tv [untitled] August 19, 2012 8:30am-9:00am PDT
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i am prepared to overrule the department and reduce the penalty to two times. that is my motion. president hwang: ok. >> so on that motion, then, from the vice president to grant this appeal and reduce the penalty to two times the regular phase. on that motion -- president hwang: aye. commissioner lazarus: aye. >> thank you, the vote is 3-0. this party is reduced to two times the regular fee. thank you. >> calling item 8, appeal no. 12-078, burress and elizabeth ericsson, purses the department of building inspection. the property is 2680 greene street, protesting the issuance on may 312012, to green broderick l l c a permit to
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alter a building, interior remodel at all levels, partial light well infill on west side, and seismic upgrade, including 3 new bathrooms, new wine cellar, laundry room, new elevator, roof deck, projected balcony at rear. one for hearing today. the zoning administrator seems to want to speak first. vice president fung: is their resettlement? >> no, the parties would like additional time to discuss the matters. if it would be possible to hold this over to the last item on the calendar, i know there is only one more item remaining, but hopefully there will be time for the parties to make it official. president hwang: i'm fine with that. >> we will hold this matter until we hear the next and last item on the calendar, which is appeal number pull-079, terry meehan and judith winchel against the department of building inspection, property at 1607-47 avenue, protesting the
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issuance on june 6, 2012, to peter fealy family trust of a permit to alter a building, comply with notice of violation numbers 9700221, and 201291473, refer to single-family dwelling, remove illegal kitchen, relocate bath, and legalize bedroom and sitting area, provide one required parking space in the garage. the matter is on for hearing today, and we will start with the attorney for the appellant. president hwang: i just want to note that mr. dufty is not here. do we need him here in this hearing? >> i can ask for him to return, if you like. president hwang: just to let him know. this is his. >> right, he probably thought we were on 8. >> if you could see if he is in the hallway, ask him to come back in. vice president fung: hold one
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this is a case regarding concealment. concealment of the tenant of the downstairs unit of 47 avenue was a little. the concealment to the department of building inspection that in 1996, a restriction was placed on the deed and that no borders could live in the downstairs unit, and concealment that a permit was filed 16 years ago to demolish the illegal kitchen and reconvert the downstairs unit into a single-family home. in 2002, when my clients moved into this downstairs unit at 47th avenue, they were never told it was illegal. they were never told the downstairs unit was not intended or designed for a living, sleeping, dining, and cooking, and they love their unit. they have devoted time and attention, created this extensive garden, and now they have learned the unit is a legal.
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and they have been forced to move out and it would place on due hardship on them. they are considered a protected tenant with the assumption they tended to live there the rest of their lives. on behalf of my clients, we request they are given three- four months to move out. i have included numerous pictures of their garden, which will require a lot of time for them to move out. they have heavy rocks, he has a petrified logs that is very difficult to move, so we are requesting if the permit is granted they be given a few months to move out. another issue is if the permit is granted, there are no guarantees the permit holder will follow through. 16 years ago, they filed a permit and that was not done. i have been here before the same members of the board a few months ago on a depressed property on the same issue. they felt a permit, said it would remove it, but they never
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did. i know it least three other tenants who have been affected because they have lived in a legal units, and they're told to remove it, but they have not. it would be in the board's public interest to ensure that if the permit is granted that provisions be provided to ensure that this permit holder will follow the rules, regulations, and orders of the department of building inspection. that is it. >> mr. mcdonald? >> good evening, members of the board, mr. vice president, madame president. i'm stephen macdonald, representing the permit holder. we have already got a couple of months by appealing to permit. they will get 60 days notice. we have submitted are brief. there really is no fax, no law, no equity to support the appeal of this permit.
