Planning Code, Zoning Map - Group Housing Special Use District
Ord. No. 0154-22
in effectAMENDED IN COMMITTEE
FILE NO. 211300
3/7/2022 ORDINANCE NO. 154-22
[Planning Code, Zoning Map - Group Housing Special Use District]
Ordinance amending the Planning Code to create the Group Housing Special Use
District; affirming the Planning Department's determination under the California
Environmental Quality Act; and making findings of consistency with the General Plan,
and the eight priority policies of Planning Code, Section 101.1, and findings of public
necessity, convenience, and welfare under Planning Code, Section 302.
NOTE:
Unchanged Code text and uncodified text are in plain Arial font.
Additions to Codes are in single-underline iLalics Times Nei,i Roman font.
Deletions to Codes are in s:triket.~rmtg,1:i iffllics Times l•kw Re1'1'lc1,"lfont.
Board amendment additions are in double-underlined Arial font.
Board amendment deletions are in strikethrough /\rial font.
Asterisks (* * * *) indicate the omission of unchanged Code
subsections or parts of tables.
Be it ordained by the People of the City and County of San Francisco:
Section 1. Environmental and Land Use Findings.
(a) The Planning Department has determined that the actions contemplated in this
ordinance comply with the California Environmental Quality Act (California Public Resources
Code Sections 21000 et seq.). Said determination is on file with the Clerk of the Board of
Supervisors in File No. 211300 and is incorporated herein by reference. The Board affirms
this determination.
(b) On February 10, 2022, the Planning Commission, in Resolution No. 21071,
adopted findings that the actions contemplated in this ordinance are consistent, on balance,
with the City's General Plan and eight priority policies of Planning Code Section 101.1. The
Board adopts these findings as its own. A copy of said Resolution is on file with the Clerk of
the Board of Supervisors in File No. 211300, and is incorporated herein by reference.
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(c) Pursuant to Planning Code Section 302, the Board of Supervisors finds that the
Planning Code and Zoning Map amendments will serve the public necessity, convenience,
and welfare for the reasons set forth in Planning Commission Resolution No. 21071, and the
Board incorporates such reasons herein by reference.
Section 2. Other Specific Findings.
(a)
The Group Housing Special Use District is generally comprised of overlapping
areas in whole or in part of the Chinatown Community Business District, the Chinatown Visitor
Retail District, the Chinatown Residential Neighborhood Commercial District, the Chinatown
Transit Station Special Use District, the North Beach Neighborhood Commercial District, the
North Beach Special Use District, the Nob Hill Special Use District and the North of Market
Special Use District, which are described more fully in Planning Code sections 810, 811, 812,
722, 780.3, 249.66, 238 and 249.5 respectively, and the Uptown Tenderloin Historic District,
which is described more fully in the National Register of Historic Places as approved by the
State Historical Resources Commission (together, "Greater Chinatown and Greater
Tenderloin neighborhoods"). These districts all were designed with the intent of protecting and
preserving, to various degrees, the established communities, including the high concentration
of low-income residents of single-room occupancy (SRO) residential hotels, a type of group
housing as defined in the Planning Code.
(b)
The Greater Chinatown and Greater Tenderloin neighborhoods continue to have
the highest concentration per census tract of low-income families in San Francisco, many of
whom reside in overcrowded group housing projects. This concentration of existing group
housing projects in the Group Housing Special Use District does not currently meet the
housing needs of the population, which lacks access to and choice of housing options that
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provide adequate cooking, food preparation, and storage facilities appropriately sized for
families.
(c)
The San Francisco Human Services Agency (HSA) has documented that both
the Greater Chinatown and Greater Tenderloin neighborhood residents are the most at risk fa
food insecurity and the most reliant on government aid for food subsidies among San
Francisco residents; and that without a complete kitchen facility with adequate space to
prepare, store, and cook food, residents are more likely to rely on pre-prepared meals and
unhealthy snacks, furthering the income inequality and public health concerns in these
neighborhoods.
(d)
Given the lack of adequate kitchens and adequate food storage areas within
new group housing projects, as well as Greater Tenderloin and Greater Chinatown residents'
limited access to affordable grocery stores, and an increase in documented assaults within
both neighborhoods, the Board of Supervisors finds that residents of new group housing
projects would need to purchase prepared food and would be unlikely to walk or take transit t
food establishments. Thus, residents are likely to rely heavily on Transportation Network
Company (TNC) food delivery vehicle services (e.g., DoorDash, GrubHub, and Uber Eats
deliveries) to obtain food, leading to additional congestion. As documented by the San
Francisco County Transportation Authority in its 2017 "TNC's Today" Congestion Study, an
increase in TNC use in turn creates more pedestrian/vehicle collisions and increased
pollution; the Greater Tenderloin and Greater Chinatown neighborhood already suffers high
levels of both.
(e)
Group housing projects tend to have higher turnover of tenants given that the
typology specifically caters to transient and temporary residents, as interpreted by the Zoning
Administrator. Unlike family-sized dwelling units with full kitchens and storage space designed
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for permanent residents, the transient nature of group housing residents contributes to
destabilization of the neighborhoods in which they are located.
(f)
Existing group housing projects within the proposed Group Housing Special Use
District have been found to have a high number of vacancies as documented by the
Department of Building Inspection's Annual Unit Usage Report (AUUR).
