Confirmed: Noe Valley Whole Foods To Preserve Existing Building

From a reader (emphasis ours):

First thank you for your blog. I live in Noe at the corner of Sanchez and Elizabeth and very much appreciate reading our neighborhood news. As many, I am very interested in the Whole Foods upcoming remodel. I received a notice of hearing from the SF planning dept over the weekend as I live less than 300 ft away from future WF.

I called Elizabeth Watty at the SF planning department to review the WF plans in advance of the public hearing scheduled on Feb 19, 2009.

She was very clear and told me that no other changes than interior remodeling were planned. No changes would be made to either exterior building or parking. The only outside change will be paint color. I hope this helps.

[NVSF: Update: Whole Foods]

This Week at the Planning Commission

A weekly look at Noe Valley projects in front of the Planning Commission. Information is provided by the Planning Commission, and taken from its published agenda. All hearings begin at 1:30pm, Room 400 in City Hall.

3645 23RD STREET - south side between Fair Oaks and Guerrero Streets; Lot 032 in Assessor’s Block 3647 - Mandatory Discretionary Review, under Planning Code Section 317 requiring review of residential demolition, of Demolition Permit Application No. 2007.10.10.5010, proposing to demolish a one-story, single-family dwelling in an RH-3 (Residential, House, Three-Family) District and a 40-X Height and Bulk District.

Preliminary Recommendation: Do not take Discretionary Review and approve the demolition permit.

3645 23RD STREET - south side between Fair Oaks and Guerrero Streets; Lot 032 in Assessor’s Block 3647 - Mandatory Discretionary Review, under Planning Code Section 317 requiring review of the replacement building in association with residential demolition, of Building Permit Application No. 2007.10.12.5328, to construct a three-story over garage, two-family dwelling in an RH-3 (Residential, House, Three-Family) District and a 40-X Height and Bulk District.

Preliminary Recommendation: Do not take Discretionary Review and approve the new building permit.

Also of interest is this item from the edge of Noe:

3398 22Nd street - northeast corner at Guerrero and 22nd Streets, Lot 028 in Assessor’s Block 3617 - Request for Conditional Use Authorization pursuant to Planning Code Sections 145.2, 303 and 710.26 to legalize a walk-up facility (ATM), dba "Swipe USA", that is not recessed 3-feet from the property line, in an NC-1 (Neighborhood Commercial Cluster) Zoning District with an 40-X Height and Bulk designation.

Preliminary Recommendation: Approval

NOTE: Will also include a brief informational presentation regarding Swipe USA's practice of installing ATMs within the City and County of San Francisco.

These machines are everywhere - there's even two within 10 feet of each other at 24th & Church. Is the City likely to start regulating where they go, or will they all be approved like the above location? And if approved, what's the point in the conditional use?

1260-1270 Dolores St: Under Fire

All of the windows at 1266 Dolores have 2-3 bullet holes in them. Random street gang target practice or have neighbors taken their disagreements to a new level? Besides taking sniper fire, there's been some more activity according to a neighbor's blog:

In November the builder began working on the second building again laying down the floors and breaking up and laying down the sidewalk, and cleaning up and putting in a yard which all look nice but if you really look closely there are bubbles in the wood and the first building has been exposed to the elements for so long that the wood is rotting and peeling away from the building. You can see it from the back side of the buildings.
...
Is this the kind of builder we want in San Francisco? Would you want to buy a new home from these guys?

There have also been 5 new complaints at the Planning Department:

12/29/08: Unsafe bldg.
01/23/09: Installed gas fireplace w/o permit; Installed fire sprinkler w/o permit; Installed 3 gas fireplace without permit; Installed fire sprinkler w/o permit.

All previous violations are still outstanding.

[NVSF: For Sale: 1260-1270 Dolores & More Than A Few Headaches]
[NVSF: 1266 Dolores St.]
[NoeValleyNeighbors]

Bell Market Employee Farewell

This flyer was handed out at the Farmer's Market this morning:

Join the Board of the Noe Valley Farmer's Market and other long-time shoppers and neighbors in honoring the service provided by the workers at Bell Market, which will permanently close its doors on February 15, 2009.

Some of Bell's most loyal and capable employees--all proud members of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union--have worked the Noe Valley store for over 30 years and have witnessed many changes to our neighborhood over this long history. During all that time, they have provided our community with excellent service, always treating us with politeness and respect--and often with warmth and humor--while expertly working along the aisles or at check-out counters or weighing out and packaging meat and fish or other specialty items. Although many of these workers did not live in out neighborhood, they have always been a true part of our community and in many cases have become our friends who have added greatly to the experience of shopping at Bell. These men and women have been the ones to supply Noe Valley with most of the staple foods we all eat every day and have contributed greatly to making Bell Market a venerable Noe Valley institution.

We will hold a ceremony in the presence of the Bell workers honoring their contribution next Saturday, February [7] at 11am in the horseshoe park area immediately adjoining the farmer's market.

Not everyone would agree with the hyperbole above, but the employees are losing their jobs in a tough market. Let's hope Whole Foods rehires the competent ones.

