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Board affirms Planning Commission certification of 350 Mission Street final EIR after appeal
Summary
After a public hearing on CEQA challenges from nearby property owners, the Board of Supervisors voted to affirm the Planning Commission’s certification of the final Environmental Impact Report for the proposed 350 Mission Street office project.
The Board of Supervisors conducted a contested hearing on April 12 about the adequacy of the environmental review for a proposed office project at 350 Mission Street and ultimately affirmed the Planning Commission’s certification of the project’s final Environmental Impact Report (EIR).
Appellants, including neighboring property owners at 50 Beale Street, raised two principal CEQA objections: that the EIR failed to analyze a code‑compliant alternative and that it did not quantify or analyze noise impacts (including rooftop mechanical equipment and an 800‑kilowatt generator). Appellants said a code‑compliant design could have different noise and public‑plaza effects and that planning staff should have studied a conforming tower alternative.
Planning Department and project counsel responded that the EIR did analyze a ‘‘code‑compliant’’ alternative of comparable height and that seismic, air quality, traffic and other impacts were evaluated in accordance with CEQA guidelines. Planning staff noted the draft and final EIR identified mitigation for construction‑period air quality and certain transportation impacts and that operational impacts, including operational air quality, were found less than significant. The department and project counsel also explained that rooftop mechanical systems are required to meet building code and noise regulations and that the Department of Public Health and building code enforcement would address any operational noise complaints.
After testimony from appellants, planning staff and the applicant’s representatives and two rounds of public comment, Supervisor Kim moved to affirm the Planning Commission’s certification of the final EIR. The board voted to uphold the certification (10 ayes, 0 nos; one supervisor absent), closing the CEQA appeal and allowing the Planning Commission’s record to stand.
Why it matters: The decision lets the project proceed under the EIR as certified; appellants retain other administrative appeals where permitted (for example, design exceptions before the Board of Appeals). The hearing clarified the board’s view that the EIR met CEQA’s requirements on the matters raised in the appeal.
