could be improved and we are paying attention to translation and that we have gone beyond that and are looking in general at the department can improve the communication across the board, so to speak. i think, though, that staff training is important. one shouldn't assume that because you have communication with the public skills or any of that and public speaking which is a big part of what some planning department staff end up having to do and i think the sensitivity trainings are always useful. and the comment that commissioner borden mentioned about youth and the shadowing and i think we talked about that in there. and i don't know if they had the

opportunity to take the internship to a different level and understand the workings of the department better. and engaging the youth through the high schools or something and in particular, and not exclusively, but youth who maybe don't always have access to this type of an opportunity. and whether they are get a sense of planning department and maybe at some point we can check in with the youth commission to find out what they are doing and what the priorities are and how to improve our work with youths in terms of getting them engaged and that sort of thing. i think it's really good work and i am really excited about it. to the extent that we can continue to engage people who

don't have access to online access and those folks still exist out there, and that would be good, too. and i look forward to the next steps and addressing this further. director? >> i want to thank claudia and julia for their work. and it is something we think in the department is really important. i want the commission to know i am committed to moving forward and implementing as much as we can and kind of changing the culture of the department that way. the important thing is that it isn't necessarily about the quantity but the quality of it and how it's done. and particularly the earlier involvement. and that is the theme that i have been telling you about since i have got here. and for all practical purposes, it is at the end and how to get

people involved earlier on and the whole process you heard about today is a small component of that and the letters that we tend to project sponsor are posted online and are effectively early notification of the projects to the community. and that was a big important of discussion that are the importance of what will come out of the work. and as you know, the communication director at long last is coming on board hopefully this month or early next. and that will help move a lot of this forward as well. president olague: thank you again. and julia, you are an intern, right? >> right. this is my last week. >> thank you for all your work. that is incredible. >> my goal will be to some day

come on full time. that is my goal. secretary avery: we can move forward to item 9, case 2429 california street, case 2011.0051c. >> the proposal is to combine two vacant retail spaces into a single space to be occupied by chase bank. the proposed project would occupy the entire single story building containing approximately 4600 square feet. conditional use authorization is required for the upper fillmore street neighborhood district and also for use size greater than 2500 square feet. the department has done neighborhood notification, posters, to residents within 150

feet as well as to homeowners within 350 feet of the project and with this proposed conditional use application and proper notifications were done. proper notifications were done. and to that end we have received four support letters and i have not received any opposition in emails, phone calls, or letter. the department's recommendation is approval with conditions because the site has had continuous commercial uses in the past. and also we are proposing to the target sponsor about 2,500 customers within the fillmore street that do not have a bank that's close enough and that they can walk to. the closest chase for this area is about a mile away. this concludes my summary of the project. and if you have any questions, i am happy to answer.

president olague: thank you. project sponsor? >> president olague, commissioners, i am excited to present our project to you today. it represents over a year of working with staff and local community leaders and the neighborhood residents to bring what we think is a positive addition to the neighborhood and create jobs and investment in the city. here with me today to apps any of your questions is our project architect. he has worked with staff extensively to address the historical issues associated with the project and also the coordinator for the community outreach efforts. chase is reviewed and supports the staff report and the

recommendations. i just like to keep my commentses short and be prepared for any questions you may have. as mary indicated, we are proposing to occupy the vacant cleaners space that has been vacant since 2008 which is adjacent to the molly stone's market. the building is 34 feet wide and 137 feet deep and presented somewhat of a design challenge for us. it is about 4,600 square feet. we are proposing no changes to the footprint of the building and the only exterior modifications is those that will be done are those that are recommend recommended by the historical planner to return the building to an earlier historic state. the bulk of the changes are improvements within the existing building structure. the historical renovation will include wood transom windows and to replace the existing metal

doors now. and wood frame windows and additional details that staff has asked for to bring back the historical details on the columns. i think in the packet you have a colored elevation of what we have agreed to and the customary color line and the sales positions to personal banking, loans, investments, business banking and other fingerprintsial services. also included are a.t.m.'s and in an interior vestibule with access through the front doors and has a credit card swipe for security for after hours. and the project will provide employment for up to 20 people full and part time and will

operate typical hours and less hourses on saturday. we have met with merchants, residents, and representatives from the merchant association and the pacific heights resident association. and last year we held a public meeting at the site to present it to the resident and receive feedback and answer questions and a number of meetings with individuals and groups within the area. as a result of the meetings, we made a number of design changes on the original plan to accommodate the suggestion and comments. these mainly include d the corridor so that when someone walk by the front of the store, they can see further into the branch and a more interesting view than looking at a bank of a.t.m.'s. i guess i am supposed to say

