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tv   [untitled]    January 6, 2012 10:31pm-11:01pm PST

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connections through public realm of improvements and reached out and strengthen each destination by joining together. we have a diverse set of uses and attractions. there is more that needs to be done to expand that, to perhaps include destinations that san francisco residents would find appealing. we have a great base to work from. of course, on taylor street, there is a strong core that we all associate with the heart of fisherman's wharf. i will walk through five elements of the plan and give you a highlight of what is entailed. jefferson street came out as the number one issue for the committee, how do we reinvigorate, reinvent jefferson street.
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we wanted to go out and find out how the space worked today. we went from 8:00 in the morning until 10:00 at night on week days, weekends, counted every human being both of the streets, in the public spaces, recording age and gender, so we have a real breakdown of who is using fisherman's wharf right now. on saturday, the front of the harbor, that is jefferson street between jones and taylor, over 65,000 people per day walking down jefferson street. it is an incredible pedestrian destination. it is potentially eclipsed by pier 39. you get onto those to the -- you get out onto the pier, there are over 110 dozen people per day. what are the things that we want to work on on jefferson street? we have to reorient the streets
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to address pedestrians first. the sidewalks are too narrow and there is no place for people to stop and engaged in the life around them. similarly, the conditions have to be improved. over 400,000 bikes are arrested along the north waterfront every year. it is an increasingly important mode of transport. this section is important to the bay trail, which is why it is the number one priority. despite being less than a block off the waterfront, the connections to the water are weak or absent altogether. if you have not seen the connection to it cockatrice, it is truly beautiful and unique to the city.
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it is a 1950's model of how we construct street, it is one way, two lanes, and the bicyclist try to go the opposite way, and it is dangerous and difficult. these are issues we need to address and prioritize. we have made drawings to represent the core ideas to convey what it would feel like if we were to switch and we prioritize for pedestrians. this is the gateway, running west. this is the walk next to argonaut hotel on the north side. and finally, this is a view from jones, looking back east toward
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the taylor street restaurants, towards the lagoon. the goals are simple and straightforward and a think easy to get behind. the strength in a street and make it a national destination and a destination for the future that all people from san francisco will be proud of. it will create an iconic street that we can all relate to. it will certainly address safety through slowing down everyone. comfortable, safe space for bikes. this is certainly important as the america's cup comes down the pike, maintaining vehicle access, and allowing for future flexibility. who knows what the future has in store for fisherman's wharf.
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the design has evolved. we have a team led by the planning department, not supported by the community benefit district. we have a consultant on tap to help as a senior design adviser. we're working with dpw, the port, and bay trail to come up with a new design. it is in process. as soon as we are at a point where we can share that, i would be happy to do so. the goal is to be ready on a timeline and on budget that is out able to be implemented in time for america's cup 2013. quickly, over the next chapters, streetscape guidelines. they're based on the better streets plan. we have taken better streets policies and adopted the designs and applied it to every street in fisherman's wharf. it is the basis for future streetscape work, it is a
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reminder that we only focus on the sidewalk and intersections and parking lanes. there is no change to the roadway proposed with these designs, and it is opportunistic. as opportunities come up, as other work is being done, it will be changed to meet these design guidelines. as an example, to the street which connects the cable car down to restaurant row would be able to have many more amenities for pedestrians, crosswalks, expanding into the parking lane where appropriate, lighting, and landscaping. the building design guidelines for new development critical to supporting the pedestrian life as we would like to see in fisherman's wharf. the challenges, the surface parking lots.
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buildings that turned their back to the street and did not engage and activate it on the ground floor is too little to contribute to the street, and the use of cheap, poor quality materials. at all of these will be addressed in the design guidelines. it will include ensuring that buildings are oriented towards the street and scaled to the pedestrians, supporting at the side walked on the ground-floor retail on key streets, the use of high-quality materials, minimizing the negative effects of parking on vehicle access on the streets, and integrating more seating to the new development and provisions to make sure that private open space is high quality. public open space. a critical component for any neighborhood that is based on pedestrian movement.
