“On Rincon Hill, the Emerald Fund is proposing to build 308 units at 333 Harrison St., a project that would include two neighborhood parks. At 430 Main St. and 429 Beale St., a narrow lot sandwiched between the Baycrest condos and a Caltrans yard, Portland-Pacific is proposing to build 113 apartments. The Martin Building Co., meanwhile, is scrambling to put together financing to go forward on two apartment complexes: 179 units at 2235 Third St. and 85 units at 178 Townsend St.”
∙ Developers emerge for new San Francisco housing [San Francisco Business Times]
∙ A Plugged-In Reader’s 13 Notes On The “PC” Approved 333 Harrison [SocketSite]
∙ 430 Main and 429 Beale Streets – Tell Them To Forget It! [Rincon Hill San Francisco]
∙ 2225-2255 Third Street: What Was (And Hopefully Is) In The Works [SocketSite]
I wonder how the Wednesday night community meeting went. Anything from that would be interesting to hear.
My guess is that people involved with this proposal are not going to “just forget it” as Jamie suggests. Even with careful design, the constraints of this development mean it will almost certainly cast a shadow on the Baycrest center common area. Getting technical about the rules is probably not going to be as effective as gathering masses of people. Even then, this is a dense area that drives a lot of demand which tips the balance in favor of development, or at least should.
Notes on the community meeting [for 333 Harrison]:
1. The new building will be sandwiched between Bridgeview and one rincon hill ( second tower).
2. Bridgeview owners will be adversely affected ( the lower level units will lose their views). The new bldg will be 40 feet away from the Bridgeview.
3. The building will house rental units.
4. The rent will be expensive… from $ 3,000 to $ 3,500.00.
5. Approximately 6 storey high.
6. The units are really very small…..mostly one bedroom units …averaging 500 square ft.
7. The best part of the presentation is space for the public park.
8. They will have a great public park…looks like a courtyard…really well presented.
9. It will take approximately 2 years to complete.
10. One Rincon Hill is not at all affected.
11. The Metropolitan will not be affected too.
12. Another nice perk: they will have a dog run
13. They have plans to convert them into a condo…perhaps within 15-20 years…that is what they told us. But, it is most likely much sooner than that time frame.
[Editor’s Note: Great notes which we’ve slightly edited and promoted: A Plugged-In Reader’s 12 Notes On The “PC” Approved 333 Harrison. Cheers.]
I’m hoping the Planning Commission will agree that there will be significant negative impacts on BayCrest Towers Residents due the effects of a 84 foot Berlin Wall running from street to street and sealing off the common open spaces at BayCrest just 3 feet away. Why would a 85 foot building be required to be spaced 115 feet away under the Rincon Hill Plan and a 84 foot building only 3 feet away?
The Rincon Hill Plan is full of “Urban Living” and “Livability” objectives and policies … yes, it is going to be hard to convince the Planning Commission that the City should not ignore the livability of the current design and ask for a compromise that works better for BayCrest open spaces at least getting a 45 degree angle opening … but ya gotta try.
See my site http://livable.wetpaint.com for all the planning files on the 430 Main / 429 Beale proposed project .. I gotta say the Emerald Fund folks approached their project the right way, talking to Rincon Hill neighbors back in December … while the 430 Main folks hid out and sprung their plans to build the Berlin Wall to the south of BayCrest this past week.
This is why smart developers do not ask for variances.