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SAN FRANCISCO
HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION
Meeting Minutes
Hearing Room 400
City Hall, 1 Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Place
Wednesday, October 3, 2012
12:30 P.M.
Regular Meeting
_______________ ______________
COMMISSIONERS PRESENT: Hasz, Johns, Martinez, Matsuda, Wolfram, Damkroger, Chase
THE MEETING WAS CALLED TO ORDER BY PRESIDENT CHASE AT 12: 38 PM
STAFF IN ATTENDANCE: John Rahaim – Director of Planning, Mary Brown, Tim Frye – Preservation Coordinator, and Linda Avery – Commission Secretary
A. PUBLIC COMMENT
SPEAKERS: None
B. STAFF REPORT AND ANNOUNCEMENTS
1. Director’s Report
Director Rahaim reported on the new legislation, AB 1484, adopted by the Board of Supervisors. AB 1484 1) acknowledges that former staff of the Redevelopment Agency are not employees of the City and County of San Francisco; and 2) the Successor Agency now has two Boards, the newly created Successor Agency Commission, a policy body holding land use authority for work done by the Successor Agency, and the existing Oversight Board that has fiduciary responsibility
2. Reviewed of Past Week’s events at the Planning Commission (PC):
Preservation Coordinator Frye did not have preservation related issues to report from the PC.
3. Preservation Coordinator Frye - Additional Reports and Announcements.
· Status on Residential Design Guidelines – Staff Tina Tam and Glen Cabreros will be presenting to the HPC at its November 7 hearing, tentatively.
· Status on Japan Town planning process and Social Heritage Survey – the Department is working with SF Architectural Heritage and Page and Turnbull on a draft plan and will bring the survey result to the HPC.
· Mills Act - The Department is working on a press release, updating website and application materials, and providing assesses value information for the public when it will become effective next week.
· Reported on Planning Department’s involvement in the permitting process and environment review of the Lafayette Square Park.
C. MATTERS OF THE COMMISSION
4. President’s Report and Announcements
President Chase brought two items to the attention of the HPC and the public –
1) Carol [Rolan Nowie] is now the new California State Historic Preservation Officer. Carol is a long time veteran of historic preservation both in the private sector and with the California Preservation Foundation. Carol was also a former employee of SHPO.
2) ABC Channel 7 in San Francisco on Monday, October 1st, did a program on adaptive use of historic churches in San Francisco. Mr. Peter Lewis and other community members addressed the positive issues of adaptive use, and preferring adaptive reuse than having them remain vacant or demolished.
5. Consideration of Adoption:
a. Draft minutes of the September 19, 2012 regular Hearing
SPEAKERS: None
ACTION: Approved
AYES: Hasz, Johns, Martinez, Matsuda, Wolfram, Damkroger, Chase
6. Disclosures
Commissioner Martinez spoke to Susan [Bran] Holly, G G Platt, Aaron Peskin, Nancy Shanahan, Bill Sugaya, Peter Lewis and others he did not know regarding Item 9, Procedures Regarding HPC Policy Recommendations and Actions.
Commissioner Damkroger had emails from residents from Russian Hill; spoke to G G Platt.
7. Commissioner Comments/ Questions
Commissioner Damkroger congratulated the Planning Department on the award received on the Property Information Map
Commissioner Matsuda reported that the Sub-committees did not get the requested information from the Department of Human Resources in time for the meeting scheduled for September 25th. The next meeting will be held on October 10, 2012, 3 PM.
