Board upholds notice of violation at 1449 Powell Street, denies appeal from property owner

On June 12 the San Francisco Board of Appeals denied an appeal and upheld a notice of violation for 1449 Powell Street, concluding that newly discovered residential spaces on the ground floor are unauthorized under current zoning and must be abated.

Deputy Zoning Administrator Tina Tam told the board a February 2023 joint task‑force inspection found unpermitted work across all three floors of the building, increasing guest rooms and apartments beyond the certificate of use. Planning staff reported that the building’s certificate and annual usage report document 17 guest rooms and 8 apartments on the second and third floors but show no residential use on the ground floor; the department said three guest rooms and one apartment on the ground floor are unpermitted and cannot be legalized on that floor under the zoning district’s rules (Planning Code section 7.22).

Appellant representative Henry Carniola argued the ground‑floor rooms had existed for decades and asked the board to treat them as existing nonconforming uses; he said one ground‑floor tenant may be a protected tenant. Planning and DBI representatives replied that legalizing ground‑floor residential use is inconsistent with the zoning; Planning’s recommendation was to deny the appeal so the owner must submit permits to document unit counts, remove unauthorized uses on the ground floor and explore relocation for remaining tenants.

Commissioner Rick Swig moved to deny the appeal and uphold the notice of violation on the basis that the zoning administrator did not err or abuse discretion; the motion carried 4–0. The Board directed the owner to file the necessary permits so departments can review and bring the property into compliance; Planning and DBI discussed options to relocate affected tenants and to evaluate whether any unauthorized units elsewhere could be legalized consistent with code.