611

SEC. 611. GENERAL ADVERTISING SIGNS PROHIBITED. (a) No new general advertising signs shall be permitted at any location within the City as of March 5, 2002, except as provided in Subsection (b) of this ordinance. (b) Nothing in this ordinance shall be construed to prohibit the placement of signs on motor vehicles or in the public right-of-way as permitted by local law. (c) Relocation Agreements. (1) Nothing in this ordinance shall preclude the Board of Supervisors, upon recommendation from a department designated by the Board, from entering into agreements with general advertising sign companies to provide for the relocation of existing legally permitted general advertising signs. Any such agreements shall provide that the selection of a new location for an existing legally permitted general advertising sign be subject to the conditional use procedures provided for in Article 3 of the Planning Code. (2) Locations where general advertising signs could have been lawfully erected pursuant to the zoning laws in effect prior to the effective date of this ordinance may be considered as relocation sites. Future zoning laws may additionally restrict the locations available for the relocation of existing legally permitted general advertising signs. (d) Pursuant to Subsection (c)(1) of this ordinance, the selection of a relocation site for an existing legally permitted general advertising sign shall be governed by the conditional use procedures of Section 303 of the Planning Code. (e) Nothing in this ordinance shall preclude the Board of Supervisors from otherwise amending Article 6 of the Planning Code. (f) A prohibition on all new general advertising signs is necessary because: (1) The increased size and number of general advertising signs in the City can distract motorists and pedestrians traveling on the public right of way creating a public safety hazard. (2) General advertising signs contribute to blight and visual clutter as well as the commercialization of public spaces within the City. (3) There is a proliferation of general advertising signs visible from, on, and near historically significant buildings and districts, public buildings and open spaces all over the City. (4) San Francisco must protect the character and dignity of the City's distinctive appearance, topography, street patterns, open spaces, thoroughfares, skyline and architectural features for both residents and visitors. (5) There is currently an ample supply of general advertising signs within the City. (Added by Proposition G, 3/5/2002) ARTICLE 7: NEIGHBORHOOD COMMERCIAL DISTRICTS Sec. 701. Neighborhood Commercial District Provisions. Sec. 701.1. Purpose of Article 7. Sec. 701.2. Report to the Board of Supervisors. Sec. 702. Classes of Neighborhood Commercial Districts. Sec. 703. Neighborhood Commercial District Requirements. Sec. 703.4. Conditional Use Authorization for Formula Retail Uses. Sec. 710. NC-1 – Neighborhood Commercial Cluster District. Sec. 711. NC-2 – Small-Scale Neighborhood Commercial District. Sec. 712. NC-3 – Moderate-Scale Neighborhood Commercial District. Sec. 713. NC-S – Neighborhood Commercial Shopping Center District. Sec. 714. Broadway Neighborhood Commercial District. Sec. 715. Castro Street Neighborhood Commercial District. Sec. 716. Inner Clement Street Neighborhood Commercial District. Sec. 717. Outer Clement Street Neighborhood Commercial District. Sec. 718. Upper Fillmore Street Neighborhood Commercial District. Sec. 719. Haight Street Neighborhood Commercial District. Sec. 720. Excelsior Outer Mission Neighborhood Commercial District. Sec. 721. Japantown Neighborhood Commercial District. Sec. 722. North Beach Neighborhood Commercial District. Sec. 723. Polk Street Neighborhood Commercial District. Sec. 724. Sacramento Street Neighborhood Commercial District. Sec. 725. Union Street Neighborhood Commercial District. Sec. 726. Pacific Avenue Neighborhood Commercial District. Sec. 727. Lakeside Village Neighborhood Commercial District. Sec. 728. 24th Street – Noe Valley Neighborhood Commercial District.