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our goal is to expand the open space network. they will do that by expanding existing open spaces, strengthening connections between open spaces, and we have proposed one or to open spaces for the area. the new list leads with the jefferson street, columbus plaza, and aquatic park plaza, which what you are seeing here is the terminus of jefferson street to the aquatic park. it is immediate adjacent to the most import swimming beach in all of san francisco and the opportunity to make that into a real date way -- a real gateway is tremendous. columbus plaza, one of the most iconic streets in san francisco, one of our two diagonal streets, cutting across the grid, firmly rooted with the transamerica building. how we find an architectural
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solution? a much more elegant way that is prominent in the city. what we are proposing is a design that partially or completely connects the sidewalk cafes and restaurants that line that block to the open space, but activating a space that has had in the past issues with less activation and inappropriate uses, especially in the evenings, and create a new destination for fisherman's wharf. aquatic park plaza. again, a tremendous opportunity. the key issue here is working with the swim clubs to proceed on a timeline to make sure that we address their needs in a timely way, and most of that has to do with access and parking. we believe that is an easy solution. finally, parking and circulation. we have to tame how we move
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through fisherman's wharf. this is an image of a parking lot on jefferson street, one of the current entrances. one of the goals -- we conducted a study that estimated upwards of 30% of the number of cars on the street were simply circling, looking for parking. we could reduce the volume of cars on jefferson street rapidly and easily by getting people to the parking garages on the streets and into on the environment. that is part of the plan. there is also opportunity even on a peak saturday in july, there are a number of parking lots that are very underutilized. it is a matter of access and information and bring that information to the users as they approach fisherman's wharf to better utilize existing parking spaces, of which there are over 6000 off-street parking spaces
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and about 1200 on-street. so there are over 7000 parking spaces in roughly a 15-block area. the plant on the compact disc goes into more detail, but basically it is a sign its program that direct people to key locations to the nearest and most available parking structures, surface parking lots. signage plans for pedestrians and cars. pricing, we noticed, is not always geared towards short-term users of fisherman's wharf. a lot of flat rate, which does not encourage turnover. a lot of it is cash only. there will be an ongoing effort for many years to start to address this.
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we have raised it as a policy issue for the plan. it will take a lot of negotiation with the committed to advance. -- what the community to advance. finally, the request from the community, requesting a prohibition of adult entertainment uses similar to what exists in jackson square up the street, and in line with the policy changes across san francisco where the ground floor adds to be pedestrian experience, we are asking for an additional 5 feet that could only be used on the ground floor, 1 foot additional for every 5 feet on the ground, for a maximum of 5 feet. the next epps, we're working feverishly to get jefferson street ready to go to document construction at dtw, and move rapidly through the implementation process including the identification of final
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funding. in the spring of 2012, come back and bring zoning and design guidelines for further consideration. thank you very much. president olague: thank you. i would like to open it up for public comment, and then we may have questions from staff. is there any public comment on this item? seeing none, public comment is closed. commissioner antonini? commissioner antonini: i had a question about the jefferson street plans, which i think look very good, but there is probably going to be hopefully an extension of the line that goes into fort mason and merrida green that i am sure that you are taking a dip for the consideration as to figure out which way you were going to either eliminate or direct traffic on jefferson, the fact that that line will probably continue along jefferson in the future. >> we have been in very close
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coordination with the national park service with the informal review for the historic project with fort mason. we think it is a tremendous profit that will bring vitality to the city. at the same time, we are cognizant of making sure that any proposals to the extension are in the best interests of fisherman's wharf as well. we were working on a line that is actually with the national park service that maintains on turning up jones, then turning onto the beach. so the integrity of jefferson street the last two blocks remains intact, which has numerous benefits, including simplifying the relationship with bicyclist and people trying to cross the street and that crossing a transit right of way compared with a slow vehicle right of way. it is very different. also, it takes up 13 feet on a relatively narrow street. any way that we can meet the
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needs of getting into fort mason, while maintaining the benefits for fisherman's wharf as the highest priority, we're working together on. commissioner antonini: i would expect you would try to have some sort of switch at that point, allowing the f-line to continue as you described as a lot of people would want to go from the wharf to the waterfront, embarcadero, and others may want to go to the marina. i think it would bring more people, connecting the marina district what the wharf. even though it is not large, there is one hill, and sometimes it discourages people from walking along, so it could take that that would be a big benefit. i'm in favor of the whole plan, particularly some of the things that you have at the end, the five-foot height but this for the ground floor, and the prohibition on adult entertainment. it makes sense to me. >> thank you.
