Staff Hearing Officer approves reclassification of 206 East Victoria Street to group residential

The Staff Hearing Officer approved a performance standard permit on Feb. 19, 2025, to reclassify the Victorian residence at 206 East Victoria Street from single-unit residential to group residential, enabling the owner to rent bedrooms individually.

Assistant planner Holly Garson presented the project and said the 12,000-square-foot parcel contains three buildings: a 2,226-square-foot neighborhood market (Presidio Market), a 3,430-square-foot Victorian single-unit residence (the subject of the reclassification), and a 1,306-square-foot detached storage building. The Victorian residence and accessory building are designated structures of merit, Garson said. The change requested requires a performance standard permit and staff concluded the project complies with applicable group-residential development standards.

Garson said the tenant rooms will have interior access so that individual rooms do not open directly to the exterior, and exterior doors in some bedrooms will be infilled to maintain the historic exterior while complying with unit-configuration standards. The applicant provided an operations plan and lease rules, and staff processed a previously issued open-yard modification substantial-conformance determination that found the existing open-yard configuration remains acceptable for the proposed use. Garson said the project had been reviewed by the Building Department during permitting; inspection-identified violations were abated and the review is part of the record.

The Staff Hearing Officer said the housing type is needed and approved the performance standard permit, citing staff findings and CEQA exemptions in the staff report. The decision is appealable to the Planning Commission within 10 calendar days.