Market-Octavia plan mired in red tape
From today’s Examiner, “Part of the Central Freeway has come down, the new Octavia Boulevard is open and developers are proceeding with housing in the surrounding area. But absent from the landscape is a revitalization plan city officials assumed would be finished by now.”
“After five years of community meetings and environmental review, officials expected the Market-Octavia plan to be approved in January. Instead, the environmental review has been delayed as neighborhood consensus on the plan appears to have dissolved.”
“The difficulty in passing the plan underscores just how complicated and drawn-out the community planning process has been in San Francisco. Market-Octavia is one of three major Better Neighborhoods Plans started in 2000 that have yet to be approved. The City has spent $4.5 million on the programs to date, according to Alicia John-Baptiste of the Planning Department.”
“Meanwhile, planners who believed they had reached community consensus over the Market-Octavia plan a few years ago are confronting an upswell of new neighborhood residents who were not part of the original planning process and oppose certain elements of the plan, including taller buildings on Market Street and reduced parking requirements for new housing, according to the planning officials.”
“Peter Cohen, who is working [...] on a task force to request changes to the plan, said group members are not “NIMBYs” [“not in my backyard”] but community members committed to smart growth and planning. “We’re accepting development will happen, but we want good development,” Cohen said.”
“City officials are frustrated as well, citing lack of resources that held up the plan. “What we’re concerned about is the length of time it takes,” said Amit Ghosh, head of long-range planning for The City. “By the time we finish the plan, consensus is forgotten.””
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Highlights of the Market-Octavia plan
What’s in the plan: Aims to create a dense, transit-oriented neighborhood with dense housing over retail and streets that are friendly to walkers and bikers. The plan covers 379 acres including Hayes Valley, a portion of Mid-Market and Mission Dolores, and a part of Duboce Triangle. It allows taller buildings around Van Ness and Market, but reduces heights in areas of Hayes Valley.
Housing: Could result in 4,400 more units through 2025. It would reduce parking requirements for new housing developments to encourage transit use.
Status: Draft plan finished in December 2002. Draft environmental report finished in June. Final environment report due this spring. Adoption planned for the summer.
