Committee advances plan for a San Francisco "legacy business" registry
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Summary
The Budget & Finance Committee advanced ordinance language to create a legacy business registry recognizing long-standing neighborhood-serving businesses; sponsors removed a rebate from the current ordinance, added nonprofit eligibility and proposed Small Business Commission hearings to determine status before the full Board consideration on Feb. 24.
Chair Mark Farrell opened the meeting and introduced the day’s agenda before committee members took up legislation to create a citywide legacy business registry.
Nate Albie, legislative aide to Supervisor David Campos, said a Budget and Legislative Analyst study showed San Francisco lost nearly 4,000 locally owned businesses in 2014 alone and stressed that rising commercial rents threaten long-standing neighborhood-serving businesses. "The city lost almost 4,000 locally owned businesses in 2014 alone," Albie said, citing the office’s commissioned report.
The Campos–Farrell legislation would direct the Small Business Commission to establish a registry recognizing businesses at least 30 years old that are founded or headquartered in San Francisco and that contribute to neighborhood identity. Albie said eligible entities would include restaurants, retail stores, art spaces, performance venues, PDR businesses and community-serving nonprofits and that applicants must commit to maintaining defining physical features and traditions.
Sponsor offices proposed a set of amendments adopted for committee consideration: remove the rebate program from this ordinance (to be brought later), require that legacy status be determined after a hearing before the Small Business Commission (instead of a departmental determination), require that businesses be founded or headquartered in the city, and explicitly add community-serving nonprofits to eligibility criteria.
Committee members expressed support while urging broad, nonprescriptive definitions so laundromats, shoeshine shops, private daycares, fitness studios, churches and tutoring centers would not be excluded. Budget analyst Mr. Rose told the committee the proposed amendments create no fiscal impact at this time and framed the item as a policy decision for the full Board.
With no public comment, Supervisor Katie Tang moved to accept the Campos amendments and forward the ordinance as amended to the full Board; the motion carried without objection. The item was scheduled to appear on the Board of Supervisors agenda on Feb. 24.