overhead at this point and something will appear. and also in response to comments and suggestions from the neighborhood, we have work with sole studios, a local argument tech, and who has designed and gained approval for the park lift across the street from the proposed location. and chase is committed to up iffeding a minimum of $25,000 towards the kruk of the park as -- towards the kr construction the park as part of the neighborhood partnering. the merchant group has been taking the lead on this and will take responsibility for maintaining the park once it is constructed. in addition, we have had ongoing comments and inquiries as to how we can increase the greenery and streetscape on california. in addition to the street trees

that are required as part of the approval, we have invested being able to add the additional greenery in front of the molly stones building which is basically a blank wall because the entrances come off the parking lot. we have contacted mike stone who gave his blessing and we have also spoke with d.p.w. and received their criteria and comment and we went back to sole studios and asked them for any input they would like to have on the types of greenery and just received that this week and an architect is working on a street tree design that we are committed to putting in as part of our project construction. i don't have any plans at this time, but we will be doing that as part of the overall project. lastly we were asked to find wayses to enliven the front of the branch and develop you want

thes for the inclusion of local art work. at this point we have worked with internally to take the exit door, which is on the face of the building and make it more of a show window and is a ku customized show door to post notices and have announcements and this type of thing and we are not looking at a blank door. we know we can pull that off and are committed to including that as part of the project. really in summary we think we have done a good job at working with the community and bringing to you a project that will be a positive addition to the local community as staff said we received a number of letters in support from residents and merchants, including molly stones supporting the project. with that, i would be happy to answer any questions. olague r thank you. we may call you up if we want to discuss any matter. i have one speaker card. paul wormer.

>> good afternoon, commissioners. as one of the vocal few in the neighborhood, i was one of the folks that showed up and talked with them. i am concerned about the whole issue of active streetscape in the neighborhood commercial district. and the impact of the whole community and how that effects the viability and what we are seeing is a gradual death of a walking street as you move down californ california. across the street there used to be pneumatic outfitters and detail. window shopping brings people down and brings people to the neighborhood between the major parking lot, public parking lot and fillmore. those are now both gone, replaced by a child care center

and soon to be doctor's offices on the ground floor, not exactly the stuff that brings foot traffic looking to spend an afternoon wandering around. and we always respected having retail space and it is unfortunate, in fact, that planning approved the huge ebbing tension into what was rear yard open area on the bl k block. and that created this large space and not clear to me that we ups or have had a discussion about what it is in terms of the neighborhood commercial district and the streetscape and the viability and what reasonable expect takes are. and we had discussions with

chase. unfortunately, i haven't seen anything finaled on the proposal. this is the ep forcible commit -- the enforceable commitment document about what they will do or how things will be maintained. and i am concerned. i am not sure that this is, in fact, the best solution. i don't know that the proposals make sense and with respect to the active streetscape, we seem to be suffering that this block is already bad. we just sacrifice it. now this block is already bad, we just sacrifice it. and we lose a lot of what made the community active and vibrant and brought people around. and wanted to raise that as a concern. thank you. president olague: is there any adiggal public commented -- additional public comment? seeing none, public comment is

closed. economyinger borden -- commissioner borden? commissioner borden: i was talking to the neighborhood president and thought that chase had done a good job of being working with the neighborhood and the concern about the enlivened streetscape and now they didn't think the park -- and now the park can happen because chase has stepped up and the park will help with the streetscape issues we are talking about. and what is a nice benefit and we heard the project sponsor go through and i have never heard a bank offer this much and never off as much with the greenery plans and also trying to figure out a way to complete a corridor within the bank and this is the kind of, in my view, a project that we should be showing other financial service institutions that are looking to locate to the neighborhood of how to embrace working with the community to deal with the issues. and it is true that the

financial services uses are different than other issues and it is true they go around neighborhoods and walk around neighborhoods after visiting banks. it is next to the molly stones and that block at that point where it hits molly stone is a blank wall and if they can add greenery, that helps quite a bit. there are a couple of new restaurants which has helped enliven it quite a bit and a new dimplings or something mra -- a new dumplings place on that block and that has helped enliven it quite a bit. and the not so exciting frontage of molly stones because the coffee place is on the inside and the driveway there. and the windows and doors is an important element to the project. i am familiar with it because a lot of the outreach has gone on

and i personally move to approve with conditions. >> second. president olague: commissioner antonini? commissioner antonini: i al am very much in support and impressed with what chase is planning to do and would assume that is, in fact, for our approval in memorializing that these things are being done as far as what they have promised to do as far as the street tr s trees. and they are part of the historical building and part of the conditional approval. and if there are the general district, which is true, they will be coming here rather than going somewhere el. and that foot traffic and a couple of vacancies whef i am

down there and is a small ebbing tension of the entire fillmore strip. president olague: economyi comm moore? commissioner moore: i am not only not impressed but underwhelmed here and to commercialize and maintaining small-scale spaces and units for encouraging entrepreneurial retail. and we are aggregate iing space have an extension of the financial district. if the measure of justification is 2,400 people than every four blocks will have a branch bank of that size which is actually the strategy of this bank moving into pedestrian. it means you walk around the city enough, which i happen to do, you see a bunch of them sprouting up like mushrooms in

