Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Ici Paints 1575 South Van Ness topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Commission Deadlocks on ICI Paints Store at 1575 South Van Ness After Heated Hearing
Summary
The San Francisco Planning Commission failed to approve a conditional use permit for ICI Paints— proposed 5,000-sq.-ft. store at 1575 South Van Ness, splitting 3-3 after hours of testimony from union supporters, small businesses and neighborhood groups. Staff will prepare written findings reflecting the divided vote.
A divided San Francisco Planning Commission failed to approve a conditional use permit for ICI Paints to open a 5,000-square-foot retail and contractor supply store at 1575 South Van Ness, leaving the project without the discretionary approval it sought.
The hearing drew large public turnout. John Becker, vice president of Teamsters Local 853, urged approval, saying the store preserves union jobs and provides benefits: "ICI operates a union facility ... they're paid decent wages, good health benefits". Dozens of neighbors and small-business owners urged rejection, saying the site already has numerous paint suppliers and that the proposal would worsen parking and traffic on Cesar Chavez.
Supporters told commissioners the company had been displaced from a Market Street location and seeks to retain its workforce. The project sponsor said deliveries would occur before business hours and that the store would be roughly half retail and half contractor business. Opponents highlighted neighborhood priorities, arguing the 17-year lease and limited exterior changes lock in a formula retail use that undermines long-term neighborhood plans and small businesses.
Commissioners debated competing policy goals: keeping PDR- or neighborhood-serving uses in the Eastern Neighborhoods versus activating a large vacant storefront and preserving union jobs. Commissioner Catherine Moore said she was troubled by authorizing a dated exterior for 17 years and preferred a land-use outcome that better integrates housing or mixed use.
A motion to approve the conditional use failed on a 3-3 tie. There was no subsequent successful motion to continue or to adopt an immediate disapproval; staff told the commission a failure to reach the affirmative threshold means the permit is not approved and that staff will prepare findings explaining the record for any appeal. The commission did not adopt conditions or a shorter-term authorization on the spot.
The project remains in limbo while staff drafts findings. The applicant argued the store is needed to keep employees on the payroll; opponents continue to press for uses they say better match long-term neighborhood planning goals and safeguard local small businesses.
