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Board upholds AT&T’s permit for small wireless node at Seventeenth Street but orders battery removed from scope
Summary
After lengthy testimony from neighbors, AT&T and city staff, the Board upheld DPW's permit for a Tier 3 small wireless facility at 4848 Seventeenth Street but conditioned approval on deleting the backup battery from the permit and requiring a separate permit and notice for that unit.
Neighbors appealed the Department of Public Works decision to permit AT&T to install a Tier 3 small wireless facility on an existing utility pole near 4848 Seventeenth Street, arguing the installation would be obtrusive, block light and air, and that AT&T failed to pursue and timely discuss less visible alternatives.
Appellants said the proposed installation failed the compatibility and siting standards in Article 25 of the San Francisco Public Works Code and presented maps and photo simulations they said showed adequate coverage already in the area. "We are asking the board to deny AT and T their application for the building of this Tier 3 wireless facility," appellant Kevin Rudick said during his presentation.
AT&T representatives explained the technology, the firm's need to close capacity and coverage gaps in residential areas, and the basis for the Tier 3 classification (number/diameter of antennas and the number of equipment enclosures). AT&T also described mitigation steps they had discussed with neighbors, including rotating and raising enclosures and splitting equipment so the larger battery backup could be placed on another pole.
DPW and Planning staff defended the permit decision and said Planning had imposed conditions to minimize visual impacts (alignment with the pole, paint/color matching, and coordination for tree screening). Planning staff also noted restrictions in certain view corridors and that some alternative pole locations would fall within areas with stricter protections.
In deliberations the Board focused largely on the battery backup unit, which neighbors and some commissioners described as the most visually and physically intrusive element. AT&T offered to remove the battery pack from the scope of the current permit and obtain a separate permit for that battery with the appropriate notice so neighbors could comment. "If it would help you at all to approve the permit that DPW granted this evening, we would be happy to take the battery as a separate permit and do the proper noticing," AT&T said.
Commissioner Huang moved to uphold the Department of Public Works' permit on the condition that the backup battery pack be deleted from this permit. The motion passed on a 4–0 vote (Vice President Hurtado absent). The Board’s decision preserves DPW’s technical determination about the Tier 3 classification but requires AT&T to secure separate approval (and notice) for the battery backup.
The Board's action reflects the limited scope of its review—largely aesthetic and procedural—while leaving DPW's technical judgment intact. DPW and AT&T will need to carry out the conditional change: AT&T must seek a separate permit for the battery unit and DPW will confirm any additional notification requirements.
