DZLU MEETING DATE; February 16, 2021 (via Zoom)
1. ONGOING PROJECT UPDATES
a. 2424 POLK (at Filbert) — Cannabis Retail
The Conditional Use hearing has not been scheduled and probably won’t be for a couple of months. There has been no groundswell of opposition to the project expressed to DZLU or RHN. There were a few questions and concerns that were addressed or referred to appropriate resources. Thus, DZLU is in a “wait and see” mode.
2. ONGOING POLICY UPDATES
a. HOUSING — SF LEGISLATIVE PROPOSALS
Supervisor Rafael Mandelman has proposed two ordinances, one establishing limits on large home expansions, and a second on modifying single-family zoning. To address concerns about over-scaled “monster homes”, new construction of single-family homes over 2,500 sf would trigger conditional use (CU) review, as would expansions over 50% or beyond 2,500 sf, unless additional housing units are included. Home expansions larger than 2.500 sf would require CU approval to expand by more than 10% without adding new units. Mandelman has cited impacts of such development in areas such as Noe Valley, Dolores Heights and Glen Park.
The second ordinance would allow up to four units to be built on single-family-zoned parcels on corner lots and on lots within ½ mile of a BART or Muni Metro station, potentially impacting such areas as Glen Park, Balboa Park, Castro, West Portal and Forest Hill. Current height, bulk and design guidelines would be unchanged.
In San Francisco, most RH-1 single-family parcels are in the western and southern districts. There are far fewer RH-1 parcels in districts that are already at a higher density, such as Russian Hill. State law currently allows up to two Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) to be added to any single-family house.
Recently the city of Sacramento enacted similar modifications to its single-family zoning as did Portland and Minneapolis last year. Berkeley and South San Francisco are also taking up this issue.
DZLU will reach out to Supervisor Peskin’s office to inquire about his thinking on these proposals. DZLU will continue to follow this. Over the next 2-3 months we understand that Planning staff will analyze it and comment, with opportunity for public discussion before any legislation is routed to the Board of Supervisors.
Subsequent to our meeting, Lee Hepner (Aide to Sup. Peskin) and a DZLU representative conversed about the large home expansion issue. Lee relayed that Supervisor Peskin has not yet taken a position on this and is interested in the details regarding size thresholds and in a discussion about desirable unit size mix and about what is an appropriate home size in D3 as compared to other districts, as one size may not fit all neighborhoods. Lee kindly offered to attend a future DZLU meeting to discuss this or other issues.
b. COMMERCIAL POLICIES: SHARED SPACES PROGRAM, PARKLETS
Senator Wiener has proposed SB314, the Bar and Restaurant Recovery Act, to allow cities more flexibility in awarding liquor licenses, relaxing some provisions of state law. It would formalize use of shared space platforms for serving alcohol and allow cities to also permit restaurants to serve drinks in shared public spaces, such as in an alley serving several restaurants. It would also streamline the process for obtaining a liquor license from the state’s Alcohol and Beverage Commission.
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