Neighbors press Board to deny St. Ignatius stadium lights after lengthy public hearing; board continues appeals

Lede: The Board of Supervisors heard more than two hours of public testimony — much of it from neighbors living across from the school — on a proposal by Saint Ignatius College Preparatory to install four 90-foot light standards and a macro wireless facility at JB Murphy Field. The hearing focused on whether the Planning Department properly exempted the project from further CEQA review and whether the Planning Commission's conditional use authorization should stand.

Nut graf: Neighbors argued the lights would create new nighttime impacts — light spill, noise, parking and traffic — that merit a full environmental review. Planning department staff and the school said the project fits the city's categorical exemptions, pointed to comparable lit athletic fields around San Francisco, and said modern Musco LED fixtures limit off-site glare. The Board did not decide the appeals at the meeting; procedural steps and a recusal were taken, and portions of the items were continued to the November calendar or otherwise processed per the clerk's announcements.

Most contested points: - CEQA exemption: Appellants said wildfire smoke, more people at home during COVID and the size/height of the poles are new circumstances that require a full EIR. Planning staff said the Eastern Neighborhoods PEIR already conservatively addressed construction and operational impacts assuming residents are present during the day and that mitigation and equipment controls reduce construction diesel particulate to negligible levels. - Conditional use (compatibility): Residents said the proposed schedule (up to 150 nights per year, dimming before 8:30 p.m. and turn‑off by 9 p.m. Monday–Thursday, up to 20 late-night uses) would still shift disruptive activity into evenings. The Planning Commission modified conditions to limit use and added an event management plan. - Visual scale and location: Architects for the neighborhood submitted renderings showing the poles rising well above the existing two‑story residential fabric; neighbors said the poles (and associated antennas) would be visible from private yards and living rooms.

Public comment: Dozens of residents, many who live directly across Rivera Street and Ninth Avenue, spoke against the project. They cited repeated past afternoon/night events, trash, parking spillover onto residential streets, and sleep/safety concerns. Dozens of students, coaches, alumni, and family members also called in urging approval, arguing lights are needed for practice time, to comply with later school start times and to reduce travel for student-athletes.

Planning department and sponsor presentations: Planning staff defended the CEQA exemption, cited precedent for other lit fields (e.g., South Sunset) and explained that the Commission imposed conditions designed to limit harm. The sponsor emphasized modern LED fixtures (Musco), event management plans, and the school's role in the community. A soils/contamination expert was called on unrelated adjacent matters during the later hearing on other items.

Board action and next steps: The board took procedural actions during the session: Supervisor Matt Haney moved to continue certain related items; Supervisors voted to recuse one member for proximity. For the 30 Seventh Avenue/ JB Murphy appeals, the board continued the matters to allow the sponsor and appellants more time to seek compromise and to allow additional public process. The board also doubled allotted rebuttal time earlier in the hearing to account for technical difficulties that interrupted an appellant's attorney.

Ending: The issue will return to the board on a later date. Neighbors and the school both indicated they will keep engaging with the Board and each other; the Planning Commission conditions remain in effect unless the Board takes further action at the continued hearing.