supportive of a relatively small space. the atm in the lobby and the entry into the small banking floor. if we can call it that. over the years i have had a small business in a neighborhood commercial district. for many years i owend property in neighborhood commercial districts. i understand that matter both from a business operator, and from a building owner. we often get comments about the lack of diversity of small businesses and neighborhood commercial districts. eyedropper -- i grew up where

every neighborhood commercial the injured had three or four repair shops. i do not know how many of you senior have had your shoes resoled. right, one person. exactly. a couple of us old-timers. they either where more because they are better quality or they get thrown away. as you mentioned that to your teenager, but they would not know what you're talking about. certain businesses go by the wayside. if you can find one shoe repair shop along a major commercial strip today, it is a lot. it is a mix of what goes in to a commercial district that changes over the years. we all like to look back of what it was like when we grew up in various neighborhoods in san francisco. they are not the same and will not be the same and will not be

the same for my kids as my grandkids. that is just the way it is. this is a relatively small footprint. it is a local business. it is interesting, even though the code is in effect on financial institutions being under commercial formula retail, but we are now thinking of it in that manner. it is interesting this would be the first incident of it coming before -- coming to machination in any manner. i think it works. i think it will fit in. i think the fact that several businesses have tried to go into that space, including one major firm. i mean, jamba juice is no small entity. it shows it is a good fit for the neighborhood. and in case any of you were

wondering, i just got it on my blackberry. bartley east bay should be open about now. >> thank you. >> commissioner borden. >> i share my fellow commissioners thought. i wanted to do more investigation because i do believe we do not want commercial strips that are all financial institutions or retail institutions that we have controversy about retail spaces. people as said that they -- they even sound like they would love this thing. there is no way for them to do that, unless there was a code violation to shut them down. it seems hard to penalize a bank

that is admittedly a good local bank and that people like and sounds like the kind that we want to encourage. maybe if they would choose to bank at the local banks, maybe they would shop more in their neighborhood. just that street has a lot of retailers. at the same time -- it has flower shops, a lot of people with the breakfast places that are cash only. it is interesting, because that street is filled with this balance of how you have things like an apple store and then you have -- how do you go to things like the dry cleaner in your neighborhood. they have two of them.

a lot of neighborhood do not have that makes. it is interesting because what we might kick -- might think of that makes the perfect combination, it is all of those things. if you have a farmer's market, then people have to have cash. the vendors along the farmers' market always want to have cash providers. if you do not have a bank, it can be a deterrent to shopping at the farmers' market. and the issue around turnover of spaces, every neighborhood has the spaces that are cursed spaces. there are multiple restaurants or businesses that go into them. it sometimes sounds like if they

are not of a certain caliber, and businesses will cycle in and cycle out. the space -- the face of retail is changing. it is changing because of the internet. a lot of people buy things on amazon. people go to a local shop and then will find it cheaper elsewhere. where we see it most often, even within the retail space within san francisco, you see more high-end local retailers. uc local boutiques, but it is all two hundred dollars pair of jeans and $50 tops. those are the things that we are starting to see a drop the city, not so much the shoe repair or the dry cleaners that you would see of yesteryear. i do not know the answer to that question, but it is something of great concern. at the end of the day, you want to be able to go on one street in your neighborhood and by rush

rhees, stop by the bank, have lunch, go to the -- and by your groceries, stop by the bank, have lunch, go to the coffee shop. there is no one recipe as to how those things come together on one particular street because we do not control who gets to do business on a particular street. i would hope that people will support the local banks. and then the space that is turning over will be the banks that we do not like. >> commissioner sugaya. >> a question for staff. do you know what exists the next to this particular space that the conditional use it on? >> i beg your pardon? >> i would like to know what is next to this space. >> there are two stores.

one is vacant and the second is a flower shop. >> and on sanchez street? >> sanchez street -- i think 24 mail and at the corner. it does not go roundup corner. >> the zoning and there? gregg's the zoning district and behind the building. -- >> the zoning district and the behind the building. >> i asked the question because this is being touted as a fairly small space. but if -- there is the reason that if they are not successful, or whatever term you want to use, that they could not pass for expansion later on. they could come back for another cu, i suppose. and for all of the people that are saying that we are issuing a conditional use, that is not

true. we are wea cu that runs with the land. -- we are issuing a cu with the land. bankamerica could come and take over that space. >> i think it was your testimony, or testimony has been presented that you have approximately 3500 customers in the local area. >> that is correct. >> and how many are personal bankers -- that is not the right term. someone like me verses merchants. >> i do not have that number. >> of them, those that are personal bank accounts and that type of staff, could you estimate how many come in during a typical week? >> some clients come in once a

