Planning Commission hears final informational presentation on Western SoMa Community Plan after seven-year community process

The San Francisco Planning Commission heard an informational presentation Thursday on the Western SoMa Community Plan, a multiyear, community-driven proposal that officials said would add significant new housing capacity while preserving neighborhood character and cultural resources.

Supervisor Jane Kim, who opened the presentation, described the package as the culmination of more than seven years of work by a 22-member citizens task force, planning staff and outside consultants. “This plan is thoughtful, comprehensive, forward looking, and is worthy of your support,” Kim said during opening remarks.

Corey Teague of the Planning Department told commissioners that the department will begin formal hearings next week: an initiation hearing on Nov. 8 and a second informational hearing on Nov. 15. Teague said the department is aiming to certify the final environmental impact report and hold adoption hearings for the general plan, planning code and zoning-map amendments on Dec. 6. He also said several items referenced in the plan — including social heritage districts, a community stabilization policy and design standards — will follow as trailing items and may require additional action after adoption.

Task force chair Jim Mico summarized the group's process, noting extensive outreach and heavy volunteer participation. "We needed to nurture a partnership with the city family," Mico said, describing subcommittees on business and land use, neighborhood fabric, transportation and arts and entertainment. He credited long-term staff and community volunteers for the work and said the plan reflects broad participation.

Technical assistance provided by Asian Neighborhood Design emphasized fieldwork and mapping to identify historic and cultural resources and to grade sites for housing-suitability. Peter Cohen said the team developed a housing-suitability scoring system that combined quantitative and qualitative factors to identify higher-opportunity sites and guide where growth should be concentrated.

Community facilitators detailed a high-touch outreach strategy. Chris Schaeffer described three town-hall meetings with translators and exit interviews; the outreach team reported 105 businesses and 167 residents completed surveys, and organizers said the process aimed to develop "citizen planners" who could meaningfully participate in land-use discussions.

Speakers for the task force outlined the plan's principles and implementation elements. Architect Toby Levy said the plan seeks to preserve alley-scale residential enclaves, reduce land-use conflicts (for example between nightclubs and residents) and maintain a mix of uses including production, distribution and repair (PDR) activity and arts spaces. Transportation lead Tom Radulovich said the plan devotes roughly one-quarter of its content to a transportation element that reclassifies streets to prioritize walking, biking and transit on neighborhood-serving corridors such as Folsom and Howard, while protecting alleyways as local streets.

Nonprofit housing developer John Hillbilling told commissioners the plan anticipates a substantial increase in residential capacity on larger sites, and projected "several thousand housing units and perhaps 10,000 new residents" over the next two decades if market conditions allow. Hillbilling said the plan concentrates new density on larger parcels to avoid creating a uniform wall of development along smaller blocks and preserves low-rise character in alley enclaves.

Public commenters including community leaders from Japantown and Filipino neighborhood organizations praised the plan's bottom-up process and urged the commission to retain cultural protections. Several speakers asked that the Planning Department ensure follow-up work on social heritage districts and community stabilization policies.

Commissioners asked for clearer boundary maps and more detailed materials ahead of the initiation hearing. Commissioner Antonini asked staff to provide a simple boundary summary for the public; staff responded that Western SoMa generally spans Fourth Street west to Division, and Mission south to Townsend, excluding the Sixth Street redevelopment area. Commissioners also emphasized that elements tied to transportation and implementation would require additional interagency coordination with MTA and Public Works.

The Planning Commission will take the item up in a scheduled initiation hearing on Nov. 8 and a second informational hearing on Nov. 15, with the department aiming for certification and adoption action on Dec. 6. The commission did not take a final vote on the plan during Thursday's informational session.

Ending: The commission moved on to follow-up agenda items; the public-comment portion on the plan closed after several speakers urged attention to implementation details including transportation coordination and long-term maintenance.