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Board of Appeals grants veterans groupappeal, adds mock-up and notice condition for Veterans Building skylight and roof work
Summary
The San Francisco Board of Appeals granted the American Legion War Memorial Commissionappeal of a Historic Preservation Commission certificate of appropriateness for skylight and roof work at the Veterans Building, adding a condition requiring contractor mock-ups of the skylight and roof for review by Planning Department preservation staff and notification to trust beneficiaries; vote 4-0.
The San Francisco Board of Appeals on Oct. 10, 2012 granted an appeal by the American Legion War Memorial Commission challenging a Historic Preservation Commission (HPC) certificate of appropriateness for exterior work on the Veterans Building and amended the approval to require mock-ups of skylight and roof replacements for preservation-staff review.
The Boardfound that submitted drawings contained contradictory call-outs and that the appellants had reasonable concerns about whether replacement materials and details had been fully specified. Nelson Lum, chair of the War Memorial Commission, said the HPCdecision did not "take into account the lack of structural studies" and that details for the proposed skylights were "contradictory." Appellant engineer Paul Cox cited multiple drawing sets with inconsistent notes and urged the Board to require a testable mock-up.
DPW project manager Tara Lamont, the project sponsor, said the work grew out of a necessary seismic upgrade and a more urgent envelope repair, describing extensive water testing and deterioration of historic materials. Lamont said the team selected off-the-shelf aluminum skylight systems with zinc caps (replacing lead-coated copper) for structural performance and to match exterior profiles, and pledged that "we will do a mock up" and that mock-ups would be reviewed by preservation staff.
Tim Frey, staff to the Historic Preservation Commission, explained the HPC's review authority under Article 10 of the Planning Code and the Secretary of the Interior standards, and said the HPC found the skylights and roof to be "severely deteriorated" and beyond repair. Frey described a phased permit approach so that mock-ups and other conditions of approval could be reviewed by preservation staff before final sign-off.
Several veterans and trustees urged close oversight and timely notice. Elizabeth Murray, Managing Director for the War Memorial Board of Trustees, said her office would notify American Legion posts about mock-up reviews. Appellant counsel asked the Board to make the staff review and notice obligations a condition of the certificate of appropriateness.
The Board moved to grant the appeal and to uphold the HPC motion as revised to add conditions requiring a subcontractor-produced mock-up of the skylight and roof rehabilitation for review and approval by Planning Department preservation staff and to require additional project information as determined by staff. The motion cited Planning Code section 1.006.63 concerning preserving and restoring architectural features. The motion passed 4-0.
The Board's action preserves the HPC approval in substance but requires that the project sponsor submit and publicly notice a mock-up and additional detail on the skylight and roof rehabilitation and that preservation staff must review and approve those mock-ups before the full permit proceeds. The project team indicated it expects to bid subcontractors in early 2013 and aims to begin construction July 1, 2013.
What happens next: DPW will submit mock-up permit(s) and preservation staff will review them; notice to parties listed on the block-book notation (BBN) and to trust beneficiaries will be required when mock-up permit applications are filed. The Board noted that if mock-ups or later work do not match approved conditions, enforcement actions would be available.
