Board approves use of 701 Lombard for North Beach Library, after heated hearing and property-owner objection

The San Francisco Board of Supervisors on June 28 adopted a resolution authorizing the use of 701 Lombard Street for the Joe DiMaggio Playground–North Beach Library master plan, approving the project by roll call after a public hearing that drew both supporters and opponents.

The vote on the resolution passed with 11 ayes. The measure required eight votes for approval and was adopted after testimony from city planners, Recreation and Parks and library officials, neighborhood residents and the parcel’s former owner, Brian Murphy O’Flynn.

Why it matters: The project combines an expanded branch library with reconfigured and increased park space in one of the city’s densest neighborhoods, adding publicly accessible open space and a new library facility. Opponents argued the city’s prior use of eminent domain and the process for acquiring the parcel were unfair.

Recreation and Parks representative Sarah Ballard told the board the master plan, developed after extensive community planning, would enlarge open space by roughly 12,000 square feet and increase the park’s open space by about 20 percent to accommodate an expanded children’s play area, ADA improvements and additional seating and landscaping. “Residents of North Beach and Chinatown will gain approximately 12,000 square feet of new open space in one of San Francisco’s densest neighborhoods,” Ballard said during the hearing.

Mindy Lanetzky, bond program administrator for the branch library improvement program, said the joint design “results in a safe, unified civic space” and a library built to modern seismic and accessibility standards with more books, public computers and community meeting space. The library is the last of 24 branches slated for the citywide renovation program, she said.

The parcel’s former owner, Brian Murphy O’Flynn, used his allotted time to forcefully object to the taking. He told the board he spent years and significant funds developing a residential plan for the site and called the city’s eminent-domain process “an abuse of power.” He said his team spent more than $1 million in legal fees contesting the taking and asked that the board return the property to him, a request the board did not grant.

Several neighborhood residents and community groups spoke in favor of the project. Julie Christensen noted the site’s long history and urged supervisors to support the combined park-and-library vision so the neighborhood could receive the expanded public amenities it needs. Others — including parents, neighborhood association representatives and longtime residents — said the combined project would serve families and children, increase public space, and improve the aging library facility.

Board President and other supervisors noted the long public process and the large number of community meetings that led to the master plan. Several speakers emphasized that the adopted plan increases net open space in a densely populated, park-poor part of the city.

The board’s adoption of the resolution moves the project forward; supervisors and city staff said subsequent steps will include design, funding and construction phases. O’Flynn said he reserves appeal rights and repeated his view that the eminent-domain process used to acquire the property was improper.

A broad set of neighborhood groups, Rec and Park and the Library Department supported the master plan at the hearing. The item was continued for public comment and deliberation earlier in June to ensure proper notice to prior owners; the hearing before adoption included presentations from Rec and Park and Library representatives, public comment, and the formal roll call approving the resolution.