Meeting Information

Present: President Arnold Y. K. Chin, Vice President Kathleen Harrington, Commissioner Sabrina Saunders, Commissioner Douglas Shoemaker and Commissioner Hisashi Sugaya.

Judith Boyajian, Deputy City Attorney for the City Attorney (DCA); Laurence Badiner, Zoning Administrator, Planning Department; Laurence Kornfield, Chief Building Inspector, DBI; and Robert Feldman, Executive Secretary for the Board of Appeals; Official Court Reporter, Claudine Woeber.

SPEAKERS: None.

SPEAKERS: None.

ITEM A: 2518 Union Street. Letter from David Cincotta, attorney for Marc & Lisa Cabi, Appellants, requesting rehearing of Appeal No(s). 02-050, Cabi vs. DBI, PCD, decided June 5, 2002. Upon motion by Vice President McInerney, the Board voted 4-1 (President Chin dissented) to uphold the procedural denial (modification) by the Planning Commission, with conditions as stated into the record by Vice President McInerney, and with findings to be adopted by the Board on June 12, 2002. Findings were adopted June 12, 2002.

ACTION: Upon motion by Commissioner Saunders, the Board voted 4-1 (Commissioner Shoemaker dissented) to deny the rehearing request.

SPEAKERS: David Cincotta for the Appellants asked the Board to grant a rehearing so that the decision of June 5, 2002 can be clarified and because one commissioner had a conflict of interest. Robert McCarthy, representing the Goldmans and speaking also for the other neighbors who are represented by Lucian Blazej, said the hearing was not contentious and there is solidarity in the neighborhood. The neighbors support the Planning Commission and Board decisions and he felt no clarification is needed.

ITEM B: 2515-2519 Post Street. Letter from Tina Wollenberger & Rafael Calderon, Requestors, asking that the Board take jurisdiction over Building Permit Application No(s). 2002/03/29/2665. Permit Holder(s): Victor Ume-Ukeje. Project: renovation of each unit, upgrade of bath and kitchen, finishes, lighting, no change to building footprint, and new garage.

ACTION: Upon motion by Commissioner Shoemaker, the Board voted 4-1 (Vice President Harrington dissented) to grant the jurisdiction request.

SPEAKERS: Tina Wollenberger, Requestor and tenant said that two of the three units have been renovated and she feels there is no need for her to have to vacate while the third unit is done. She asked the Board to allow her to file and appeal. Suzette Torres, for the Permit Holder cited the court decision which says the statute of limitations can't be waived unless the City made an error in giving notice of its action and no such error is present here and the tenant had actual notice in time and didn't appeal.

ACTION: Matter withdrawn by the appellant.

ACTION: Upon motion by Vice President Harrington, the Board voted 5-0 to uphold the subject permit with adoption of revised plans dated Dec. 10, 2002, and with a recommendation that the parties work together to resolve their differences.

SPEAKERS: David Lee, appellant, said the sole issue for him in protesting the permit was the effect of the addition on the stairway used by the tenants of his six-unit apartments house next door to the subject property. The stair leads to the garage and a utility area. He said he has made an offer to compromise but the Permit Holder won't agree to it. Michael Garavaglia architect for the Appellant explained how the proposed stairway allows insufficient headroom for his client's building but there are two options that could be used that wouldn't impact his client. David Cincotta, attorney for the Permit Holder explained the history of the project and the appellant's objection to it. He said the addition is very small and that any modification would make it untenable and pointless.

No public comment for either side.

Laurence Kornfield, CBI, DBI, said he has visited the site and he went over the Code requirements

for access and egress from apartment houses like the Appellant's, which doesn't meet present standards.

ACTION: Upon motion by President Chin, the Board voted 4-0 to recuse Commissioner Sugaya.

Afterwards, upon motion by Vice President Harrington, the Board voted 4-0-1 (Commissioner Sugaya recused) to uphold the subject permit, with the 7 conditions as agreed to by the parties, striking the original #7, and with a finding that the permit meets § 2900 of the Police Code.

SPEAKERS: William Coggan, S.F.P.D., OFFERED TO CALL Officer Auzore the Noise Officer who made the sound surveys of the subject restaurant. He went over the procedural history of the subject permit which had been the subject of two previous appeals to the
Board. Andrew Junius, attorney for the Permit Holder, summarized his brief and explained his view of the Board's jurisdiction in this appeal of the issued place of entertainment permit. He said the noise problem is generated by the use of the parking lot and not by his client's business and that the conditions imposed in June were acceptable for the most part and he explained the problems with conditions 4, 6 and 7. Brett Gladstone, attorney for the Appellant said the Board has de novo jurisdiction on the matter and that the unenclosed dining area allowed loud music to disturb occupants of his client's hotel as well as of residents in the area and the smoking on the balcony was a problem also. The area was enclosed when the facility was operated by Trader Vic and there were no problems with noise and smoke. He asked for reasonable adjustments to the conditions accompanying the permit to protect nearby occupants of the hotel and of apartment houses. He observed that the Board adopted no findings to support its last decision and that a Commissioner who participated in the decision had a conflict of interest and shouldn't have sat for the case. Justine de Alba, manager of the restaurant, said she was operating under the six conditions imposed by the S.F.P.D. and the Board for the past six months and said her customers are not wild as described by the neighbors. Her music is only light jazz and is not disruptive.