areas and i am not going to mention where they are. you watch closely enough, you will figure it out yourself and in completely inappropriate locations and presenting themselves on normally prominent corners. the fact that there is an attempt on the historic preservation doesn't impress me at all. that is an environment that goes beyond any use because they are getting the conditional use for a space exceeds what is normally allowed in that area. i do find the presentation that we are presenting a good side to the street actually quite insulting because the majority of the frontage is a recessed a.t.m. or two of them. you don't really see the banking operation which is way, way back in the back of the building. and what you see on the side of the former crocker bank side and now wells fargo on the corner of

ke ark ar northbounding -- of kearney and that is how it look and a real undervaluation of the high quality of what the fillmore district is all about which we have crafted and protected for a long time to come. and i want to be like a radical speaker, i would say that i would continue this particular discussion until we have come to terms with formula retail which i consider to be a part of and i am not at all in any form or shape supporting this project. president olague: commissioner miguel? commissioner miguel: two in a row. if this is a project to put a couple of a.t.m.'s into the wall or parking lot of molly stones, i have no problem with it. for a stand alone on the

criteria of 2,400 of people, it doesn't hold up to me. this is an area of small businesses and i think there is an obligation to leave space for small entrepreneurial businesses in viable commercial districts and i see no reason for what i also, and i have said it. , believe this formula retail to go into this space in this type of district. president olague: commissioner sugaya, are you in the queue? it kept on revolving. commissioner sugaya: go ahead. olague r commissioner antonini? a commissioner antonini: actually in 1926 there was a change in the state banking act that allowed branches or banks to

establish branches anywhere within san francisco and los angeles at that particular time where there was adequate desire for them to be there on the part of the public if question is are they really displacing anything? these are vacancies and there are a number of vacancies in that area, not as bad as some neighborhoods, i'll admit, but i think you need to have banking services like other services and i don't know to, too, many banks that are not formula retail and by the nature most have a number of branches or at least they have in the last 80 years or so. so i think it is a service that brings people there and i am very much in favor of this. and i don't know there's any problem for it. president olague: commissioner borden? commissioner borden: i wouldn't judge this project based upon a feeling about the bank in

another grouping of locations. this project is shaped differently, but as a person who recently moved to the neighborhood where my bank has no branches, i have quite a bit of distance to get to a citi bank and i wish there was more branches and i live someplace where i have to go about a mile to get to a bank. i end up paying a lot of a.t.m. fees. i am not rich and it is not something i can afford to do and something a lot of people do complain about when you don't have the chase is new and so they are in a situation where the customers don't have branches and i don't think that's a terrible thing and they have to get direct deposit and the primary way to get cash is from the a.t.m.. if the people use the bank, they don't drive to another location and double park on the street that you see on chestnut to go to the banks because they don't live in that neighborhood.

and i see that frequently. and the other thing is the interagency issue. and the diminishment of the extra advertising on the street and like you have on the next corner where you have the wells fargo a.t.m. sitting out there or up the street with the bank of america and out there prominently. and there is a realistic view and within the bank and a.t.m.'s on the street and the proliferation of advertising and they are not displacing anyone and this is a vacant space and along fillmore street and the different treatment along the california street and that is

where the bus turns to go up california street which turns at that intersection and that intersection is a different intersection and different place with the core of the fillmore block. i wouldn't support it on fillmore street but that area of california where the buses turn around and the street pattern is wide and the whole focus is different and that block is by nature a lot different block than the rest of fillmore street. you don't have a parking lot anywhere else and you don't have two gas stations at the corner and you don't have a grocery store with an egress and i treat that block differently. and it is a very different traffic and different traffic

pattern because of the other uses. president olague: commissioner miguel? commissioner miguel: branch banking is very different than when it came into town. that is when i had my two businesses and i would go in and talk to the bank manager because there was one with authority who actually could okay a loan for real estate or for autos, for personal uses, and for business uses. and it didn't have to go downtown unless it was over a very high amount. when you had to get papers notarized and many other things and if economyi commissioner bo a state bank account, she can do that with a local a.t.m. and doesn't need the entire space such as required here. it is a very, very different system and evolving even more.

and most of the things i don't want to see and ask you if you can do everything electronically. they don't want to send out mail to you or send out statements to you. they charge you extra if you want paper goods. everything is electronic and a.t.m. that is pretty much what is needed for a branch bank today with rare exceptions. and i do not see the concept of a space this size being logical. president olague: and the reason it is before us is the siz size,4,600 feet and it is an excessive amount of space for

that use. along fillmore and along california and i think that maybe they had taken up one of the retail spaces and probably wouldn't be seeing that, is that right? and in that area, period, and in that fillmore. and trying to get my neighborhood there. and given the use of the retail nature of the area. and mr. wormer mentioned things like the active groun