Planning Commission Endorses Citywide Accessory Unit Legalization
Three ordinances to legalize accessory units (also known as in-law units) citywide were approved by the Planning Commission this week. Two would allow new housing units in existing buildings citywide. The third would facilitate the legalization of existing units originally built without permits. On Thursday June 16, the Planning Commission recommended two ordinances that would permit new in-law units in existing buildings…
SF Supervisors Advance Pro-Housing Measures
The Board of Supervisors advances several important pro-housing measures in the first few months of 2016. The Board approved two ordinances that will protect tens of thousands of units of housing built without permits. They also approved a measure to streamline affordable projects, and placed a measure on the June ballot to increase the number of…
What Makes a Livable Neighborhood?
A livable San Francisco is a network of Livable Neighborhoods. Each neighborhood should have a distinct character, but each should be complete, supporting living, working, commerce, and culture. A Livable Neighborhood is: Compact Sustainable Livable neighborhoods conserve land, and are of sufficiently density to support frequent transit service and neighborhood-serving businesses. Livable neighborhoods provide a…
Car-Free Streets and the Poetry of the City
Poets Plaza, a proposed piazza in North Beach, has been delayed again. Supporters have started an online petition to get the project moving. There will be a public meeting about the piazza on Thursday, March 3 from 6 to 7:30 pm at the Tel-Hi Center, 660 Lombard Street near Mason. The plaza, also called Piazza Saint Francis, would…
The Perils of Planning by Exception
Two big private developments won important approvals in the last month – one from the voters, and the other from the Board of Supervisors. Voters approved Proposition D, approving a height limit increase for the Mission Rock Development on San Francisco’s waterfront, as well as a host of policies related to the development. The Board of Supervisors approved…
Livable City Recommends
Livable City’s recommendations for San Francisco’s November 3, 2015 election Yes on Prop A, Affordable Housing Bond No on Prop D, Mission Rock Development Yes on Prop F, Short-term rental regulation No on G/Yes on H, Clean energy Yes on Prop J, Legacy Business fund Yes on Prop K, Surplus land for Affordable Housing Yes on A…
Rethinking Downtown: San Francisco’s Downtown Plan at 30
San Francisco’s Downtown Plan turned 30 this year. The plan came about in the midst of the 1980s “Planning Wars,” when battles over density, building height, and office uses were fought in City Hall and the ballot box. The Downtown Plan attempted two reconcile two contending visions of the city – that of postwar Modernism, which had transformed…
It’s Time to Rethink Downtown
Livable City will host the second of three free forums at the San Francisco Public Library’s Koret Auditorium on Thursday, October 15, from 6:00-7:30 p.m. 2015 is the 30th anniversary of the Downtown Plan. Our City is vastly different than it was in 1985, but our plan for the downtown community remains a generation behind. Join us as we…
Supervisors Support New Accessory Units in More SF Neighborhoods
San Francisco’s growing acceptance of accessory units – new units in existing buildings – reached another milestone this week as two ordinances permitting new units within existing buildings were unanimously approved by the Board of Supervisors on first reading. Supervisor Wiener’s ordinance permitted new units in his Supervisorial District (District 8), which includes the Castro, Mission Dolores,…
Planning for a Better City
For many decades, transportation planning in San Francisco was focused almost entirely on the automobile, and walking, cycling, and public transit were marginalized. We need to put sustainable modes at the center of our transportation plans, and replace “predict and provide” models of traffic and parking planning with ones that take into account the potential…
