Board upholds planning department finding; 2395 Sacramento project cleared of further CEQA review

The San Francisco Board of Supervisors voted 10–1 on Feb. 6 to uphold the planning department’s general plan evaluation (GPE) and its finding that the proposed redevelopment at 2395 Sacramento Street is exempt from further California Environmental Quality Act review under CEQA Guidelines section 15183. Supervisors rejected an appeal from neighbors and preservation advocates who had asked for a project‑level environmental impact report.

The vote followed a nearly five‑hour public hearing during which the appellant’s counsel, Richard Drury, argued that the project—rehabilitation of the Lane Medical Library (City Landmark No. 115) and construction of a 24‑unit, seven‑story residential building—requires a full EIR because a prior, programmatic EIR for the city’s housing element does not analyze site‑specific impacts. “If this were allowed to proceed, no residential project in the city would ever need to do CEQA review again,” Drury said, citing differences in height and unit count from the assumptions in the housing‑element analysis and raising concerns about vibration, air emissions and the treatment of…