5- To 9-Story Residential Building Proposed For Van Ness & Pacific

5- To 9-Story Residential Building Proposed For Van Ness & Pacific

A nine-story residential development proposed for 2101 Van Ness Ave. | Renderings: Ian Birchall & Associates via SF Planning

Shane Downing
Published on March 21, 2017

Local architecture firm Ian Birchall & Associates has submitted plans to construct either five stories or nine stories of fresh housing at the corner of Van Ness and Pacific in Pacific Heights.

Both applications call for a complete demolition of the current five-story, 53-foot-tall building at 2101 Van Ness Ave., which currently houses Happy Donuts and office space above.

2101 Van Ness Ave. | Photo: Google Maps

One of the proposals seeks to construct a five-story, 50-foot-tall replacement with 35 residential units. Thirty-one units would be one-bedrooms, four would be two-bedrooms and seven of the units (20 percent) would be affordable. The plans also include two ground-floor retail spaces totaling 2,101 square feet, 17 ground-floor parking spaces and 68 bicycle parking spots for residents.

A rendering of the the five-story proposal.

With the property currently zoned for development of up to 80 feet, the alternate proposal seeks to take advantage of the State Density Bonus Law to construct a nine-story, 84-foot-tall residential building with 48 units divided equally between one- and two- bedroom dwellings. Like the five-story proposal, the application states that seven units (14.5 percent) would be deemed affordable. The plans also call for 2,101 square feet of ground-floor retail space, 24 ground-floor parking spaces and 68 bicycle parking spots.

The Planning Department has 90 days to issue its initial assessments of these proposals. We’ll keep our eyes on this development.