Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Tenant Protections topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Board grants seismic work permit at 108 Albion but imposes tenant protections
Summary
After tenants alleged the revived seismic-retrofit permit was a pretext for displacement, the Board of Appeals granted the renewal but required conditions — including no evictions during work, proof of funding and licensed contractors, dust shielding, certified lead/asbestos abatement, tenant contact information and restricted construction hours. Vote: 5-0.
The San Francisco Board of Appeals granted the renewal permit for seismic (soft-story) retrofit work at 108 Albion Street on Nov. 20, 2019, but attached conditions intended to reduce disruption and the risk of displacement for long-term tenants.
Tenant counsel told the board that the permit — originally approved in 2016 and now renewed by the current owner — appeared to be a vehicle to displace tenants following an earlier Ellis Act eviction attempt. Tenants described a pattern of aggressive landlord conduct and asked the board either to require a new permit or to impose explicit safeguards.
Commissioners heard testimony from several tenants, including Benjamin McKay, Dawn Hayes and Jennifer Plummer, who said they feared permanent displacement if the work proceeded without protections. Their counsel asked the board to deny revival of the older permit and require the owner to file a new application; as an alternative counsel asked that the board impose conditions to protect tenants during mandatory retrofit work.
Permit holders and DBI staff told the board the work is a mandatory soft-story retrofit, limited to ground-floor work in garage/common areas, and does not require interior unit work (DBI senior inspector Joe Duffy confirmed the permit scope and renewal pathway). The permit holder said the work will be performed by a licensed contractor and asserted it will not require tenant relocations.
To address tenants’ concerns, the board conditioned the approval. Requirements recorded in the public action include written contact information for the property management company (phone and email, including after-hours contact), at least 48 hours written notice to tenants before any utility shutoffs, construction limited to 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, and confirmed handling of lead and asbestos abatement by certified specialists. Commissioners said the conditions were proposed to give tenants practical protections while allowing mandatory safety work to proceed; the permit holder did not object to those conditions. The motion to grant the appeal with those conditions carried 5-0.
What it means: The board recognized tenants’ concerns about displacement but balanced that with the city’s mandatory soft-story retrofit program. The conditions impose operational obligations on the permit holder intended to protect health and tenancy during construction.
Next steps: The permit holder must supply the tenant-contact information and comply with lead/asbestos and utility-notice requirements; DBI and other city departments retain enforcement authority if work exceeds the permit scope.
