Commission recommends National Register nomination for Buen Gusto sausage factory; owner warns of development timing conflict

The Historic Preservation Commission recommended forwarding a National Register nomination for the Buen Gusto (Bongusto) Sausage Factory at 535 Green St in North Beach, citing its association with Italian‑American commerce and architect Martin Reist.

Planning staff described the nomination and staff comments, noting the building’s eligibility under National Register criteria for association with neighborhood commerce and for architectural significance as a work of master architect Martin Reist. Architectural historian Catherine Petron and others presented the case; San Francisco Heritage and Telegraph Hill Dwellers supported listing. Supporters emphasized the factory’s role in the neighborhood’s commercial development and as one of the last vestiges of the area’s sausage‑making trade.

The property's owner, Kieran Buckley, and the project architect said they were not contacted before the nomination and warned that a pending application to add housing on an adjacent lot could be affected. The architect and owner said their in‑progress proposal would restore and adapt the existing building and that nomination timing felt like an attempt to oppose development. Preservation proponents noted potential benefits — including eligibility for historic tax credits — and urged the commission to forward the nomination with staff comments. Commissioners discussed the relationship between local, state, and CEQA review, and the commission voted unanimously to recommend the nomination to the State with staff comments.