What: Ceremony to honor Bell Market employees
When: Saturday, February 7, 11:00am
Where: Park adjacent to Noe Valley Farmer's Market


[NVSF: Bell Market: Winding Down]

Photo: Streetlight Record's Last Day in Noe Valley

[NVV: Streetlight Set to Close Local Store]

Operation ESB Super Bowl

Looks like Noe Valley's only brew pub is hoping they can keep up with demand tomorrow:

Beginning "Operation ESB Super Bowl"... 180 pints available on tap. I'm getting reserves today just in case we run out
...
We have Super Bowl Stout (Daddy's Chocolate Milk); HohmannBrau Pale Ale; Elizabeth Street Bitter (ESB); and Marin Brewing Co. Mt. Tam Pale
...
Think I'll stock up with some 21st Amendment Brewery beer today as back-up. Although it's not good to have better reserves than your own.

[Twitter: Elizabeth Street Brewery]
[NVSF: Food Bites: What's New In Noe]

Noe Valley Democratic Club Town Forum

As mentioned earlier, there is a meeting on February 18th that (among other things) will give Noe Valley residents another chance to hear what's going on with Whole Foods and express concern or support.

NVDC presents Bevan Dufty in a town forum

Questions, opinions, musings about Noe Valley happenings? Now is the time to share them. Our supervisor, Bevan Dufty, will be here to answer your questions and/or direct you to some of the people who can fill in the details that you’ve been wondering about. Bevan will head up a panel consisting of Captain Stephan Tacchini of SAFE and the San Francisco Police Department, Debra Niemann, representing the Noe Valley Association and the Community Beautification District and Glen Moon of Whole Foods. Please feel free to forward questions in advance to me. Many have already expressed great interest in the fact that Whole Foods will be taking over the Bell Market space after extensive renovations. The speakers will appreciate the extra time to do advance research for your specific questions but of course questions will be entertained from the floor. There will be much to discuss and the panelists want to be prepared.

Our meeting will take place at our usual location and time:
Wednesday February 18 at 7:30 pm
St Philips Church
725 Diamond St. at Elizabeth St.

Again as usual, the meeting is open to the public and refreshments will be served.

Molly Fleischman
Vice-President
Noe Valley Democratic Club
415.641,5838 or molly@ffrsf.com

[Noe Valley Democratic Club (under construction)]
[NVSF: Update: Whole Foods]

Update: Whole Foods

A reader passed on notes from the Upper Noe Neighbors meeting last night at the Upper Noe Rec Center. We didn't have the group on our radar, as they've been quiet for months, but here's a description of who they are: "For 18 years, UNN has helped champion and improve their neighborhood. Whether the challenge is oversized development, screeching Muni tracks or calming traffic, the UNN has been dedicated and effective." If you attend a neighborhood meeting, please pass along your notes so that we may share them with the community.

On the agenda: Whole Foods and Congestion Pricing (yet ironically unrelated).

Whole Foods:

In brief:

• Bell Market closes on Valentine's Day
  
• Whole Foods takes over lease March 1
  
• Filed Change of Use on 1/29 (no details online yet)
  
• Community open house at St. Philips on February 18 (details as we get them)
  
• Planning Commission hearing on Feb 19
  
• Projected opening October 2009

Space:

• keep building structure and parking lot
  
• fix up and remodel interior
  

Products:

• Core goods only -- no Whole Body, no cafe, no kitchen stuff
• yes bakery, yes supplements, some prepared foods

[Trivia: the Mill Valley WF is about the same size and a good example of what to expect for product mix. For reference, the Franklin and Soma locations are twice the size of 3901 24th St.]

Rumors:

• Possible shuttle to other markets for eldery while under construction
  
• Possible temporary leases (perhaps Streetlight) for basic groceries while under construction
  
• Bevan Dufty and City have fast-tracked the permit process
• WF has tried, but been unable to secure a deal to take over the Real Foods space
  
• Confirmed they're in talks with the developer at Dolores/Market, but would not say more

Community Wishlist:

• Stroller lane for checkout, dog zone outside store -- "This is Noe Valley"
• Use of parking lot while shopping at other 24th St locations (not likely to happen)
• Shuttle/delivery service for neighborhood residents
  

The community liaison for this project lives in Noe Valley, and works at the 4th/Harrison location. His name is Andrew Calabrese, and his email is andrew.calabrese@wholefoods.com. He's fielding all questions and suggestions from the neighborhood.

Also feel free to discuss in the comments and we'll make sure he's reading.


Congestion Pricing: Principal Transportation Planner Zabe Bent gave a presentation explaining the hypothetical plans for charging automobile drivers to cross in and out of parts (or all) of San Francisco. She emphasized that the study is still in the early phase, and hopes to learn from trials in London, Stockholm and Rome. For information on the project, upcoming meetings or how to get involved visit the San Francisco County Transportation Authority website, or send comments/questions to Zabe Bent or mobility@sfcta.org. Most useful concern expressed: don't let Noe Valley become a park and ride for downtown commuters.

[Side note: Bevan Dufty is the new chairman of the SFCTA.]

Notables in attendance: Gwen Sanderson (NVMPA President), District 8 Supervisor hopefuls Rafael Mandelmann and Scott Wiener, as well as representatives from the Transit Authority and Whole Foods. 15-20 residents and members of UNN also attended.

[NVSF: Bell Market: Winding Down]
[SFCTA: Congestion Pricing]