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Board of Appeals denies rehearing in 20 Fourth Street tree-removal case after accessibility concerns raised
Summary
The San Francisco Board of Appeals denied a rehearing request for the 20 Fourth Street tree-removal decision, rejecting arguments that remote hearing access failures and disability-accommodation issues warranted rehearing. The Bureau of Urban Forestry said no new evidence was presented and noted recent limb failures at the site.
The San Francisco Board of Appeals on Aug. 12 denied a rehearing request by appellants in the 20 Fourth Street tree-removal case, ruling the earlier July decision would stand.
Appellant Zach Karnazes, a disability advocate, told the board the July 15 remote hearing was chaotic and inaccessible for many, citing technical barriers to submitting evidence and arguing the board had not fully considered disability-access concerns before issuing its order. "These meetings are confusing and hard to access," Karnazes said, adding that he asked the board to consider the Americans with Disabilities Act implications and the lack of timely notice during the earlier proceeding.
Carla Short of the San Francisco Public Works Bureau of Urban Forestry told the board she did not see new information that would justify reopening the matter and said the department had experienced two limb failures on 20 Fourth Street since the process began. Short said BUFF had postponed hearings when it discovered a website notification error and that physical notices were posted on trees. "We don't feel there's new information," Short said in explaining BUFF's request that the rehearing be denied.
Commissioner Rick Swig moved to deny the rehearing request, saying the legal standard to grant rehearing is high and he had not heard evidence of a new basis for rehearing. The motion passed 4–0, with President Anne Lazarus, Vice President Daryl Honda, Commissioner Swig and Commissioner Eduardo Santacana voting to deny the request.
The board's order (No. 201771) from July included detailed conditions for tree removals and replacements; the rehearing would have revisited those conditions only if the board found new substantive evidence. With the rehearing denied, BUFF's timeline for removals and the previously imposed replacement and mitigation conditions remain in effect.
The board did not schedule further action on the item at the Aug. 12 meeting.
