Board of Appeals denies late-jurisdiction request for 3011 20th Street, 5-0

The San Francisco Board of Appeals voted 5-0 on August 18 to deny a request to take jurisdiction over a building permit for 3011 20th Street, keeping the permit issued by the Department of Building Inspection in force.

The decision followed a hearing in which Charles J. Wright, attorney for appellant Dominador Ballesteros, said Ballesteros (age 82) had traveled abroad and signed a permission slip that purported to require a light well; Wright argued the new construction had diminished light and air to the existing building. Wright told the board tenants noticed the change only after a wall went up and tenants began to complain, which he said explained the appellant’s late filing.

Alice Barclay, representing the permit holder, told the board the appellant had received plans, attended a pre-application meeting and had multiple notices and opportunities to raise objections. Tina Tam of the Planning Department said the plans submitted for the new building did not show a light well on the adjacent building and it was unclear whether that feature had been considered in the original review.

Commissioners focused on procedural questions: whether notices and plan distributions gave the appellant a reasonable chance to object, and the equity of granting jurisdiction after construction was essentially complete. President Fung and several commissioners described the record as showing ample opportunities to object and expressed concern that granting jurisdiction now would be unfair to the project sponsor.

Commissioner Garcia moved to deny jurisdiction; President Fung, Vice President Knox, Commissioners Albright and Holland voted in favor. The motion carried 5-0, leaving the Department of Building Inspection permit intact.

The board’s written findings on jurisdiction will be reflected in the official minutes and the record of the case.