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Board grants jurisdiction to neighbors on Fourth Avenue permit
Summary
The San Francisco Board of Appeals voted 3–0 on Dec. 10 to grant jurisdiction to neighbors David and Jennifer Nicholson over a building permit issued Oct. 3, 2014, for 225030 Fourth Avenue after the neighbors said they did not receive DBI’s mailed notice; the Nicholsons get a five‑day appeal period.
The San Francisco Board of Appeals voted 3–0 on Dec. 10 to take jurisdiction over Building Permit 160,821,454, issued Oct. 3, 2014, to Growth Equity Partners for work at 225030 Fourth Avenue, giving David and Jennifer Nicholson a five‑day period to file an appeal.
David Nicholson told the board the rear deck in the permit would sit about 6 feet from his master bedroom window and extend 6 feet into the yard. He said he and his wife did not receive notice of the permit or of the prior appeal process and asked the board to reopen the opportunity to appeal. "We did not receive any notification regarding our right to appeal aspects of the remodel and had no prior knowledge," Nicholson said during public comment.
Department of Building Inspection inspector Joe Duffy presented copies of the department’s standard notification letters and said the office mailed notices to four adjacent properties, including the Nicholsons. "I do have record that we sent it out," Duffy said, explaining the department mails notifications by regular mail to adjacent properties for certain structural additions.
Neighbor Rhonda Racine, who had filed and then withdrawn an appeal after negotiating changes with the project sponsor, told the board she received the notice late and that the postmark showed a delay; she urged the board to give the Nicholsons the benefit of the doubt. The Board debated whether regular‑mail notice could be proven and whether the late arrival amounted to an unfair loss of hearing rights.
Commissioner Frank Fung moved to grant the jurisdiction request on the basis the Nicholsons indicated they had not received the notice. On that motion President Anne Lazarus and Commissioner Daryl Honda voted aye; Commissioner Bobby Wilson was absent. The Board recorded a 3–0 vote to grant jurisdiction and the Nicholsons were given five days to file a formal appeal, ending the coming Monday.
The board did not rule on the underlying permit; its action simply reopens the procedural right to challenge the permit issuance so that the Nicholsons can present objections within the newly granted appeal window.
