San Francisco Land Use and Transportation Committee Meeting - June 17, 2024
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San Francisco Land Use and Transportation Committee Regular Meeting - June 17, 2024
The Land Use and Transportation Committee of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors held its regular meeting on Monday, June 17, 2024. Chair Myrna Melgar presided, joined by President Aaron Peskin and Vice Chair Dean Preston. The committee unanimously advanced all four agenda items to the full Board: a landmark tree designation, a commemorative street name, a Polk Street legacy business zoning exception, and a Tenderloin retail hours restriction pilot. The clerk announced that the June 24, 2024 meeting is canceled and the next regular meeting will be July 1, 2024. Items acted upon are expected to appear on the Board of Supervisors agenda of June 25, 2024.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Item 1 (Coast Redwood landmark): Brian Wiedmeyer of Friends of the Urban Forest expressed strong support, noting the tree was planted in 1962, is healthy, and is highly visible on the crooked street. Other public speakers also supported landmarking, while one speaker raised unrelated comments about trees and carbon dioxide.
- Item 2 (Dr. Howard Thurman Way): Many speakers supported the commemorative street name, including Anton Wong (grandson of Dr. Thurman), Reverend Dr. Dorsey Blake, Chuck Collins, Noah Griffin, Aaron Grizzell, Carol Verberg, and representatives of the Church for the Fellowship of All Peoples, Russian Hill Neighbors, and Morehouse College. They described Dr. Thurman's legacy as a theologian, mentor to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and co-founder of the nation's first interracial, interfaith congregation.
- Item 3 (Polk Street legacy businesses): Rebecca Ahn and her daughter Ayan, of Bob's Donuts, spoke in support of the proposed exception, describing their family business's long history and role in the neighborhood.
- Item 4 (Tenderloin retail hours): Public comment was split but largely supportive. Supporters included Tenderloin residents, Tenderloin Community Benefit District, Central City SRO Collaborative, Lower Polk Community Benefit District, Mid-Market Community Benefit District, and UC Law San Francisco. They argued that all-night stores attract open drug activity and endanger residents. Some merchants, including Mohammed of Plaza Snacks, expressed concern about the two-year term and midnight closure, suggesting 2 a.m. to 5 a.m. instead. The Tenderloin People's Congress supported Supervisor Preston's amendments but cautioned against restricting late-night food access for SRO residents. A petition of 521 signatures in support of the original pilot was cited.
Discussion Items
Item 1 - Landmark Tree Designation (File 240640)
The committee considered an ordinance designating the Coast Redwood at 4 Montclair Terrace as a landmark tree. President Peskin stated the Urban Forestry Council unanimously recommended the designation and highlighted the tree's visibility on a popular tourism street. After public comment, the committee voted.
Item 2 - Commemorative Street Name 'Dr. Howard Thurman Way' (File 240213)
President Peskin introduced the resolution to add the commemorative street name to the 2020 block of Stockton Street, honoring Dr. Howard Thurman's San Francisco legacy. Supervisors Preston and Melgar requested to be added as co-sponsors. After public comment, the committee voted.
Item 3 - Planning Code - Polk Street Neighborhood Commercial District (File 240411)
The ordinance would create an exception for legacy businesses to allow storefront mergers and larger restaurant uses in the Polk Street NCD. President Peskin explained it would help Bob's Donuts, a legacy business run by the Ahn family since 1977, relocate and expand one block from its current location. Planning Department staff Veronica Flores reported that the Planning Commission recommended approval with modifications: removing the prohibition on storefront mergers, conditionally permitting use sizes 2,500 square feet or greater, and removing the 4,000-square-foot non-residential use cap. After public comment, the committee voted.