Commissioner Martinez 1) acknowledged Commission Secretary Avery’s retirement in October and asked if a go away event is arranged. President Chase would follow up with email; 2) requested a review and discussion at every hearing the calendar for the next hearing to better utilize meeting time in which some meetings would be allotted to policy items and other to project review; 3) requested to maintain a running list on the calendar of topics the HPC wants to hear or discuss. This would enable the HPC to participate in processes, to decide what to discuss and their priorities, and to direct staff on the level of presentation, from informal to elaborate. He thought all this would assist HPC to accomplish more. Commissioner Damkroger liked the ideas of setting up a section on the calendar. Commissioner Wolfram liked the idea if it leads to some action or become part of the policy. Commission Secretary Ms. Avery will list the requests under Matters of the Commission, and would include the HPC Advance Calendar either in the packet or send electronically to the commissioners for their review and use. She stated in the absence of the President, the Vice President decides what would go on the agenda. Commissioner Chase spoke in support of the balancing act Planning staff has to deal with in placing and keeping an item on the agenda. They need to consider and coordinate hearing schedules of the Planning Commission and the Board of Supervisors, adhering to noticing requirements, and the time limitation of HPC hearings. Items do drop off the calendar because applicants decide not to move the project forward. He didn’t want the public or members of the commission to think in any way we are holding back. He said Commissioner Martinez had brought up good issues. He believed his frustration, as well as HPC’s, was about not being able to have discussions because some items of interest are not agendized in a way that allows HPC to communicate. The HPC often is hamstrung because of this situation. Another good point is the discussion allows the public to participate in the process as well. The HPC has reached a consensus.
SPEAKER: None
D. CONSENT CALENDAR
8. 2011.0688L (MARY BROWN: 415/575-9074)
320-326 JUDAH STREET – north side between Eighth Avenue and Ninth Avenue; Assessor’s Block 1763; Lot 020 & 021. Consideration of adoption of a Resolution to recommend to the Board of Supervisors designation of 320-326 Judah Street, historically known as the Doelger Sales Office Building, as an individual Article 10 landmark pursuant to Section 1004.1 of the Planning Code. The HPC initiated landmark designation of the subject building on September 19, 2012.
Preliminary Recommendation: Approval.
SPEAKERS: None
ACTION: Approved
AYES: Hasz, Johns, Matsuda, Wolfram, Damkroger, Chase
ABSENT: Martinez (stepped away)
RESOLUTION: R691
E. REGULAR CALENDAR
9. (TIM FRYE: 415/575-6822)
PROCEDURES REGARDING HPC POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS AND ACTIONS. Consideration of adoption of a Resolution directing Planning Department staff on the process by which the Commission's policy recommendations and actions are communicated to the general public and to other local, state, and federal agencies. The Commission's discussion may include discussion of the Commission's adoption of the Mission-Dolores Neighborhood Survey and the Department's procedures regarding that survey.
SPEAKERS: Peter Lewis, Founding Director and Past President of Mission Dolores Neighborhood Association (MDNA), recounted past events that occurred between MOEWD and the HPFC and asked the HPC to adopt a resolution to hire Carey and Company to complete the work as outlined in the grant from HPFC; Maria Mejia, Board Member of MDNA, asked the HPC to help write a resolution for completing the goals in moving forward the National Register Historic District Nomination; Marius Starkey, Board Member of MNDA, stated this nomination would give the district a sense of place in the community and asked for HPC’s help to make sure this nomination is put together ; GG Platt contributed to the discussion.
ACTION: The HPC would write a letter to the Historic Preservation Fund Committee and carbon copied to the Office of Economic Workforce Department that HPC supports the National Register Historic District Nomination, states its understanding from the hearing that the Planning Department’s position on the nomination is the need to see the actual nomination and their offer of assistance in public outreach, and voiced its request to use HPC as a venue to examine what the nomination will include and how the various questions about boundaries, period of significance, contributors and integrity will be resolved.
AYES: Hasz, Johns, Martinez, Matsuda, Wolfram, Damkroger, Chase
RESOLUTION: R692
ADJOURNMENT: 2:11 PM
The minutes was proposed for adoption at the Regular Meeting of the Historic Preservation Commission on Wednesday, October 17, 2012.
ACTION: Approved
AYES: Hasz, Johns, Martinez, Matsuda, Wolfram, Damkroger, Chase
