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Record of Proceedings

San Francisco Land Use & Transportation Committee Meeting - March 23, 2026: Landmark Designations for 18 Properties

Land Use and Transportation CommitteeMonday, March 23, 2026
BodySan Francisco, California
SessionLand Use and Transportation Committee
DateMonday, March 23, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 20:04

Transcript — Verbatim
0:07

Good afternoon, everyone.

0:08

The meeting will come to order.

0:09

Welcome to the March 23rd, 2026 regular meeting of the Land Use and Transportation Committee of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors.

0:18

I'm Supervisor Mirna Melgar, Chair of the Committee, joined by Vice Chair Cheyenne Chen and Supervisor Bilal Mahmoud.

0:25

The committee clerk is Mr.

0:26

John Carroll.

0:35

Mr.

0:35

Clerk, do we have any announcements?

0:37

Yes, thank you, Madam Chair.

0:38

Please ensure you've silenced your cell phones and other electronic devices you brought with you into the chamber today.

0:42

If you have any documents to be included as part of any of today's files, you can submit them directly to me.

0:46

Public comment will be taken on each item on today's agenda.

0:49

When your item of interest comes up in public comment is called, please sign up to speak along your right-hand side.

0:54

Alternatively, you may submit your public comment and writing in either of the following ways.

0:58

First, you may send your written comments to me at J-O-H-N period C-A-R-R-O-L-L at SFGOV.org.

1:05

Or you may send your written comments by U.S.

1:07

Postal Service to our office in City Hall.

1:09

The address is one, Dr.

1:10

Carlton B Goodlit Place, Room 244, San Francisco, California, 94102.

1:17

Items acted upon today are expected to appear on the Board of Supervisors Agenda of April 7th, 2026, unless otherwise stated.

1:25

Okay, Mr.

1:26

Clerk.

1:29

Take a deep breath and call items one through 18 together, please.

1:34

Agenda item numbers 1 through 18 are 18 resolutions initiating landmark designations under Article 10 of the planning code for the following properties.

1:42

First, the Century Club of California, located at 1355 Franklin.

1:47

Religious School for the Congregation Emanuel slash Grayborn Press Building, located at 1335, 1337 Sutter.

1:56

Third, the Inverness Garage, located at 1565 Bush.

2:00

Fourth, the Alan Weaver Durant Smith Auto Showroom, located at 1625 Van Ness.

2:07

Fifth, the First Church of Christ Scientists located at 1700 Franklin.

2:13

Sixth, the Golden Gate Spiritualist Church, located at 1901 Franklin.

2:18

Seventh, the Pacific States Telephone and Telegraph Company slash National Urban League, located at 2015 Steiner.

2:26

Eighth, Mr.

2:27

Cudworth's house, located at 2032 to 2040 Union.

2:32

Ninth, the Upper Fillmore storefronts, located at 2035 to 2047 Fillmore.

2:38

10th, the Lincoln Grill, located at 2049 to 2051 Fillmore.

2:43

11th, the first AME Zion Church, located at 2155 to 2159 Golden Gate.

2:50

Twelfth, the International Institute, located at 2209 Van Ness.

2:55

13th, the Presidio Theater, located at 2336 to 2346 Chestnut Street.

3:02

14th, the Arthur Castle Home, located at 2402 Steiner.

3:07

15th, Hannibal Lodge No.

3:09

1, located at 2804 Bush.

3:12

16th, the Bridge Theater, located at 3008 Geary.

3:17

17th, the Vogue, located at 3290 Sacramento.

3:21

And 18th, Mel's Diner, located at 3355 Geary.

3:26

These 18 items by prior arrangement are on our agenda as a potential committee report and may be sent for consideration tomorrow by the Board of Supervisors that's on the board agenda for March 24th, 2026.

3:39

Okay.

3:40

Thank you very much.

3:41

So we have uh Mr.

3:44

Alex Westop here to do the presentation.

3:47

Did you want to say something first, Lorenzo?

3:54

Thank you.

3:55

Good afternoon, Chalmark Melgar, Vice Chair Chen, Member Chahmoud, and Clerk Carroll for your flawless reading.

4:02

I'm happy to be here on behalf of Supervisor Cheryl.

4:04

I will attempt to be brief to talk about the slate of resolutions that will initiate landmark designations for 18 properties.

4:10

Uh these resolutions are the product of several months of community outreach, work with the historic preservation team and conversations around the family zoning plan during its adoption late last year.

4:19

And the properties in front of you include some very cherished buildings across every nearly every neighborhood in District 2.

4:24

And so above all, I just want to say Supervisor Cheryl and I are extremely grateful for the work done by the planning department's preservationist team to analyze our category A's and engage our constituents about the landmark process, namely Alex, who you will hear from right now.

4:39

So we look forward to continuing to work with you, Alex, and the preservationist team at planning.

4:43

With that, committee members, thank you again for hearing these items today.

4:47

Um I hope to have your support in sending these to the full full board with positive recommendations.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Historic Preservation█████████████████████████████████████████████74%
Procedural██████████████23%
Land Use██3%
Summary of Proceedings

San Francisco Land Use & Transportation Committee Meeting - March 23, 2026

Meeting called to order at 9:45 AM. Chair Supervisor Mirna Melgar presided, joined by Vice Chair Cheyenne Chen and Supervisor Bilal Mahmoud. Clerk John Carroll made announcements regarding public comment procedures and submission of documents. Items acted upon are expected to appear on the Board of Supervisors Agenda of April 7, 2026, unless otherwise stated.