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i should note that some of the members of this panel may remember we have banned here before with the same arguments. we were here a few months ago, same landlord, same plaintiffs, same tenants' council, same illegal unit, and they beg for two months of the unfinished their semester. this board continued bickering for two months. we came back, and they did not making that claim. we have submitted evidence they have demanded $700,000. they're suing for every day they are suffering from this a legal, "uninhabitable unit" with all types of mulled problems and so forth, and to release their asking for in the brief says something about that the board shall retain jurisdiction to ensure compliance. well, that is fine. we say let us have our permit, to comply with the city's order
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to remove the legal unit, and we have no choice. thank you. -- to remove the need legal unit, and we have no choice. president hwang: is there department will comment, mr. dufty? >> commissioners, i am just available for questions. i have one comment. the notice of violation for this, but tracking out on that today, there already has been an order of abatement posted on the property, which means it has gone through the enforcement. well. normally when there is in order of abatement at hand, it is very advisable for the owners to remove the violation. i don't think that we can link in this any longer. there was indeed a permit in 1986 to do exactly the same thing, and maybe at that taken out and put back in again, i
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don't know. these illegal units, it seems to happen a lot where they take it out, they do the work, and then they put the kitchen back in again and ran a bit out. it is an ongoing problem, but in this case, i think there would be a reason to comply with the notice of violation, based on the order of abatement being posted. i am available for any questions, if you want. vice president fung: thank you. /5b7 ++ thank yd
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that it is an rh-1 zoning district, said they could not legalize this property. president hwang: is there any public comment on this item? ok, seeing none, we will move into rebuttal. if you have anything, you have three minutes. use it or lose it. ok. mr. mcdonald, anything more? vice president fung: i have a question for the appellant. the permit holders brief indicates that your client is intending to move out of san francisco? >> i think they have been looking around for what they can afford, and they have not been able to afford anything comparable. they have this huge, massive garden, and for them to find a replacement home in san francisco, they don't believe they can afford it. she was forced to retire because he intended to live in san francisco, but because of the situation, she has been forced to retirement.
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vice president fung: they're going to continue to look in san francisco? >> there are looking outside now because they cannot afford anything close to what they have currently. it vice president fung: ok, what about the unit that was offered to them. did that occur? >> it did not have the garden, and the selling point to them was the fabulous garden they have spent a lot of time on. ivice president fung: ok. president hwang: i'm sorry, did she say she was forced into early retirement? >> yes, it was a decision, knowing they had to move out of san francisco, and knowing they cannot find a replacement location in san francisco, she decided to retire early. president hwang: ok. than kyou.
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>> commissioners, unless you have other questions, the matter is submitted. vice president fung: commissioners, in this particular instance, an effort had been made to try to assist the current tenants. the property owner is now faced with some potentially serious actions since this has already gone through abatement and the enforcement action. i am forced to uphold the permit and allow them to extricate
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themselves from that together action. -- from that particular action. commissioner lazarus: i would support that. vice president fung: i move to uphold the permit. >> is that on the basis of the abatement proceeding? vice president fung: yes. >> we have a motion from the vice president to deny this appeal and to uphold the permit on the basis of the pending abatement proceeding at the department of building inspection.
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on that motion -- president hwang: aye. commissioner lazarus: aye. >> thank you. the vote is 3-0, and this permit is upheld on that basis. thank you. >> thank you. are we ready to move back to item number eight? >> thank you, scott sanchez, planning department. it is my understanding they have reached an agreement and will be withdrawing the appeal, but i will wait for them to come back into the room to confirm that. >> ok. vice president fung: did the add a screen to the side of the porch? >> i don't know if the agreement is anything that would require this board to take any action, thank you.
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resuming the meeting. i understand an agreement has been reached, is that correct? >> that is correct. for the appellant, thank you for giving us the time to work this out. we appreciate it. and all the work you do. we did reach an agreement, a major issue in this was one of privacy and open space. there were other issues. we have been able to resolve the issues, chiefly one concerning privacy and i would like to read into the record the agreement we reached. please bear with me, it is short. president hwangvice president fu withdrawing? >> we would be withdrawing subject to the stipulations. president hwang:
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[unintelligible] >> it is respect -- with respect to the north elevation of 2680 green street. a two feet six inch deep planter and a glass railing at building -- to return 5 feet along the north side of the deck and we're talking about the roof here. the planter on the roof. it is not clear what was written here right now. on the next level down which would be the fourth floor, a 2 foot 6 inch deep planter.