day and others once a week. it depends on how much business they have to do. >> ok, thank you. it is interesting because i have not set foot in a branch in over a year. it seems the will push for branch banking, if there is such a boat -- such a push, must because -- must be because we have chased and these other banks coming in. it seems all of the advertising is trying to get us to do on- line banking. that is what i have been doing. and if i do not combine using an atm. i just do not understand the banking business. to figure out why banks need branches in areas when they are trying to push everybody not to come into the branches in the first place. that is neither here, nor there,

i guess. necessary and desirable is a condition of the use. criteria is another. i'm not sure i'm going to vote on this quite yet. >> i have a question for the representative from the bank. 3500 people in the area, i wonder if you have a definition of the area. >> matter standing is it is the valley and the mission and the castro. >> -- my understanding is it is the valley and the mission and the castro. >> it is a medium quality, you know. it does not create traffic in the same way a restaurant or a copy shop would, but it creates more traffic than some of the other businesses mentioned, maybe like a real estate firm or something more purely office.

i do understand the concern of the neighbors that want to see something that is more bustling, more serving the everyday needs of the family. but i wonder if this cu is the right mechanism to look at stopping all of these banks. there are moratoriums on other banks in other neighborhoods in the city. also, i am impressed that this bank is a good neighbor. i think it is important to think about that. even though the formula retail legislation is not in existence yet, i think the intent of that legislation is around chase, bank of america, are around trying to keep businesses that are not good neighbors out of our neighborhoods. hearing about first republic's connection to the neighborhood it makes me feel that this cu

may be more appropriate. although, that is an interesting point around the land. i am leaning toward voting for the project, but i'm interested to hear what the commissioners have to say. >> of the larger scale of neighborhoods and commercial district planning, i am concerned about those that start to build down the neighborhood districts. -- dole down the neighboring districts. -- dull down the neighborhood districts. on the weekends, people basically scare into empty space with some lighting and sunlamps with the fact that customers are

being given cookies or whatever it's a nice gesture, but it does not detract from the fact that they are not the equivalent of stores. i am concerned about this phenomenon before. this particular branch could pick up a corner location. corner locations are particularly important for small-scale stores, which have the ability to advertise themselves from two corners. while there is a history that this location has not been very successful, i generally do not believe that branch banks or real-estate offices should occupy corner locations. i have said that before and again and again and i feel strongly about that. indeed, it allows the smaller business units that extra exposure with small non-branded store needs.

across the transit stop where the small coffee shop, a small bookstore, a library or a newspaper stand would be a much more appropriate use at the square. i believe that if you are going along and getting a stronger hand all on formula retail then we will develop a criteria for which these spaces can consider each other. within 300 ft. or 500 ft. there can be no additional other. to hear that they block five or six other institutions i find unacceptable. the majority of the people i know, young, old and in between, the majority do banking online. and even the depositing of checks occurs in an anonymous way because all atm's take the

check without even looking into your face. it just verifies that you are the signer of the check. the only thing that atm's do not take its cash, but that is what people do not generally carry around with them anyway. i am in support of the first republic finding a location where there is not a preponderance of many other banks. it is, for me, not within this half block radius. opportunity, i hope the community itself contains solid relationships with first republic. and that as a vacancy occurs and another bank leaves, they will be the first to come in. at this moment, though, i believe based on the definition that the other commissioners

gave us, i cannot approve the institution of another bank in this neighborhood. >> i just want to clarify that a new formula used would have to come back for a conditional use. other types of conditional uses do have to run with the land. but a new formula retail use would always have to come back to you for a cu. if it were another bank, there would have to come to you for a formula of retail, for a cu. >> thank you. commissioner antonini. >> a couple of things to emphasize in this discussion, the size of this particular branch is more important than its location, whether on a corner or not. it is very small. this makes a lot of sense because you do not need the size of branch banks that were used to have in the past. and to their credit, the bank of

america went into a smaller unit, which seems to work well, and the rest of the place was developed from a surface lot into a conduit of development with a couple of nice restaurant and a grocery store. the size is important to me that it is fitting their needs. when i go banking six days a week, or my staff certainly goes -- and a lot of times i go because i do not trust the machines. i would rather have a person to take it and give me a deposit slip. i sometimes do not trust myself to perhaps enter the thing wrong in an atm or something. that is one of the reasons. and i do remember relationships as a kid with banks. at a past bank i was happy to go to the bank and put a couple of bucks in there and see that i had a little bit more money in

my savings account. i do remember those experiences. and i do believe we have a giants game. i'm aware of that. and i will be at the u.s. open tomorrow and over the weekend. and one more thing, i do go to the top there often. my feet are not -- i do go to the cobbler often. my feet are not getting any bigger, and i do need repair. they do a good job. >> we do have to not mistake our own banking habits with that of others. i was always shocked, particularly on the weekends on chestnut street -- my fiancee always goes into the branch and always waits in line. you have citibank, bank of america, and chase all next door to each other and they all have lines on the weekend. in the marina, people use their