Consent Calendar

  • Agenda items 1 through 18 were 18 resolutions initiating landmark designations under Article 10 of the Planning Code for properties in District 2. These were presented as a consent calendar for a committee report and were considered together.

Discussion Items

  • Presentation by Planning Department staff: Alex Westhoff presented the 18 properties, explaining they are part of the Family Zoning Plan Landmark program. He noted the effort to align housing growth with historic preservation. The properties include: Century Club of California (1355 Franklin), Religious School for Congregation Emanuel/Grabhorn Press Building (1335-1337 Sutter), Inverness Garage (1565 Bush), Alan Weaver Durant Smith Auto Showroom (1625 Van Ness), First Church of Christ Scientists (1700 Franklin), Golden Gate Spiritualist Church (1901 Franklin), Pacific States Telephone and Telegraph Company/National Urban League (2015 Steiner), Mr. Cudworth's House (2032-2040 Union), Upper Fillmore Storefronts (2035-2047 Fillmore), Lincoln Grill (2049-2051 Fillmore), First AME Zion Church (2155-2159 Golden Gate), International Institute (2209 Van Ness), Presidio Theater (2336-2346 Chestnut), Arthur Castle Home (2402 Steiner), Hannibal Lodge No. 1 (2804 Bush), Bridge Theater (3008 Geary), Vogue (3290 Sacramento), and Mel's Diner (3355 Geary). Westhoff described each property's architectural, historical, or cultural significance. He noted that public forums were held in January and subsequent conversations with property owners occurred.
  • Statements by Supervisor's representative: Lorenzo, on behalf of Supervisor Cheryl, expressed gratitude for the work of the planning department and the preservation team, and requested committee support to send the items to the full board with positive recommendations.
  • Chair's remarks: Supervisor Melgar expressed support for the landmarks, noting they honor people and places that have made cultural and architectural contributions. She also highlighted the connection to the city's family rezoning legislation and the importance of additional strategies such as community stabilization, small business protections, and anti-displacement efforts.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • No public speakers signed up. Public comment was closed.

Key Outcomes

  • Motion: Chair Melgar moved to send items 1 through 18 to the full Board of Supervisors with a positive recommendation as committee reports.
  • Vote: Vice Chair Chen (aye), Member Mahmoud (aye), Chair Melgar (aye). Motion passed unanimously (3-0).
  • Next meeting: The committee will not meet the following week (spring break) and will reconvene on Monday, April 6, 2026.
  • Meeting adjourned.

Meeting Transcript

Good afternoon, everyone. The meeting will come to order. Welcome to the March 23rd, 2026 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 Vice Chair Cheyenne Chen and Supervisor Bilal Mahmoud. The committee clerk is Mr. John Carroll. Mr. Clerk, do we have any announcements? Yes, thank you, Madam Chair. Please ensure you've silenced your cell phones and other electronic devices you brought with you into the chamber today. If you have any documents to be included as part of any of today's files, you can submit them directly to me. Public comment will be taken on each item on today's agenda. When your item of interest comes up in public comment is called, please sign up to speak along your right-hand side. Alternatively, you may submit your public comment and writing in either of the following ways. First, you may send your written comments to me at J-O-H-N period C-A-R-R-O-L-L at SFGOV.org. Or you may send your written comments by U.S. Postal Service to our office in City Hall. The address is one, Dr. Carlton B Goodlit Place, Room 244, San Francisco, California, 94102. Items acted upon today are expected to appear on the Board of Supervisors Agenda of April 7th, 2026, unless otherwise stated. Okay, Mr. Clerk. Take a deep breath and call items one through 18 together, please. Agenda item numbers 1 through 18 are 18 resolutions initiating landmark designations under Article 10 of the planning code for the following properties. First, the Century Club of California, located at 1355 Franklin. Religious School for the Congregation Emanuel slash Grayborn Press Building, located at 1335, 1337 Sutter. Third, the Inverness Garage, located at 1565 Bush. Fourth, the Alan Weaver Durant Smith Auto Showroom, located at 1625 Van Ness. Fifth, the First Church of Christ Scientists located at 1700 Franklin. Sixth, the Golden Gate Spiritualist Church, located at 1901 Franklin. Seventh, the Pacific States Telephone and Telegraph Company slash National Urban League, located at 2015 Steiner. Eighth, Mr. Cudworth's house, located at 2032 to 2040 Union. Ninth, the Upper Fillmore storefronts, located at 2035 to 2047 Fillmore. 10th, the Lincoln Grill, located at 2049 to 2051 Fillmore. 11th, the first AME Zion Church, located at 2155 to 2159 Golden Gate. Twelfth, the International Institute, located at 2209 Van Ness. 13th, the Presidio Theater, located at 2336 to 2346 Chestnut Street. 14th, the Arthur Castle Home, located at 2402 Steiner. 15th, Hannibal Lodge No. 1, located at 2804 Bush. 16th, the Bridge Theater, located at 3008 Geary. 17th, the Vogue, located at 3290 Sacramento. And 18th, Mel's Diner, located at 3355 Geary. These 18 items by prior arrangement are on our agenda as a potential committee report and may be sent for consideration tomorrow by the Board of Supervisors that's on the board agenda for March 24th, 2026. Okay. Thank you very much. So we have uh Mr. Alex Westop here to do the presentation. Did you want to say something first, Lorenzo?

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