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the third floor, remove bedroom , number three balcony. this will not be proposed again under current ownership. this is the offending balcony, this was an eight-foot deep projection -- projecting balconies 1 foot from the property line. you could look into the neighbor's master bedroom from the deck. item number four, neighbors to the east of 2680 green will support a future permit application for a 4 foot inch projecting -- deep projecting balconies. that would be awfully kitchen level. this agreement does not intend to imply any further restrictions on permit applications for any exceptions except for the balcony at bedrooms 3 under current ownership. note, planters in items 1 and 2 above to be integral to the structure of the building. that is it, commissioners and thank you for listening and
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>> i love teaching. it is such an exhilarating experience when people began to feel their own creativity. >> this really is a place where all people can come and take a class and fill part of the community. this is very enriching as an artist. a lot of folks take these classes and take their digital imagery and turn it into negatives. >> there are not many black and white darkrooms available anymore. that is a really big draw. >> this is a signature piece. this is the bill largest darkroom in the u.s..
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>> there are a lot of people that want to get into that dark room. >> i think it is the heart of this place. you feel it when you come in. >> the people who just started taking pictures, so this is really an intersection for many generations of photographers and this is a great place to learn because if you need people from different areas and also everyone who works here is working in photography.
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>> we get to build the community here. this is different. first of all, this is a great location. it is in a less-populated area. >> of lot of people come here just so that they can participate in this program. it is a great opportunity for people who have a little bit of photographic experience. the people have a lot, they can really come together and share a love and a passion. >> we offer everything from traditional black and white darkrooms to learning how to process your first roll of film. we offer classes and workshops in digital camera, digital printing.
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we offer classes basically in the shooting, ton the town at night, treasure island. there is a way for the programs exploring everyone who would like to spend the day on this program. >> hello, my name is jennifer. >> my name is simone. we are going on a field trip to take pictures up the hill. >> c'mon, c'mon, c'mon. >> actually, i have been here a lot. i have never looked closely enough to see everything. now, i get to take pictures. >> we want to try to get them to
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be more creative with it. we let them to be free with them but at the same time, we give them a little bit of direction. >> you can focus in here. >> that was cool. >> if you see that? >> behind the city, behind the houses, behind those hills. the see any more hills? >> these kids are wonderful. they get to explore, they get to see different things. >> we let them explore a little bit. they get their best. if their parents ever ask, we
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can learn -- they can say that they learned about the depth of field or the rule of thirds or that the shadows can give a good contrast. some of the things they come up with are fantastic. that is what we're trying to encourage. these kids can bring up the creativity and also the love for photography. >> a lot of people come into my classes and they don't feel like they really are creative and through the process of working and showing them and giving them some tips and ideas. >> this is kind of the best kept secret. you should come on and take a class. we have orientations on most saturdays. this is a really wonderful location and is the real jewel
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to the community. >> ready to develop your photography skills? the harvey milk photo center focuses on adult classes. and saturday workshops expose youth and adults to photography classes. >> we came to seven straight about 10 years ago. -- 7th street about 10 years ago. the environment is huge. it is stronger than willpower. surrounding yourself with artists, being in a culture where artists are driving, and where a huge amount of them is a
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healthy environment. >> you are making it safer. push, push. that is better. when i start thinking, i see it actually -- sometimes, i do not see it, but when i do, it is usually from the inside out. it is like watching something being spawned. you go in, and you begin to work, excavate, play with the dancers, and then things began to emerge. you may have a plan that this is what i want to create. here are the ideas i want to play with, but then, you go into the room, and there maybe some fertile ideas that are becoming manifest that are more interesting than the idea you had initially set out to plan. so there has to be this openness for spontaneity.
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also, a sense that regardless of the deadline, that you have tons of time so the you can keep your creativity alive and not cut it off and just go into old habits. it is a lot like listening. really listening to watch what is going to emerge. i like this thing where you put your foot on his back. let's keep it. were your mind is is how you build your life. if you put it in steel or in failure, it works. that works. it is a commitment. for most artists, it is a vacation and a life that they have committed themselves to. there is this notion that artists continue to do their work because of some kind of the external financial support. if that was taken away, artists
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would still do their art. it is not like there is a prerequisite for these things to happen or i will not do it. how could that be? it is the relationship that you have committed to. it is the vocation. no matter how difficult it gets, you are going to need to produce your art. whether it is a large scale or very small scale. the need to create is going to happen, and you are going to have to fulfill it because that is your life.
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