Public Comment for Appellant: Annette Carroll said the restaurant has been extremely noisy since it opened and she doesn't believe music will be limited to light jazz. Ian Ayers said he resides at 666 Post Street and he feels the cabaret should be in the front so as to minimize its impact on the neighbors. He said that there are thousands of people within earshot of the facility and that they shouldn't be subject to such noise at night. Raymond Glover II lives at 640 Post Street and said the noise has gotten louder on his seventh floor even with his window closed. Jason Dorn said he owns a residence in front of the restaurant and he operates a club and the problem is that the jazz during the happy hour is not the problem but the patrons in the parking lot and the later music is. Sean Sornborge said he lives at 660 Post and the patrons of the restaurant are a hazard and threaten young women and elderly in the area at night. He is afraid for them, disgusted ___ ____ himself at night because of the vomiting and behavior of drunk patrons and that the street parking in the area is impossible for neighborhood residents because of the restaurant's patrons. Alicia Zaladova suffers from the noise and smoke. Otis Shellenberger ????? lives in an apartment on the west side and hears much noise now and can't imagine continuing to hear it without more conditions imposed to ameliorate the situation. Barbara Vogler said she is the general manager of the Andrews Hotel and that she has worked there for the past four years and has received innumerable complaints from their guests about the noise at night from the balcony and the back of the restaurant. Abigale Munn, manager of a nearby building said that she lives on the back alley and patrons of restaurant look into her window. If the permit is granted, the disruptive noise will become louder. Jenny Stein said her bedroom and kitchen are above the open patio and the real problem is that the restaurant is surrounded by a residential area with many hotels and apartments and the noise already has a significant impact, even on her 14^th floor. Tom Johnson said he agrees with all those who already spoke. Ray Hori of 640 Post Street asked the Board to deny the permit. Patricia Glasky agreed with all speakers. Bridget Hennessy of 666 Post said she must live with windows and curtains closed and she is still disturbed by the noise. Patricia Rinaldo said Trader Vic had been a good neighbor and was very considerate, but this owner has been a continuous problem for five years and none of the issues have been solved yet with the noise being loudest between 10:00 p.m. and 2:00 a.m. M. T. Boutin agrees with others and he suggested some solutions to curb the noise. David Overdorf of 647 Hyde said the Planning Code is clear and that this business is not suitable for the neighborhood under the Codes since it interferes with the peace of the area. Frederic Miller said the cabaret has operated illegally for six months without a permit. Robert Garcia representing an association said he feels the area is not suitable for a club. Rainer Neumann said he opposes the permit.

NO PUBLIC COMMENT FOR THER PERMIT HOLDER:

ACTION: Upon motion by Commissioner Saunders, the Board voted 5-0 to reschedule the matter to Jan. 15, 2003.

ACTION: Upon motion by Vice President Harrington, the Board voted 5-0 to overrule the subject determination.

SPEAKERS: Lawrence Bandier, ZA, explained that he now feels his determination was in error and he has withdrawn it and that the best way to complete the matter was for the Board to overrule his determination.

ACTION: Matter withdrawn by the appellant.

SPEAKERS: None

ACTION: Upon motion by Commissioner Saunders, the Board voted 2-3 (President Chin, & Commissioners Shoemaker & Sugaya dissented) to reschedule the matter to Feb. 5, 2003 on condition that there be no more rescheduling. 3 votes being necessary to reschedule a case, the motion failed, and the matter was left on calendar. Afterwards, upon motion by Commissioner Shoemaker, the Board voted 5-0 to uphold the subject permit.

SPEAKERS: Clyde Jones said he represents the Appellant who is a fire fighter on duty. He said there was never a structure on the property and he described the easement and the trash on it that is a problem for the neighborhood. He read two letters into the record supporting Appellant's position. Aurora Garcia, sister of the Permit Holder said that they have tried for years to get a permit and that the original structure had fallen down while the family was on vacation. Larry Badiner, ZA, said that there had been a complaint about the property and it has been abated. He said no variance is necessary since the removal of the non-conforming structure was by an act of God and a replacement can be approved without a variance under the Planning Code. The 1948 aerial photo shows rear yard structure.

PUBLIC COMMENT FOR APPELLANT: Mike Jones spoke for himself and urged the Board to deny the permit. He said he doesn't believe the permit holder. He said the easement belongs to Caltran who doesn't maintain it and probably never will. Jacqueline Zermeno, daughter of the Permit Holder, said her family only fixed their own cars and didn't conduct an auto repair business. She said they all have old big cars and the garage is never used to park them in.

ACTION: Upon motion by President Chin, the Board voted 5-0 to overrule the subject permit suspension request with adoption of the private settlement as agreed to by the appellant and the neighbors.

SPEAKERS: Lawrence Badiner announced that an agreement has been reached by the parties. David Silverman for the Appellant and Steven Williams for the neighbors explained the agreement to the Board. Matt Mitguard asked for an additional revision to the plans.