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Board applies new SMF ordinance, denies multiple AT&T permits after community opposition and DBW review
Summary
The Board of Appeals upheld Department of Public Works denials of several AT&T surface‑mounted facility (SMF) and excavation permits on Aug. 27, 2014, finding the new SMF ordinance applies to permits not final by the ordinance effective date even as AT&T argued the city missed a 60‑day statutory processing window.
The San Francisco Board of Appeals on Aug. 27 denied a string of permits for surface‑mounted telecommunications cabinets and related excavation work — including proposals at 203 Quintara Street, 110 Burroughs Street and several other addresses — applying the recently enacted Surface Managed Facilities (SMF) ordinance to permits that were not final when the ordinance took effect.
Department of Public Works (DPW) staff told the board the SMF ordinance requires broader community outreach and that any permit not final on the ordinance’s effective date should be subject to the new rules. "We believe this appeal should be upheld" and that the ordinance "requires that any permit that was not final on the effective date of the ordinance should be denied," DPW's Carla Short told commissioners.
AT&T representatives argued the city failed to process several excavation permits within the 60‑day period required by state law and that at least some permits should be treated as approved under the Public Utilities Code. AT&T counsel said the city’s own scheduling and communications left AT&T out of time. "The city was already out of compliance with DIVCA," AT&T counsel argued, urging the board to consider state statutory time limits. AT&T and its regional external affairs representative, Mark Blakeman, also described prior box walks and outreach efforts; AT&T said technical constraints (for example, the need to place cabinets within roughly 300 feet of an existing SAI cabinet) limited feasible alternative sites.
Community members and small business owners urged denial in multiple cases, saying the cabinets would incommode pedestrians, restrict sidewalk seating, and interfere with neighborhood beautification projects. "A huge amount of pedestrian traffic is there," said neighborhood speaker Ruth Wallace about the Burroughs/San Bruno intersection, citing bus routes, schools and medical facilities.
After extended testimony and public comment, the board upheld DPW’s denials on the basis that the new SMF ordinance applies, with votes typically 3‑0 where the president recused; board members noted the matter could be litigated in court but applied the city ordinance in these administrative appeals. The Board’s decisions preserve DPW’s application of the SMF ordinance and require AT&T to follow the new permitting process for future requests.
