The San Francisco Planning Commission on Oct. 16 recommended approval of planning-code and zoning map amendments to allow a consolidated San Francisco Fire Department training facility on roughly eight acres at 1236 Carroll Avenue in the Bayview.

Planning staff presented the proposal as a zoning change from Production Distribution Repair 2 (PDR2) to public and a bulk/height change from 40X to 90X to accommodate two tall training structures and other campus elements. Rebecca Salgado of the Planning Department told the commission the site is city-owned and that the changes would permit live-fire training towers, classroom and equipment training, and other training uses as a public facility if the Board of Supervisors and other approvals follow.

The project would consolidate two existing training locations — the Treasure Island site and the Folsom Street facility — into a single campus. Gareth Miller, assistant deputy chief for earthquake safety and emergency response projects at the San Francisco Fire Department, told the commission the current training facilities date to mid-20th century and that a consolidated campus would serve recruits and in‑service firefighters, EMTs and paramedics. “Since 1866, the San Francisco Fire Department has been protecting lives and property,” Miller said, describing the range of training the new campus would provide.

Public Works project manager Scott Moran described the site’s location, parcel configuration and context. He said the project comprises 26 parcels and three paper streets that would be vacated and combined into one roughly 8‑acre parcel; the site sits west of the former Candlestick Park area and abuts planned high‑density housing across Carroll Avenue. Moran showed renderings placing training towers at the back of the site and said the Bayview Hunters Point Citizens Advisory Committee voted unanimously in favor of the zoning amendments at meetings in 2024 and 2025.

Commissioners asked about impacts from live‑fire training and nearby housing. Miller said live‑fire exercises are a small portion of overall training and that environmental analyses and operational mitigations are planned to keep exposures below stringent thresholds. “Eighty percent of our calls in the fire department are medical,” Miller said, noting classroom and EMS training will comprise the bulk of activity.

Commissioner Braun called the proposal “a critical need” and said she had no concerns about the site’s suitability. Vice President Catherine Moore and other commissioners praised the long‑standing need to replace the island and Mission facilities and moved to adopt a recommendation for approval.

On that motion the commission voted unanimously, 6–0. The staff presentation noted no displacement of existing uses and that the new campus is intended to be an integral, long‑term element of the city’s emergency response system. Planning staff also recorded one public comment urging that the Folsom Street site be considered for affordable housing once vacated.

The project team estimated the consolidated campus would not be completed until the late 2020s; staff said decisions about the disposition of the current Folsom Street and Treasure Island training facilities will be made later by department leadership once the new campus plan advances.

The commission’s recommendation advances the proposal to subsequent approvals required by the Board of Supervisors and other city processes.