On April 3, the Board of Supervisors will hold a hearing on State Senate Bill 827. The Barbary Coast Neighborhood Association opposes SB 827, which will eliminate local control over development without any provision for additional public or community benefits. Members who wish to be heard on SB 827 are encouraged to email Supervisor Aaron Peskin and/or the entire Board of Supervisors ASAP. While the April 3 hearing is open to the public, there will be no public testimony.
Proponents claim that SB 827 is about awarding a bonus for building higher and denser housing near âtransit-richâ locations (within Âœ mile of a major transit stop or ÂŒ mile of such a stop or a stop on a âhigh-quality transit corridorâ). Sounds great, right? But the law would:
- Strip San Francisco of much of its power to regulate land use.
- Maximize development by limiting or eliminating many local zoning controls.
- Up-zone as much as 96% of San Francisco, affecting every neighborhood.
- Override current height limits to allow buildings up to 8 stories (10 stories if, as the bill permits, combined with another state law).
- Not protect rent-controlled tenants.
- Not provide any affordable housing beyond what the City provides already.
The bill also threatens to greatly increase the cost to build new non-profit affordable housing by driving up the price of development sites everywhere. The Coalition of San Francisco Neighborhoods and the Sierra Club are among the opponents of this well-intended but misguided proposal, and the Planning Commission has expressed grave concerns. For more information, read the Legislative Counselâs Digest and the Bill text.
SAMPLE EMAIL TO SUPERVISORS
(Copy and paste this into an email on your computer)Dear Supervisors,
My name is ______, a San Francisco resident and voter. I urge you to pass a resolution to oppose State Senate Bill 827, NOT seek to amend it. Even with amendments, the Bill would transfer power to the State to decide important land use matters for our City. I can think of no reason that any of you should want to turn over to the State those kinds of powers.
Thank you.
Supervisor Email Addresses: aaron.peskin@sfgov.org, jane.kim@sfgov.org, katy.tang@sfgov.org, ahsha.safai@sfgov.org, norman.yee@sfgov.org, catherine.stefani@sfgov.org, malia.cohen@sfgov.org, sandra.fewer@sfgov.org, london.breed@sfgov.org, jeff.sheehy@sfgov.org, hillary.ronen@sfgov.org, board.of.supervisors@sfgov.org