Item 4 - Police Code - Tenderloin Retail Hours Restriction Pilot Program (File 240407)
SFPD Commander Derek Liu presented the mayor's proposed two-year pilot, which would prohibit certain retail food and tobacco establishments in a bounded high-crime area of the Tenderloin from being open between midnight and 5 a.m. The Department of Public Health could impose administrative fines of up to $1,000 per hour of violation; violations would be declared a public nuisance, the city attorney could enforce, and a private right of action was included. Liu showed photographs of nighttime crowds at Plaza Snacks (77 McAllister) and described a cycle of crime, debris, and daily 3:30 a.m. cleanups. Supervisor Preston described negotiated amendments: exempting ABC-regulated corner stores (allowing them to stay open until 2 a.m.), requiring business outreach and enhanced neighborhood services, requiring a six-month report, calling for enforcement of existing illegal conduct, and modifying the private right of action. He moved the amendments with a technical change on page 5, line 2. The committee then acted on the amended original and a duplicated file.
Key Outcomes
- Item 1: Motion to recommend the ordinance to the full Board with a positive recommendation passed unanimously (3-0).
- Item 2: Motion to recommend the resolution passed unanimously (3-0); Supervisors Preston and Melgar were added as co-sponsors.
- Item 3: Motion to recommend the ordinance passed unanimously (3-0).
- Item 4: Supervisor Preston's amendment (as modified) passed unanimously (3-0). The motion to send the amended original to the full Board as a committee report and continue the duplicated file to the July 1, 2024 committee meeting to finalize the private right of action language also passed unanimously (3-0).
Meeting Transcript
Okay. Good afternoon, everyone. This meeting will come to order. Welcome to the June 17th, 2024 regular meeting of the land use and transportation committee of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. I am Supervisor Myrna Melgar, Chair of the Committee, joined by Board of Supervisors President Aaron Peskin and Vice Chair Dean Preston. The committee clerk today is John Carroll. And I would also like to thank Eugene Libadia at SFGov TV for staffing this meeting. 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 that you've brought with you into the chamber today. If you have any documents to include as part of any of today's files, you can submit them to me by bringing them forward to the rail, and I'll meet you at the rail. 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 this room. I'm pointing it out with my left hand. Alternatively, you may submit public comment in writing in either of the following ways. You may first email them to me. My email address is J-O-H-N period C-A-R-R-O-L-L at SFGOV.org. Or you may send your written comments via U.S. Postal Service to our office in City Hall. The address is one Dr. Carlton B. Goodlick Place, Room 244, San Francisco, California, 94102. If you submit public comment in writing, it will be forwarded to the members of this committee and also included as part of the official file upon which you are commenting. I've received word from the chair that we're going to be canceling next week's meeting. So land use and transportation will not be meeting on Monday, June 24th, 2024. But we will return the following week on July 1st. And items acted upon today are expected to appear on the Board of Supervisors agenda of June 25th, 2024, unless otherwise stated. Okay. Thank you so much, Mr. Clerk. Please call item number one. Agenda item number one is an ordinance designated the Coast Redwood tree located at 4 Montclair Terrace as a landmark tree pursuant to the public works code, making findings supporting the designation and directing official acts in furtherance of landmark tree designation. Okay. Thank you, Chair Melgar. After following the unanimous recommendation of the Urban Forestry Council, uh, as set forth in the documents in our packet, uh that indicate that this tree meets all of the criteria set forth under the uh ordinance to landmark trees relative to rarity, physical attributes, environmental uh, and particularly given that this tree is located in one of the most popular tourism destinations in San Francisco along the crooked street, where it is heavily visible, uh highly visible to uh individuals that come to that uh iconic part of San Francisco. Um I recommend this item to you, and there are members of the public from Friends of the Urban Forest and others uh who will extol the virtues of this ordinance okay. Do you want is that Brian gonna make a presentation? Oh, uh yes. Yes. Come on up. This one here. Okay. Oh, good afternoon. Um, Mrs. J was passionate about being a citizen. Wait, wait, hold on just a second. Are you doing public comment? Oh, we may we may hear from the Bureau of Urban Forestry if Mr. Cross.
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