discretionary review application. staff made copies of all materials that had been submitted by the d-r requestor and submitted those to the commission. those go up on our website, the entire planning commission packet goes on our website the friday before the hearing. and the appellant would have had that time to review that if there are things that they warranted to add, they could have added that at the hearing. ~ wanted as stated. there were technical difficulties as we see tonight with the presentation, but those are beyond the control of the department. so, if there are any questions, thank you. >> i have a quick question. before inspector duffy. i'm curious about the proposed alternatives that were presenteded as part of the appellant's suggestions. maybe i should wait until -- did you have more on rebuttal? okay, could you -- that's for you, right?

what did you think as possible alternatives to what the permit currently allows? >> in regards to -- >> the shielding, i don't know what you call it, the half glass that would create more barrier -- >> it's not required by the building code. if they wanted to agree to something like that, it's okay with us. more than the code asks is okay, but it would be -- >> that wouldn't create any issues from your standpoint? >> building, no, maybe planning. i don't think there's any fire protection required on the side there because it's the side of the roof. it's only property lines. >> it is at the property line. >> no, but the ones that go up on the side of the roof wouldn't be required because that's, that's -- >> no, the alternative being

done is to raise the height -- create a barrier above the 42 inch parapet. >> you can do that. in answer to your question, if you want to make a firewall higher than 42 inches, you can do that. that would be okay. >> okay. >> if they want that. >> great. >> one thing i was going to say in rebuttal, i might as well say it that i'm up here now. i was wondering who did the work without the permit. was it these people or the previous owner? that's not clear to me. it doesn't really matter, but i just think that's, you know, when you go ahead and do this without a permit, it kind of says something, you know. it's pretty daring, i suppose, but to open up your roof and just create a deck. okay, thank you. >> that leads me to my next -- >> the permit holder? >> they talked about the previous -- not getting the notice that they were out of

the country. whenever we stop the job for work without a permit, we actually write the notice of violation and post it at the site and stop that work at that area. so, the contractors knew about it whether they didn't tell the owner of the property who was out of the country, that's not building department's problem. it does take the city assessor's office a little while to update its records in regards to owners whenever a property changes hands. so, the notice may have been posted to the previous owner, but by all means, the department of building inspection issued a stop work order, a written stop work order for that work that was done without a permit. >> that leads me to my next question. so, if they did this work without a permit and nov was issued previously, there was a nonpermitted unit in the building. so, are there associated permits or permits associated with that in removing that and bringing the house into compliance? >> yes, i think that was a voluntary -- >> thank you, mr. san che, he's answering for you.

~ sanchez >> thank you, mr. duffy. >> thank you. commissioner [speaker not understood]? >> [inaudible]. i'm sorry the neighbors don't like each other. the issue, however, is really one of what is code com politev, ~ compliant, what is property rights. i don't see that this particular deck and the opening creates a huge problem that we would revoke or rescind the permit. i'm afraid -- i'm not going in that direction.

>> i don't know what to say. >> it feels like there were some hiccups along the way. but i agree if it's code compliant now, then i don't have an issue with it. >> commissioner, just as a reminder, this is the release of suspension request. so, it's an error or piece of discretion standard here. >> i'm sorry? >> the zoning administrator determination so the standard would be discretion. >> based on what i've heard, i think i would make a motion that we uphold the suspension -- the release of suspension and find there was no abuse of discretionary error on the part of the zoning administrator. >> i, too, am leaning to that. i'm sorry that neighbors are not getting along here. the benefit here is that they're investors and you won't have to deal with them after.

and then unfortunately after hearing both sides, i believe that the zoning administrator is correct in his decision and i am also -- >> that was a motion? >> >> [speaker not understood]. >> we have a motion from commissioner hurtado to uphold the zoning administrator's release of suspension request on the basis that he did not err or abuse his discretion. on that motion, commissioner fung? >> aye. >> commissioner [speaker not understood]? >> aye. >> commissioner honda? >> aye. >> thank you. the vote is 5 to 0, the za's order is upheld. >> okay, thank you. so, commissioners, we can return to item number 9. i just want to [speaker not understood] might be parked in the underground garage, i believe it closes at midnight.