(g)
The Board of Supervisors finds that because group housing is already
overwhelmingly saturated within the geographic boundaries of the Group Housing Special
Use District, and in the interest of promoting density and geographic equity, it is necessary
and appropriate to prohibit new group housing uses within the Group Housing Special Use
District to incentivize other needed housing typologies, namely affordable family-sized
housing, while concurrently increasing density in other areas of the City.
Section 3. Article 2 of the Planning Code is hereby amended by adding Section
249.92, to read as follows:
SEC. 249.92. GROUP HOUSING SPECIAL USE DISTRICT.
(a) Purpose. To incentivize the development of affordable familv-sized housing over housing
without full kitchens or adequate space to prepare, store, and cook food. in areas ofthe City where
Group Housing is already saturated. a special use district entitled the "Group Housing Special Use
District ' is hereby established.
(b) Boundaries. The boundaries of the Group Housing Special Use District are shown on
Special Use District Maps SU OJ and 02. and consist of the following areas:
(1) The area within a perimeter established by Bush Street. Stockton Street. Market
Street, and Polk Street.
(2) The area within a perimeter established hv Union Street. Grant A, enue. Columbus
Avenue, Montgomery Street. California Street, and Powell Street.
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(c) Controls. Except for an Affordable Housing Project. as defined in Planning Code
section 315(b). and Single Room Occupancy residential hotel units required by section 41.13
of the Hotel Conversion Ordinance. Administrative Code section 41 .13, Group Housing. as
defined in Section I 02, shall not be permitted in the Special Use District. All other provisions ofthe
Planning Code shall apply.
Section 4. The Planning Code is hereby amended by revising Special Use District Map
SU01 and SU02 of the Zoning Map of the City and County of San Francisco, as follows:
Description of Property
The area within a perimeter established by
Bush Street, Stockton Street, Market Street,
and Polk Street.
The area within a perimeter established by
Union Street, Grant Avenue, Columbus
Avenue, Montgomery Street, California
Street, and Powell Street.
Special Use District Hereby Approved
Group Housing Special Use District
Group Housing Special Use District
Section 5. Effective and Operative Dates.
(a)
This ordinance shall become effective 30 days after enactment. Enactment
occurs when the Mayor signs the ordinance, the Mayor returns the ordinance unsigned or
does not sign the ordinance within ten days of receiving it, or the Board of Supervisors
overrides the Mayor's veto of the ordinance.
(b)
This ordinance shall become operative on the later of (1) its effective date stated
in subsection (a), or (2) on the effective date of either the ordinance in Board of Supervisors
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File No. 210564 or the ordinance in Board of Supervisors File No. 210866. The ordinances in
File Nos. 210564 and 210866 change the development standards, policies, and conditions
applicable to RH-1 districts, increasing the development capacity in those districts. This
ordinance and the ordinance in either File No. 210564 or 210866 or both, together ensure tha
there is no net loss in residential capacity in San Francisco.
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
DAVID CHIU, City Attorney
By:
/s/
AUDREY WILLIAMS PEARSON
Deputy City Attorney
n:\legana\as2021 \2200120\01587324.docx
Supervisors Peskin; Melgar, Preston
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City and County of San Francisco
Tails
Ordinance
City Hall
1 Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Place
San Francisco, CA 94102-4689
File Number:
211300
Date Passed: July 12, 2022
Ordinance amending the Planning Code to create the Group Housing Special Use District; affirming
the Planning Department's determination under the California Environmental Quality Act; and making
findings of consistency with the General Plan, and the eight priority policies of Planning Code,
Section 101 .1, and findings of public necessity, convenience, and welfare under Planning Code,
Section 302.
March 07, 2022 Land Use and Transportation Committee - AMENDED, AN AMENDMENT
OF THE WHOLE BEARING SAME TITLE
March 07, 2022 Land Use and Transportation Committee - CONTINUED TO CALL OF THE
CHAIR AS AMENDED
June 06, 2022 Land Use and Transportation Committee - RECOMMENDED
June 14, 2022 Board of Supervisors - CONTINUED ON FIRST READING
Ayes: 10 - Chan, Dorsey, Mandelman, Mar, Melgar, Peskin, Preston, Ronen, Safai
and Walton
Excused: 1 - Stefani
June 28, 2022 Board of Supervisors - PASSED ON FIRST READING
Ayes: 10 - Dorsey, Mandelman, Mar, Melgar, Peskin, Preston, Ronen, Safai,
Stefani and Walton
Excused: 1 - Chan
July 12, 2022 Board of Supervisors - Fl NALLY PASSED
City and County of San Francisco
Ayes: 11 - Chan, Dorsey, Mandelman, Mar, Melgar, Peskin, Preston, Ronen,
Safai, Stefani and Walton
Page 1
Printed at 10:50 am on 7/13122
File No. 211300
London N. Breed
Mayor
City and County of San Francisco
Page2
I hereby certify that the foregoing
Ordinance was FINALLY PASSED on
7/12/2022 by the Board of Supervisors of
the City and County of San Francisco.
Angela Calvillo
Clerk of the Board
=tJ'l\ /7.1-
Date Approved
Printed at 10:50 am on 7113/22
References
amendsSec. 249.91
amendsSec. 249.92
amendsSec. 249.93
amendsSec. 249.94
Source: sf_ordinance_pdfURL: https://sfbos.archive.sf.gov/sites/default/files/o0154-22.pdfFetched: 7/4/2026