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president olague: commissioner borden? commissioner borden: thank you for the presentation. the spend a lot of time in this area because of step kids and out of town visitors. i am excited to see the jefferson street improvements. that street is very chaotic, with all of the cars. there is always parking on the street because i don't think a lot of cars drive down. it is turning more into a pedestrian right of way, and it makes more sense. >> absolutely, thank you very much. president olague: commissioner fong? commissioner fong: thank you. this has been a public/private effort. the pitching in and the heavy lifting, as well as the financials. the most important thing, this is an opportunity for a good part of san francisco to really
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become a pedestrian priority and remove some of the street traffic, the car traffic. i just want to commend that, thank you. president olague: commissioner sugaya? commissioner sugaya: yes, i think he mentioned 12 million visitors per year? >> that is correct. commissioner sugaya: and tens of thousands of people walking on jefferson. they must not have it as it -- must not have visited hooters very much, they are closing. >> i think there is an inside story there. president olague: any other thoughts? >> no adult entertainment. president olague: i want to thank you. i think this is excellent. i think it is very observant, i
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guess, you identified to the challenges, i think, not precisely -- precisely. the unwelcoming design of the buildings, the way that it connects, the challenges with the automobiles, the cyclists, the pedestrians, everything that you identified is just spot on. i think it is excellent work. i know there was a lot of excitement if years ago, quite a bit of talk, so i am glad to see that a lot of those findings were expressed in this and that we have someone rejectno, -- no? from that country, who continues to work with us. i guess, i think, one thing i am hoping this encourages is more local use.
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you mentioned is a destination spot for a lot of tourists, but i think with these types of improvements, a lot of folks in the city will feel more inclined to use that area. i think hopefully it will revitalize the commercial and other things there because it is so beautiful, like you said, and there is no connection between the street and the water and the view. there is a complete disconnect. i am really excited to see this. i don't know if this question will sound clear or not, but sometimes i have walked from the building to pier 39, and i know that the auditorium will be a project to be developed in the next few years, but has much thought been given to that stretch? >> on the port side, yes, a lot of thought has been given to
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that. that is support staff jurisdiction, but i know the intent with the international cruise terminal and the new waterfront plaza, we're trying to create a string of growth along there that could really died and encourage you to come along. -- that could really died and encourage you to come along. i think strengthening that will be in the end critical and i know that as an ongoing effort from the city. there are a lot of challenges, but it is also a critical piece out. but other project is market street. imagine writing from castro to market street to the waterfront. it would be a tremendous asset for all san francisco residents, tourists, everyone. president olague: yes, thank you for all of this. i think it is excellent work. commissioner moore? commissioner moore: i just want to join the choir, thinking.