>> okay. was there a resolution? no, there was not, but we would really like to negotiate an agreement. we've come up with new language for the use restrictions, but they wanted to put it on record tonight, but we really need to have our attorney look at it and bring it back to the homeowners. so, we'd really like to come back and negotiate an agreement and get a continuance. for next week. ~ >> yeah, i'd love to know how far apart you are because i'm inclined to make a ruling tonight. could you please -- whoever is representing the current holder. how far apart are you? do you have a conceptual agreement? well, no. i think we have agreed to modification of the use restrictions and [speaker not understood] and they were

comfortable with it. they said it was stronger than what they had written. so, i think we have agreement there. we've got already agreement with the acoustic plan because we're already doing number one, but number two, it's not our property and we simply cannot agree to anything having to do with property that does not -- >> are the parties in agreement on that? because they don't have any jurisdiction over another part of the property. the claim, i don't know if it's true or not, i don't care. i just want to make sure -- >> and then with the verification, we're already in compliance with number one and the second and third paragraph that should be worked out with master owners association. i think we should be able to agree to that, but it isn't something that we would agree to here tonight, but it is definitely something that should be worked out through the moa. ~ and we really feel strongly, quite frankly this needs to be resolved tonight. >> understand that. >> may i say something? >> of course. >> the idea of these last two paragraphs, i mean, really the

reason we put these in here are because, you know, they actually said, why don't you have this handled in the moa. well, i think you know historically we have a problem with it. and, so, the thing is [inaudible] said it, if something comes up, you can file another appeal. we don't want to do that. that's why we're asking the board to uphold the permit with the conditions. so, you know, if -- and to be enforced with a notice of special restrictions. i mean, this has been a problem for quite a while, so, it's really important to us that that's something that, you know, i mean, this is the second time we've been in front of you. >> okay, all right. >> it's actually the fourth time. the last time was rent-free meetings. >> is this something that -- i know you want to do it tonight. you guys are resistant. one week? [inaudible].

>> two weeks? next month? >> next year? >> you know, i just wanted to say we were trying to negotiate this before the hearing and the communications broke down abruptly right after the permit holder's brief was submitted. oh, i have a response to that, i'm sorry. >> okay. i don't want to actually do that. sorry. okay. i think we'll go into deliberation here and make a decision about whether we're going to continue or make a decision. comments, anyone? >> well, my comment is it doesn't seem as if there is going to be a resolution. given the permit holder -- is that right? refusal to continue it. so, that doesn't really leave us much of an alternative.

my personal inclination is the conditions proposed by the appellant are not reasonable. i would not impose any of them. and, so, i would vote to uphold the permit. thank you. >> i'm in agreement with commissioner hurtado. >> we have a motion -- sorry. >> excuse me. but that wasn't the issue. they already agreed to have common language on the use restriction. they both agree on it, then -- >> they're not in agreement now. >> they said they were in agreement on the use restrictions. >> not on all that exist. i think they have something -- >> we need a package agreement, otherwise there is no agreement. so, they have asked us to -- they have asked us to take a vote. so, i would move to uphold the permit, no new conditions. if you have a different motion, we can go that way, too.

>> commissioner hurtado, do you want to state a basis for your motion? >> that it was properly issued and it was code compliant. >> okay. >> we have a motion from commissioner hurtado to uphold this permit as is with no new conditions and it's on the basis that it was properly issued and it is code compliant. on that motion to uphold, with that basis, commissioner fung? >> no. >> president hwang? >> aye. >> and vice president lazarus? >> aye. >> commissioner honda? >> aye. >> thank you. the vote is 4 to 1, the permit is upheld as is, no new conditions on that basis. thank you. >> president hwang, there's no further business this evening.

