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Board upholds DBI permit for 10-foot fence at 562 40th Avenue; appeal denied 3–0
Summary
The Board of Appeals denied an appeal against a Department of Building Inspection permit allowing a 10-foot fence at 562 40th Avenue, finding the permit complied with planning and building codes and dismissing broader neighbor grievances as outside the board's code review role.
The San Francisco Board of Appeals denied an appeal Jan. 14 challenging a Department of Building Inspection (DBI) permit that allows a permit holder to extend an existing fence to 10 feet at 562 40th Avenue.
Appellants argued the increased height would block light, impede emergency access and represented a pattern of unpermitted work by the permit holder. Appellant Lee Hyde Hughes described past enforcement actions and said the fence would ‘‘block our light’’ and turn his household "into prisoners in our own home." The permit holder, Sierra Perrone, said the fence had been reviewed and approved by city departments and was necessary to protect her family's safety and privacy.
Corey Teague, zoning administrator for the Planning Department, told the board that the permit was an over-the-counter review that conforms with planning code provisions allowing up to 10 feet from grade in certain rear-yard locations and did not require neighborhood notice. Joe Ospital, senior building inspector at DBI, said the project complies with applicable building-code requirements and recommended denying the appeal.
Commissioners focused their review on the narrow legal question of code compliance rather than the broader neighbor dispute. President John Trezvino noted the limited jurisdiction and, with Commissioners Rebecca Saroyan and Robin Abad, voted 3–0 to deny the appeal and uphold the permit.
