by Anna Herrera from Supervisor Ronan's office, the sponsor of this legislation. Welcome, Ms. Herrera. Good afternoon, Chair Mongar and Supervisors Preston and Peskin. Anna Herrera on behalf of Supervisor Ronan. I'm here to highlight our strong support of recognizing this historic theater, the uh the grand theater in the mission for landmarking status. The grand theater's location in the mission corridor and Calle Bentiquatro Cultural District are significant as this theater, including its marquee, is a treasured community asset going back to its early days operating as a single-screen movie theater for working class families. While other historic theaters in the mission have been demolished or turned into parking lots, this theater has continued to be in community use thanks to the gray area, a nonprofit digital arts organization that has been a fantastic steward of the Grand Theater since their arrival ten years ago today. It would be great to keep the momentum for the grand theater going with your support for landmarking today. Thank you to Pilar Lavalle from planning and Barry Through and the rest of the gray area team. Thank you, Ms. Herrera. Welcome, Ms. Lavalli. Hi, thank you. Could I have the slides from the laptop, please? Thank you. Good afternoon, Chair Melgar. Um, Supervisors Preston and Peskin. I'm Pilar Lavalli, Planning Department staff.
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