>> we're adjourned. [adjourned]

>> hi. welcome to san francisco. stay safe and exploring how you can stay in your home safely after an earthquake. let's look at common earthquake myths. >> we are here at the urban

center on mission street in san francisco. we have 3 guest today. we have david constructional engineer and bill harvey. i want to talk about urban myths. what do you think about earthquakes, can you tell if they are coming in advance? >> he's sleeping during those earthquakes? >> have you noticed him take any special? >> no. he sleeps right through them. there is no truth that i'm aware of with harvey that dogs are aware of an impending earthquake. >> you hear the myth all the time. suppose the dog helps you get up, is it going to help you do something >> i hear they are aware of small vibrations. but yes, i

read extensively that dogs cannot realize earthquakes. >> today is a spectacular day in san francisco and sometimes people would say this is earthquake weather. is this earthquake weather? >> no. not that i have heard of. no such thing. >> there is no such thing. >> we are talking about the weather in a daily or weekly cycle. there is no relationship. i have heard it's hot or cold weather or rain. i'm not sure which is the myth. >> how about time of day? >> yes. it happens when it's least convenient. when it happens people say we were lucky and when they don't. it's terrible timing. it's never a good time for an earthquake.

>> but we are going to have one. >> how about the ground swallowing people into the ground? >> like the earth that collapsed? it's not like the tv shows. >> the earth does move and it bumps up and you get a ground fracture but it's not something that opens up and sucks you up into haddes. >> it's not going anywhere. we are going to have a lot of damage, but this myth that california is going to the

ocean is not real. >> southern california is moving north. it's coming up from the south to the north. >> you would have to invest the million year cycle, not weeks or years. maybe millions of years from now, part of los angeles will be in the bay area. >> for better or worse. >> yes. >> this is a tough question. >> those other ones weren't tough. >> this is a really easy challenge. are the smaller ones less stress? >> yes. the amount released in small earthquakes is that they are so small in you need many of those. >> i think would you probably have to have maybe hundreds of

magnitude earthquakes of 4.7. >> so small earthquakes are not making our lives better in the future? >> not anyway that you can count on. >> i have heard that buildings in san francisco are on rollers and isolated? >> it's not true. it's a conventional foundation like almost all the circumstances buildings in san francisco. >> the trans-america was built way before. it's a pretty conventional foundation design. >> i have heard about this thing called the triangle of life and up you are supposed to go to the edge of your bed to save yourself. is there anything of value to that ? >> yes, if you are in your

room. you should drop, cover and hold onto something. if you are in school, same thing, kitchen same thing. if you happen to be in your bed, and you rollover your bed, it's not a bad place to be. >> the reality is when we have a major earthquake the ground shaking so pronounced that you are not going to be able to get up and go anywhere. you are pretty much staying where you are when that earthquake hits. you are not going to be able to stand up and run with gravity. >> you want to get under the door frame but you are not moving to great distances. >> where can i buy a richter scale? >> mr. richter is selling it. we are going to put a plug in for cold hardware. they are not available. it's a rather complex. >> in fact we don't even use

the richter scale anymore. we use a moment magnitude. the richter scale was early technology. >> probably a myth that i hear most often is my building is just fine in the loma prieta earthquake so everything is fine. is that true ? >> loma prieta was different. the ground acceleration here was quite moderate and the duration was moderate. so anyone that believes they survived a big earthquake and their building has been tested is sadly mistaken. >> we are planning for the bigger earthquake closer to san francisco and a fault totally independent. >> much stronger than the loma prieta earthquake. >> so people who were here in

'89 they should say 3 times as strong and twice as long and that will give them more of an occasion of the earthquake we would have. 10 percent isn't really the threshold of damage. when you triple it you cross that line. it's much more damage in earthquake. >> i want to thank you, harvey, thanks pat for >> hi today we have a special edition of building san

francisco, stay safe, what we are going to be talking about san francisco's earth quakes, what you can do before an earthquake in your home, to be ready and after an earthquake to make sure that you are comfortable staying at home, while the city recovers. ♪ >> the next episode of stay safe, we have alicia johnson from san francisco's department of emergency management. hi, alicia thanks to coming >> it is a pleasure to be here with you. >> i wonder if you could tell us what you think people can do to get ready for what we know is a coming earthquake in san francisco. >> well, one of the most things that people can do is to make sure that you have a plan to communicate with people who live both in and out of state. having an out of state contact, to call, text or post on your social network is really important and being able to know how you are going to

