Inner Sunset residents filled a City Hall hearing room yesterday afternoon as the Planning Commission deliberated over plans to demolish and rebuild 1126 Irving Street. Unable to resolve the issue during the hearing, commissioners delayed a decision until November 5th, leaving the project in limbo.
Homeowner Craig Dawson has submitted plans to demolish his 1908 Edwardian and replace it with a larger, more contemporary structure with three residential units and ground-floor commercial space. The project enjoys broad support from the community, but a vocal group of neighbors who are opposed say the plans will negatively impact the area's character and appearance.
For two hours, commissioners discussed the project; Dawson and opposing neighbors were each granted a limited amount of time to present their viewpoints before the floor was opened to public comment. Twenty people spoke in favor of the project and five voiced their opposition.
Photo: Jonathan Gerfen/Hoodline
Supporters, including representatives from organizations SHARP and GrowSF, largely focused on the ways the property's owners have served the community and touted the benefits of building more housing as the city struggles with an overall shortage.
While some proponents hoped the proposed design would be improved, others said it would make a good addition to the neighborhood. More than one supporter, including the owner of a building across the street, said they were initially opposed based on an image that made the new building appear to be much larger than others in the area; after more accurate renderings were circulated, they said they came to support the construction.
Neighbors opposed to the project said older buildings in San Francisco are irreplaceable and said the demolition would lead to the loss of other vintage buildings. Neighbor Allen Chalmers said 1126 Irving "was built for the ages" and shared a 40-year-old news clipping article detailing similar fights to save houses in the neighborhood.
Other neighbors said that they hadn't been properly notified or included in the process; one resident described the proposed building as "an eyesore."
Rendering: Elevation Architects
In addition to the public comments, the Planning Commission acknowledged the receipt of over 200 letters in support of the project and more than 100 letters expressing opposition.
Without exception, commissioners voiced support for the project with regard to its size, scale, design, and potential impact on the neighborhood. Although Planning had recently exempted the building from rent control protection, permits from the 1970s and '80s regarding the number of residential and commercial units that existed were unclear. As a result, the Commission voted to delay the project until November 5th so that the rent control status could be conclusively determined.
"We on the west side of the city haven't been doing our part in contributing to the new housing stock of the city," said Commissioner Michael Antonini, himself a property owner in the area. "Less than 1 percent of the new housing being built in San Francisco is being built in the Sunset," said Antonini, noting that he'd have voted today to approve the project if not for its murky rent control status.
"We can't take the risk of unintentionally demolishing rent controlled units," explained Commissioner Dennis Richards, who added that vintage Edwardian and Victorian buildings like 1126 Irving are irreplaceable.
