Board denies jurisdiction request from tenants at 1980 Golden Gate Avenue

The San Francisco Board of Appeals on July 31 denied a jurisdiction request filed by tenants at 1980 Golden Gate Avenue who asked to appeal a revision permit they said was issued without adequate notice under the city’s block‑book‑notification (BBN) process.

Tenants’ representatives said they relied on a BBN request to be notified of permit issuance and only learned the permit had been issued when counsel checked DBI records; they filed the jurisdiction request six days after the 15‑day appeal window. Tenant counsel described the proposed work — replacing a foundation and floor joists — as likely to require several months and to pose a displacement risk if not conditioned.

Permit‑holder counsel and project representatives said the permit was a valuation/cost revision to prior-approved plans and therefore non‑substantive; they also said tenants filed for BBN notice after the permit had already been filed. DBI and Planning staff explained the routing rules: only permits routed to the Planning Department trigger BBN notices; revision permits that use the original plans frequently do not get routed to Planning and therefore do not produce a BBN issuance notice.

After discussion, commissioners concluded there was no basis to grant late jurisdiction — the original permit had not been appealed, the applicants had not shown a city action that caused lateness, and staff had processed the revision per DBI procedures. Commissioner Fung moved to deny jurisdiction; the Board voted 4–0 and the matter was closed to appeal under this filing.

The Board’s ruling leaves any tenant protections or relocation questions to existing landlord‑tenant remedies and separate administrative processes, rather than to a late jurisdiction filing before the Board of Appeals.