Committee forwards James Buckley and Andrew Wolfram for Historic Preservation Commission

The Rules Committee voted to forward Items 3 and 5—Mayor’s nominations of James (Jim) Buckley and Andrew Wolfram—to the full Board with recommendation and to table Items 4 and 6. Both nominees spoke to their qualifications and priorities for the new Historic Preservation Commission.

James Buckley described 25 years in San Francisco preservation work and said he has “been building affordable housing in San Francisco for about 20 years,” stressing that preservation should be proactive and integrated with development to preserve historic resources while addressing housing needs. Buckley said surveying neighborhoods, public outreach and balancing preservation with affordable housing are priorities.

Andrew Wolfram, nominated to the historic architect seat, reviewed a career of preservation architecture including work on the San Francisco Ferry Building renovation—"I was the project architect for the renovation of the San Francisco Ferry Building"—and said the commission should move from a defensive posture to proactive planning and partnerships with groups such as SPUR and the National Trust.

Public commenters including Stuart Morton, Tim Collin of the San Francisco Housing Action Coalition, and Cindy Heitzman of the California Preservation Foundation expressed support for both nominees, citing professionalism and experience in preservation and affordable-housing contexts. Supervisor Campos and others praised the nominees’ resumes and signaled support; Supervisor Chu moved to forward the items as a committee report.

The committee’s action sends the nominations to the full Board for confirmation.