As the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency scrambles to fund the non-federal portion of San Francisco’s Central Subway Project, this afternoon San Francisco’s Land Use and Economic Development Committee tackles an ordinance in support of the SFMTA’s Relocation Impact Study and Last Resort Housing Plan for the project.
Approved by the Board of Supervisors in July, the SFMTA is moving forward with five eminent domain actions – three easements for the Project tunnel, and two acquisitions for the Moscone and Chinatown Station sites.
The Moscone Station site is at 266-286 4th Street at the corner of Folsom Street in the Yerba Buena Neighborhood south of Market Street. The property is owned and operated by Convenience Retailers LLC, a multi-state gas service Station and convenience store enterprise. It is also occupied by an independent contractor hired by the property owner for smog shop services.
The Chinatown Station site [pictured above] is at 933-949 Stockton Street at Washington Street in Chinatown. It is owned by a private entity, Norman P. Chan Inc. this property contains eight retail tenants including four restaurants, two hair salons, one meat market, and a property management firm on the ground floor. The second floor contains 18 residential units, which are occupied by 19 families (approximately 56 individuals).
The estimated cost of relocation is approximately $4,187,600. And while the SFMTA continues to negotiate with all five property owners, it is also “preparing eminent domain actions, as necessary, to maintain the project schedule.” Assuming there will be a scheduled to maintain of course.
Umm, why can’t they just integrate the station into Moscone south? The building already has underground floors, and it would offer a convenient transfer point to convention go-ers, kind of like the bart station at the westfield mall.
Once the Chinatown merchants learn how long they will be shut down during the construction of this silly project, it will be a dead duck.
^They’re not going to be shutdown at all, that’s one of the reasons that it’s going to cost $2 billion – all deep bore with almost no disturbance on the surface.
Of course the owners want ED, all of their profits from the (forced) sale would be tax free!
People in Chinatown are playing the biggest role in forcing this to happen.
Glad to see that building will be going. There is a better use of space than this – and it will probably be painted once every 30 years, unlike the current structure