communicate with your friends, and family who live near you, where you might meet them if your home is uninhab hitable. >> how long do you think that it will be before things are restored to normal in san francisco. >> it depends on the severity of the earthquake, we say to provide for 72 hours tha, is three days, and it helps to know that you might be without services for up to a week or more, depending on how heavy the shaking is and how many after shocks we have. >> what kind of neighborhood and community involvement might you want to have before an earthquake to make sure that you are going to able to have the support that you need. >> it is important to have a good relationship with your neighbors and your community. go to those community events, shop at local businesses, have a reciprocal relationship with them so that you know how to take care of yourself and who you can rely on and who can take care of you. it is important to have a battery-operated radio in your

home so that you can keep track of what is happening in the community around and how you can communicate with other people. >> one of the things that seems important is to have access to your important documents. >> yes, it is important to have copies of those and also stored them remotely. so a title to a home, a passport, a driver's license, any type of medical records that you need need, back those up or put them on a remote drive or store them on the cloud, the same is true with any vital information on your computer. back that up and have that on a cloud in case your hard drive does not work any more. >> in your home you should be prepared as well. >> absolutely. >> let's take a look at the kinds of things that you might want to have in your home. >> we have no water, what are we going to do about water? >> it is important for have extra water in your house, you want to have bottled water or a five gallon container of water able to use on a regular basis,

both for bathing and cooking as well as for drinking. >> we have this big container and also in people's homes they have a hot water heater. >> absolutely, if you clean your hot water heater out regularly you can use that for showering, drinking and bathing as well >> what other things do people need to have aren't their home. >> it is important to have extra every day items buy a couple extra cans of can food that you can eat without any preparation. >> here is a giant can of green giant canned corn. and this, a manual can opener, your electric can opener will not be working not only to have one but to know where to find it in your kitchen. >> yes. >> so in addition to canned goods, we are going to have fresh food and you have to preserve that and i know that we have an ice chest. >> having an ice chest on hand is really important because your refrigerator will not be working right away. it is important to have

somebody else that can store cold foods so something that you might be able to take with you if you have to leave your home. >> and here, this is my very own personal emergency supply box for my house. >> i hope that you have an alternative one at home. >> oh, i forgot. >> and in this is really important, you should have flashlights that have batteries, fresh batteries or hand crank flashlight. >> i have them right here. >> good. excellent. that is great. additionally, you are going to want to have candles a whistle, possibly a compass as well. markers if you want to label things if you need to, to people that you are safe in your home or that you have left your home. >> i am okay and i will meet you at... >> exactly. exactly. water proof matches are a great thing to have as well. >> we have matches here. and my spare glasses. >> and your spare glasses.

>> if you have medication, you should keep it with you or have access to it. if it needs to be refrigerated make sure that it is in your ice box. >> inside, just to point out for you, we have spare batteries. >> very important. >> we have a little first aid kit. >> and lots of different kinds of batteries. and another spare flashlight. >> so, alicia what else can we do to prepare our homes for an earthquake so we don't have damage? >> one of the most important things that you can do is to secure your valuable and breakable items. make sure that your tv is strapped down to your entertainment cabinet or wall so it does not move. also important is to make sure that your book case is secure to the wall so that it does not fall over and your valuable and breakables do not break on the ground. becoming prepared is not that difficult. taking care of your home, making sure that you have a few extra every-day items on hand helps to make the difference. >> th amatically to the way tha the city as a whole can recover.

>> absolutely. >> if you are able to control your own environment and house and recovery and your neighbors are doing the same the city as a whole will be a more resilient city. >> we are all proud of living in san francisco and being prepared helps us stay here. >> so, thank you so much for joining us today, alicia, i appreciate it. >> absolutely, it is my pleasure. >> and thank you for joining us on another edition of building good morning, everybody. lots of people know each other here, wonderful. it will be a great day. welcome, everybody, welcome to san francisco. to some of you, welcome to the presidio, welcome to this absolutely gorgeous futures without violence center. i want to