Planning Commission approves conversion of 450 O'Farrell to group housing with conditions amid neighborhood concerns

The San Francisco Planning Commission voted 4–2 to approve a modified plan for 450 O'Farrell Street that converts a previously approved 176‑unit project into group housing, after months of revisions and a daylong hearing that included hours of public comment from neighborhood residents and service providers.

The commission's action conditions approval on the sponsor and staff maximizing balconies where allowed by code, increasing the number of larger group‑housing rooms where feasible, pursuing conversion of ground‑floor retail to group‑housing units if code‑compliant, and working to expand secure Class‑1 bicycle parking (the sponsor and staff will examine whether the project can increase on‑site bike parking up toward 200 spaces). Staff will return to the commission with an informational memorandum documenting the required revisions.

The item before the commission was a request to modify conditions of approval for a previously authorized project at O'Farrell and Shannon Streets. Planning staff said the revision would replace the original 176 dwelling units with 316 group‑housing rooms and up to 632 beds within the approved building envelope and that an addendum to the environmental review found no new environmental impacts requiring further CEQA analysis.

"The department is in…