Sec. 729. West Portal Avenue Neighborhood Commercial District. Sec. 730. Inner Sunset Neighborhood Commercial District Sec. 731. Noriega Street Neighborhood Commercial District. Sec. 732. Irving Street Neighborhood Commercial District. Sec. 733. Taraval Street Neighborhood Commercial District. Sec. 734. Judah Street Neighborhood Commercial District. Sec. 735. Inner Balboa Street Neighborhood Commercial District. Sec. 736. Outer Balboa Street Neighborhood Commercial District. Sec. 737. Bayview Neighborhood Commercial District. Sec. 738. Cortland Avenue Neighborhood Commercial District. Sec. 739. Geary Boulevard Neighborhood Commercial District. Sec. 740. Mission Bernal Neighborhood Commercial District. Sec. 741. San Bruno Avenue Neighborhood Commercial District. Sec. 742. Cole Valley Neighborhood Commercial District. Sec. 743. Lower Haight Street Neighborhood Commercial District. Sec. 744. Lower Polk Street Neighborhood Commercial District. Sec. 745. Inner Taraval Street Neighborhood Commercial District. Sec. 746. Leland Avenue Neighborhood Commercial District. Sec. 750. NCT-1 – Neighborhood Commercial Transit Cluster District. Sec. 751. NCT-2 – Small-Scale Neighborhood Commercial Transit District. Sec. 752. NCT-3 – Moderate-Scale Neighborhood Commercial Transit District. Sec. 753. SoMa Neighborhood Commercial Transit District. Sec. 754. Mission Street Neighborhood Commercial Transit District. Sec. 755. Ocean Avenue Neighborhood Commercial Transit District. Sec. 756. Glen Park Neighborhood Commercial Transit District. Sec. 757. Folsom Street Neighborhood Commercial Transit District. Sec. 758. Regional Commercial District. Sec. 759. Divisadero Street Neighborhood Commercial Transit District. Sec. 760. Fillmore Street Neighborhood Commercial Transit District. Sec. 761. Hayes-Gough Neighborhood Commercial Transit District. Sec. 762. Valencia Street Neighborhood Commercial Transit District. Sec. 763. 24th Street – Mission Neighborhood Commercial Transit District. Sec. 764. Upper Market Street Neighborhood Commercial Transit District. Sec. 780. Neighborhood Commercial Special Use Districts. Sec. 780.1. Lakeshore Plaza Special Use District. Sec. 780.2. Bayshore-Hester Special Use District. Sec. 780.4. Mission-Harrington Special Use District. Sec. 781. Neighborhood Commercial Restricted Use Subdistricts. Sec. 781.1. Taraval Street Restaurant Subdistrict. Sec. 781.4. Geary Boulevard Formula Retail Pet Supply Store and Formula Retail Eating and Drinking Subdistrict. Sec. 781.6. North Beach Financial Service, Limited Financial Service, and Business or Professional Service Subdistrict. Sec. 781.7. Chestnut Street Financial Service Subdistrict. Sec. 781.8. Mission Alcoholic Beverage Special Use Subdistrict. Sec. 781.9. Haight Street Alcohol Restricted Use Subdistrict. Sec. 781.10. 17th and Rhode Island Street Grocery Store Special Use Subdistrict. Sec. 782. Third Street Alcohol Restricted Use District. Sec. 784. Lower Haight Street Alcohol Restricted Use District. Sec. 786. Third Street Formula Retail Restricted Use District. Sec. 787. 1800 Market Street Community Center Project Special Use District.

SEC. 701. NEIGHBORHOOD COMMERCIAL DISTRICT PROVISIONS. This Article is adopted specifically for Neighborhood Commercial Districts (NCDs), as shown on the Zoning Map of the City and County of San Francisco. The provisions set forth or referenced in Article 7 shall apply to any use, property, structure, or development which is located in a Neighborhood Commercial District, unless otherwise provided for within this Code. In the event of conflict between provisions of Article 7 and other provisions of this Code, the provisions of Article 7 shall prevail. (Added by Ord. 69-87, App. 3/13/87; amended by Ord. 13-26, File No. 251099, App. 2/13/2026, Eff. 3/16/2026) AMENDMENT HISTORY Section amended; Ord. 13-26, Eff. 3/16/2026. SEC. 701.1. PURPOSE OF ARTICLE 7. This Article is intended to provide a comprehensive and flexible zoning system for Neighborhood Commercial Districts which is consistent with the objectives and policies set forth in the San Francisco General Plan. More specifically, the purposes of this Article are: (a) To provide in one article a complete listing of or cross-reference to all of the zoning categories, control provisions, and review procedures which are applicable to properties or uses in Neighborhood Commercial Districts. (b) To establish a zoning system which will accommodate all classes of Neighborhood Commercial Districts including general districts for citywide area groupings and individual districts which are tailored to the unique characteristics of specific areas. (c) To provide zoning control categories which embrace the full range of land use issues in all Neighborhood Commercial Districts, in order that controls can be applied individually to each district class to address particular land use concerns in that district.