banks. i personally hate to go into the bank. wild horses in chains cannot take me inside a branch. a lot of other people, for whatever reason -- because of age, because of their confidence in banking, etc. and of course, merchants, they have to deposit every single day. while our trend is moving in a particular direction for a lot of people, there are tons of other people who still prefer to go into branches. it sounds like first republic, what i've heard about it is that it is the kind of bank that knows your name we always talk about the uses that we want verses their uses we do not want. we can encourage people to use the uses that we do what and you can create the city that you want by rewarding the good actors and pushing out the bad ones. >> i just want to make a comment

about the idea that chains and a formula of retail and what not can contribute to neighborhood commercial areas. i think it only works because san francisco has recognized the issue with formula of retail and has recognized the issue of other kinds of uses and has imposed fairly strict regulations and controls. otherwise, we would be in situations where i was reading, for example, some commentator from york where they regretted certain neighborhoods in new york where they did not have stronger controls because now there are nothing but financial institutions, banks, brokerages, and other financial

institutions in a given neighborhood. and in a publication out of london commenting about london neighborhoods being overrun by banks and other financial institutions, i think that's what happened here -- i think that what happens here is by having strict regulations and controls, we tip the balance, hopefully in favor of small businesses and other businesses that are trying to struggle against well-capitalized and well-funded formula retail establishments. it is not to say that we have to deny them all. because frankly, we have not denied very many formula retail establishments, as i can a member. american apparel is the only one i can think of that we took a stand against as far as formula retail. maybe batteries plus at one

time. almost everything comes before this commission before it is approved. i do not think we should be looked at as obstructionist or that kind of thing. >> i think that the success of the individual businesses in san francisco is not from the controls, but rather from the fact that we have tastes that lend themselves to new businesses and unique businesses, and to some degree, because of the pedestrian traffic of our city where people are walking from banking and other activities and macy's stores and businesses and a check them out. -- and they see stores and businesses and a check that out. sometimes these businesses are victims of their own success and they become formula retail. they become desirable. that is actually a success story, where you have more than

10 branches. that happens a lot in san francisco. formula retail of banks and other institutions, clothing, many of them are based in san francisco. i will move to approve this conditional use. >> second. if i could just make a couple of comments. i think this is a good conversation we are having. it is one of the first of many to come. i think this commission will find its way through this. from my personal perspective, this gives us an opportunity to look at every location. if this is truly saturation, then we have the opportunity to do that. given the pedestrian account and the activity on this particular block, one basically every block is a lot, but not excessive.

i'm always curious about people who are opposed. what banks, if any, do you use? i'm assuming that most people live in san francisco are using some kind of bank. maybe your bank already exists on that block and maybe that is why you are ok with what is already there. anyway, if you could call the question. >> the motion is on the floor for approval as proposed. commissioner antonini aye. commissioner borden: aye. commissioner wu: aye. commissioner sugaya: no. commissioners, you are now on item 14. 2299 market street. at the beginning of the hearing i announced that supervisor

wiener had requested a continuance of this item we were talking about july 19th initially. the staff planner is not here on that date. then we were talking about july 12th. i do not know if a new date has been proposed for this hearing, but it is up for continuance. >> i would move continuance of item 14 to july 12th. >> second. >> should we have public comment? >> i will ask for public comment. any public comment on this item? project sponsor, are you here on the 12th? does that work out for you? >> commissioners, yes, july 12th the works for us if it works for

the commission. >> ok, thank you. >> if there is no public comment, the motion is on the floor for a continuance. to continue to july 12th. this item is continued to july 12th. commissioners, you are now on item number 15. case #20 12.0084db 42735 through 2737 baker street. -- for 273532737 baker street. >> i need to recuse myself. -- 2735 through 2737 baker street. >> i need to recuse myself. it is close to where i am.

>> i need a motion for recusal. >> the move. greg second. -- >> second. commissioner fong israel -- commissioner fong is reduced. -- recused. >> i was absent at the meeting previously, but i did watch the video over the weekend. it was quite exciting. [laughter] i did fill myself and on the proceedings from the last hearing. >> thank you very much for that. >> good afternoon, commissioners. mary woods of the department staff. at your first hearing on may 10th, the commission made a

motion and continue the item on today's date and asked a few changes be made on the project. the project sponsor made most of the changes. the department's recommendation is to take d.r. and approve with modifications. if you have any questions, here to answer them. -- i am here to answer them. >> project sponsor? >> what? oh, excuse me. it is a d.r. requestor. >> thank you, commissioners. steve williams. as a reminder, i recommend -- represent the family who lives in the