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my concerns are not so much the waterfront, but coming from the third building on the land side of the embarcadero. i think it is a very important connection, given that the embarcadero is almost like a freeway. at that sidewalk is made wider and improved. so even if you are on the waterside and you want to switch to jefferson earlier, you have major hurdles to overcome. you could never cross the street in one light. it takes several streets -- it takes several lights to cross the street. what i want to complement the one is the fact that you are indeed trying to bring -- it was on set with the america's cup, should that happen. i think resolving that at this time will take a lot of conflict
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out of that area, because it is basically more like a public realm improvement, which eliminates many conflicts and incompatible models, so i am very happy that our you are pushing this. in a way, it should be ready by 2012, not 2013. >> we are working on that. commissioner moore: good. president olague: director? >> thank you, i just want to give my thanks to neal. it took a long time to get agreement from the parties. it isn't interesting thing how this can bring the community -- it is an interesting thing how this can bring the community to rally around. i also appreciate the fact it does not just about what happens on the street but the relationship between the street and the buildings and open spaces and transportation. we're working very hard with our sister agencies to see if we can get this done in time to at
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least build part of jefferson street prior to america's cup. it will be a challenge, but that is our goal. president olague: thank you very much. secretary avery: thank you. commissioners, moving forward, you are not at item 8 a and b. 527-529 stevenson street. commissioners, as you consider the request for compliance, the zoning administrator will hear the request for variance. b>> good afternoon, with department staff. this is a determination request to convert a four-story industrial building to mixed use, with 60 residential units, five off street parking spaces, and a spot ground-floor commercial space at 529 stevenson street. there were concerns raised at
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the september and october hearings and the changes to the project include to reduce the number of dwellings and the product from 62 to 60, expand the interior courtyard, and originally this project was asking for exposure variants of 40 units. they decreased the number of studio units from 43 to 27 and increased the number of one- bedrooms from 19 to 33. they dedicate one space for car share parking, with a separate parking from the other spaces, and rearranged our separate the rearranged the bicycle parking. finally, the main thing, they have significantly expanded the interior courtyard. where previously it was a little more than 25 feet the last time you saw it, now it is close to
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40 feet and it really gives quite a bit of light and air to the units. the department has not received any comments from the public on this project and recommends approval of the project with conditions, as the proposal provides 60 new units and new commercial space and market area that meets all applicable requirements of the planning code, with the exception of the dwelling unit exposure which we have discussed, and the variants has been requested. thank you very much and i am available for any questions. president olague: project sponsor? >> good afternoon, commissioners. rick crawford went over all of the changes, so i will not repeat that. i would just like to emphasize that we are down now to just two units that need exposure vari
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ance. we have received valuable input from planning staff and commissioners, and we worked diligently with them over the past months to improve the project. we have eliminated seven units, and we are providing 9 bmr units on site. i think this will be a great project of smaller units that will be affordable, compared to everything else that is on the market. we have recently obtained a dbi re-app letter that was circulated to the commission that covered many of the issues that were raised at the last hearing. so with all of the changes, i think the project has greatly improved and we would
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appreciate your positive consideration. thank you. president olague: thank you. is there any public comment on this item? seeing none, public comment is closed. commissioner miguel? vice president miguel: i don't think anyone can question the commission sending this back when they see but has come forward this time. sometimes, the public wonders why we continue items, why we tell people to go back to the drawing board. if there is to be an absolute test case, this is one of them. i like to complement david oliver and staff, and particularly commissioner moore, who have all worked diligently on this. it is coming to us as something that should be looked at by others considering similar types of projects, similar types of
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areas. yeah, it can be done. and when you come back from over 40 items that have variances, down to two, of a courtyard that probably doubles in size, close to it, out you see what can be done without expanding the foot print. it is totally possible. it is an ideal example of how things should happen. and with that, i move to approve with conditions. commissioner borden: second. commissioner moore: the issue from the very beginning was really for us to gather focus on the standards of living ability when it comes to adaptive re- use. it was in that discussion that i think ideas came about which i can sometimes described to the
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commission in detail, but that is not the case right now. staff can do it as well as i can. but the developer, not you could always have an issue with the unit, but that is not under discussion today. as it is, i think it supporting the product for approval is in order. president olague: commissioner antonini? commissioner antonini: very well done. among other things that were brought up, improvements with the windows, but the elevation on jesse and stevenson makes it much more, i think, contextual, and it harkens back to its original use such a little more. that was very well done. president olague: i just want to thank the project sponsor for continuing to work with us on our concerns, and commissioner moore i know raised a lot. i want to