San Francisco supervisors hold hearing as restaurant owners warn of closures; departments point to permitting gains but owners press for fee relief

San Francisco supervisors heard roughly four hours of testimony on Sept. 16 on the precarious financial and regulatory climate facing the city’s restaurants, as department officials described recent permitting reforms while owners urged quick action on fees, access to housing for employees and street safety.

The Land Use and Transportation Committee convened for a hearing sponsored by Supervisor Sandra Lee Feuer to assess “whether departments are individually improving systems to be more user friendly and how departments collectively can provide clarity in the overall process,” Feuer said.

Laurie Thomas, policy chair of the Golden Gate Restaurant Association, told the committee the industry supports thousands of jobs but is losing ground. “Up until about two years ago, the number of restaurants opening and closing was approximately equal,” Thomas said. “But based on some numbers for Yelp, we’ve seen in the past two years, the closings outnumber the openings by about 9%.” She blamed rising rents, permitting delays, homelessness and…