Plans to build a 50-story skyscraper in the sleepy Outer Sunset neighborhood were revealed this week, with images showing a massive tower that would add 712 new apartments.
If approved, the new building would replace an existing garden center and parking lot.
But the proposal is likely to meet fierce neighborhood pushback; over 1,500 people signed a petition to stop a previous plan for a 12–story building at the same 2700 Sloat Blvd. location.
Petitioners said a 12-story building would cause negative psychological effects on neighbors, destroy soundscapes and interfere with the livelihood of zoo animals across the street.
Just a few blocks from Ocean Beach, the planned tower would feature 113 affordable units and create over 100,000 square feet of retail space, a 212-car basement and bicycle parking.
Many of the homes in the neighborhood are no taller than two or three stories.
“We are asking the city to stop this development and create a vision and plan for SF that enhances our neighborhoods, and not allow randomly placed towering complexes to dominate the future of the city,” the petition against the previous 12-story plan reads.
The city’s housing production is under increasing pressure as the city attempts to fulfill a state requirement to make room for 82,000 new units by 2031.
“The city needs to supply the Outer Sunset area with 11,000 new housing units in just over 7.5 years, and approval of hundreds of small projects is not going to get them anywhere near that state requirement,” developer CH Planning LLC’s founder, Raelynn Hickey, told SFYIMBY.
California’s State Density Bonus Law entitles developers to a density bonus for their project of up to 50% more units if they reserve part of it for means-tested affordable housing.
The law was first passed in 1979 and augmented with additional incentives with the passage of Assembly Bill 2345 in 2020.
The site is in the Outer Sunset, which is considered to be a well-resourced neighborhood under the city’s Housing Element and is slated for more density development.
The new plan was filed with the Planning Department on April 11, after the department had notified the developers of compliance issues with the previous plan.
Planning Department Chief of Staff Dan Sider said that he believes the new plan is out of compliance with both state and local law.